Varumayin Niram Sivappu

Varumayin Niram Sivappu
Poster
Directed by	K. Balachander
Produced by	R. Venkataraman
Written by	K. Balachandar
Starring	Kamal Haasan Sridevi S. Ve. Shekher R. Dilip Poornam Viswanathan Pratap Pothan
Music by	M.S. Vishwanathan
Cinematography	B. S. Lokanath
Edited by	N. R. Kittu
Production company	Premalaya Pictures
Distributed by	Premalaya Pictures
Release date	6 November 1980 (1980-11-06)
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Varumaiyin Niram Sivappu (The Colour of Poverty is Red) is a 1980 Tamil-language Indian drama film directed by K. Balachander, starring Kamal Haasan and Sridevi in the lead roles. The film was simultaneously shot in Telugu as Aakali Rajyam, released the following year. The film was also remade in Hindi as Zara Si Zindagi with Kamal Haasan and Anita Raj in 1983, directed by K. Balachander himself.

The film depicts the struggles of youth and their disillusionment with a socialist Indian society in general. Centering on three educated but unemployed youth trying to earn a living, the story touches several aspects of Indian social norms of the period.

S. Rangan (Kamal Haasan) and his friend (R. Dilip) are two unemployed men staying together in Delhi. Thambu (S. Ve. Shekher) subsequently joins them for the same purpose of searching for a job. Rangan is a straightforward person who does not tolerate anything which involves impersonation and deceit. He follows and practice the words of Mahakavi Bharatiyar in his daily life. Hence he cannot secure any job which tests his attitude and patience. He even fails at getting a job of drawing 'No Vacancy' boards. The three share everything they get to eat and suffer from poverty and hunger on most days. Rangan once offers to carry the luggage of Devi (Sridevi) till the railway station. On reaching the place, she pays him to which Rangan replies that he has no change. She rebukes him in Tamil assuming he does not speak the language that he is trying to cheat her. Rangan is angered by her words and leaves angrily.

Rangan once chases a man (Oru Viral Krishna Rao) to his house to get back the money which he looted by lying to him. The man enters a house and Rangan chases him there and stumbles upon Devi. The man is Devi's father who lost all his money in horse race and now cheating the people around him to get money for horse racing. He did so to Rangan by saying that his daughter has died and need money to perform last rites. Devi returns the money to Rangan and also she pays him for carrying her luggage on that day. Rangan and Devi get to know each other as an unemployed guy straight forward guy and as small-time stage actress in one of the theaters respectively. Devi goes to Rangan's house to introduce him to her stage play director to replace an ill-actor so that he could earn some money. She suggests to finish his lunch before going there leaving Rangan embarrassed as there is no food to eat. However he and his friends pretend to eat a sumptuous meal inside the kitchen. But Devi finds out that Rangan and his friends hardly eat for real. Hence she spends her own money to provide food for them. When they are about to eat, Devi's grandmother dies and they cannot eat the food.