Eeenadu
Encyclopedia
Eeenadu is a 2009 Telugu film, a remake of the 2008 Hindi film A Wednesday!
. Directed by Chakri Toleti
, and starring Kamal Haasan
and Venkatesh
in the lead roles. It was simultaneously made in Tamil cinema
as Unnaipol Oruvan with Mohanlal
playing Venkatesh's role. The film was a critical and commercial success.
) standing at the lakeshore, describes in a voice-over about his termination due to a common man walked into his life and turning everything topsy-turvy. This scene leads into the flashback. An unnamed man (Kamal Haasan
) is shown strategically placing a travel bag within a train in a railway station, bus and in a multiplex at Hyderabad. He proceeds to place another bag, under the false pretense of lodging an FIR, in the toilet of a police station located at Lakdi-ka-pool, Hyderabad. He then arrives on the rooftop of a building under construction near Raj Bhavan road and sets up his base of operations, equipped with various modern technology gadgets and instruments. He calls up Eashwar and informs him that 5 bombs have been placed in different locations throughout Hyderabad, which are programmed to explode simultaneously within four hours. The common man demands that he would like to negotiate with a senior Government official. Eashwar seeks the services of the Chief Secretary(Lakshmi
) to act as the negotiator. Eashwar also alerts his team involved in intelligence research and surveillance, tapping all the available resources in gathering preliminary information and tracing the location of the caller. Meanwhile, the caller tips off TV9 news reporter Shilpa Rajkumar (Anuja Iyer
), telling her to reach Lakdi-ka-pool police station immediately as it is going to be "the most important day of her life".
Eashwar initially suspects the anonymous caller to be bluffing, but his doubts are dispelled as the caller, to prove his seriousness and the police force's helplessness, reveals that a bomb has been planted in the police station. When the bomb disposal squad find the bomb, there is only 3 minutes left. The common man calls Eashwar and tells him the instructions to deactivate the bomb. Based on these, the bomb is defused. Shilpa reaches the scene on the caller's instructions and reports about the situation. There is intense debate between Eashwar and the Chief Secretary on who would act as the negotiator with the common man. The chief minister does not want to get into this and the Chief Secretary also does not want to take upon the responsibility. Hence, Eashwar himself takes on the role of the negotiator with the common man. The common man demands the release of four terrorists, Abdullah, Inayadullah, Ahamadullah and Karamchand Lala,three from charlapally jail and one from Rajhamundry who have been involved in and arrested for many of the major terrorist attacks and activities that have happened in the country during the previous decade.
Eashwar cleverly uses Shilpa to fake a report on live television that four terrorists are being relocated to an undisclosed common site, turning the caller's tool back onto him. Eashwar's men find out that the caller is using advanced software to automatically switch the numbers and locations of his mobile phone SIM card every minute, rendering their manpower and the obsolete equipments useless and prompting them to employ the services of a young hacker, who turns out to be an IIT dropout. In the meantime, Eashwar is also able to obtain a facial composite of the caller with help of the police officer to whom the caller had approached to lodge the fake FIR during the earlier scenes of the film; but much of the time passes without any concrete results on the identity or the location of the caller. Ultimately, Eashwar agrees with the caller's demand and puts two of his best men, Arif Khan (Ganesh Venkatraman
) and Gautham Reddy (Bharath Reddy), in charge of handing over the four terrorists along with cell phones at the old Begumpet Airport (end of Runway no. 4). The caller also demands reporter Shilpa to reach the nearest police station at Begumpet. Once there, the caller confirms the identity of all the four men via a conference call with Arif and Eashwar, and then asks Arif and Gautham to unlock their handcuffs and leave them alone at a particular spot. Gautham orders his men to do as told but at the last moment, Arif decides not to hand over Abdullah to ensure all the information regarding the locations of the bombs can be forced out from the caller. Gautham argues with Arif and demands he do as ordered