Dalapathi was the magnum opus of Mani
Ratnam with Rajinikanth.
The film also brought a new screen persona to
the Malayalam superstar, Mamooty.
Everything about the film was gigantic. From
the star cast to the technicians to the production
values, the film had richness written all over
it. Mani
Ratnam took the Nayakan
tale a little further and Dalapathi was the
thinly veiled modern version of Mahabaratha.
An unwed mother abandons her new born child
and settles down to marriage with another. Yet
her guilt lingers on and her understanding husband
helps her in locating the illegitimate child.
Meanwhile, the first-born, Surya(Rajini) grows
into a small-time ruffian.
He
protects an invincible don, Mamooty from a murder
attempt. The don takes him under his wings and
nurtures him. Destiny brings Surya and his brother,
Arjun(Arvind Swamy) face to face as the latter
is posted as the Collector of the town. Skirmishes
abound and in the climax, Mamooty is shot down
while protecting Surya. Surya’s mother stays
back with him while the Collector is transferred.
It
is a familiar story but quite novel to the traditional
mindset of the Tamil audience. The approach towards
an illegitimate child, especially the understanding
husband played superbly by Jaishankar and the
longing mother by Srividya was nicely crafted.
The circumstances which make the protagonists
to come together were very credible and their
reactions were realistic. Arvind Swamy stole many
female hearts as the dedicated Collector. Rajinikanth
was at his mellowed best, letting his body language
and dialogues do most of the work. No one had
witnessed this aspect of Rajini’s ability
before. Mamooty as the don who would stand by
his friend through thick and thin and who pays
with his life was an excellent performance.
Music
by Ilayaraja
was the biggest scoring point as all the songs
became chart busters.
In
every great film, we get an impression which lingers
much after the film is over. In Dalapathi, although
good ultimately prevails over evil, the journey
is portrayed with the obstacles and difficulties.
That is the greatest plus for the film.
