Avvai Shanmughi

Avvai Shanmughi
அவ்வை சண்முகி
Directed by	K. S. Ravikumar
Produced by	R. Ravindran K. P. Hari
Written by	Crazy Mohan
Screenplay by	K. S. Ravikumar
Story by	Crazy Mohan
Starring	Kamal Haasan Meena Gemini Ganesan Nagesh Manivannan Nassar Heera
Music by	Deva
Cinematography	S. Murthy
Edited by	K. Thanikachalam
Production company	Sree Mahalakshmi Combines
Distributed by	Sree Mahalakshmi Combines
Release date	10 November 1996
Running time	161 minutes
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Avvai Shanmugi is a 1996 Tamil comedy film, directed by K. S. Ravikumar and written by Crazy Mohan, which is an Indian remake of the American comedy film, Mrs. Doubtfire. The film features Kamal Haasan in the lead role with Meena, Gemini Ganesan, Nagesh, Heera, Manivannan and Nassar. The film's score and soundtrack were composed by Deva, while the film was produced by Ravindran and Hari. Avvai Shanmughi received positive reviews and performed well at the box office.

The film starts in a courtroom where a Brahmin woman Janaki (Meena) is fighting for divorce from her husband Pandian (Kamal Haasan). She offers various reasons for wanting a divorce. She has married Pandian against the wishes of her rich father Vishwanathan Iyer (Gemini Ganesan). But she isn't able to come to terms with living in Pandian's small house without amenities. Pandian is an assistant dance director with a modest income and is not able to spend much time with the family. All this accumulates and Janaki decides to apply for divorce, which is granted. The court orders that Pandian can meet his daughter Barathi, once a week and this is his only solace. His daughter, however, loves him a lot and doesn't like the arrangement. Basha (Nassar), Pandian's Muslim friend who works in a hotel as a chef, advises him to steal his daughter from Janaki. Pandian goes about trying to do as his friend suggests. In doing so, he is discovered; and now he cannot meet her at all. Then Pandian finds out that Vishwanathan Iyer has advertised for a woman to look after his granddaughter. Joseph (Nagesh) is a makeup man in films. In conversation with him, Pandian gets the idea of playing an old woman, so that he can be with his child and ex-wife without them knowing. Joseph agrees to this plan and the transformation is done from Pandian to 'Avvai Shanmugi'-- a dignified, elderly Iyer woman who is hired to take care of the little girl.