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Sethu (film)

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Sethu
Theatrical release poster
Directed byBala
Written byBala
Produced byA. Kandasamy
StarringVikram
Abitha
CinematographyR. Rathnavelu
Edited byRaghu Babu
Music byIlaiyaraaja
Production
company
Sharmatha Productions
Release date
  • 10 December 1999 (1999-12-10)
Running time
130 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Sethu (/seɪθu/) is a 1999 Indian Tamil-language romantic tragedy film, written and directed by Bala in his debut. The film stars Vikram and Abitha. The score and soundtrack were composed by Ilaiyaraaja, with cinematography by R. Rathnavelu and editing by Raghu Baabu.

Sethu, released on 10 December 1999, initially began running as a single noon show in a suburban theatre, but gradually built up audiences through word-of-mouth publicity. The film became a sleeper hit, and Vikram's first major breakthrough film. It won the National Film Award for Best Tamil Feature Film, and the Best Film award at the Filmfare Awards and the Cinema Express Awards. Bala and Vikram also won several awards for their contributions. The film was remade in Kannada as Huchcha, in Telugu as Seshu, and in Hindi as Tere Naam.

Plot

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The film centers around Sethu, a tough college student known as Chiyaan, who leads the Student Union and has a violent temper. He lives with his older brother Vasudevan, a magistrate, and often clashes with him. Only his sister-in-law seems to truly understand him.

Sethu wins the Student Union election and gets into a fight during the celebrations. Though aggressive, he begins to change after meeting Abitha, a timid Brahmin girl. Initially teasing her, he grows fond of her innocence and falls in love. Even his friends notice a positive change in him. He uses his position to help Abitha take an exam she had been denied.

Meanwhile, Abitha’s sister returns home after facing dowry abuse from her husband. She struggles to repay a loan and rebuild her life. Around the same time, Sethu awkwardly confesses his love to Abitha. She is stunned and doesn’t respond, but Sethu assumes she reciprocates. He later learns she is engaged to a quiet, submissive priest, who steps away from the engagement out of fear.

When Sethu tries to gift Abitha something, she openly rejects him. Hurt, he lashes out, prompting her to scold him. His friends confront him about his behavior, and though he apologizes, he remains heartbroken.

Later, Sethu discovers and busts a local brothel, unknowingly rescuing Abitha’s sister who had been tricked into it. Grateful, she tells Sethu about her dowry abuse. Her fiancé, who witnesses Sethu’s act, realizes his true character and explains it to Abitha, admitting he isn’t the right man for her. Abitha realizes that Sethu, despite his roughness, has a good heart.

However, Sethu, desperate and impulsive, kidnaps Abitha to an abandoned building and expresses his deep feelings. Understanding the depth of his love, Abitha finally accepts him.

Just when things seem to turn in Sethu’s favor, he is attacked by the brothel goons seeking revenge on him for trying to ruin their business. They brutally beat him and smash his head against a rock, causing critical brain damage and resulting in a mental breakdown. Believing he is beyond recovery, Sethu is sent to a remote mental asylum where he undergoes ayurvedic treatment.

At the ashram, Sethu is barely recognizable—bald, emaciated, and chained. Over time, he begins to recover, but the staff refuses to believe he’s sane. His attempt to escape backfires as a serious injury. Abitha visits secretly, but leaves without hearing him call out due to the noise in the asylum.

Convinced Sethu will never return to normal, Abitha’s father and Vasudevan persuade her to marry her former fiancé. Sethu, determined, escapes again and limps to Abitha’s house. But there, he finds marriage decorations and a crowd. To his horror, he sees Abitha lying dead, adorned with garlands—she has taken her own life.

Devastated, Sethu limps away in silence. His friends and family run after him in tears, but he doesn’t respond. The ashram wardens arrive and take him back. The film ends with Sethu stepping into the van, broken and without reason to live after losing his true love.

