| Kavalai Vendam | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Deekay |
| Written by | Deekay |
| Produced by | Elred Kumar |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Abinandhan Ramanujam |
| Edited by | T. S. Suresh |
| Music by | Leon James |
Production company | |
| Distributed by | Abi & Abi Pictures |
Release date |
|
Running time | 138 minutes[1] |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Kavalai Vendam (transl. No need of Worry) is a 2016 IndianTamil-languageromantic comedy film written and directed by Deekay. The film starsJiiva andKajal Aggarwal, whileBobby Simha andSunaina play supporting roles.
The film, which is said to be an urban romance "about first love, second chances and relationships",[citation needed] features music composed byLeon James, cinematography byAbinandhan Ramanujam and editing bySuresh. Produced byElred Kumar,Kavalai Vendam released on 24 November 2016 while its dubbed Telugu versionEntha Varaku Ee Prema released on 7 April 2017 to mixed reviews and did average collections. The film later gained further recognition after being published on OTT, noting it for its comedy.
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IntroductionThe film opens in a light-hearted tone, introducing Aravind, a charming and flirtatious chef who runs a restaurant in Coonoor, a picturesque hill station. He’s known for his playful personality and carefree attitude toward love and life. Aravind spends most of his time joking around with his close friends Vignesh and Mano, living life with the motto: “Kavalai Vendam” (Don’t worry).However, beneath his easygoing nature lies a complicated past — one involving his ex-wife Divya, the woman he once truly loved.Flashback: Aravind and Divya’s MarriageYears earlier, Aravind and Divya were childhood friends who eventually fell in love and got married. But their marriage was far from smooth — Aravind’s immaturity and Divya’s strong-headed personality often clashed.When Aravind’s mother scolded Divya harshly one day, Aravind didn’t stand up for her, which deeply hurt Divya. Feeling neglected and unsupported, she walked out of the marriage abruptly, without giving him a chance to explain. The two then separated and lost contact.The Present: Divya’s ReturnYears later, Divya re-enters Aravind’s life unexpectedly. She is now living with her new boyfriend, Shahid, and is about to get remarried. However, she needs Aravind’s signature on their divorce papers to finalize the process.When she comes to Coonoor to meet him, Aravind is stunned — the feelings he had for her still linger. Instead of immediately signing the papers, Aravind cleverly refuses, using the opportunity to win her back. He insists she stay with him for a few days so that they can “reconnect” before he decides.The Co-Living ChaosForced to live together again, Divya and Aravind’s life becomes a comical battlefield.They bicker constantly over petty issues.Aravind’s mother encourages them to reconcile, while his friends tease him for still being hung up on Divya.Divya tries to remain distant and practical, but old memories resurface — both sweet and painful.Despite the chaos, their chemistry is undeniable. Aravind tries various ways to remind Divya of their past love — cooking for her, making her laugh, and helping her when she falls sick.Meanwhile, Shanti, a friendly woman who has a crush on Aravind, enters the picture. Her presence triggers jealousy in Divya, even though she refuses to admit she still has feelings for him.Emotional RealizationAs time passes, Aravind begins to mature. He realizes that love isn’t just about fun and passion — it’s about understanding, support, and compromise. Divya, too, starts seeing this change in him and begins to question whether ending the marriage was truly what she wanted.However, misunderstandings soon arise again when Aravind’s playful flirting causes confusion, and Divya, feeling hurt, decides to leave once more — convinced that he hasn’t changed at all.ClimaxWhen Divya is about to leave for good and marry Shahid, Aravind finally opens up and confesses his genuine feelings for her. He admits that he was immature before but has learned from their time apart. He tells her that despite everything, he still loves her deeply and doesn’t want to lose her again.This heartfelt confession moves Divya, who realizes she also still loves him. She calls off her marriage to Shahid.EndingThe film concludes on a happy, comedic note — Divya and Aravind reconcile and start over, choosing to rebuild their relationship from scratch. Aravind’s motto “Kavalai Vendam” now takes on a new meaning — not careless indifference, but a positive, worry-free approach to life and love.