but Arif forcefully grabs the terrorist and starts walking away. As they leave behind the remaining three, the caller, unaware of the ongoing fiasco, uses a cell phone placed in a rigged jeep at the spot to detonate an explosion in which all the three terrorists perish. Arif relays this information to Eashwar, which is confirmed by the anonymous caller as he reveals that he is just a "stupid common man", not belonging to any terrorist outfit, and his plan was not to free the terrorists but to kill them, avenging all the terrorist attacks they had helped carry out in Hyderabad and other major cities of India, thus "cleaning the roach-infested house". Eashwar tries to reason with him and tries to find out his religion, the justification for this action, any personal incidents that prompted him to take such an action etc. The common man narrates an incident of how a Muslim woman was being tortured and molested by communal people. The common man also says that he can take actions for the sufferings meted out to people from other communities too. The caller threatens to blow up the remaining bombs across the city unless Arif and Gautham kill Abdullah. The Chief Secretary (Lakshmi
) tells Eashwar that the Chief Minister has to know about the Current Situation but Eashwar disagrees and tells her that he'll face the consequences, and orders Arif to kill the terrorist. As Shilpa reports the scene on television, the young hacker traces the caller's location but refuses to reveal it saying that the caller was actually "brainy", and compared to him, the hacker was only one among the billions. But Eashwar looks in the hacker's computer, discovers the location and leaves abruptly towards the site.
The caller calls up Eashwar, as he is on the way, for a final time to further reveal that he had not planted any other bomb in the city. At this point, Eashwar surprisingly declares he already knew there were no more bombs which makes it clear that his decision to kill the last terrorist wasn't taken in fear but in confidence. Eashwar reaches the caller's location just as the latter is leaving the place, having destroyed all his gadgets and equipments, leaving behind no evidence. The two meet briefly when Eashwar, identifying the anonymous caller on the basis of the face sketch, offers the man a ride home and introduces himself. Both shake hands, when Eashwar's voice-over cuts back as he says the man told him his real name but his name doesn't have any significance. The film ends on an idealistic note, with Eashwar admitting that they all knew the common man was disturbed because of the insecure environment and the incompetence of the governing authorities but he never imagined him to go to such lengths and have the guts to do something like that. He also repeats that the facts of this incident cannot be found in any written record but only in the memories of those who actually witnessed it, and acknowledges that although the incidence has ambiguous moral significance, he personally feels that whatever happened, happened for the best.
was cast as the lead role in the film, Venkatesh
's confirmation of presence in the film followed. Ganesh Venkatraman
who debuted in the 2008 film Abhiyum Naanum
was later confirmed for a supporting role. Bharath Reddy
who played as cop in Telugu Film Siddam is playing another a supporting cop role. Ajith Kumar
was earlier rumoured to be given a special role in the film.
UTV Motion Pictures have been confirmed to distribute the film along with Rajkamal International
, Haasan's home production company who is also producing the film. The film will be directed by Chakri, a US-based filmmaker and a close friend of Haasan. Chakri previously played the role of Govind's friend, Sai Ram in Dasavathaaram and the role of a child who takes stills photographs of Kamal in the 1983 Telugu film Saagara Sangamam
. Neeraj Pandey provided the film's dialogue and screenplay
. The music was composed by Kamal Haasan's daughter Shruthi Haasan.
The title was changed from Thalaivan Irukkiran to Unnaipol Oruvan in early April 2009.
A Wednesday!
A Wednesday! is a 2008 Indian thriller drama film written and directed by Neeraj Pandey. It stars Anupam Kher and Naseeruddin Shah in the lead roles...
. Directed by Chakri Toleti
Chakri Toleti
Chakri Toleti is an Indian actor and film director based in the United States who recently made his directorial debut with the bilingual films Unnaipol Oruvan and Eeenadu . The film was a remake of Neeraj Pandey's 2008 Hindi film A Wednesday...
