Paarthale Paravasam () is a 2001 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by K. Balachander, for whom this was his 100th film. It was produced by Balachander's home banner Kavithalayaa Productions and stars Madhavan Simran, Raghava Lawrence and Sneha . The film's music was composed by A. R. Rahman, whilst A. Venkatesh was cinematographer. It tells the story of a couple going through a breakup after the husband is exposed for having had a child from a juvenile relationship. It also shows the introduction of love interests for the couple, and if they reconcile, forms the crux of the plot.
Paarthale Paravasam released on 14 November 2001 to mixed reviews and became a commercial failure.
Plot
Madhava is a doctor, and a single appearance has made him the heartthrob of thousands of girls. He marries Simi, but a revelation about his past separates them and takes them as far as divorce. They remain friends though, even going so far as to fix up each other's second marriages. Simi decides to get Madhava married to Chella, a nurse at his hospital, while he tries to fix up her marriage with a dancer Azhagu. Madhava and Chella's wedding and Simi and Azhagu's wedding are on the same date. Azhagu then marries his cousin due to his father's greed for wealth. Chella's parents find out about Madhava's past and call off the wedding. In the end, Madhava and Simi remarry. Chella marries Kumaran, Madhava's colleague, who was interested in her ever since he became Madhava's understudy in the hospital.
Cast
Madhavan as Dr. Madhava
Simran as Simi Madhava
Raghava Lawrence as Azhagu
Sneha as Chella
Vaali as Bala
Vivek as Dr. Kumaran
Nizhalgal Ravi as Mudaliar
Manivannan as Nellai Amaran
Seema as Madhava's mother
Vadivukkarasi as Akilam
Radhika Chaudhari as Rekha
Deepa Venkat as Simi's friend
Cochin Haneefa
Mohan Raman
Mohan Vaidya
Thalaivasal Vijay
Kuyili
Dr. Sharmila
Viji Chandrasekhar
Charle
Dhamu
Kavithalaya Krishnan
Mayilsamy
Periya Karuppu Thevar
Kamal Haasan as himself (guest appearance) Ramya Krishnan as herself (guest appearance) Madhan Bob as Kamal Haasan's fan (uncredited) Samuthirakani as Back Pain Patient (uncredited) Yuvarani as Miss Chennai Host (uncredited)
Production
Paarthale Paravasam was launched as Balachander's 100th film at his office in Chennai. The original cast announced on the day of the launch included noted singer S. P. Balasubrahmanyam. However, he was replaced by prominent poet Vaali before the shoot started. Moreover, Raju Sundaram was initially supposed to play the role eventually portrayed by Lawrence in the film. Balachandar managed to select Kamal Haasan in a guest appearance, but failed to do the same with Rajinikanth.
Production of the film was delayed multiple times during the shoot owing to rains in Kerala. Balachander also announced that Rahman and Simran's busy scheduled had held up the film's progress. A song for the film was shot in Malaysia featuring Madhavan and Sneha. Another was shot at Bekal Fort, Kasargod, in Kerala with Madhavan and Simran, which took five days to finish. The introduction song of Madhavan and a team of dancers was shot in Ooty, while a fourth song sequence, with Madhavan and Simran was on the floors of AVM. The fifth was picturised in the Vijaya Vauhini Studios, in sets where Lawrence and Simran danced for the fifth song.
Release and reception
The film, upon release on 14 November 2001, with critics citing it as a "disappointment". A critic claimed that the dialogues were "insipid", the narration "lacklustre" and the film was "a monotonous journey for the audience". Similarly, the reviewer from Sify.com labelled the film as "insufferable" and drew criticism to the director and the lead actors, saying that only Vivek's position was the "silver lining". The Hindu wrote "The storyline is the foundation on which an interesting screenplay is built and when the foundation itself is flawed, the exercise makes you weary — especially towards the end." Rediff wrote "At the end of it all, you get the feeling that the director failed to keep control of his storyline. Which is very sad, considering the director was known to be a control freak, and his trademark was a gift for intense, gripping storytelling". Visual Dasan of Kalki wrote The problem is that Balachander, who got into being a little realistic, a little cinematic, and a lot guts, has gotten stuck in dramatic cinema this time.