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Moodu Pani is a 1980 Indian Tamil-language thriller film written, directed and filmed by Balu Mahendra. Starring his then wife Shoba and Pratap K. Pothen in the lead roles, with N. Viswanathan, Ganthimathi, Mohan and Bhanu Chander in supporting roles, it is based on two novels: Idhuvum Oru Viduthalai Thaan (1978) by Rajendra Kumar, and The Collector (1963) by John Fowles. The film follows Chandru (Pratap), who has a strong hatred towards prostitutes and would kill any such woman he encounters. He falls in love with Rekha (Shoba) and believes marrying her will end his psychological distress.
Moodu Pani was the third directorial venture of Mahendra and his second in Tamil after Azhiyatha Kolangal (1979). It also marked Mohan's debut in Tamil cinema, and the last film Shoba acted in before her death. Principal photography took place between January and April 1980, mostly in Udupi, Bangalore and Ooty. The film's similarities to Alfred Hitchcock's film Psycho (1960) have been widely discussed. The soundtrack was composed by Ilaiyaraaja, this being his 100th film, and his brother Gangai Amaran was the main lyricist.
Moodu Pani was released on 6 November 1980, during the Diwali holiday frame. The film received critical acclaim, with particular praise for the performances of Pratap and Shoba, and Ilaiyaraaja's music; the song "Yen Iniya Pon Nilavae" attained immense popularity. It was a commercial success, running for over 200 days in theatres, and responsible for a resurgence of the thriller genre in Tamil cinema at that point. Despite the film propelling Pratap to stardom, it also led to him being typecast in similar roles.
The film's soundtrack and score were composed by Ilaiyaraaja, this being his 100th film, and was released under the label EMI Records. It was also the first film in which he collaborated with Mahendra, Ilaiyaraaja would later compose for all of Mahendra's films until Thalaimuraigal (2013), the director's last film before his death in February 2014. Mahendra recalled in 2007, "When I first met [Ilaiyaraaja] I explained him what my kind of movie is and what I expect from him. The background score should allow meaningful silences in my films. I believe silence conveys more than words or music".
Moodu Pani marked A. R. Rahman's first association with Ilaiyaraaja. Rahman (then known by his birth name Dilip) who was just 13 years old then, worked as a keyboard programmer in the film. During the background scoring sessions of Moodu Pani, Ilaiyaraaja fired his old keyboard programmer, due to the person's drinking behaviour. At that time, another one of his troupe members asked Ilaiyaraaja to meet a boy named Dilip, who was already doing keyboard programming for Malayalam films. Ilaiyaraaja agreed and sent for Dilip, whom he instructed regarding the notes and tune he had to play. Dilip, under Ilaiyaraaja's supervision, successfully completed the background score.
"Yen Iniya Pon Nilavae" was written in January 1980, and is set in Natabhairavi, a Carnatic raga. According to Ilaiyaraaja's brother Gangai Amaran, it was one of the hardest songs in the album to write. Mahendra wanted a song depicting Chandru playing the guitar and asked Ilaiyaraaja for a tune; Ilaiyaraaja played the "scratch notes" of the song that would become "Ilaya Nila", but Mahendra was not pleased and asked for another tune; Ilaiyaraaja gave him the tune of "Yen Iniya Pon Nilavae", and this was retained; K. J. Yesudas would sing it. "Ilaya Nila" was subsequently used in Payanangal Mudivathillai (1982). Like "Yen Iniya Pon Nilavae", the song "Paruva Kaalangalin" is also set in Natabhairavi.
According to A. S. Panneerselvan of Frontline, the dominant genre of the music used in Moodu Pani was "modern jazz with a sprinkling of avant-garde elements." Gangai Amaran was the main lyricist of the soundtrack, except for the English-language number "Sing Swing" (also known as "Swing Swing") which was written by Viji Manuel (credited as Vijaysamuel on the first soundtrack edition, and Vijaymanuel on the second); the lyricist of "Aasai Raja", is not credited. The first soundtrack edition did not feature "Aasai Raja"; the song was, however, included in a 1981 edition of the soundtrack.
"Yen Iniya Pon Nilavae" was included in Dinamalar's 2016 list compiling the "Top 300 songs" composed by Ilaiyaraaja. [G7LPa_rkoP0] |