Following the success of their first collaborationYaamirukka Bayamey (2014), producerElred Kumar announced in June 2014 that he had signed on Deekay to make his second film forRS Infotainment. He revealed that the film would also be a "comedy" but a different genre from their earlier horror-comedy film[2] In January 2015,Jiiva andBobby Simha were reported to be playing the lead roles, with a press release in March 2015 confirming that Jiiva would play the lead role and that Simha would play an extended guest role. TitledKavalai Vendam, Elred Kumar stated that he would retain music composer S. N. Prasad from their previous film, while bringing in cinematographer Mukesh and editorRuben.[citation needed]Keerthy Suresh signed on to play the leading female role in March 2015, whileNikki Galrani was added to the cast thereafter for another lead role.[3][4] A photo shoot featuring Jiiva and Keerthy Suresh was held in June 2015, with promotional stills released to indicate the start of the production phase.[4] However, the film was later postponed and the first schedule was pushed back by six months. The change of dates meant that Keerthy Suresh could not accommodate the film into her schedule, and she was subsequently replaced byKajal Aggarwal during August 2015.[5][6] Pre-production works for the film was reported to be back underway in December 2015, with comediansRJ Balaji,Bala Saravanan andMayilswamy added to the cast. The delays also meant that Nikki Galrani quit the project after committing to work on other films during the period.[citation needed]
The film began its schedule inCoonoor during mid-January 2016, with further changes made to the crew of the film. A press release revealed thatLeon James had been brought in to compose the film's soundtrack, whileAbinandhan Ramanujam was signed as the cinematographer.[citation needed] ActressesSunaina andShruthi Ramakrishnan also joined the team during the first schedule, with Sunaina revealing that she would portray a character who is in love with Jiiva's character.[7][8] The team shot for a month in Coonoor andKotagiri, often working for up to fifteen hours a day and by the end of the schedule, Deekay revealed that the film was "sixty percent" complete.[citation needed] The second schedule of the film, initially scheduled for March, was delayed as a result of the2016 Tamil Nadu elections and as a result, the team restarted work in June 2016 with a song sequence shot in Kotagiri.[citation needed] Further scenes including the climax was shot inOoty during early July 2016, before the team moved to Chennai to film more scenes. Another song featuring Jiiva and Kajal Aggarwal was shot inMahabalipuram and on locations on theEast Coast Road during the same month, with the makers revealing that the film was "eighty percent" complete.[9]
| Kavalai Vendam | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 17 October 2016 | |||
| Recorded | 2016 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 15:47 | |||
| Label | Sony Music India | |||
| Producer | Leon James | |||
| Leon James chronology | ||||
| ||||
The film's score and soundtrack is composed byLeon James, with the four songs written byKo. Sesha. Two singles released prior to the release of the full album; "Un Kadhal Irundhal Pothum" byArmaan Malik andShashaa Tirupati was released on 17 August 2016, while "En Pulse Yethitu Poriye" featuring vocals fromInno Genga,Andrea Jeremiah,Dinesh Kanagaratnam and Leon James was released on 2 September 2016.[10] The full album released on 17 October 2016, with a further song titled "Nee Tholaindhaayo" bySid Sriram and a reprise of "Un Kadhal Irundhal Podhum" byVandana Srinivasan unveiled. Upon release, the album won largely positive reviews from critics.[citation needed] The dubbed Telugu version of the audio was released in late October 2016 with a music launch event.[11]
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Un Kaadhal Irundhal Podhum" | Armaan Malik,Shashaa Tirupati | 4:31 |
| 2. | "En Pulse Yethitu Poriye" | Leon James,Inno Genga,Andrea Jeremiah,Dinesh Kanagaratnam | 3:59 |
| 3. | "Nee Tholaindhaayo" | Sid Sriram | 3:42 |
| 4. | "Un Kaadhal Irundhal Podhum Reprise" | Vandana Srinivasan | 3:23 |
| Total length: | 15:35 | ||
In August 2016,Elred Kumar announced that the film would release on 7 October 2016 coinciding with theAyudha Puja holidays in India, but the team consequently chose to postpone the project to avoid competition with other films.[12] During the period, distributor Abinesh Elangovan also purchased the Indian theatrical rights of the film to release through his studio, Abi & Abi Pictures.[13] D. Venkatesh of DV Cine Creations bought the Telugu dubbing rights of the film and subsequently prepared the Telugu version titledEntha Varaku Ee Prema. Subsequently, in mid-November, Elred Kumar announced a new release date of 24 November and the film began promotional work, with a second teaser trailer being released.[14][15][16]
M. Suganth ofThe Times of India rated the film two-and-a-half out of five stars and wrote, "Abinandhan Ramanujam does a fab job in capturing the misty locales of Coonoor while composer Leon James tries to inject liveliness into the scenes with his bouncy score, and RJ Balaji, for his part, keeps cracking one-liners. But, half the time, it doesn’t help because the narrative lacks focus and the tone becomes jerky. This is perhaps why the jokes are scattershot."[17] Srivatsan ofIndia Today gave it one-and-a-half out of five stars and wrote, "Kavalai Vendam has nothing to offer, or to put it better, the aforementioned actors fail to fit in this film."[18]
Sreedhar Pillai ofFirstpost gave the film two-and-a-half out of five stars and wrote, "If double entendre and crude gags are your idea of entertainment then the typical Tamil comedyKavalai Vendam might just do the trick."[19] Manoj Kumar R. ofThe Indian Express gave it half a star out of five and wrote, "Kavalai Vendam is a case study for how to make a regressive film in romantic-comedy genre".[20]
Anupama Subramanian ofDeccan Chronicle wrote, "Though one does not expect logic from such comedies, the problem withKV is the inconsistent screenplay by Deekay. And we don’t empathize with the lead pair (as it should have been) even as they go through some serious situations."[21] Vishal Menon ofThe Hindu wrote, "Barring a few scattered moments of laughter,Kavalai Vendam’s just a repeat of last week’s disappointingKadavul Irukaan Kumaru."[22]