Arul (transl. Grace) is a 2004 Indian Tamil-language action film written and directed by Hari. It stars Vikram in the titular role, alongside Jyothika, Pasupathy, Kollam Thulasi and Vadivelu. The music was composed by Harris Jayaraj, while the cinematography and editing were handled by Priyan and V. T. Vijayan respectively.

Arul
Promotional poster
Directed byHari
Written byHari
Produced byT. Rama Rao (Presenter)
T. Ajay Kumar
StarringVikram
Jyothika
Pasupathy
Kollam Thulasi
Vadivelu
CinematographyPriyan
Edited byV. T. Vijayan
Music byHarris Jayaraj
Production
company
Lakshmi Productions
Release date
  • 1 May 2004 (2004-05-01)
Running time
163 minutes
(2 hours 43 minutes)
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Arul was released on 1 May 2004 and became a commercial success at the box office.

Plot

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Arul Kumaran, a factory worker separated from his family of goldsmiths in Coimbatore, gets into a verbal fight with the corrupt MLA Gajapathy, which results in Arul killing Gajapathy. Arul surrenders to the cops, but is later released from prison. Sethupathy, Gajapathy's brother and a political kingmaker, wants to exact revenge on Arul for Gajapathy's death. A cat and mouse game ensues in which Arul takes responsibility of cleaning anti social elements and also becomes the kingmaker of Coimbatore.

Cast

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Production

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After the success of Saamy, Hari decided to renew the collaboration with Vikram for second time with Arul. Jyothika was selected as heroine pairing with Vikram for second time after Dhool.[1] Vivek was originally a part of the cast but fell out with the director and was subsequently replaced by Vadivelu in the film.[2]

Though the film's plot is set in the backdrop of Coimbatore, the film was entirely shot at Karaikudi and was completed within 45 days.[3]

Music

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Arul
Soundtrack album by
Released15 April 2004
Recorded2004
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length26:51
LabelHit Musics
Vega Music
Think Music
Bayshore
Divo
ProducerHarris Jayaraj
Harris Jayaraj chronology
Arasatchi
(2004)
Arul
(2004)
Thotti Jaya
(2005)

The soundtrack album and background score were composed by Harris Jayaraj collaborating with Hari and Vikram for the third time.

Track-ist
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Arul Theme" (Instrumental)  1:33
2."Ukkadathu Papadame"Na. MuthukumarTippu, L. R. Easwari, Theni Kunjarammal5:29
3."Oddiyaanam"VairamuthuHariharan, Srimathumitha5:01
4."Patthu Viral"VairamuthuS. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Swarnalatha5:18
5."Punnakunnu"Na. MuthukumarTippu, Sriram, Manikka Vinayagam4:44
6."Soodamani"SnehanRanjith, Pop Shalini4:46
Total length:26:51

Release and reception

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The film was released on 1 May 2004.

Arul received mixed reviews from critics. Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu wrote "In story and screenplay Hari could have done better. First of all a fearless, infallible hero pitted against a bunch of hoodlums and brutal, power-crazy politicians is too stereotypical for words. And when a completely unexpected twist occurs just before the break, the rest of the tale should be able to sustain the tempo created at the halfway point. Then, of course, you have the disjointed comic sequences".[4] Nowrunning termed it as "long, stale, tedious and drab."[5] Sify wrote "If you like Rambo style of films, Arul is worth investing".[6] Indiaglitz wrote "An action-packed film for frontbenchers."[7] Chennai Online called it "a major let-down".[8]

References

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  1. ^ "Reel Talk - One name sells". Chennai Online. Archived from the original on 16 June 2004. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  2. ^ "Reel Talk - Unconventional Aparna". Chennai Online. Archived from the original on 3 June 2004. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  3. ^ "Arul". Chennai Online. Archived from the original on 16 May 2004. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  4. ^ Rangarajan, Malathi (7 May 2004). "Arul". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 29 December 2008. Retrieved 8 June 2024.
  5. ^ "Arul Review | Arul Tamil Movie Review by Franco". Archived from the original on 2 February 2014. Retrieved 2 April 2013.
  6. ^ "Movie Review : Arul". Sify. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  7. ^ "Arul Review". Indiaglitz. Archived from the original on 28 March 2014. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
  8. ^ Mannath, Malini (10 May 2004). "Arul". Chennai Online. Archived from the original on 6 February 2007. Retrieved 15 August 2024.
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