Agni Natchathiram
Encyclopedia
Agni Natchathiram is a 1988
Tamil
film
directed
by Mani Ratnam
. The movie is about two half-brothers who come into conflict with each other in their claim for legitimacy as sons of a common father. The cast includes Prabhu Ganesan
and Karthik Muthuraman
. The movie's score and soundtrack are composed by Ilaiyaraaja
. The movie is regarded as a landmark in Indian cinematography
with trend-setting lighting work by P. C. Sriram
. The movie was blockbuster and was dubbed into Telugu
with the title Gharshana (not to be confused with the 2004 Telugu
film of the same name
), and was later remade in Hindi as Vansh.
) attends a Job interview in which the interviewer turns out to be his father’s, Vishwanath (Vijayakumar), high school friend. The interviewer asks personal questions and it is revealed that Ashok is Vishwanath’s second wife’s, (Jayachitra
), son. More personal questions anger Ashok and he beats the interviewer and storms out.
Gautam (Prabhu Ganesan
), is a police academy trainee and during a routine boxing match, he goes overboard and beats up his opponent even after the referee has stopped the fight. The police commissioner reprimands Gautam and asks him not to take out his anger towards his father, Vishwanath, on someone else.
Ashok returns home to his mother, Sister and his inebriated father. His mother asks him to take his father to his 1st wife’s, (Sumitra
) wife’s home. Ashok initially protests but relents to take him home. After the ride, Gautam comes to the door and helps his father into home. There is a brief moment of animosity between Gautam and Ashok and it is pretty clear that both the half-brothers hate each other.
During a party at the Police Commissioner’s house, Gautam meets the Commissioner’s daughter, Anjali (Amala
) when he covers for her smoking. One day, when Ashok is just hanging out with his friends, a girl, (Nirosha
), looks at him, shouts “I love you” and drives away. A stunned Ashok tries to follow her but loses her in the traffic. Vishwanath is appointed the head of an inquiry commission to probe a chemical factory, owned by Chidambaram, believed to sell chemicals to terrorists.
Gautam, graduates from the academy, is appointed as an assistant commissioner and Anjali and he fall in love with each other. Ashok runs into Nirosha again but this time he memorizes her car number. He traces her address by bribing a transport officer, goes to her home and says “I love you” to a surprised Nirosha.
Ashok and his gang of friends run into Gautam and Anajali which prompts one of Ashoks friend to tease Gautam. Gautam soon stops Ashok’s friend while he is riding his motorbike and asks for his license. When he shows it, Gautam throws it away and arrests him for driving without a license but instructs his constables to release him after a couple of hours. A peeved Ashok goes to Gautam’s place and stones it causing an accidental injury to Jayachitra.
The next day, Gautam tries to arrest Ashok but Ashok teases him that he doesn’t have a warrant and cannot be arrested. Gautam accuses Ashok‘s parentage which causes Ashok lose his cool and assault Gautam. Gautam then arrests Ashok on charges of assaulting an officer of the law. Since Vishwanath is out of town, Jayachitra helps Sumitra bailout Ashok.
Chidambaram visits Vishwanath at his office and later at both his home and tries to bribe him but each time Vishwanath rebuffs Chidambaram. An irked Chidambaram puts a hit on Vishwanath if he still continues with his investigation.
On the day when Ashok’s sister is to be asked for her hand in marriage (An Indian tradition in which the parents of the bride and groom meet each other and get the bride and groom engaged to one another), Vishwanath fails to turn up which causes the grooms family to question the marriage between Sumitra and Vishwanath. An angry Ashok goes to Vishwanath’s home and creates a ruckus only to realize that his grandmother, Vishwanath’s mother has died. Gautam, angered by the scene caused by Ashok, throws him out.
Nirosha visits Ashok at his home uninvited and falsely tells him that she is pregnant with his child in front of this mother to get him in trouble. Ashok finds her having lunch with her father and enquires about her pregnancy to scare her. But he stops once he learns that Nirosha too comes from a broken home.
