Mani Ratnam Birthday Special: From Rajinikanth's Thalapathy to R Madhavan's Alaipayuthey, 5 Classics Made By The Legend That Can Be Rewatched for Eternity

As a movie buff who has grown up bingeing on the movies of the '80s and the '90s, Mani Ratnam as a director has left an indelible impression on me. Today, that is on June 2, the master film-maker has turned 62. On behalf of the entire LatestLY desk, I wish one of my favourite directors Many Many Happy Returns of the Day!

Mani Ratnam is one of the very few Indian film-makers with a Pan-Indian appeal and influence. He is also that rare breed of directors whose works tread the fine line between commercial and art successfully. There is definitely a touch of Satyajit Ray in many of his movies because both are known for their focus on human relationships and emotions. While his recent movies may not have the same quality that Ratnam produced in the late '80s and the '90s, we know that he is just one movie away from regaining his brilliant touch. Also, we are thankful to him for showing us the brilliance of AR Rahman and Santosh Sivan.

In this special feature, I look at five movies of the master-director, that can be watched and rewatched till eternity and yet end up giving us new lessons in story-telling and film-making.

Nayagan

The victim of a disastrous remake (the late Vinod Khanna's Dayavan), Nayagan is a masterclass when it comes to every aspect of film-making. Starring Kamal Haasan in one of his finest performances, Nayagan shows the rise of a reluctant young man as a gang-lord, and how it affects his own family life and his relationship with his daughter.

Thalapathy

This is my personal fave Mani Ratnam movie. The followup to Nayagan, Thalapathy got surprisingly less acclaim compared to its predecessor, despite being equally powerful. This has Rajinikanth's most natural performance, and his pairing with an equally formidable Mammootty is a treat to watch in this retelling of the tale of Duryodhana and Karna friendship from Mahabharata.

Anjali

It shows the class of Mani Ratnam that he made a children's film and it turned out to be such a classic. Filled with adorable performances (especially from a young Baby Shamili), the movie will tug at your heart-strings and leave you in tears by the end.

Roja

The movie that introduced India to AR Rahman. A timeless classic, Roja benefits from a lot of aspects - bright performances from Pankaj Kapur, Madhoo and Arvind Swamy, spectacular cinematography by Santosh Sivan and a mesmerising score by AR Rahman. And of course, Mani Ratnam's sensitive handling of a burning issue like terrorism. Roja is simply a masterpiece, and so is his follow-up, Bombay.

Alaipayuthey

While OK Kanmani is his most youthful movie till date, Mani Ratnam had already laid an even more entertaining platform with Alaipayuthey. Through the romance of Shalini and R Madhavan, Mani Ratnam dissected the modern-day love stories without the fairy-tale notions, with AR Rahman giving a perfect musical score.

Do you think I missed out on any other movies of Mani Ratnam that deserved to be on this instead of the above five? Share your thoughts in the comments section below.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 02, 2018 12:12 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).