Nayakan (1987)

Personally, I was more into the love story between Velu (bday boi Kamal Uncle) and Neela (Saranya, who is fast becoming a favourite, after Vedam and Nani's Gang Leader). The gangster parts bored me a little, but that's mostly because I am not a fan of such movies anyway. Fans of the genre however seem to be in love with this movie, so if you really love watching intense gangster movies, you'll probably love it too. All that masculinity exhausts me, honestly.

However, credits where credits are due- Nayakan does not have token female characters AT ALL. Neela, despite being in some of the most deplorable circumstances, does not give up on her education. And she's not the typical "aggressive" woman you'd associate with that sentence- she's as soft as they come, which adds another layer of nuance to not just her character, but also to the relationship between her and Velu, and to Velu's character as well. Even Velu himself was not just a macho protagonist. Also, the film's cinematography is brilliant, and makes the story that much more interesting. Ilaiyaraaja's music never disappoints, and even by itself, is enough for someone like me to sit through the movie.

In conclusion, I feel like such an intellectual for using the word 'cinematography' correctly, that too in a Mani Ratnam "review". *smug smiles only*

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