One day, when Ashok’s sister is travelling by train she runs into Gautam and Anjali, so Gautam gets into the next train car. After he leaves, Chidambaram’s men harass and threaten the sister. She runs away and tells Gautam and Gautam saves her. While dropping her off at her home, Ashok throws Gautam out of his house.
Another altercation occurs in a wedding in which both exchange words. The next day, Ashok finds Gautam and both get into a huge brawl, which Vishwanath witnesses. Vishwanath’s berates both of them and gives up hope on both of them ever getting on with each other. While Vishwanath is leaving his office, he gets run over by a truck driven by one of Chidambaram’s thugs.
Vishwanath survives with severe injuries but goes into a coma in the hospital. Mutual fear between the families brings them closer as both Sumitra and Jayachitra wait by his bedside. Ashok threatens Chidambaram with dire consequences if his father dies. Gautam tracks down the truck driver and arrests him. Unhappy that Vishwanath survived, Chidambaram arranges for his murder in the hospital. He uses his connections to remove the police security from the hospital and gets the truck driver out on bail. Vishwanath comes out of the coma and asks both his sons to help keep him alive till he presents his evidence against Chidambaram to the commission the next day. When Chidambaram’s thugs attack the hospital, the step brothers work together to stop the assassination attempt by switching the ambulance in which Vishwanath was in while Chidambaram's thugs destroy the wrong ambulance.
The next day, a bandaged Vishwanath is brought into the commission's office by the brothers and Vishwanath submits evidence proving Chidambaram’s illegal activities. The movie ends with Gautam arresting Chidambaram and both the brothers embracing each other.
The film has a parallel comedic track which focuses on a Rich man and his Chauffeur’s (Janakaraj) quest to ditch their wives and to sleep with a pretty prostitute.
by Ilaiyaraaja, with lyrics
by Vaali.
1988 in film
-Top grossing films :- Awards :Academy Awards:* Act of Piracy* Action Jackson, starring Carl Weathers, Craig T. Nelson, Vanity, Sharon Stone* The Adventures of Baron Munchausen* Akira* Alice...
Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
directed
Film director
A film director is a person who directs the actors and film crew in filmmaking. They control a film's artistic and dramatic nathan roach, while guiding the technical crew and actors.-Responsibilities:...
by Mani Ratnam
Mani Ratnam
Mani Ratnam is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter and producer. He made his directorial debut with the Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi starring Anil Kapoor in 1983...
. The movie is about two half-brothers who come into conflict with each other in their claim for legitimacy as sons of a common father. The cast includes Prabhu Ganesan
Prabhu Ganesan
Prabhu Ganesan is a Tamil film actor and producer. He is the son of veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan.-Personal life:A native of Tamil Nadu, Prabhu was born to Sivaji and Kamala Ganesan. He has an elder brother Ramkumar Ganesan who is a film producer, and two sisters, Shanthi and Thenmozhi. He did his...
and Karthik Muthuraman
Karthik Muthuraman
Murali Karthikeyan Muthuraman , better known by his screen name Karthik , is a Tamil film actor and politician. He is the son of veteran actor R. Muthuraman. He was first introduced by Bharathiraja in the film Alaigal Oivathillai...
. The movie's score and soundtrack are composed by Ilaiyaraaja
Ilaiyaraaja
Ilaiyaraaja is an Indian film composer, singer, and lyricist mainly in the Tamil film Industry. He is regarded as one of the finest music composers in India. Ilaiyaraaja is also an instrumentalist, conductor, and a songwriter...
. The movie is regarded as a landmark in Indian cinematography
Cinematography
Cinematography is the making of lighting and camera choices when recording photographic images for cinema. It is closely related to the art of still photography...
with trend-setting lighting work by P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sreeram is a cinematographer and film director, educated at the Film and Television Institute of Tamil nadu . P.C. Sreeram is fondly called as PC sir. P.C. Sreeram won appreciations for his various cinematographic works and his directorial venture Kurruthipunal was selected as India's...