, and starring Kamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting...
and Venkatesh
Daggubati Venkatesh
Venkatesh Daggubati is an Indian film actor who stars in Tollywood films. He is the son of veteran Tollywood film producer, former MP, Dr. D. Ramanaidu. He is often credited as Victory Venkatesh in films and is one of the lead actors in Telugu Cinema. He has won seven Nandi Awards and four...
in the lead roles. It was simultaneously made in Tamil cinema
Tamil cinema
Tamil cinema is the film industry based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, dedicated to the production of films in the Tamil language. It is based in Chennai's Kodambakkam district, where several South Indian film production companies are headquartered...
as Unnaipol Oruvan with Mohanlal
Mohanlal
Mohanlal Vishwanathan Nair , known mononymously as Mohanlal , is a National Award-winning Indian actor, producer, singer and writer who is well known for his versatile and natural acting in Indian cinema & hence widely known as the Universal Star...
playing Venkatesh's role. The film was a critical and commercial success.
Plot
In the opening frame, the recently dismissed Hyderabad Police Commissioner - Eashwar Prasad (Daggubati VenkateshDaggubati Venkatesh
Venkatesh Daggubati is an Indian film actor who stars in Tollywood films. He is the son of veteran Tollywood film producer, former MP, Dr. D. Ramanaidu. He is often credited as Victory Venkatesh in films and is one of the lead actors in Telugu Cinema. He has won seven Nandi Awards and four...
) standing at the lakeshore, describes in a voice-over about his termination due to a common man walked into his life and turning everything topsy-turvy. This scene leads into the flashback. An unnamed man (Kamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting...
) is shown strategically placing a travel bag within a train in a railway station, bus and in a multiplex at Hyderabad. He proceeds to place another bag, under the false pretense of lodging an FIR, in the toilet of a police station located at Lakdi-ka-pool, Hyderabad. He then arrives on the rooftop of a building under construction near Raj Bhavan road and sets up his base of operations, equipped with various modern technology gadgets and instruments. He calls up Eashwar and informs him that 5 bombs have been placed in different locations throughout Hyderabad, which are programmed to explode simultaneously within four hours. The common man demands that he would like to negotiate with a senior Government official. Eashwar seeks the services of the Chief Secretary(Lakshmi
Lakshmi (actress)
Lakshmi Narayan is an Indian National Film Award winning actress who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Lakshmi has acted in more than 300 films in all south Indian languages apart from few in Bollywood. She has won a Filmfare Best Actress Award and eight Filmfare Awards South.-Early...
) to act as the negotiator. Eashwar also alerts his team involved in intelligence research and surveillance, tapping all the available resources in gathering preliminary information and tracing the location of the caller. Meanwhile, the caller tips off TV9 news reporter Shilpa Rajkumar (Anuja Iyer
Anuja Iyer
Anuja Iyer is an Indian actress and model who works in the Tamil film industry. She made her acting debut in the low budget horror flick Sivi and became noted for her performances in Ninaithale Inikkum and Unnaipol Oruvan...
), telling her to reach Lakdi-ka-pool police station immediately as it is going to be "the most important day of her life".
Eashwar initially suspects the anonymous caller to be bluffing, but his doubts are dispelled as the caller, to prove his seriousness and the police force's helplessness, reveals that a bomb has been planted in the police station. When the bomb disposal squad find the bomb, there is only 3 minutes left. The common man calls Eashwar and tells him the instructions to deactivate the bomb. Based on these, the bomb is defused. Shilpa reaches the scene on the caller's instructions and reports about the situation. There is intense debate between Eashwar and the Chief Secretary on who would act as the negotiator with the common man. The chief minister does not want to get into this and the Chief Secretary also does not want to take upon the responsibility. Hence, Eashwar himself takes on the role of the negotiator with the common man. The common man demands the release of four terrorists, Abdullah, Inayadullah, Ahamadullah and Karamchand Lala,three from charlapally jail and one from Rajhamundry who have been involved in and arrested for many of the major terrorist attacks and activities that have happened in the country during the previous decade.
