FATAL ATTRACTION

Tamil cinema belongs to its Heroes. We like our leading men to be dashing, noble, macho, possessed of the ability to charm the ladies with their smooth ways, bash up baddies by the dozen amidst burning buildings, runaway cars and a hysterical heroine or two to round things out, help old ladies to cross the road and receive a kiss on the cheek for services rendered, and save the world single – handedly from the many evils that afflict it. Perhaps we project our fondest desire for ideal political leaders on to the big screen because that is the only place where our fantasies have any chance of being realized. Be that as it may, we also have a taste for evil in our films to offset our need to see larger – than – life perfection emulated by our leading men. After all every good protagonist needs a worthy antagonist. Even Superstar Rajinikanth needs a Mark Antony, Neelambari or a shrewish wife to fully display his powers against the forces of evil and overbearing females. 

There is something about a truly evil villain that stokes the imagination in the most exciting way imaginable. And while most people would be happy to give evil – doers a wide berth in real life, they are more than happy to lap up their gory doings on the big screen. From a psychological point of view this piece of perversity is easy enough to explain. Viewing the machinations of a loathsome villain in a darkened theatre or in the air – conditioned comfort of a home theatre system one has the luxury of enjoying the thrill of an entire gamut of negative emotions like fear, panic, and loathing without the added inconvenience of a real threat to personal safety. Few things are more pleasurable than the sight of a truly evil villain receive his comeuppance at the hands of the hero. 

Over the years, a number of memorable baddies have graced the silver screen with their loathsome presence. Some even had the temerity to win the hearts of the audience despite being rotten to the core and went on to become huge stars. A thorough examination of the bad boys who created an impression with their misdeeds is guaranteed to make one delight in the guilty pleasure it affords.

The Rich Baddie

Traditionally, the rich man is a political type who has no qualms about misusing his power. The heroine is almost always his daughter and needless to say, she loses her heart to the hero who is poor, noble, and courageous. The star - crossed lovers are then hunted by the villain’s henchmen and have to struggle to escape their clutches long enough for a rain - drenched romantic interlude. In commercial ventures, the lovers are united in the end and true love conquers all but if the film seeks to kick you in the gut, then the unhappy couple are killed off by Daddy dearest’s hellhounds. Movies like Punnagai Mannan and Kadhal had Daddy villains who made your stomach churn with righteous indignation.

Another old favorite is the rich villain who gorges on every excess imaginable at the expense of the poor people who are dependent on him. And if this were not enough he is invariably a rapist and murderer to boot. His sexual target is usually the hero’s sister or if the writer is feeling truly sadistic, the hero’s wife. This type of villain was ubiquitous at one time in action movies. The noble hero sheds copious tears for the loved one who had her modesty violated and promptly committed suicide and then proceeds to avenge the loved one using the most violent means at his disposal. 

There are a number of actors who specialized in playing this particular type of baddie. Malaysia Vasudevan rocked this role in Oru Kaidhiyin Diary as the incorrigibly corrupt politician who uses his followers for his own ends and had the audience applauding kamal haasan when he finally got his bloody vengeance in a deliciously over – the – top climax scene. Charan Raj and Raghuvaran did similar roles in Rajini films and were duly detestable. 

However, the honors for playing the rich villain who abuses his financial and political clout to molest pretty young things and speedily dispatch them from the world of the living as a final coup de grace goes to Sathyaraj, the Granddaddy of all villains. He played exactly this type of villain in 24 Mani Neram with the punchline “En characteray purinchika mattengirenga” (Nobody understands my character). He played the lecherous, murdering, politician with so much gusto that it was fun to hate him and when he laughs at the hero who is out to avenge his wife and goes about it in the most inept manner imaginable you are tempted to laugh with him. Tamil cinema will never again see an actor of the caliber of Sathyaraj who raised villainy to such glorious heights.

The Serial killer

Unlike Hollywood which has long been enamored of serial killers, the serial killer is a very rare commodity in Tamil cinema. This is probably because the general public is of the consensus that there are things that no respectable villain should ever do and serial killing in one such thing. Mass killing, rape, torture, theft, and the like are perfectly acceptable but full – blown psychosis is a risky premise as Gautam Menon found out to his detriment with his superbly crafted Nadunisi Naigal that had a stellar performance by new find, Veera. 

