Social media is teeming with criticism that has gone viral these days. They condemn the filmmaker Mani Ratnam against his work and attitude for taking creative liberty to change the plot and creation of the leading hero of the actual novel Ponniyin Selvan in the film.
Filmmakers often change the story to make the movie more engaging and attract viewers. It is like Bettilt India Casino releases many casino games based on popular movies and stories to grab players’ attention.
But, Mani Ratnam’s interpretation of the characters and their roles in Ponniyin Selvan 2 was a significant fall in his career where many of Kalki’s fans expressed their disappointment for his series due to the bold departures the director had taken from the books.
It is not sure whether Kalki Krishnamoorhty, the novel’s writer, has liked his epic creation, but some of the fans have thronged issues against the spoiling of the leading character and other novel plots. Even many filmmakers have criticized his writings and said that they hated the film adaptations of Kalki’s novel, which is so close to their hearts, for being vocal on this point and his writing.
Mani Sans the Character Kodikkarai and the Underrepresentation of Poonguzhali
The criticism for his epic film, which Mani has faced since the first part, has also been seen with his latest release Ponniyin Selvan 2. Now with the sequel of Ponniyin Selvan 2, the books where Kalki has traced the character Kodikkarai with the enigmatic Poonguzhali.
She is cynical and disrespectful simultaneously, popularly called the Samudhra Kumari due to her enormous skills with which she sails through the ocean, is speechless, and should strive for better manifestation in the film. In Kalki’s novel, a love angle is encountered between Samudhra Kumari and Ponniyin Selvan.
This romantic plot needs to be included in Mani’s epic leading to one of the many inconsistencies in the novel. Furthermore, Mani reduced the authenticity of her character; instead, he developed a minor character for her, making a meager impact on the story.
Changing the name of Sendhan Amudhan
Fans expressed disappointment that the movie deviated from the book; instead of Sendhan Amudhan, the film made Madhuranthagam the king and named him Uthama Chozhan. The book’s readers have also pointed out that Sendhan Amudhan is recalled as the son of Sembiyan Maadevi, symbolized as the rightful heir and the successor of the throne, and can earn the title of Uthama Chozhan. In the book, Sendhan Amudhan is an innocent character who turns out to save Vanthiyadevan’s life; at that time, he was imprisoned for saving his life by getting caught by Pazhuvettaraiyar men. He is portrayed as having a humanistic nature who does not urge for the return of anything for his good deeds.
This nature is manifested beautifully when he does not show ill feelings for Poonguzhali, even facing her rejection. The fans’ disappointment was raised when the film dodged to portray the genuineness of such a type of character. Subsequently, Sendhan Amudhan’s character was not privileged in the movie that fans had hoped for.
Ashwin Kakumanu played the role of Sendhan Amudhan in the film. Unlike Fans, he was eager to work with mani ratnam regardless of such criticism of the movies; he expressed his happiness for getting such an opportunity in his acting career so early. According to the reports, he sat with his Twitter handle to say that he “Was glad to be a small part of this epic. Bucket lists of working with Mani sir and in an epic film was checked off”.
The Immaturity of Nandini’s Character
Nandini partakes the saddest character in the novel, Kalki, who, although succumbs to liberty and is a bit open-minded, ends her life by drowning in the river. Though her origin is mysterious in the novel, at one point in time, she is revealed as the daughter of the Veerapandiyanand sometimes portrays a relationship between them. Thus, he is confused about their relationship in the novel, and her end is far more mysterious. On the other hand, Mani was very straightforward in manifesting her character; he told his audiences that she was the daughter of Veerapandian. She desperately fled the Chola kingdom and attempted suicide by drowning in the river.
Mani Ratnam’s Other Creations
Mani is being appreciated by his audiences by showing some of the fantastic films he created for his fans over the past years. Even the Ponniyin Selvan 1 was a massive blockbuster, but the sequel offered criticism that was entirely unexpected for him. Though he tried his best to face all the famous characters of the novel, he needed to reframe it correctly according to the readers of the original story. The star characters playing the primitive roles of the big screen adaptation are Jayaram, Prabhu, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Aishwarya Lekshmi, R. Sarathkumar, Sobhita Dhulipala, Prakash Raj, Vikram, Jayam Ravi, Karthi, Trisha, and R. Parthiban.
