Musing #23: Azhagiya Tamizh Magan - Vijay :)

It just crossed my mind that i have never posted about Vijay...
In case you are wondering, Madhavan was my first love, I've been a huge fan of Vijay since forever, and Allu Arjun is my varudu/sweetheart!!!!!!! (just to set the records straight:P)

In the whole Surya-Vijay debate, I have always been on Vijay's side.
The oldest argument is about how Vijay is stuck in the same old mould while Surya's great at experimenting roles. I agree - Surya takes risks and they pay off..But it's not like Vijay has not experimented before, it's just that they have not paid off...

He tried negative roles in Priyamudan, Azhagiya Tamizh Magan (which i love!), tried roles that are not mass-style but still are smart characters like the always be positive Sarathi in Puthiya Geethai, Surya in Tamizhan. But such risks always end up negatively.So can you blame the guy for sticking to the tried and tested formula?
1996-2001 was a peak in his career. Who didn't love Raja in Poovae Unakkaagha, Shiva in Kushi, Vijay in Priyamanavale, and many other memorable roles? He made us laugh, made us cry and root for him in those movies! I still remember a scene in Thullatha Manamum Thullum where he had to cry about his mother's death in the toilet- i still burst into tears whenever i see it...powerful acting..
After that, i believe the boost in his career gave him the courage to try other scripts but most were average if not poor at the box-office. Tamizhan and Puthiya Geethai were my faves but somehow they didn't strike a chord with the audience

But he struck gold once more in the mass hero image with Thirumalai in 2003 and since then, his mass roles were the ones that gave him a string of hits. You wish to complain about his punch dialogues? Well, who gave the great response to his punch dialogues in Thirumalai in the first place? We all have tasted failure before. As a hero, one is not just accountable to the fans but also to the producer. So perhaps he felt personally responsible and didn't want to venture into too much of risks. So, it was yet another golden era, with Thirumalai, Ghilli,Thirupachi, Sivakasi, Pokkiri..All mega blockbusters,mass-style, which helped to gloss over bad movies like Udaya and Sachien. Ghilli and Pokkiri were remakes of Mahesh Babu,whom i like but still,Vijay did complete justice to both roles and he provided the comedy and excellent dance that I personally felt Mahesh Babu lacks slightly. I think the issue of him doing remakes is not even worth discussing cos remakes are done by lots of actors in various languages.

Emboldened by this stupendous successes, he took the challenge of a double role as both hero and villain which i thought was awesome. He played the evil guy, Prasad character really well, with a comedic and cunning portrayal. But it didn't pay off that well, which i think the loopholes in logic may have been a cause as well. But audience also commented they cannot get used to seeing him in a negative shade. Then can you blame the guy for going back to mass style?
Sadly though, since then, his movies have not been quite up to the mark... yet. Kuruvi was not bad - amazing dance,fights and good comedy. Villu was kind of a all time low, Vettaikaaran seemed to improve the situation but Sura, hmm, i would say slow...

Just watched it yesterday and i personally felt that the movie seemed disjointed- just didn't flow. As usual, audience had to make up their own interpretation to plug up logic loopholes. Like when he was supposed to be burnt but he survived cos Amma statue was over him. While that was cool , that he was saved by Amma's hands, how can we make the link when he was in a hut somewhere and the statue was somewhere further down initially? As a fan of Vijay, we may take the trouble to find links but normal audience probably just scoff. Comedy at beginning was not bad but slowly died down. There were about two good strategies used by him, but ending just fizzled... Vijay's dancing potential was not maximised except in the Bommayi and Naam nadanthaal song. Mani Sharma i felt, spent too much of time for Varudu songs, so Vijay had to make do with Telugu Billa's songs. Off screen, i liked the Vanga Kadal Ellai song but Vijay's steps didn't sizzle onscreen (where's Lawrence when you need him!!!).
Otherwise, as i watched Sura, i felt it was more of a platform to launch his political career (with those do-good for people dialogues,etc)that i really hope he DOES NOT get into. So far, politics has NOT been kind to actors who have forayed into it, not just tamil but India-wide. Anyway, this post is not meant to be a turn-off for Sura- watch it..for Vijay and his dance. The one shot that stole me heart was in the beginning when there was this close-up shot of Vijay smiling, such a charming smile (i wish i could take a screen cap of it)!

Yes,yes Surya fits the conventional image of handsome- fair, good-looking, if not a bit on the short side:P, six pack etc.. But Vijay still is handsome to me. So what if he's dark? His smile is more than enough to win me over. He looks awesome in long sleeved white or black shirts especially,(cue Thaen Thaen from Kuruvi, Azhagooril from Thirumalai, Nee Mutham Ondru from Pokkiri). Style? If you are asking this, then you must have been on another planet-have you not seen Dole Dole in Tamil Pokkiri!
Charismatic and charming, amazing dance, impactful acting (won state awardS before),sings well, romantic/comical expressions in songs and excellent sense of comedy, he's a true Hero. It's not that i want Vijay to remain mass-hero. I too want to see him in roles that stretch his acting ability- he has it, so why not maximise its potential? He promised in his Sura Audio release function that he's gonna experiment with different roles...and i trust Vijay.
So to all, of you detractors of Vijay, just keep your mouths shut for awhile. We did too, when Surya/Vikram were on their lows, so, just wait patiently. It's only a matter of time before my Vijay will be surfing the high waves of boxoffice again. Why not the high waves of Stardom you say? Cos he's already up there, a brightly Shining Star. He will always be and personally, he is THE Azhagiya Tamizh Magan.