South First revisits two most popular reel-life friends in each South Indian film industry who withstood the test of time.
Iconic friend duos of south Indian films. (Supplied)
How do you define friendship? Well, a dictionary might have a description, but in reality, it is beyond words.
The bond is forever and remains special in all our hearts, no matter what!
By now, reading these words would have certainly made most of us remember the most special friends in our lives — some alive and some forever gone.
Some even argue that friendship is the purest form of love, which is not bound by age, class, caste, religion, language, boundaries, and whatnot.
While friend is the universal word, they are simply known as macha, machi, bro, dost, geleya, and so on. The deeper the friendship is, the weirder the names we refer to as friends. Isn’t it?
On the occasion of Friendship Day on Sunday, 6 August, South First revisits two most popular iconic characters that have withstood the test of onscreen friendship to this date from each South Indian film industry.
A poster of Rajinikanth and Mammootty in ‘Thalapathi’. (Supplied)
Rajini-Mammootty in Thalapathi: Tamil cinema celebrated friendship by making several films entirely on the subject. However, two iconic films that showcased friendship like never before were both made by ace director Mani Ratnam.
The first Tamil film that invariably comes to mind when you talk of friendship is Thalapathi (1991), a blockbuster flick that featured two superstars as friends — Rajinikanth and Mammootty.
Their characters in the movie — Surya and Deva respectively — went on to become synonymous with loyalty and trust.
Though set in a story that takes place in the modern day and age, their roles were heavily inspired by the characters of Karna and Duryodhana from the Mahabharata.
Surya (Rajinikanth), in particular, bears a striking resemblance to Karna from the great epic. Just like Karna, Surya is someone who cannot say no to anyone who approaches him for help.
That’s not all. Just like how Karna was abandoned by his mother Kunti in the epic, Surya gets abandoned by his mother in Thalapathi.
A still from ‘Nayakan’. (Supplied)
Kamal Haasan-Janagaraj in Nayakan: The second iconic Tamil movie that comes to mind when one talks of friendship is Nayakan (1987), again directed by none other than ace director Mani Ratnam.
The story of the blockbuster hit, which was inspired by the life of Mumbai’s underworld don Varadaraja Mudaliar, featured Kamal Haasan playing the iconic character named “Velu Nayakar” and Janagaraj donning the character of his trusted lieutenant Selva.
The film showcases several scenes where the two stand by one another. In particular, there is a scene when Nayakar slaps his daughter when she hits Selva. That scene to this day is considered iconic.
A poster of ‘Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi’. (Supplied)
Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi and RRR: Tharun Bhascker Dhaassyam’s Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi (2018) and SS Rajamouli’s RRR (2022) fare better than other flicks in Tollywood, given the fact that the millennials only rejoice new-age friendships.
RRR is probably the iconic friendship that Telugu audiences see on the big screen — Alluri Sitarama Raju and Komaram Bheem.
The portrayal of friendship is being re-invented from time to time on the Telugu screen from the melodramatic 90s to the present day. Every era has magical moments. The trends are perceived through filmmakers’ eyes.
And how one is exposed to society and how one portrayed the relationship of two college buddies in the early 90s are evidently different from present-day friendships.
Whether from Kathir’s masterpiece Prema Desam in 1996 or Megastar Chiranjeevi’s Sneham Kosam in 1999, or Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi, audiences keep reminiscing about on-screen friendship.
Ram Charan and NTR in ‘RRR’. (Supplied)
Telugu cinema has undergone a sea change in terms of onscreen friendship.
There were times when best buddies would play a sidekick to a protagonist. A loyal friendship would sometimes last long till the climax, while mostly the cause of buddy’s demise would propel the protagonist to dig deep into an incident to emerge invincible.
But of late, filmmakers are trying to give equal importance to the opposite friend in the story. In RRR, an equivalent depth is given to the protagonist’s friend.
Recent films (2023 releases) like Pareshan and Mem Famous are some examples where filmmakers have thrown more impetus on stories depicting the daily travails of the characters in them.
‘Nadodikkattu’ is still loved by movie buffs. (Supplied)
Dasan and Vijayan in Nadodikkattu: Mohanlal and Sreenivasan acted together in many Malayalam films and most of them are superhits.
Their onscreen presence would often make the audience laugh, thanks to their perfect comic timing.
Nadodikkattu (1987) directed by Sathyan Anthikad and written by Sreenivasan is one such movie where two friends — Ramdas (Mohanlal) and Vijayan (Sreenivasan) — reach Chennai in search of a job.
They are like annoying siblings who do not restrain from being mean to each other.
Their journey in the city and how they mistakenly get involved in the world of Ananthan Nambiar and Pavanai — the negative characters — keep the film moving.
In the later years, Nadodikkattu got two sequels — Pattanapravesham (1988) and Akkare Akkare Akkare (1990).
Mukesh, Innocent, and Saikumar in ‘Ramji Rao Speaking’. (Supplied)
Ramji Rao Speaking and Mannar Mathai Speaking: In Ramji Rao Speaking (1989), actor Innocent appears as Mannar Mathai, Mukesh plays the role of Gopalakrishnan and Sai Kumar as Balakrishnan.
The movie was a super hit upon its release and is still loved by film buffs.
It portrays the friendship between Mathai, a good-hearted middle-aged man, and his two young tenants-cum-partners. The trio was accepted well by the audience.
The movie revolved around Mannar Mathai and his drama troupe. The plot gets interesting as the daughter of a businessman is kidnapped and the trio gets involved in it.
Their friendship is the crux of the flick. To date, memes are circulated on social media with these characters.
The film also had a sequel Mannar Mathai Speaking (1995).
A poster of ‘Diggajaru’. (Supplied)
Talk about friendship, both in real and reel life, and the first name that pops up in mind among die-hard Kannadigas is Sahasa Simha (1982), which starred the late Dr Vishnuvardhan and “Rebel Star” late Dr Ambareesh.
The two started their cine journey with the film Naagarahaavu (1972), directed by the renowned director Puttanna Kanagal. Incidentally, the two played an opposite role. But in real life, it led to the start of a lifelong friendship that remain intact till their last breath.
Diggajaru: Though the Kannada movie Diggajaru (2001) directed by D Rajendra Babu is a remake of the Tamil film Natpukkaga (1998), the Kannada version is remembered solely for the on-screen chemistry between the two real friends playing the role of friends.
While Vishnuvardhan played Chikkaya as a servant, Ambareesh is seen in the role of Wodeya as the landlord.
When the landlord in the flick accidentally commits a murder, the servant decides to take the blame. The emotionally charged scenes from the film made it iconic and a sign of true friendship.
Even to this date, many die-hard Kannada movies share the images of both the actors from the film as a mark of friendship.
A poster of ‘Kaviratna Kalidasa’. (Supplied)
Kaviratna Kalidasa: While countless Kannada films deserve the second spot as the iconic movie on friendship, the most deserving is director Renuka Sharm’s Kaviratna Kalidasa (1983).
While the main premise is about the life of prominent classical Sanskrit writer, Kalidasa from the 4th century AD, the film is equally known for the bond between Kalidasa (Kannada thespian late Dr Rajkumar) and King Bhoja (Srinivasa Murthy).
The friendship between the king and his scholar is epitomised to near perfection on the screen by the two actors. The climax scenes where one sacrifices his life for another is the major highlight of the film.
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