Nedunalvaadai (2019)

Interesting facts

Nedunalvaadai is a 2019 Tamil language drama film written and directed by debutant director Selvakannan and produced by B-Star Productions. Inspired by the poem written by Nakkeerar in Sangam literature, the film, as the title suggest, is about the pain of separation — of a man and woman, and a grandfather and his grandson. The movie was a sleeper hit.

Production

Nedunalvaadai is a crowd funded Tamil film. It's been jointly produced by 50 of his college mates joined to fund and produce this movie. It all started when one of Selvakannan's friends learned that the latter is struggling to get a producer for his directorial venture. He connected all the classmates through WhatsApp group and finally the film happened.

While the film mostly stars newcomers, Selva hired Kaviperarasu Vairamuthu to pen the lyrics. "Vairamuthu sir and editor Kasi Viswanathan are the only two celebrities in the film," he laughs, "He didn't charge us a penny for writing the lyrics. One of the songs he has written for us – Karuvatheva Un Kannellam Kanneera – will be a highlight; he was inspired by his own grandfather while penning it".

The film is set against the backdrop of Tirunelveli. The shooting of the film took place around the village surrounding Vasudevanallur and the town Puliangudi. Selvakannan says, "we decided to make a film on human emotions and showcase our town in a new light. Though many films have been based in Tirunelveli, we felt none portrayed its true essence".

Selvakannan says that the female character is central theme of the film. Through his film, Selvakannan wanted to question the representation of women in mainstream cinema, “People howl and whistle to scenes that are deeply sexist. It’s easy for men to express their emotions post break-up. But a woman has to go through a lot, internally.

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