Eashwar cleverly uses Shilpa to fake a report on live television that four terrorists are being relocated to an undisclosed common site, turning the caller's tool back onto him. Eashwar's men find out that the caller is using advanced software to automatically switch the numbers and locations of his mobile phone SIM card every minute, rendering their manpower and the obsolete equipments useless and prompting them to employ the services of a young hacker, who turns out to be an IIT dropout. In the meantime, Eashwar is also able to obtain a facial composite of the caller with help of the police officer to whom the caller had approached to lodge the fake FIR during the earlier scenes of the film; but much of the time passes without any concrete results on the identity or the location of the caller. Ultimately, Eashwar agrees with the caller's demand and puts two of his best men, Arif Khan (Ganesh Venkatraman
Ganesh Venkatraman
Ganesh Venkatraman is an Indian film actor and model. He rose to fame following his performances in films such as The Angrez, Abhiyum Naanum and Unnaipol Oruvan.-Early life:Ganesh was born and raised in Mumbai. His roots are in Tamil Nadu...
) and Gautham Reddy (Bharath Reddy), in charge of handing over the four terrorists along with cell phones at the old Begumpet Airport (end of Runway no. 4). The caller also demands reporter Shilpa to reach the nearest police station at Begumpet. Once there, the caller confirms the identity of all the four men via a conference call with Arif and Eashwar, and then asks Arif and Gautham to unlock their handcuffs and leave them alone at a particular spot. Gautham orders his men to do as told but at the last moment, Arif decides not to hand over Abdullah to ensure all the information regarding the locations of the bombs can be forced out from the caller. Gautham argues with Arif and demands he do as ordered but Arif forcefully grabs the terrorist and starts walking away. As they leave behind the remaining three, the caller, unaware of the ongoing fiasco, uses a cell phone placed in a rigged jeep at the spot to detonate an explosion in which all the three terrorists perish. Arif relays this information to Eashwar, which is confirmed by the anonymous caller as he reveals that he is just a "stupid common man", not belonging to any terrorist outfit, and his plan was not to free the terrorists but to kill them, avenging all the terrorist attacks they had helped carry out in Hyderabad and other major cities of India, thus "cleaning the roach-infested house". Eashwar tries to reason with him and tries to find out his religion, the justification for this action, any personal incidents that prompted him to take such an action etc. The common man narrates an incident of how a Muslim woman was being tortured and molested by communal people. The common man also says that he can take actions for the sufferings meted out to people from other communities too. The caller threatens to blow up the remaining bombs across the city unless Arif and Gautham kill Abdullah. The Chief Secretary (Lakshmi
Lakshmi (actress)
Lakshmi Narayan is an Indian National Film Award winning actress who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Lakshmi has acted in more than 300 films in all south Indian languages apart from few in Bollywood. She has won a Filmfare Best Actress Award and eight Filmfare Awards South.-Early...
) tells Eashwar that the Chief Minister has to know about the Current Situation but Eashwar disagrees and tells her that he'll face the consequences, and orders Arif to kill the terrorist. As Shilpa reports the scene on television, the young hacker traces the caller's location but refuses to reveal it saying that the caller was actually "brainy", and compared to him, the hacker was only one among the billions. But Eashwar looks in the hacker's computer, discovers the location and leaves abruptly towards the site.
The caller calls up Eashwar, as he is on the way, for a final time to further reveal that he had not planted any other bomb in the city. At this point, Eashwar surprisingly declares he already knew there were no more bombs which makes it clear that his decision to kill the last terrorist wasn't taken in fear but in confidence. Eashwar reaches the caller's location just as the latter is leaving the place, having destroyed all his gadgets and equipments, leaving behind no evidence. The two meet briefly when Eashwar, identifying the anonymous caller on the basis of the face sketch, offers the man a ride home and introduces himself. Both shake hands, when Eashwar's voice-over cuts back as he says the man told him his real name but his name doesn't have any significance. The film ends on an idealistic note, with Eashwar admitting that they all knew the common man was disturbed because of the insecure environment and the incompetence of the governing authorities but he never imagined him to go to such lengths and have the guts to do something like that. He also repeats that the facts of this incident cannot be found in any written record but only in the memories of those who actually witnessed it, and acknowledges that although the incidence has ambiguous moral significance, he personally feels that whatever happened, happened for the best.
