This attempt is not a review, nor a recommendation, neither a fan’s chest thumping, but a humble attempt to deconstruct the mind of an ordinary Rajini fan. A lot has been written about Petta since its release, especially described with terms such as Rajinified’, ‘Pettafied’, ‘Vintage Rajini’, ‘Thalaivar is back’, ‘Return of Rajinism’ to name a few. The idea here is to try and understand what went through the mind of a typical Rajini fan in those few hours of the movie.
To be able do that we need to travel back a few decades. To the days when watching a Rajini movie First day first show (FDFS) was not as glorified as it is now. It was a given for the fans, if not a FDFS, even a first day watch would do. Life back then was simple, especially without any social media pressure. Fans would prepare for the movie, wait for it and enjoy it. Most importantly, unlike today’s times, we would watch the movie without any preconceived notions built by social media. It was an event irrespective of the day of release. Festival or no festival, it was an experience. It didn’t matter whether the movies were good or bad, hit or flop, class or mass. Fans those days knew better that it was the producer/ distributor / theatre owner’s headache. The only thing that mattered for the fans was entertainment and that was ample in a typical Rajini Movie. The key was to leave your critical review skills and brains behind and watch it with all your heart! And that was Fun! Exciting! Eventful! Happy! Bliss! You name it!
Coming back to ‘Petta Experience”, I would like to term it time travel… Simply put, most of us are wired in such a way that we always enjoy reminiscing happy events from our past, which in reality, is challenging. What happened or purported to have happened to a fan (what I feel or believe) through Petta is exactly that – Time travel. As fans, we got a feeling of getting transported back in time; we got something that was missing over the years – an experience that took us back and to the level of ultimate entertainment!
What is Petta all about? It’s homage to a Hero by a Fan called Karthik Subbaraj. My take is, he was bang on, hit the bull’s-eye! Human nature is to find happiness and comfort in familiar surroundings. Petta, for fans, did just that! We were carried away to a happy, comfortable and familiar surrounding. The director didn’t try to force his ideas through Rajini, nor did he try to preach or try to be “different” by presenting a different kind of Rajini. He didn’t try to prove his mettle through Rajini (as a matter of fact – he need not as he has proven his class in previous movies). He decided to take the tried and tested path. The reason I say tried and tested is because, one it isn’t easy to recreate the glorious past of on-screen Rajini and second, over the last couple of decades no one has been able to deliver a ‘Rajini Film’ in the truest sense. The phrase ‘Rajini Film’ its not something that can be explained or demonstrated, but can be understood only by the ardent fans. For that generation, everything around them changed over time, be it surroundings, technology, friends, physical appearance... But the only constant in their lives has been the Rajini Factor! The last time we enjoyed Rajini moments in full swing were in Padayappa and some moments in Sivaji. After that, it was all about rehash, reinvent, massive idealism, excessive use of technology. My take is, the Boss himself looked confused and fans have been left wanting more. A Kabali or a Kaala did have a few specks of ‘Rajini moments’ here and there, but they were not complete Rajini movies in the true sense. Endhiran and 2.0 were all about visual appeal, grandeur and technology (both the films did give flashes of his own self only when he turned destructive). Even in Sivaji or Chandramukhi, the fans were upbeat when the Motta boss or Vettaiyan entered the screen. Linga was a complete mess and I rather not comment on the disaster called Kochadaiiyaan. Through Baba, an effort to propagate personal beliefs to a larger audience by the boss himself failed. Simply put, the full meal called Rajini movie was never served in last couple of decades. And that’s what Karthik Subbaraj delivered in all honesty and earnestness.
To get into the soul of Petta – while the movie has been unarguably acknowledged as a vintage Rajini treat, what was so specifically nostalgic for a Rajini fan? In my view, the director absolutely nailed it when he blended the cult mass scenes of yesteryear Rajini movies in this one! Be it scenes in which he mouthed the words ‘Ulle Po’, ‘Varta’, ‘Poda’, ‘Oru Motte, Oru Meesai’ ‘Pambu Pambu’ or ‘Ryta’ or the way the intro was shot (akin to Dalapathi) or the cycle riding scene of ‘Raja Chinna Roja’ or the innocent ‘dharmathin thailaivan /muthu’ kind of romance or ‘the way he delivered ‘biriyani master’ as he mixed up English in ‘guru sishyan’ or the redo of the cult ‘gate opening scene from his debut movie ‘Apoorva Ragangal’ or ‘the basha walk’ or the ‘Raman aandalum Ravana aandalum’ gig from Mullum Malarum. The list is endless, as each fan will find their moment of happiness. However, my personal favourite is the way he planted the cigarette flick scene in the movie. It is a given that back in the day, most of us were mesmerized by the way he toyed with cigarettes in his movies (we need not be smokers for that) and the numerous hours fans spent on practicing them. In the current political scenario, there is no way Rajini could smoke on screen especially after the selective backlash he got in Baba. But the smart cookie that Karthik Subbaraj is, he scripted the scene in such a way that he could make Rajini light a cigarette in his own impeccable style and get away with it with an instant preaching against smoking… Kudos to the creativity and serving the favourite dish by hook or by crook. While watching the movie, in the scene where Nawazuddin looks at the mobile phone and laughs out loudly, as a fan, I almost expected him to say ‘ ivanukku ennoru per irukku’ (one of the cult Basha moments). I’m not complaining here, but it would have been like a cherry on the cake! Karthik Subbaraj also found a partner in Anirudh, who really tapped the pulse of the audience and aptly delivered. Else, when was the last time we all heard a Rajini song on a loop? Marana Mass or Ullallaa encompass the elements of peppy and preachy Rajini songs and we haven’t been able to stop humming them. On behalf of all the fans I can chest thump and say that we walked out happy and chirpy.
Indeed, Petta was an out and out time-travel for the hard-core fan of 1990s or 1980s Rajini who has missed these revered Rajini moments over the last few years. Kind of Ache Din for the fans.
This Petta moment lights another thought, this time, about Rajini’s contemporaries. The first one that comes to mind is Kamal. While we all relish watching Rajini, we also had the good fortune of watching how the paths crossed for him and Kamal and the undercurrents of competition between them. Like his contemporary, Kamal has also been off track for last few years and he desperately needs a Karthik Subbaraj to recreate the magic on big screen one last time before he hangs his boots. While there is the much-awaited Indian 2, which backs a lot of promise, but we have always admired and liked the Kamal of timeless classic comedies such as Meendum Kokila or Sathi Leelavathi or Thenali. While Kamal and Rajini are in picture, the third name that instantly strikes me is that of the Shahenshah Amitabh Bachchan. Puri Jagannath made an attempt to recreate the magic of Amitabh in ‘Bbuddah... Hoga Terra Baap’. While it worked to some extent, it did little to recreate the days of yore for him like Petta did for Rajini.
There we are – celeberating the return of the real Rajini and not the brand Rajini. For a 68 year old to pull off something like this is humongous. Hope we get to see some more of this avatar. As an ordinary Rajini fan, we are not really worked up about his politial plunge and success/ failure thereof. (Of course, if I had a vote in Tamil Nadu, I would have reached on election day to vote for him). What we need is entertainment which he has successfully dished out for last 4 decades (sounds selfish) but that’s what it is all about.
Reports says he has a movie with Murugados or another movie with Karthik Subbaraj. For a fan, it doesn’t matter with whom, as long as we have another dose of vintage Rajini on screen. Till then, it’s all Ullaalla Ullaallla. Ryta…