. The movie was blockbuster and was dubbed into Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
with the title Gharshana (not to be confused with the 2004 Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
film of the same name
Gharshana
-References:*http://subsplanet.com/gharshana-2004-telugu-movie-subtitle.html*http://movies.sulekha.com/telugu/gharshana/pictures/6.htm*http://www.bollywhat-forum.com/index.php?topic=13692.0...
), and was later remade in Hindi as Vansh.
Plot
Ashok (Karthik MuthuramanKarthik Muthuraman
Murali Karthikeyan Muthuraman , better known by his screen name Karthik , is a Tamil film actor and politician. He is the son of veteran actor R. Muthuraman. He was first introduced by Bharathiraja in the film Alaigal Oivathillai...
) attends a Job interview in which the interviewer turns out to be his father’s, Vishwanath (Vijayakumar), high school friend. The interviewer asks personal questions and it is revealed that Ashok is Vishwanath’s second wife’s, (Jayachitra
Jayachitra
Jayachitra was an acting star in South Indian films of the 1970s and 1980s, consisting mostly of Tamil and Telugu films.-Childhood:...
), son. More personal questions anger Ashok and he beats the interviewer and storms out.
Gautam (Prabhu Ganesan
Prabhu Ganesan
Prabhu Ganesan is a Tamil film actor and producer. He is the son of veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan.-Personal life:A native of Tamil Nadu, Prabhu was born to Sivaji and Kamala Ganesan. He has an elder brother Ramkumar Ganesan who is a film producer, and two sisters, Shanthi and Thenmozhi. He did his...
), is a police academy trainee and during a routine boxing match, he goes overboard and beats up his opponent even after the referee has stopped the fight. The police commissioner reprimands Gautam and asks him not to take out his anger towards his father, Vishwanath, on someone else.
Ashok returns home to his mother, Sister and his inebriated father. His mother asks him to take his father to his 1st wife’s, (Sumitra
Sumitra
Sumitra in the Indian Ramayana epic, was the third of King Dasaratha's three wives and a queen of Ayodhyā. She was the mother of twins Lakshmana and Shatrughna. She came from the ancient kingdom of Kashi. She was supposed to be the wisest of the wives of Dasaratha. She was the one to first...
) wife’s home. Ashok initially protests but relents to take him home. After the ride, Gautam comes to the door and helps his father into home. There is a brief moment of animosity between Gautam and Ashok and it is pretty clear that both the half-brothers hate each other.
During a party at the Police Commissioner’s house, Gautam meets the Commissioner’s daughter, Anjali (Amala
Amala
Amala is a given name in India. It may also refer to:* Amala , a South Indian actress* Amala and Kamala, two girls discovered in 1920, who were raised by wolves in India* Amala , a West African meal...
) when he covers for her smoking. One day, when Ashok is just hanging out with his friends, a girl, (Nirosha
Nirosha
Nirosha is a Tamil, Telugu film actress. She started her career with the Tamil movie Agni Natchathiram in 1988. Nirosha is the daughter of the late Tamil actor and comedian, M. R. Radha . She has an elder sister named Radhika who is also a famous actress. She has married actor Ramki and lives in...
), looks at him, shouts “I love you” and drives away. A stunned Ashok tries to follow her but loses her in the traffic. Vishwanath is appointed the head of an inquiry commission to probe a chemical factory, owned by Chidambaram, believed to sell chemicals to terrorists.
Gautam, graduates from the academy, is appointed as an assistant commissioner and Anjali and he fall in love with each other. Ashok runs into Nirosha again but this time he memorizes her car number. He traces her address by bribing a transport officer, goes to her home and says “I love you” to a surprised Nirosha.
Ashok and his gang of friends run into Gautam and Anajali which prompts one of Ashoks friend to tease Gautam. Gautam soon stops Ashok’s friend while he is riding his motorbike and asks for his license. When he shows it, Gautam throws it away and arrests him for driving without a license but instructs his constables to release him after a couple of hours. A peeved Ashok goes to Gautam’s place and stones it causing an accidental injury to Jayachitra.
