Pagaivan (transl. Antagonist) is a 1997 Indian Tamil-language action comedy film directed by Ramesh Balakrishnan, starring Ajith Kumar, Sathyaraj and Anjala Zaveri. The film revolves around a kidnapping undertaken by Ajith's character and the actions that the victim's father take to save his daughter. The film also featured Ranjitha, Nagesh, K. S. Ravikumar and Vivek who all appear in supporting roles. It was released on 1 August 1997,[1] to mixed reviews but critics praised the comedy and performance of Sathyaraj.[2] The film was a commercial failure.[3]
| Pagaivan | |
|---|---|
 Poster | |
| Directed by | Ramesh Balakrishnan |
| Written by | Boopathy Pandian (dialogues) |
| Story by | Viswaas Sundar |
| Produced by | Viswaas Sundar |
| Starring | Ajith Kumar Sathyaraj Anjala Zaveri |
| Cinematography | D. Shankar |
| Edited by | B. Lenin V. T. Vijayan |
| Music by | Deva |
Production company | Viswas Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 142 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Plot edit
This article needs an improved plot summary. (March 2022) |
Prabhu, despite having all the required qualifications for the job he applied for, fails after he was demanded to pay a considerable amount as a caution deposit. And every time, all his chances of getting the job were hanging on the payment of this caution.
Determined to get the job at all costs, Prabhu is ready to do anything to obtain this amount as quickly as possible. So Prabhu decides to kidnap someone so as to demand a ransom from the family of this person. The fate leads him to abduct Uma, who happens to be the one and only daughter of Minister Durai Raj.
Uma falls in love with Prabhu and, before long, Prabhu begins to love Uma too. Meanwhile, Uma’s parents hire Vasu, a rowdy who’s ready to do anything for the sake of money, to find their daughter. The rest of the film revolves around if the pair will be found.
Cast edit
- Ajith Kumar as Prabhu
- Sathyaraj as Vasu
- Ranjitha as Esther
- Anjala Zaveri as Uma Durairaj
- Nagesh as Church father
- K. S. Ravikumar as Minister Durairaj
- Mansoor Ali Khan as Dharman
- Babu Antony as Dharman's brother
- Sumithra as Uma's mother
- Delhi Ganesh as Prabhu's father
- Vivek as Prabhu's friend
- G. Venkateswaran as Padmanaban, Medicine company owner
- Manobala as Govindhan
- Bayilvan Ranganathan as Durairaj's assistant
- Sempuli Jagan as Singam
- Ajay Rathnam as the Police inspector
- Balu Anand as a Security guard
- Soundar as Barman
- Mahanadi Shankar as Fighter
- Naga Kannan as Welding Kannan
- Vikram Singh as Singh
- Dhamu as Prabhu's friend
- Madhan Bob as Judge
- Ravi Raj as Lawyer
- Vellai Subbaiah as Kaliaperumal
- S. Lalitha as Prabhu's mother
- Priyanka as an Office clerk
Production edit
During the making of the film, the producers fell out with actress Anjala Zaveri, causing the film to be briefly delayed.[4]
Soundtrack edit
The soundtrack was composed by Deva, with lyrics written by Vairamuthu.[5]
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Happy New Year" | Mano, Krishnaraj | 5:23 |
| 2. | "Rajanea" | Anuradha Sriram, Arunmozhi | 5:08 |
| 3. | "Anda Ka Kasam" | Mano | 5:13 |
| 4. | "Oh My Butter Fly" | Gopal Rao, Sujatha | 5:14 |
| 5. | "Poo Malai Podum" | Anuradha Sriram, Krishnaraj | 5:23 |
| 6. | "Vaazhkai Enbadhu" | Malaysia Vasudevan | 2:13 |
| Total length: | 28:34 | ||
Reception edit
Ji of Kalki praised the acting of Sathyaraj and K. S. Ravikumar, he praised Deva's background score but panned his songs while also praising film's fast pace, fight choreography and camera angles.[6]
References edit
- ^ "ஆகஸ்ட் மாதம் ரிலீசாகும் ஹிட் படங்கள்... அஜித்தின் சென்டிமென்ட்!". News18 (in Tamil). 26 March 2019. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 7 June 2023.
- ^ Kavitha. "Pagaivan". ajithkumar.free.fr. Archived from the original on 20 September 2020. Retrieved 11 September 2019.
- ^ "10 films that were turning points in Thala Ajith's career". The Times of India. 1 May 2021. Archived from the original on 7 December 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ "A-Z (IV)". Indolink. Archived from the original on 27 September 2013. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Pagaivan". Gaana. Archived from the original on 5 January 2022. Retrieved 8 March 2022.
- ^ ஜி. (17 August 1997). "பகைவன்". Kalki (in Tamil). p. 80. Archived from the original on 17 March 2023. Retrieved 17 March 2023 – via Internet Archive.
