The Prince (Malayalam Movie)
Encyclopedia
The Prince is a 1996 Malayalam film starring Mohanlal
. It was Tamil
director Suresh Krishna's debut in the Malayalam industry and his next venture after the Tamil blockbuster Baasha. After three consecutive blockbusters with Tamil superstarRajinikanth, Suresh Krishna wanted to direct Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, and Mohanlal agreed to do the film. However, the film was a miserable failure at the box office. The music was scored by Deva
.
), son of a Don (Girish Karnad
), falls in love with Swarna, daughter of a famous Carnatic singer named Vishwanath. He hides the truth of his family background from her to win her love. But then one fine day she comes to know and shocked beyond disbelief, uses silence as her weapon to bring him to confess his situation. How Jeeva goes through trials and tribulations of saving his love on one side and law of the mafia on the other side forms the theme of the film. Prakash Raj
plays the role of the villan.
, but it performed poorly at the box office. About the miserable failure of the film, director says: "Mohan Lal is a superstar in Kerala but not for his heroics or the other attributes associated with a Tamil or Telugu superstar. Maybe it was an error of judgement on my part. Even the producer did not find anything wrong with the gimmicks. But the people didn’t appreciate them. Rajni (Rajinikanth) liked the film very much. Lal's change of voice also seemed to backfire. People thought someone else had dubbed for him. After a throat surgery, his voice had undergone a change. Eventually, he had to issue a statement that it was his own voice. It was like what had happened to Amitabh Bachchan
in Agneepath.
, with lyrics penned by Girish Puthenchery.
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...
. It was Tamil
Tamil people
Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...
director Suresh Krishna's debut in the Malayalam industry and his next venture after the Tamil blockbuster Baasha. After three consecutive blockbusters with Tamil superstarRajinikanth, Suresh Krishna wanted to direct Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, and Mohanlal agreed to do the film. However, the film was a miserable failure at the box office. The music was scored by Deva
Deva (music director)
Deva is an Indian film composer and singer. He has composed songs and provided background music for Tamil films in a career spanning about 20 years. Many know his gaana songs, written mostly using Madras Tamil. He is known as the "Father of Gaana Genre" in the Tamil film industry.Deva has composed...
.
Plot
It was a story of the other side of a Mafia family. Jeeva (MohanlalMohanlal
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...
), son of a Don (Girish Karnad
Girish Karnad
Girish Raghunath Karnad is a contemporary writer, playwright, screenwriter, actor and movie director in Kannada language...
), falls in love with Swarna, daughter of a famous Carnatic singer named Vishwanath. He hides the truth of his family background from her to win her love. But then one fine day she comes to know and shocked beyond disbelief, uses silence as her weapon to bring him to confess his situation. How Jeeva goes through trials and tribulations of saving his love on one side and law of the mafia on the other side forms the theme of the film. Prakash Raj
Prakash Raj
Prakash Raj , better known by his stage name Prakash Raj, is a National Award winning actor, director and producer who has worked in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Malayalam films. Though he was born in a Tulu family he achieved fame through Kannada, Tamil and Telugu films. He got introduced to...
plays the role of the villan.
Release and reception
The film was released on August 27, 1996. Prince was released with high expectations among fans, considering the director's previous release BaashaBaasha
Baasha was the third king of the northern Israelite Kingdom of Israel. He was the son of Ahijah of the Tribe of Issachar. Baasha's story is told in ....
, but it performed poorly at the box office. About the miserable failure of the film, director says: "Mohan Lal is a superstar in Kerala but not for his heroics or the other attributes associated with a Tamil or Telugu superstar. Maybe it was an error of judgement on my part. Even the producer did not find anything wrong with the gimmicks. But the people didn’t appreciate them. Rajni (Rajinikanth) liked the film very much. Lal's change of voice also seemed to backfire. People thought someone else had dubbed for him. After a throat surgery, his voice had undergone a change. Eventually, he had to issue a statement that it was his own voice. It was like what had happened to Amitabh Bachchan
Amitabh Bachchan
Amitabh Bachchan is an Indian film actor. He first gained popularity in the early 1970s as the "angry young man" of Hindi cinema, and has since appeared in over 180 Indian films in a career spanning more than four decades...
in Agneepath.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack consists of six songs composed by DevaDeva (music director)
Deva is an Indian film composer and singer. He has composed songs and provided background music for Tamil films in a career spanning about 20 years. Many know his gaana songs, written mostly using Madras Tamil. He is known as the "Father of Gaana Genre" in the Tamil film industry.Deva has composed...
, with lyrics penned by Girish Puthenchery.
| Track # | Song | Singer(s) |
| 1 | "Cholakilikal" | K. S. Chitra |
| 2 | "Shyamayam Radhike" | K. S. Chitra |
| 3 | "Jimchaka Jimchaka" | M. G. Sreekumar M. G. Sreekumar M. G. Sreekumar is a two-time National Award-winning Indian playback singer and music director who works in Malayalam cinema. With a career of over 25 years, he is one of the prominent male singers in the Malayalam film industry. He is known for matching voice with Malayalam actor Mohanlal. He has... , K. S. Chitra |
| 4 | "Kannil Kannil Kannaadi" | M. G. Sreekumar M. G. Sreekumar M. G. Sreekumar is a two-time National Award-winning Indian playback singer and music director who works in Malayalam cinema. With a career of over 25 years, he is one of the prominent male singers in the Malayalam film industry. He is known for matching voice with Malayalam actor Mohanlal. He has... , K.S. Chitra |
| 5 | "Nantha Nanthana" | K. S. Chitra |
| 6 | "Prince Theme" | Instrumental Instrumental An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments.... |