Cast
- Kamal HaasanKamal HaasanKamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting...
as The Common Man/The Anonymous Caller - VenkateshDaggubati VenkateshVenkatesh Daggubati is an Indian film actor who stars in Tollywood films. He is the son of veteran Tollywood film producer, former MP, Dr. D. Ramanaidu. He is often credited as Victory Venkatesh in films and is one of the lead actors in Telugu Cinema. He has won seven Nandi Awards and four...
as Commissioner Eashwar Prasad - LakshmiLakshmi (actress)Lakshmi Narayan is an Indian National Film Award winning actress who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Lakshmi has acted in more than 300 films in all south Indian languages apart from few in Bollywood. She has won a Filmfare Best Actress Award and eight Filmfare Awards South.-Early...
as Chief Secretary of Andra Pradesh - Ganesh VenkatramanGanesh VenkatramanGanesh Venkatraman is an Indian film actor and model. He rose to fame following his performances in films such as The Angrez, Abhiyum Naanum and Unnaipol Oruvan.-Early life:Ganesh was born and raised in Mumbai. His roots are in Tamil Nadu...
as Arif Khan - Bharath Reddy as Sethuraman
- Anuja IyerAnuja IyerAnuja Iyer is an Indian actress and model who works in the Tamil film industry. She made her acting debut in the low budget horror flick Sivi and became noted for her performances in Ninaithale Inikkum and Unnaipol Oruvan...
as Natasha Rajkumar - Poonam KaurPoonam KaurPoonam Kaur is an Indian actress and model. She has frequently appeared in Telugu films apart from Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada films.- Career :...
as Anu Sethuraman - Santhana BharathiSanthana BharathiSanthana Bharathi is a popular Tamil language film celebrity in Kollywood, the Tamil film industry in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. He has directed several films such as Guna and the National Film Award winner, Mahanadhi...
as Karamchand Lala - SrimanSriman (actor)Sriman is a character artist who appears in Tamil, Telugu and Kannada language films. He is primarily known for his prominent roles in Aayutha Ezhuthu, Panchathanthiram, Pokkiri and Aegan. He is the son of noted producer, Prakash Reddy.- Early life :Sriman was born in Rajamundry, Andhra Pradesh...
as Arvind Adhavar
Casting
While Kamal HaasanKamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting...
was cast as the lead role in the film, Venkatesh
Venkatesh
Venkatesh may refer to:* Venkateswara: A Hindu Deity* G. K. Venkatesh , composer of film music in Kannada cinema during the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s* A...
's confirmation of presence in the film followed. Ganesh Venkatraman
Ganesh Venkatraman
Ganesh Venkatraman is an Indian film actor and model. He rose to fame following his performances in films such as The Angrez, Abhiyum Naanum and Unnaipol Oruvan.-Early life:Ganesh was born and raised in Mumbai. His roots are in Tamil Nadu...
who debuted in the 2008 film Abhiyum Naanum
Abhiyum Naanum
Abhiyum Naanum is a 2008 Tamil feature film produced by Prakash Raj and directed by Radha Mohan. The movie, which has a critically acclaimed storyline, stars Prakash Raj in the central character with Trisha Krishnan in the lead role as his daughter while Prithviraj makes a special appearance....
was later confirmed for a supporting role. Bharath Reddy
Bharath Reddy
Bharath Reddy is a former Indian cricketer.-Career:Reddy played in 4 Tests and 3 ODIs from 1978 to 1981. A wicket-keeper from Nalgonda, Reddy was not a regular player for India due to the presence of Syed Kirmani....
who played as cop in Telugu Film Siddam is playing another a supporting cop role. Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
was earlier rumoured to be given a special role in the film.
