Anbe Anbe

Anbe Anbe
DVD cover
Directed byMani Bharathi
Written byRaja S. (dialogue)
Screenplay byMani Bharathi
Story byRaja S.
Produced byM. Saravanan
M. Balasubramanian
M. S. Guhan
B. Gurunath
StarringShaam
Sharmili
CinematographyRamnath Shetty
Edited byV. Jaishankar
Music byBharadwaj
Production
company
Release date
  • 1 May 2003 (2003-05-01)
Running time
139 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Anbe Anbe (transl. Dear, Dear) is a 2003 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Mani Bharathi. The film stars Shaam and Sharmili, while an ensemble supporting cast includes Vivek, Yugendran, M. N. Nambiar, Manorama, and Santhoshi. The music was composed by Bharadwaj. The film released on 1 May 2003 and opened to mixed reviews from critics. The film's plot is loosely based on the Hindi film Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994).[1][2]

Plot

An extended family that includes two grandparents named Mahendra Bhoopathy and Vishali, their two sons and one daughter, and four grandchildren (including Cheenu and Shiva), and others come together for Mahendra Bhoopathy's 80th birthday. Mahendra Bhoopathy's and Vishali's daughter comes to see them after a long time. Their granddaughter has the name as her grandmother: Vishali. Issues arise due to greed from the son-in-law, his brother, and Cheenu's birth mother to get more than their appropriated share of the property. Further chaos ensues when the evil Shiva falls in love with the granddaughter Vishali, whom Cheenu is in love with. How the family is reunited and the problems are solved forms the rest of the plot.

Cast

Production

Manibharati, who worked as an assistant to Mani Ratnam, Saran and Vasanth, announced that he was making a love story for AVM Productions. Shaam was signed on to play the lead role, which was initially titled as Romeo and Juliet. Actress Priyamani was approached for the project but she turned down the offer, meaning that Sharmelee was signed to play the lead role.[3][4] The film's story was written by Sanjay Ram who went on to make films like Thoothukudi and Aadu Puli Aattam, he was credited as S. Raja.[5][6] Shamelee, who had been studying for a computer degree, earlier signed Aasai Aasaiyai and the Telugu film Taarak before signing this film.[7][8] Since the film was set in a large house with family, the unit located a bungalow at Pazhayakottai near Kangeyam where the film was shot and the filming was completed within 72 days.[9]

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by Bharadwaj.[10]

Song Singers Lyrics
"Anbe Anbe" Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam Palani Bharathi
"Idhudhan Santhoshama" S. P. Balasubrahmanyam Kalaikumar
"Malayala Karaiyoram" Karthik Na. Muthukumar
"Rettai Jadai Rakkamma" T. L. Maharajan, Manikka Vinayagam, Swarnalatha, Srinivas, Manorama
"Roobanottil" KK, Anuradha Sriram Kabilan
"Vasthu Sasthiram" S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Malgudi Subha Vaali

Reception

Sify wrote "There is nothing new in the story and director Manibharathi has not been able to tell this weak story with conviction".[11] Malini Mannath of Chennai Online opined that "Directed by debutant Mani Bharati, the film is an average entertainer, that can hardly boast of any freshness in the scripting or narrative style".[12] Visual Dasan of Kalki praised the acting of Yugendran and Vivek's humour but panned the acting of Sharmilee and added though the inclusion of item songs in a family-oriented film feels unnecessary, Mani Bharathi's brisk direction keeps us edge of the seat till the end.[13] Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu wrote "At a time when the break up of the joint family system is almost complete, flicks such as these with a huge family of aunts, cousins, grandpa and the like are anachronistic. Yet scriptwriter and director Manibharati, takes you into a home where you witness an affectionate drama unfold — so what if there is nothing new about it. All the same, the real villain of the entire cinematic tale is the rather ludicrous climax".[6]

References

  1. ^ "AVM audio re-launched". The Hindu. 20 March 2003. Archived from the original on 16 October 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  2. ^ "Feel good factor". The Hindu. 1 May 2003. Archived from the original on 8 August 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  3. ^ "20-12-02". Archived from the original on 6 March 2005.
  4. ^ "Celebrating cinema and music". The Hindu. 15 April 2003. Archived from the original on 2 August 2022. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  5. ^ "Aadu Puli Attam". Cinesouth. Archived from the original on 18 October 2006. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  6. ^ a b Rangarajan, Malathi (9 May 2003). "Anbae Anbae". Archived from the original on 23 September 2003.
  7. ^ Poornima (19 April 2003). "Dhool, the only real Tamil hit". Rediff. Archived from the original on 6 May 2018. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  8. ^ "BizHat.com - Anbae Anbae Review. Shaam, Sharmilee, Ramya Krishnan". movies.bizhat.com. Archived from the original on 11 October 2014. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  9. ^ "தோஸ்து சாஸ்திரம்!". Kalki (in Tamil). 27 April 2003. pp. 88–89. Retrieved 16 February 2024.
  10. ^ "Involving media". The Hindu. 18 April 2003. Archived from the original on 15 October 2020. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  11. ^ "Review : Anbe Anbe 2003". Sify. 7 May 2003. Archived from the original on 28 December 2016.
  12. ^ Mannath, Malini (11 May 2003). "Anbe Anbe". Chennai Online. Archived from the original on 11 February 2005.
  13. ^ தாசன், விஷுவல் (18 May 2003). "அன்பே அன்பே". Kalki (in Tamil). pp. 56–57. Retrieved 14 February 2024.