O Kadhal Kanmani (), also known as OK Kanmani, is a 2015 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written, directed and produced by Mani Ratnam. The film stars Dulquer Salmaan and Nithya Menen, portraying a young couple in a live-in relationship in Mumbai. Prakash Raj and Leela Samson play supporting roles as an older couple in the film, portraying the younger couple's landlords. The film was said to be a "reflection of the modern mindset of urban India", dealing with issues such as marriage and traditional values. The film featured music composed by A. R. Rahman, cinematography by P. C. Sreeram and editing by Sreekar Prasad.
Prior to the film's release, the soundtrack was well received and the promotional activity of the film on social media also garnered praise. O Kadhal Kanmani was released on 17 April 2015 and won positive reviews from critics, praising the lead pair's performances and the quality of the film's technical aspects. The film became a financial success at the box office, performing extremely well in Indian multiplexes and overseas. The film was later remade into Hindi as Ok Jaanu in 2017.
Plot
Aditya Varadarajan (Dulquer Salmaan) is a video game developer who accidentally meets Tara Kalingarayar (Nithya Menen) at his colleague's wedding. He later finds out that she is planning to pursue her studies in Paris. They soon begin to call each other often, go out together, and start to fall in love during a holiday that they take together. They agree that marriage is not for them and decide to have a live-in relationship instead, and Tara moves into Adi's place, rented from Ganapathy. They wish to spend their time with each other before they go their separate ways for their respective careers. Tara and Adi live happily, being playful with each other.
One midnight, Tara has a conversation with Ganapathy (Prakash Raj). She tells him that she might get her visa approved for going to Paris, and that it is hard for her to leave Adi and go far away. The next day, Tara goes to Jaipur for her business, and Adi starts to miss her terribly. Upon seeing the love and patience that Ganapathy has for his wife Bhavani, an Alzheimer's patient, who one day even forgets the way to her own house, they begin to understand the importance of each other's presence in their life.
Soon, Adi is selected to develop his skills in video games and to go to US. He tells his colleague that it is hard for him to leave Tara. The next day, both of them make an agreement to enjoy themselves to the maximum for the 10 days left before they separate. Nearing the last day, they begin to have little fights and arguments, which do not last long.
One day, Bhavani goes missing again, as she did when she forgot her house address. While looking for her, they continue arguing about their relationship. Finally, Adi proposes to Tara, and they decide to get married. Post marriage, both of them continue to accomplish their own dreams, one in Paris, another in the US. In the post credits, it is shown that Adi has finished his project in US and has moved to Paris where they reunite and have a baby.
Cast
Dulquer Salmaan as Aditya 'Adhi' Varadarajan
Nithya Menen as Tara Kalingarayar
Prakash Raj as Ganapathy Iyer
Leela Samson as Bhavani Ganapathy
Vinodhini Vaidyanathan as Saroja
Ramya S. as Ananya
Prabhu Lakshman as Buddy
Siva Ananth as Vasudevan Varadarajan
Rama Ramasamy as Chandrika
John Devasahayam as John
Kanika as a woman at the clinic (cameo appearance) B. V. Doshi as himself (cameo appearance)
Production
Development
In early 2014, Mani Ratnam first approached Telugu actor Ram Charan to be a part of the film, but he felt the lead role would not work for him. In August 2014, Madras Talkies had confirmed that Dulquer Salmaan would play the lead role in their forthcoming production and it was reported that Mani Ratnam's regular collaborator, composer A. R. Rahman would also work on the film. Vairamuthu renewed his collaboration with Mani Ratnam and A. R. Rahman to write song lyrics, and stated that the director had told him the film's plot concisely within three minutes and described it as a "beautiful love story" about "two characters and their love and mindset". P. C. Sreeram joined the team later in the month, collaborating with the director after Alaipayuthey (2000). During the making of the film, the cinematographer hinted that the film has contents on the lines of Ratnam's Alaipayuthey (2000), and that it was also loosely based on a real life incident. In October 2014, the film was revealed to have a working title of OK Kanmani.