Vaidehi Kathirundal Tamil movie review

Vijaykanth and Revathi play the lead roles in this 1984 movie.

    Revathi plays the role of young widow named Vaidehi and Vijaykanth is a recluse whose nightly songs soothe the entire village but no one knows his story.  He scratches her name in the temple walls which intrigue the villagers and they start to speculate if the two (hero and heroine) have any connection. 
    That's when Vijaykanth narrates his tragic story to her - his beloved's name is Vaidehi too.  'Do not jump to conclusions' is one moral viewers can probably learn from her avoidable death.  This Vaidehi too opens up her history to him too, of how she came to suffer this fate at such a young age. 
    Meanwhile love blossoms between two youngsters - a new arrival to the village and a rowdy's (Radharavi's) sister.  By some circumstance the new arrival (who ends up working at a ration shop) stays with Revathy and her dad; and quite inadvertly the new person gives the idea that he may be interested in marrying Revathy.  The dad is quite enthusiastic about the prospect of a new lease of life for his daughter.  I think that it is in poor taste that the new person calls Revathy to a secluded spot just to seek help for his love which Radharavi is dead against.
   The pathos of all the primary characters forms the rest of the story.
Goundamani as 'All in all Azhaguraja' makes quite an impression which has in fact been considered as iconic.
    The music of Ilaiyaraja deserves another laudable mention.  'Indraikku yen intha' in Abhogi ragam is mesmerizing and refreshing.
 

Kizhakku cheemaiyile - Tamil movie review

A movie brimming with sentimentality - the usual sister brother affection accentuated by her getting married to the wrong person (Napolean) who respects neither her nor her brother.  It pains the brother Vijayakumar even more so because this groom was his choice for his dear sister Radhika.  Things between the two men were not always like this - a fight when Napolean is inebriated causes irreparable damage - one his eloped sister commits suicide and two, he blames Vijayakumar in some indirect way.  But Radhika's mother in law is consistently nasty towards her right from the beginning - more so after she bears a girl child.

Things go downhill from there and people surrounding Napolean are no help either.  He then demands Radhika's share of property and refuses to invite him for his daughter's ear-piercing ceremony.  The brother and sister are totally shattered; the former always lets go because his sister's honor is at stake and the latter understands fully well her husband's unreasonable actions but stays docile because a wife has to be subservient to her husband at all times.  Time passes on like this and the next generation has grown up.  But what I find unable to comprehend is how Radhika, who was ready to cut her hand (literally cut her hand)  just because her brother dared her to in their childhood, now with each atrocity of her husband, begs her brother very ardently to forgive him to safeguard her honor as a wife.  Could'nt she just walk out from a place where she is not happy?   Maybe not after the first fight but eventually seeing that she could never be openly cordial with her brother and his son, with whom she entertains thoughts of marrying off her daughter?

Well, after three hours of watching the drama unfold, it has to end and things take a drastic turn when she takes the decision-making into her own hands.

Rahman's music could be more apt.  The use of some western instruments in a village backdrop seemed irrelevant to me.  Maybe at that time (1993?)  the songs may have been a superhit.