Bommai
| Bommai | |
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Theatrical poster
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| Directed by | S. Balachander |
| Written by | Ve. Lakshmanan (dialogue and lyrics) |
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| Music by |
Songs: S. Balachander Background score: D.B. Ramachandran |
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Release date
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| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Bommai (English: The Doll) is a 1964 Indian Tamil-language thriller film directed by S. Balachander. Featuring a walkie-talkie doll as the main character, the film had an ensemble cast of newcomers, while Balachander, L. Vijayalakshmi and V. S. Raghavan appeared in prominent roles. The film was an adaptation of Alfred Hitchcock's 1936 British film Sabotage.
In an attempt to kill the hero (Balachander), the villain (V. S. Raghavan) along with his gang place a bomb in a walking doll. Unexpectedly, the doll comes back to the car in which the gang travel killing all of them.
Balachander, who was known for his critically acclaimed suspense thriller films Andha Naal (1954) and Avana Ivan (1962) made Bommai on the same genre. The film was inspired from Alfred Hitchcock's 1936 British film Sabotage. Balachander made a few changes in the script to suit the Tamil audience. A walkie-talkie doll, which carries the bomb, played the main character in Bommai. To cast the doll, Balachander was in search for a long time and even tried one from the United States. Incidentally while shopping in Parry's Corner, Madras, he found the right doll in a roadside shop and bought it. Unlike the British film, where the passengers in the bus get killed, the Tamil version had the villains who plot to kill the hero get killed in the blast.
In addition to acting and directing, Balachander wrote the story and screenplay. His friend Ve. Lakshmanan wrote the dialogues. Although completed and censored in 1963, the film was released only the following year. The film completed 100 days in many theatres in Madras. Its commercial success helped Balachander recover from the loss incurred on his previous film Avana Ivan. At the end credits of the film, Balachander introduces every actor and member of the crew to the audience. Rochelle Shah appeared as an actress, this being the only film she ever acted in.
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