The next day, Gautam tries to arrest Ashok but Ashok teases him that he doesn’t have a warrant and cannot be arrested. Gautam accuses Ashok‘s parentage which causes Ashok lose his cool and assault Gautam. Gautam then arrests Ashok on charges of assaulting an officer of the law. Since Vishwanath is out of town, Jayachitra helps Sumitra bailout Ashok.
Chidambaram visits Vishwanath at his office and later at both his home and tries to bribe him but each time Vishwanath rebuffs Chidambaram. An irked Chidambaram puts a hit on Vishwanath if he still continues with his investigation.
On the day when Ashok’s sister is to be asked for her hand in marriage (An Indian tradition in which the parents of the bride and groom meet each other and get the bride and groom engaged to one another), Vishwanath fails to turn up which causes the grooms family to question the marriage between Sumitra and Vishwanath. An angry Ashok goes to Vishwanath’s home and creates a ruckus only to realize that his grandmother, Vishwanath’s mother has died. Gautam, angered by the scene caused by Ashok, throws him out.
Nirosha visits Ashok at his home uninvited and falsely tells him that she is pregnant with his child in front of this mother to get him in trouble. Ashok finds her having lunch with her father and enquires about her pregnancy to scare her. But he stops once he learns that Nirosha too comes from a broken home.
One day, when Ashok’s sister is travelling by train she runs into Gautam and Anjali, so Gautam gets into the next train car. After he leaves, Chidambaram’s men harass and threaten the sister. She runs away and tells Gautam and Gautam saves her. While dropping her off at her home, Ashok throws Gautam out of his house.
Another altercation occurs in a wedding in which both exchange words. The next day, Ashok finds Gautam and both get into a huge brawl, which Vishwanath witnesses. Vishwanath’s berates both of them and gives up hope on both of them ever getting on with each other. While Vishwanath is leaving his office, he gets run over by a truck driven by one of Chidambaram’s thugs.
Vishwanath survives with severe injuries but goes into a coma in the hospital. Mutual fear between the families brings them closer as both Sumitra and Jayachitra wait by his bedside. Ashok threatens Chidambaram with dire consequences if his father dies. Gautam tracks down the truck driver and arrests him. Unhappy that Vishwanath survived, Chidambaram arranges for his murder in the hospital. He uses his connections to remove the police security from the hospital and gets the truck driver out on bail. Vishwanath comes out of the coma and asks both his sons to help keep him alive till he presents his evidence against Chidambaram to the commission the next day. When Chidambaram’s thugs attack the hospital, the step brothers work together to stop the assassination attempt by switching the ambulance in which Vishwanath was in while Chidambaram's thugs destroy the wrong ambulance.
The next day, a bandaged Vishwanath is brought into the commission's office by the brothers and Vishwanath submits evidence proving Chidambaram’s illegal activities. The movie ends with Gautam arresting Chidambaram and both the brothers embracing each other.
The film has a parallel comedic track which focuses on a Rich man and his Chauffeur’s (Janakaraj) quest to ditch their wives and to sleep with a pretty prostitute.
Cast
- Prabhu GanesanPrabhu GanesanPrabhu Ganesan is a Tamil film actor and producer. He is the son of veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan.-Personal life:A native of Tamil Nadu, Prabhu was born to Sivaji and Kamala Ganesan. He has an elder brother Ramkumar Ganesan who is a film producer, and two sisters, Shanthi and Thenmozhi. He did his...
- Karthik MuthuramanKarthik MuthuramanMurali Karthikeyan Muthuraman , better known by his screen name Karthik , is a Tamil film actor and politician. He is the son of veteran actor R. Muthuraman. He was first introduced by Bharathiraja in the film Alaigal Oivathillai...