Kamal Haasan however got away with playing a serial killer and as always with style. His turn as the dishy serial – killer, Dileep in Sivapu Rojakal is believed by connoisseurs to be one of his best performances. Credit goes to Bharathi Raja for creating this deeply troubled character who is in chronic pain from the scars of his traumatic childhood. His coping mechanism involves lashing out at predatory females by allowing himself to be seduced and then killing them, videotaping the proceedings for the viewing pleasure of his equally deranged mentor. 

The movie was a resounding success for its foray into hitherto unexplored territory. No other film or actor has come close to recapturing the depth of evil a true psychopath is capable of achieving. Simbhu did his best in Manmadhan but his serial killer was not as convincing or well – fleshed out as Kamal’s Dileep or Gautam Menon’s Veera. 

The Superstar Villain

16 Vayathinile marked a turning point in the careers of its three protagonists – kamal haasan, Rajinikanth, and Sridevi. It was made by Bharathi Raja and it was his first film making it all the more special. Sridevi plays an alluring sixteen year old who pays too terrible a price for the follies of youth. kamal haasan was the memorable Chappani, the country bumpkin who loved her with the simplicity of a simpleton. The third pivotal character was Parattai portrayed by a scenery – chewing Rajinikanth with his famous refrain “Idhu eppadi irrukku?” (How is it?) uttered every time he commits an act of foul infamy. 

Rajini’s Parattai was there only for a handful of scenes but the great man was so marvelous as the evil villager who thinks nothing of destroying a sixteen – year old’s life by casually casting aspersions on her virtue and taking immense pride in doing so that he easily eclipsed the other two. Parattai was malicious and vindictive and this is apparent when he makes a cowardly attempt to rape the heroine after she spits on his face which is more or less what he deserves and winds up with a smashed skull for being such a rat. Never in the history of Tamil cinema has vileness been such a treat to watch. 

In an earlier venture, Rajinikanth created yet another memorable villain, Prasad in K. Balachander’s classic Moondru Mudichu again with kamal haasan and Sridevi. He plays a young man who is so besotted that he allows his best friend to die in order to give his own twisted love a chance to survive. The crucial scene that has Superstar crooning a song that has poignant meaning to give himself the iron nerves needed to watch a beloved friend in his death throes, condemned to a watery grave by terrible betrayal, even as the love of his life pleads desperately with him to save her lover still lingers hauntingly in the memories of all who watched this film. 

Rajinikanth recaptured his glorious days as a villain for a brief span in the more recent Chandramukhi and Enthiran to colossal success proving that there are few in the world who can hold their own against him on the big screen. Never is his shining talent as apparent as when he plays the bad guy making him the quintessential villain. 

The Anti – Hero

The current crop of actors are loathe to play loathsome evil – doers as they are very conscious about their image with the masses. And with good reason since their brand value will take a beating as nobody wants a man from their nightmares to endorse their products. Consequently, experimentation with such roles has been kept to a minimum. This attitude lead to the anti – hero that is the hero who is actually a good guy who does bad things or a bad guy who does good things depending on your perspective.

Vijay played such a character in Piriyamudan with Kausalya. He played an obsessive lover who was willing to murder all who stood in the way of his winning his lady love despite being a genuinely sweet guy and a loyal friend. However, the writers gave him a lot of extenuating circumstances to win the sympathy of the audience. Even so, Ilaya Thalapathi was superlative in this role.

Ajith had his Vaali and was simply brilliant as the evil deaf and mute twin who wants his brother’s wife. Arguably it was the best performance in Ajith’s career. He was lecherous, spiteful, devious, and manipulative to the core. But you can’t help feeling sorry for the guy and secretly liking him because he was so intense and well, ridiculously handsome. 

Dhanush also deserves a mention for his Vinod in Kaadhal Kondaen. Selvaraghavan wrote the role of a lifetime for his brother and Dhanush did full justice to it. Vinod was a troubled genius, a tender lover, and a psychopathic killer. In short, he was magnificent and kept you riveted to the screen. 

And that concludes our examination of the great screen villains Tamil cinema can boast of. We love them for being unabashedly evil and for showing us the depths of darkness human beings can descend to, given the right set of circumstances. It has been fun hating them and we hope there will be many more from where these came from.