Raja Paarvai

<p>Raghu / Chandram is a blind violinist oppressed since infancy. Nancy, a , is keen on chronicling Raghu / Chandram’s inspiring life as a visually impaired but independently living person. Their relationship blossoms into a romance that is supported by Nancy’s grandfather. Nancy is eventually due to be married to another man selected by her father, but aided by her grandfather, escapes from the church and elopes with Raghu / Chandram. was the 100th film for as an actor, and first as producer. He also worked as a screenwriter. He produced the film along with his brothers and under the banner . The film also marked the debut of art director in Tamil cinema. It was simultaneously shot in as , with for both versions taking place in 55 days. Among other locations, the film was also shot in Venus Studios. While the film is loosely based on the 1972 film , the final scene which features ‘s character escaping from church in her wedding dress and joining Haasan, was inspired by (1967). Haasan learnt to play the violin required for the role. Haasan’s nephew Gautham portrayed the younger version of him in the film. The soundtrack was composed by , while the lyrics were written by , and . The song “Andhi Mazhai” is set in the known as , and “Vizhi Oraththu” is set in . For the instrumental “Modern Concerto”, Viji Manuel was the keyboardist (playing the piano on mode), while was the violinist. In an interview Vairamuthu said that initially the lyrics for the song “Andhi Mazhai” were “Dhiratchai madhu vazhigirathu” before being changed to the present one. was released on 10 April 1981, and on 29 August 1981. Despite receiving critical acclaim, the film was a box office failure, and Haasan had to work seven to eight years to recover from the loss he incurred. The 100 days celebration of the film was held at Chettiar Bungalow in AVM studio. , in its review of the Tamil version, called the story ordinary, but said the dialogues and Rao’s direction polished the film and lauded Haasan’s performance, adding that Prasad outshined everyone else. S. Shiva Kumar wrote in , “Some breath taking photography, slick editing and lilting music contribute in making a clean and enjoyable movie”. Reviewing the Telugu version, Gudipoodi Srihari of the magazine wrote that barring a few sequences, the film was fairly enjoyable yet inspirational. Naagai Dharuman of appreciated the acting, music, cinematography and direction. Haasan won the . attained in Tamil cinema. In , and described Srinivasa Rao’s direction and Haasan’s performance as “unabashedly melodramatic, milking the hero’s disability for all its worth” and that Rao’s zooms and cutaways underlined by “rapid and awkward editing” were “fully in evidence”. In 2010, included in its list, “Kamal’s most memorable romantic films”, where it praised Haasan and Madhavi’s onscreen rapport, the visuals and the climax. In 2017, Haasan named (the Telugu version of the film) as one of his 70 most favourite films and considered it superior to .</p>