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FILM INDUSTRY AND SOCIETY
ANALYSIS ON THE CULT FILM | JIGIRTHANDA
LANGUAGE TAMIL|
Janani Divakar | 130702021 | IInd MA Communication | SOC, Manipal University.

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INTRODUCTION
“Jigar” means heart. “Thanda” is cold. This title made better sense in retrospective, where we
can clearly see that the first half of the film shows the “cold” side of the gangster, and in the
latter half we see the “heart” in him.
An elaborate title indeed.
The basic concept of Jigarthanda (a title that has a double meaning both as a popular drink
in Madurai and through its literal translation as "cold heart"), is that a first time feature
filmmaker named Karthik (played by Tamil film heartthrob Siddharth) is given a green light to
make his first film, but not without conditions. The producer, who only raised the offer on a
television program in an attempt to thwart a personal rival played by popular pan-Indian
filmi villain Nassar, stipulates that he'll give Karthik the money to make the film, but only if it is
a dark, violent gangster film like the ones that make the big bucks these days in Tamil Nadu.
Jigarthanda is an engrossing gangster film with a series of bizarre twists and turns that keeps
you guessing. The plot is totally unpredictable. There is reality mixed in with creativity, terror
with nuances of humour, sentiments, fleeting romance and loads of fun.
The film has Siddharth and Lakshmi Menon in the lead, along with Bobby Simhaa and
Karunakaran in significant roles.
ABOUT THE DIRECTOR
Subbaraj is the first director from the current gen of Tamil Cinema talents, who puts
Tarantino’s “I steal from every film ever made” to practical use. He imitates the “feel”, the
“texture” of a scene, but not the scene itself. You would know if you would have watched the
film closely.
Subbaraj loves to experiment with his work, but he's confined to work within the system that
tells young filmmakers what kind of films are accepted and how they should be made.
Jigarthanda was supposed to be Karthik's debut film but for reasons unknown, he was forced
to make Pizza, which eventually went on to be a sleeper hit. The reasons why he was not
allowed to make Jigarthanda earlier are explained in the film in detail. And if you happen to
miss it, that's probably because Subbaraj cons you and makes you see his work only as a
gangster film.

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THE PLOT
Karthik, an aspiring filmmaker, gets a chance to make a film, but his producer only wants a
gangster tale soaked in blood. So, he goes to Madurai to research about Assault Sethu, a
fearsome gangster who will not hesitate to murder those who try to even write about him.
Karthik now needs a good script to impress his producer. For the script to be authentic, Karthik
decides to find a real-life gangster and base the story around his life. After much research,
Karthik zeroes in on Sethu (Simhaa), a ruthless killer, who rules Madurai with an iron hand.
Karthik has a friend in Madurai, Oorini, and together they begin to track Sethu and his
everyday activities. Kayal (Lakshmi Menon) and her mother, cook for Sethu and his men.
Karthik decides to use her to gather information and pretends to be in love with her.
Meanwhile, Sethu hears through his grapevine that the police have plans to close his case with
an encounter incident. He becomes more cautious and even as the first half comes to an end,
Karthik and Oorini are caught red-handed trying to overhear their plans with a hidden
speaker. This infuriates Sethu.
The rest of the story is all about how Karthik gets himself out of this mess. And the events that
follow are sure to leave the audience bewildered.
THE ADD ON FACTORS FOR THE FILM’S SUCCESS
The director has chosen his characters and technicians with much care and the results are
exceptional.
Though there’s Siddharth as the lead protagonist, the star performer of Jigarthanda is
undoubtedly the antagonist Simha. He is terrifyingly menacing at times while cool and
humorous at certain other times and has given a remarkable performance. The rugged side of
Siddharth has been showcased and the actor has delivered a great act. Karunakaran keeps
you in splits with his comic timings, hysterical expressions and exceptional dialogue delivery.
Lakshmi Menon is aptly cast as a simple looking girl and she scores as usual although in limited
scope. What makes this movie unique is its multi genre approach. The story does not fall under
any genre and its screenplay is absolutely flawless.

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Music by Santhosh Narayanan is a winner, while cinematographer Gavemic U Ary has found
the best angle and perfect vantage point for every scene. Editing by Vivek Harshan,
definitely deserves applause.
Director Karthik Subbaraj’s brilliant script is complemented by excellent performances,
compelling dialogues, perfect cinematography, and stimulating BGM. He has executed it
The intriguing first half moves at jet speed with interesting elements jam packed in it. Post
interval, the subplots open one after another rather slowly and drag a bit at times.
WHAT MAKES JIGARTHANDA A CULT
Jigarthanda comes across as a satirical tale camouflaging as a gangster film.
It is completely subversive in nature and is biographical too, probably in taking us through the
journey of a filmmaker who has successfully found a way to make his films against the system
without being penalized. If the purpose of Jigarthanda was to deliver a tight slap on the face
of the industry, it has succeeded in it. Thanks to the impeccable performances of the lead cast,
especially Simhaa, director Subbaraj has conveniently conned us into seeing his film as a
gangster flick-turned-comedy caper.
People read too much into the content when a film becomes a cult film. Jigarthanda is a dark
comedy but it’s also a comment on the Tamil film industry. The Movie slaps on tamil movie
industry in a very satirical way – New thoughts gets less room in Tamil movie industry is the
main point to be noted. But there is always a possibility to make it. You have laughs and you
have moments of commentary. The director holds no personal angst against anybody, but just
wishes to portray the harsh reality through subtlety.
In a poignant scene in Jigarthanda, an elderly man tells Karthik, who is on the verge of
directing his first film, about the attitude of debutant filmmakers. They will demand everything
and not compromise, the old man says and goes on to narrate how he, when he was all set to
direct a film after a decade of toil in the industry, refused to accept the request of his
producer to cast two of his relatives and walked out of the project saying he will get a
thousand other producers for his story. "Aana, kadaisi varikkum aayirathula oruthan kooda

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varala," he says to make Karthik understand, meaning till the end no one will come but it is his
duty to grab the opportunity that is knocking on his doors, despite the conditions it brings
along with it.
Already Jigarthanda has earned the status of a cult film and has been praised by the entire
film fraternity including giant directors like Shankar and Mani Ratnam. And the movie has
enjoyed a dream run at the box-office.
It comes as no surprise that the film was featured in the list of the Five Indian Films to watch in
2014 by Forbes India Magazine published in December last year.
CONCLUSION
Jigarthanda seems to be half biography of the director himself. The Lead character of the
movie is named after Karthik, the director himself. The movie did not need a hero. The movie is
a master hero by itself. It requires no duet or sterotype comedy scenes. But the compulsions of
Tamil movie industry push the director to place a song on a very light romantic background,
which gets almost unnoticed by the audience.
The movie hasn’t been popularised beyond southern walls. However, I really hope that this film
manages to find some kind of audience apart from ethnic Tamils, because it deserves
one. Jigarthanda is a complete entertainer and will be remembered as one amongst the many
modern cult films. It is unique and shows the urge for new age cinema with derivations from
yesteryear film geniuses. What makes it interesting is its rebellious outlook. The director has
clear cut ideals and is sure to bring in more realistic content to modern films. This kind of
subversive streak is what makes this film unusual and reinforces that Karthik Subbaraj is one of
the exciting filmmakers of our time. Without doubt one could easily say he is here to stay.
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