Surieyan
Theatrical release poster
Directed byPavithran
Written byPavithran
Produced byK. T. Kunjumon
StarringSarathkumar
Roja
CinematographyAshok Kumar
Edited byB. Lenin
V. T. Vijayan
Music byDeva
Production
company
A. R. S. Film International
Release date
  • 14 August 1992 (1992-August-14)
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Surieyan (pronounced [soːɾijan] transl. Sun) is a 1992 Indian Tamil-language action film written and directed by Pavithran, and produced by K. T. Kunjumon. The film, starring Sarathkumar and Roja, revolves around IPS officer Surieyan who is forced to flee after being framed for shooting a minister. After reaching a new hamlet he shaves his hair and beard and pretends to have forgotten his past. What really happened to Surieyan and how he will prove his innocence forms the rest of the story.

Surieyan was released on 14 August 1992. The film became the first major success for Sarathkumar as a hero. It won three Cinema Express Awards, and was a trendsetter for further action films in the Tamil film itself.

Plot

One day, Chettiyar Amma finds a man shivering due to intense cold weather in Top Slip, Pollachi. She immediately rescues him and treats him like her own son. The man is Surieyan, an IPS officer, but he hides his identity and prefers being called as Mottai. Surieyan gets employed as a driver to Usha, the only arrogant daughter of a rich landlord Koopu Konar. Usha ill-treats Surieyan but upon realising his true identity, she feels confused. Surieyan tells his back story.

Surieyan, an IPS officer is employed in Security forces. During an international summit in Bangalore, the home minister of India urges Surieyan to devise a strategy to assassinate the Prime Minister of India promising him a few thousands of dollars in return. Surieyan gets furious and kills the home minister for which he is wanted by the police. Surieyan escapes from them and hides in Top Slip as he previously overheard home minister's conversation to his henchman Micky. Surieyan hides his identity and keeps monitoring the forest to trace the activities of Micky, so that he can prove his innocence.

Usha falls in love seeing Surieyan's dedication to nation. She elopes from her house and marries Surieyan contrary to her father's wishes. Meanwhile, Surieyan finds some suspicious activities in the forest and keeps track of them to gather evidence. Finally he finds out that Micky is under the protection of Koopu Konar and Micky plans to assassinate Prime Minister during his visit to Pollachi. Police trace the whereabouts of Surieyan and arrest him. Micky and Koopu Konar plan to kill Surieyan, so that they are saved. Koopu Konar secretly plants a bomb while visiting Surieyan in prison, but unfortunately, Koopu Konar himself gets killed in the attack. Surieyan escapes from prison and finds out Micky and kills him. In the end, the Prime Minister visits Surieyan and thanks him for his dedication.

Cast

Production

After the success of Vasanthakala Paravai (1991), K. T. Kunjumon again collaborated with the lead actor and director of that film (Sarathkumar and Pavithran) in a new project titled Surieyan.[2] During the scene where the title character shaves his hair, Sarathkumar himself did so because the producers were unable to hire a barber. The film was shot at different locations including Top Slip and places in Rajasthan. S. Shankar and A. Venkatesh worked as associate directors.[3]

Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by Deva, and the lyrics for the songs were written by Vaali.[4] The song "Pathinettu Vayadhu" is based on "Kanda Shasti Kavasam", a Hindu devotional song.[5][6] The song "Laalaku Dole" belongs to the dappankuthu genre, and follows a 6
8 time signature.[7] For the Telugu-dubbed version Mande Suryudu, the lyrics were written by Rajasri.[8]

Tamil
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Laalaku Dole"Deva, Mano, S. Janaki 
2."Kottungadi Kummi"S. Janaki, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam 
3."Pathinettu Vayadhu"S. Janaki, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam 
4."Mannathi Mannargal"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam 
5."Thoongu Moonchi"S. Janaki, S. P. Balasubrahmanyam 
Telugu
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Eay Oye Ayi Jummalaka"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra4:20
2."Piliche Vayasu Palike Sogasu"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra5:16
3."Choodu Choodu Oorantha"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra5:11
4."Maataina Botaina Okatele Needi"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam5:02
5."Mugdaraali Navve"S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra4:53
Total length:24:44

Release and reception

Surieyan was released on 14 August 1992.[9] On the same day, Ayyappa Prasad The Indian Express wrote "Sooriyan is a racy entertainer that keeps the viewers attention engaged till the end".[10] On 22 August, K. Vijiyan of New Straits Times praised the director, saying he "succeeds in keeping the viewers in suspense" but criticised the stunt sequences for being unconvincing.[11] C. R. K. of Kalki praised the acting, comedy and cinematography.[12] At the 13th Cinema Express Awards, Goundamani won the Award for Best Comedian, M. Sundaram won for Best Dance Master, and Sarathkumar received an "extraordinary Special Award" for acting in the film.[13]

Legacy

The film became a blockbuster and established Sarathkumar as a star.[3] Comedy track performed by Goundamani from the film became popular. His dialogue "Arasiyalla Ithellam Satharanampa" (transl. This is all routine in politics) became popular.[14]

References

  1. ^ Anantharam, Chitra Deepa (20 August 2018). "I taught Salman Tamil, says Prabhu Deva". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 17 July 2020. Retrieved 27 May 2021.
  2. ^ Ramanujam, Srinivasa; Menon, Vishal (21 July 2018). "KT Kunjumon and 25 years of 'Gentleman'". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 23 August 2019. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  3. ^ a b Ashok Kumar, S. R. (28 May 2020). "Landmark films, golden memories". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 2 June 2020. Retrieved 29 May 2020.
  4. ^ "Surieyan". JioSaavn. 31 August 2014. Archived from the original on 6 April 2019. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  5. ^ "How Kandha Sashti Kavasam helped Suriya, Vikram, Ajith & Arun Vijay!". The Times of India. 18 July 2020. Archived from the original on 19 July 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  6. ^ Ramanujam, Srinivasa (18 May 2020). "Deva interview: 'Kushi' proved that I could do more than just 'gaana'". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 22 June 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  7. ^ Thapliyal, Adesh (10 March 2023). "A Brief History of South Indian Kuthu and Teenmaar Music in 10 Songs". Pitchfork. Archived from the original on 16 March 2023. Retrieved 17 March 2023.
  8. ^ "Mandey Suryudu". Spotify. August 2014. Archived from the original on 26 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2021.
  9. ^ "Tamil Films". Gentleman Film KTK. Archived from the original on 25 August 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  10. ^ Prasad, Ayyappa (14 August 1992). "A chase without a base". The Indian Express. p. 7. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  11. ^ Vijiyan, K. (22 August 1992). "Good plot but action flops". New Straits Times. p. 24. Retrieved 25 August 2020.
  12. ^ சி. ஆர். கே. (23 August 1992). "சூரியன்". Kalki (in Tamil). p. 25. Archived from the original on 26 January 2023. Retrieved 15 December 2022.
  13. ^ "Cinema Express Awards". The Indian Express. Express News Service. 17 March 1993. p. 4. Retrieved 22 February 2021.
  14. ^ Vankipuram, Meera (8 June 2017). "Netizens ROFL as memes mock volatile TN politics". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 19 June 2020. Retrieved 25 August 2020.

External links

Pavithran filmography
Categories