Kaadhal Mannan

Kaadhal Mannan
VCD Cover
Directed by	Saran
Produced by	V. Sudhir Kumar
Written by	Saran
Starring	Ajith Kumar Maanu M. S. Viswanathan Vivek Karan
Music by	Bharathwaj
Cinematography	A. Vijay Kumar
Edited by	Ganesh Kumar
Production company	Venkateswaralayam
Release date	6 March 1998
Running time	136 mins
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Kaadhal Mannan (English: King of Love) is a 1998 Tamil romantic thriller film directed by Saran, which features Ajith Kumar and Maanu in the lead roles. The film also saw prominent music composer M. S. Viswanathan make his debut in a supporting role, whilst Vivek, Karan and Girish Karnad also played other roles. The film, which had a successful soundtrack composed by Bharathwaj, was released in March 1998 to positive reviews and became a profitable venture at the box office. Kaadhal Mannan ran for 100 days and re-established Ajith Kumar's market after a string of failures expanding his fan base.

Rudran (Girish Karnad), a very strict disciplinarian father of two daughters, hates the word 'Love'. The very mention of this word makes him punish himself to unimaginable heights. He disowns his elder daughter Menaka because she elopes with her lover. The strictness is doubled for the younger daughter Thilottama (Maanu) and a marriage alliance is fixed for her. She stoically accepts her father's decision till she meets a local mechanic Shiva (Ajith). Shiva is a bike mechanic living with his only friend Oyya (Vivek) in a mansion owned by Mess Viswanthan (M. S. Viswanathan), Shiva is always ready to accept dares. When he is dared to go to Delhi by a woman to deliver a letter to her soon-to-be-engaged sister, Thilothama, Shiva ends up falling in love with Thilothama. But Tilottama is sadly unable to reveal her love to Shiva and to her father, as she fears the consequences. Are the lovers able to declare their love for each other and get united? Does Rudran take to it kindly?

Saran describes that he "was wondering what would happen if a girl, who is engaged to a particular person, falls in love with someone else" and this formed the basis of his plot for the film. The film saw veteran music composer M. S. Viswanathan make his acting debut in a supporting role, whilst the lead actress Maanu from Assam and music composer Bharathwaj also debuted. The film's soundtrack gained rave review prior to release. Viswanathan had initially waded away the approach but actor Vivek later convinced him to partake in the film.