On a Saturday night, when the rest of the world was out partying, I also partied. Head phones on, glued to a semi functional lap top which fortunately does not have problems playing good movies with great clarity, I was watching what inarguably is the most intelligent piece of art to have graced Tamil cinema halls. The fact that the cinema halls did not grace it back is a non-issue because its been a long time since I stopped caring about what a film did at box office and what it did not ( Do not remind me of 16/50). I was watching almost unending wit at work. I was watching one of the most complete designs of the master. I was watching the genius that is Anbe Sivam.
I have sort of come up with a new "heart-felt" theory on the movie. Its called "THE ANBE SIVAM PAINTING THEORY" - Here is how it goes:-
In many ways, Anbe Sivam pretty much is all about the ‘so called Sivam’ painting that Nalla draws on the walls of Kandasamy padayachiyar’s office.
1) The fact the painting was designed to be a portrait of Lord Sivam (Theism-on a larger basis) and goes on to depict pretty much the opposite or rather an alternative to the conceptual God is exactly what the movie, its story and its narration does to the audience. It is the underlying theme of the movie- the platform on which every conversation in the movie is based.
2)Next up in the painting is the more than obvious reference to communism and Karl Marx – This again is an issue (perhaps a ‘feeling’ in Mr.Sivam’s words) that is dealt with in the movie all the time in form of arguments and counter arguments between Ars and Sivam.
3) It is while the painting work progressed, that the love between Bala and Nalla evolved – so the painting in essence forms the chunk of the Sivam flash back – the most goose bumpy segment of the entire movie.
4) And above all, Lord Sivam in the painting has a face that is uncannily similar to our Lord here, the man who has amazed us for fifty years now, the genius whose works like this have become a part of our daily life, the man who stands for excellence in everything he does, the hero of this story of ours – Kamal Haasan alias Nalla alias Mr.Sivam alias Nallasivam alias NA. Sivam alias Kadavul.
It is almost as if Kamal first drew that Sivam on the wall and then made a movie around it. Or instead as if Kamal simply decided to paint it again, in 70 mm now with more color, with the images now moving, with more explanations now and even more confusions. With Madhavan and Madan and Vidyasagar (what each of them has done to the movie in terms of acting, dialogues and music respectively is genuinely brilliant work). With ‘magnificently real’ sets and a very pleasing camera, Kamal Repainted the Sivam into one master piece retaining the soul, amplifying the effect 1000x. Kamal first paints it yellow with humor. He then paints it red with communism. He goes on to make it black with heart wrenching tragedy and finally applies white to bring out the inherent truth and the ultimate vision around which the entire theme is built. Of oneness, of the integral living being and of love. Relentless unmotivated unending impartial love.
The true genius of Anbe Sivam lies in the fact that the film is about one simple truth and yet, apart from unfailingly making you realize that simple truth, it travels across various regions and domains not just geographically but very much in the minds as well. It starts with the flight called misplaced ego, settles down to a bus called accident, trivializes with a train called communism. Through relationships, fate and comradeship, it travels until it ultimately gets into a taxi called realization. A taxi that would probably accept credit cards.
