Alaipayuthey | |
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Directed by | Mani Ratnam |
Produced by | Mani Ratnam G. Srinivasan |
Screenplay by | Mani Ratnam |
Story by | Mani Ratnam R. Selvaraj |
Starring |
R. Madhavan Shalini |
Music by | A. R. Rahman |
Cinematography | P. C. Sriram |
Edited by | A. Sreekar Prasad |
Production
company |
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Distributed by | Ayngaran International |
Release date
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Running time
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157 minutes |
Country | India |
Language | Tamil |
Alaipayuthey (English: Waves are flowing) is a 2000 Tamil musical romantic drama film co written co produced and directed by Mani Ratnam. Starring R. Madhavan and Shalini, the film explores the tensions of married life and the maturing of love. The score and soundtrack were composed by A. R. Rahman.
The film's story is mostly recollected in flashbacks by the character Karthik (Madhavan). Karthik and Shakthi (Shalini) fall in love against the backdrop of Chennai and its suburban trains, against the wishes of their parents. The film was well received by critics and it did well at the Tamil and Telugu box-offices primarily for its music and realistic portrayal of romance and married life.
The film made its European premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival in 2001. It was shown at various film festivals nationally and internationally. It also carried a very popular soundtrack, composed by A. R. Rahman. Alaipayuthey was also released in Telugu as Sakhi and was later remade and released in Hindi cinema in 2002, as Saathiya, directed by Ratnam's former assistant Shaad Ali.
Karthik Varadarajan (Madhavan) is an independent and free-spirited software engineering graduate establishing a software start-up with his friends. At a friend's wedding, he meets Shakti Selvaraj (Shalini), a student of medicine at Madras Medical College. They continue to bump into each other on local trains that they both use on their daily commute, and fall in love. Karthik pursues Shakti aggressively and proposes marriage; Shakthi, however, is reluctant. Karthik manages to convince Shakthi and requests his parents to formally ask Shakti's parents for her hand in marriage; however, when the parents meet, they do not get along, and Shakti calls off the relationship altogether and leaves for an extended medical camp in Kerala.