Ponniyin Selvan: Part II

The year 968, the Chola dynasty. The prince Arunmozhi Varman, lost at sea at the end of the first part, has been saved, but the court does not know. In the capital the emperor is ill and who will take the throne is being argued. His brother Aditha Karikalan commands the army in the north and carries an account never closed: the woman he loved years ago is now queen on the enemy side. Nandini never closed that account either. The factions at court make their separate plans and all of them move toward the same night. Mani Ratnam directs. Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Karthi and Jayam Ravi are in the cast. The source is Kalki Krishnamurthy's serialised novel. The novel was published in a newspaper in the forties and is among the most read works in Tamil literature; attempts to adapt it went on for years and were never completed. The film was made in two parts and this second one completes the story. The character at the centre is Nandini; the revenge strand is the real axis and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's performance is what is most cited. A. R. Rahman's music is inside the narrative and decisive in the battles. It was a large commercial success in Tamil cinema and won awards in technical categories. Its limit is independence; without the first part the number of characters and their relations cannot be followed. Who it is for: viewers who like historical epic and Mani Ratnam. Who it is not for: it is not an entry point, there are far too many characters, and the plot is convoluted.