UTV Motion Pictures have been confirmed to distribute the film along with Rajkamal International
Rajkamal International
Raaj Kamal Films International is a company that distributes and produces Tamil language films, founded and headed by Kamal Haasan.-Produced:*2011 - Vishwaroopam - filming*2009 - Eeenadu *2009 - Unnaipol Oruvan...
, Haasan's home production company who is also producing the film. The film will be directed by Chakri, a US-based filmmaker and a close friend of Haasan. Chakri previously played the role of Govind's friend, Sai Ram in Dasavathaaram and the role of a child who takes stills photographs of Kamal in the 1983 Telugu film Saagara Sangamam
Saagara Sangamam
Sagara Sangamam is a National Award–winning 1983 Telugu film directed by K. Viswanath and produced by Edida Nageshwara Rao, starring Kamal Haasan, Jayaprada, Geetha, Sarath Babu, S. P. Sailaja and Chakri Toleti. The movie was dubbed into Tamil as Salangai Oli...
. Neeraj Pandey provided the film's dialogue and screenplay
Screenplay
A screenplay or script is a written work that is made especially for a film or television program. Screenplays can be original works or adaptations from existing pieces of writing. In them, the movement, actions, expression, and dialogues of the characters are also narrated...
. The music was composed by Kamal Haasan's daughter Shruthi Haasan.
The title was changed from Thalaivan Irukkiran to Unnaipol Oruvan in early April 2009.
Filming
The film started its first filming schedule on 6 February 2009. It was a quickie that completed shooting in 65 days. The movie was released on the 19th of September. The Telugu version opened with good reviews and was successful at the Box office.Soundtrack
The music is composed by Shruti Haasan, daughter of Kamal Haasan. The album contains 4 songs and a remix. The songs are featured throughout the film. Kamal Haasan and singer Blaaze contributed lyrics. The audio launch was held on 6 September 2009 at Sathyam Cinemas.| No. | Song | Singers | Length | Lyrics |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Eenaadu" | Shruthi Haasan, Akshara Haasan, Subbalakshmi, Satish, Leo, Krishnan Swaminathan, Bala, Mira, Tara, Aiden | 3:43 | Kamal Haasan |
| 2 | "Eenaadu E Samaram" | Bombay Jayashree, Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting... |
4:44 | Kamal Haasan |
| 3 | "Ningi Haddu" | Shruti Haasan Shruti Haasan Shruti Haasan is an Indian actress, singer and music composer who has worked in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films. Her parents are noted actors, Kamal Haasan and Sarika. As a child artiste, she sang in films and appeared in a guest role, before making her adult acting debut in the 2009 action drama,... , Blaaze Blaaze Blaaze is a rap artist and a popular playback singer in Indian films. An Indian by birth, born in Chennai, he grew up in Zambia and later did his education in England and in the US... |
3:15 | Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting... , Blaaze Blaaze Blaaze is a rap artist and a popular playback singer in Indian films. An Indian by birth, born in Chennai, he grew up in Zambia and later did his education in England and in the US... (Rap bit) |
| 4 | "Allah Jaane" | Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting... |
5:10 | - |
| 5 | "Allah Jaane (Part 2)" | Shruti Haasan Shruti Haasan Shruti Haasan is an Indian actress, singer and music composer who has worked in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil films. Her parents are noted actors, Kamal Haasan and Sarika. As a child artiste, she sang in films and appeared in a guest role, before making her adult acting debut in the 2009 action drama,... |
4:34 | Remix by Vinayaka |
External links
- Eeenadu at Indiaglitz.com
- Review from Early Tollywood.com
- Kamal Hassan-Venky's Eenadu started at Redir.sify.com
- Review at Oneindia.in