Kundakka Mandakka

Kundakka Mandakka
DVD cover
Directed by	Ashokan
Written by	K. Balakumaran, C. Balamurugan (dialogues)
Story by	Ashokan
Produced by	Leela Kesavan Punnagai Poo Gheetha (co-producer)
Starring	Parthiban Vadivelu Raai Laxmi Mallika
Cinematography	Bharanisri
Edited by	Suresh Urs
Music by	Bharadwaj
Production companies	SG Films Super Star Art Movies
Release date	14 October 2005 (2005-10-14)
Running time	150 minutes
Country	India
Language	Tamil

Kundakka Mandakka is a 2005 Indian Tamil-language comedy film directed by Ashokan and produced by SG Films. The film stars Parthiban, Vadivelu, Raai Laxmi, and Mallika. The music was composed by Bharadwaj, while editing was done by Suresh Urs. The film was released on 14 October 2005.

Plot

The film revolves around Ilangovan "Ilango", a middle-class youngster with grand aspirations. He dreams of marrying off his sister, Kavitha, to a millionaire and is determined to accumulate wealth. Ilango's life becomes entwined with that of Roopa, the daughter of a wealthy industrialist, whom he falls deeply in love with. Ilango's path repeatedly crosses with that of Chellappa, a small-time thief and broker, leading to a series of comical misadventures. Ilango's mentor identifies Nandha "Nandhu", on the road and takes pity on him, exclaiming he hails from an affluent family. Unbeknownst to Ilango, Nandha is actually searching for rented accommodation through Chellappa's services.

Ilango rents out the upper portion of his building to Nandha, inadvertently bringing his sister Kavitha and Nandha closer together. When Ilango asks Nandha to drop Kavitha off at college, he secretly follows them. En route, Nandha takes Kavitha to meet a family he is acquainted with – the employees of his father's company, who have lost their sole breadwinner. Touched by their plight, Nandha's father, a millionaire, refused to offer assistance, prompting Nandha to disown his wealth and care for the family. As Kavitha witnesses Nandha's kindness and generosity, she begins to develop feelings for him.

Ilango, unaware of Nandha's true identity, mistakenly assumes he is impoverished and devises a plan to separate his sister Kavitha from him. With Chellappa's assistance, Ilango attempts to discredit Nandha by planting cannabis in his possession and hiring a prostitute to tarnish his reputation. However, these schemes ultimately fail, and Kavitha and Nandha's love for each other remains unwavering. Meanwhile, Roopa is betrothed to another man, but Ilango rescues her from her home and brings her to his residence. Ilango then embarks on a quest to find a wealthy groom, only to be swindled in the process.

Nandha's father transforms, seeking forgiveness from his employee's family and welcoming his son Nandha back home. Witnessing this reunion, Ilango experiences a profound realization that wealth is not the only important aspect of life. Ilango approaches Nandhu's father, seeking his son's hand in marriage for Kavitha. However, Nandhu's father declines, citing that his son cannot marry the sister of a deceitful person like Ilango. Instead, he arranges Nandhu's marriage to the daughter of an education minister. Undeterred, Ilango and Chellappa devise a plan. Disguising themselves as caterers, they infiltrate the wedding hall and cleverly substitute Kavitha for the original bride. As a result, Nandhu and Kavitha are successfully married.

Although Nandhu's father and the education minister are initially outraged, they eventually accept the union. In a joyous turn of events, Ilango and Roopa also tie the knot at the same wedding hall.

Cast

• Parthiban as Ilangovan "Ilango"
• Vadivelu as Chellappa
• Raai Laxmi as Roopa
• Mallika as Kavitha
• Kalairani as Ilango and Kavitha's mother
• Amruth Kalam as Nandha "Nandhu"
• Ravikumar as Nandha's father
• Bayilvan Ranganathan as Rangan, auction agent and goon
• Madhan Bob as Roopa's father
• Raj Madhan
• Nellai Siva as Nellai Siva
• Mohan Raman as a lawyer
• Pondy Ravi as a police officer
• Thyagu as an Education Minister
• Manager Cheena as Roopa's grandfather
• Crane Manohar as a kidnapper
• Suruli Manohar as a kidnapper
• Siva Narayana Murthy as Aarthi's father
• Singamuthu as a fake saint
• Chaams as Roopa's groom
• Vanitha Krishnachandran as Roopa's mother
• Bhuvaneswari as an actress
• Aarthi as one who loses her moped
• Bonda Mani as an auto dealer
• Neelu Nasreen as a victim of Chellappa

Production

The film marked director Asokan Subramanian's third feature film following Thamizhachi (1995) and Ponvizha (1999). 15 days of shooting took place at a busy housing complex in K K Nagar while two songs were picturised in Kodaikanal. The film's cinematography was handled by debutant Bharani Sri who earlier apprenticed with M. S. Prabhu.

Soundtrack

The music was composed by Bharadwaj.

Kundakka Mandakka
Soundtrack album by Bharadwaj
Released	22 September 2005
Genre	Feature film soundtrack
Language	Tamil
Producer	Bharadwaj
Bharadwaj chronology
Andha Naal Nyabagam (2005) Kundakka Mandakka (2005) Ulla Kadathal (2005)

No.	Song	Singers	Lyrics
1	"8 Thisaigal"	Tippu	Snehan
2	"Nee Vendum"	Janani Bharadwaj, Srinivas
3	"Mun Jenmam"	Sathya
4	"Vanthutaya"	Vadivelu
5	"Niagara"	Pop Shalini
6	"Vattamittu"	Suchitra

Critical reception

The movie received mixed reviews from critics

Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu wrote, "Don't look for coherence or logic in "Kundakka Mandakka", because most of the time it is inane humour that rules."

Sify wrote, "Enough endured. Instead of viewing this farce, stay at home and watch cartoon network!"

Behindwoods said, "Kundakka Mandakka is a movie for the front benchers and is a sure hit in the B and C theatres. Asokan, a debutant director, literally scares the masses with the presentation."

Indiaglitz stated, "Parthiban as usual comes up with tricks, which always ends up Vadivelu in trouble, and is pretty sharp in his repartee and witticisms. He has a way with words and it comes naturally to him. Vadivelu provides relief at many places in the movie while Lakshmi Rai oozes glamour all through. Director Ashokan shows some sparkle in handling earthy humor. Though the essential idea is old, the film does evoke plenty of laughs."

Lajjavathi of Kalki wrote the film has gone backwards in terms of storytelling and technical sophistication. It's fine if logic is removed in comedy scenes, but how about removing the brain itself?

Cinesouth wrote "There does not seem to be a great effort on the part of the director, Ashokan. He has placed his faith on the Partiban Vadivelu comedy duo. And they have not disappointed him".

Chennai Online wrote "A comedy track many a time peps up the narration. But when the track itself becomes the basis for an entire film, then only one of two things can happen. Either it can turn into a hilarious caper. Or it can turn into a jarring piece of assault on the senses. 'Gundakka Mandakka' falls in the second category".

External links

• Kundakka Mandakka at IMDb