- Vijayakumar
- AmalaAmalaAmala is a given name in India. It may also refer to:* Amala , a South Indian actress* Amala and Kamala, two girls discovered in 1920, who were raised by wolves in India* Amala , a West African meal...
- NiroshaNiroshaNirosha is a Tamil, Telugu film actress. She started her career with the Tamil movie Agni Natchathiram in 1988. Nirosha is the daughter of the late Tamil actor and comedian, M. R. Radha . She has an elder sister named Radhika who is also a famous actress. She has married actor Ramki and lives in...
- JayachitraJayachitraJayachitra was an acting star in South Indian films of the 1970s and 1980s, consisting mostly of Tamil and Telugu films.-Childhood:...
- SumithraSumithra (actress)Sumithra was an Indian actress. She had appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada languages. She was best known for her roles as mother after the 90s.-Early life:...
- V. K. RamaswamyV. K. RamaswamyVirinchirpuram Krishnamoorthi Ramaswamy is a former Indian Test cricket umpire.Ramaswamy was born in Madras and worked for Indian Railways. He umpired in Indian domestic first-class matches from the early 1970s, including the finals of the Ranji Trophy in 1984, 1985, 1986, 1994, and 1997 and the...
- JanagarajJanagaraj (actor)Janagaraj is a veteran Tamil film actor who has generally played a comedian in his films, and provided stiff competition to the comic duo of Goundamani and Senthil. He has acted in over 100 Tamil films as a comedian or in supporting roles.-Early life:...
Crew
- Director - Maniratnam
- Producer - G.Venkateswaran
- Dialogue - Maniratnam
- Screenplay - Maniratnam
- Story - Maniratnam
- Music - Ilaiyaraja
- Cinematography - P.C.Sriram
- Editing - V.T.Vijayan
- Art - Thotta Tharani
- Lyrics - Vaali
- Choreography - Sundaram
- Stunt - Super Subbarayan
- Assistant Directors - K.M.Govindarajan, K.N.Lokchander, K.Balu
- Associate Director - K.Suresh
- Stills - Murali, Suresh
Soundtrack
The soundtrack features six songs composedMusical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
by Ilaiyaraaja, with lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
by Vaali.
- Thoongatha Vizhigal - K. J. YesudasK. J. YesudasKattassery Joseph Yesudas is an Indian classical musician and playback singer.Yesudas sings Indian classical, devotional, and popular music. He has recorded more than 50,000 songs in many languages including Malayalam, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Telugu, Bengali, Gujarati, Oriya, Marathi, Punjabi,...
, S. JanakiS. JanakiS. Janaki is an Indian female playback singer. Renowned for her voice modulation abilities, she has sung in many Indian languages, most frequently in Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi. Throughout a career spanning more than five decades, she has won four National Film Awards and 35... - Ninnukori Varanam - K. S. Chitra
- Oru Poonga Vanam - S. Janaki
- Raaja Raajathi - Ilayaraaja
- Roja Poo Adivanthathu - S. Janaki
- Vaa Vaa Anbe Anbe - K. J. Yesudas, K. S. Chitra
Awards
- Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best FilmTamil Nadu State Film Award for Best FilmThe Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Film is given by the Government of Tamil Nadu as part of its annual Tamil Nadu State Film Awards for Tamil films. The awards for films are categorised into three prizes....
- Mani RatnamMani RatnamMani Ratnam is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter and producer. He made his directorial debut with the Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi starring Anil Kapoor in 1983... - Filmfare Award for Best Actor - Tamil - Karthik MuthuramanKarthik MuthuramanMurali Karthikeyan Muthuraman , better known by his screen name Karthik , is a Tamil film actor and politician. He is the son of veteran actor R. Muthuraman. He was first introduced by Bharathiraja in the film Alaigal Oivathillai...
- Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Female PlaybackTamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Female PlaybackThe Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer is given by the state government as part of its annual Tamil Nadu State Film Awards for Tamil films.-The list:Here is a list of the award winners and the films for which they won....
- K. S. Chitra