Cast

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Production

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Development

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After working as an assistant director under Balu Mahendra for seven years, Bala decided to make his directorial debut and wrote a script loosely based on an incident involving of one of his friends who had fallen in love, lost his mind and ended up at a mental asylum.[3] The film, produced by A. Kandasamy, was initially titled Akilan but eventually retitled Sethu.[4] Cinematography was handled by R. Rathnavelu, and editing by Raghu Babu.[1]

Casting

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Bala offered the lead role of Sethu to his then roommate Vignesh, who did not accept.[5] Murali was also considered, but the role ultimately went to Vikram.[6] Keerthi Reddy was initially signed on as the lead actress, but was later replaced by Rajshri and then subsequently Abitha.[7][8] To prepare for the character, Vikram shaved his head, thinned down to half his size by losing 21 kilograms and grew out his nails and even exposed himself under the sun for hours for skin darkening as the script demanded it.[9][10][11] Vikram lived off fruit juice for six months, and once he lost the desired weight, he maintained the look by subsisting on a scanty diet: an egg white, one glass of beetroot or carrot juice and a single dry chapati through the day. Bala dissuaded Vikram from accepting other film offers during this period and also asked him to cease working as a dubbing artist.[3] M. S. Bhaskar lent his voice for S. S. Raman who appeared as a temple priest.[12]

Filming

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The film's launch was held in April 1997, and production lasted close to two years as the film languished in production hell. The FEFSI strike of 1997 halted filming across the Tamil film industry from June to December 1997, and as a small budget film, Sethu was unable to progress during the period. When the strike was called off, the producer left the project. Vikram and Bala's then assistant, Ameer Sultan, pled with the producer to return, with filming resuming in January 1998. After further slow progression, the film was finally completed by June 1999.[3] Cinematographer R. Rathnavelu said he gave the asylum scenes a predominantly green tone for the intense psychological impact.[13]

The filming was primarily held at Kumbakonam where scenes were shot at Vishnupuram, Konerirajapuram, Udayalur and Thyagarajapuram agraharam while scenes in the asylum were shot at Thiruvizhimizhilai Veezhinadeswarar temple and Thiruvidaimarudhur Maha Lingasamy temple.[14] To film the scenes of the title character's college, the makers checked at least 60 colleges before finalising one in Kumbakonam. They were unable to secure permission to film in mental institutions, and could not afford to create sets resembling those places, so they filmed in temples instead.[15]

Soundtrack

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The music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja.[16][17]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Enge Sellum Intha"ArivumathiIlaiyaraaja05:07
2."Gaana Karunkuyile"PonnadiyanKovai Kamala05:13
3."Kadhalenna Kadhalenna"Palani BharathiSwarnalatha05:13
4."Maalai En Vethanai"ArivumathiP. Unnikrishnan, Arunmozhi, S. N. Surendar05:04
5."Saranam Bhava" Sujatha01:59
6."Sethuvukku Sethuvukku"Mu. MethaArunmozhi02:27
7."Sikaadha Sitrondru"Palani BharathiP. Unnikrishnan, Arunmozhi, S. N. Surendar05:12
8."Vaarthai Thavari Vittai"ArivumathiIlaiyaraaja03:01
9."Nenachu Nenachu"Mu. MethaP. Unnikrishnan00:47
Total length:34:03

Release

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The film struggled to find a distributor and only after sixty-seven screenings did the film manage to find a buyer, with most refusing the film due to its tragic climax.[18] At that time, Bala and Vikram used money from Vikram's wife, Shailaja, to organise press previews. Despite garnering good reviews, no one was interested in purchasing the film and it remained finished but unreleased.[10] The film ultimately released on 10 December 1999,[19] and initially began running at a single noon show in a suburban theatre, but gradually built up audiences through word-of-mouth publicity, becoming a sleeper hit. The film ran over 100 days at several cinema halls across Chennai, with Vikram being mobbed by people on the streets as a result of the film's success.[9]

Critical reception

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Sethu received positive reviews from critics.[20] Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu wrote, "AN AWARD winning performance by Vikram, a clear storyline, taut screenplay, powerful dialogues, crisp direction, superb background score – Sethu offers all these and much more".[21] K. N. Vijayan from the New Straits Times described the film as an "unforgettable experience" and described Vikram's performance as "praise-worthy".[22] Kanchana Prakash Rao of Kalki praised the first half but felt the film loses credibility after Sethu gets hurt, panning the film's second half and the ending.[23] Thamarai Manalan of Dinakaran wrote, "Bala, who has directed this film, having himself written the story, screenplay and dialogue, has given a complete, perhaps more than complete, film that throbs with poetic eloquence and thus has uniformly stunned the audiences".[24]

Accolades

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Sethu won the National Film Award for Best Tamil Feature Film, while also securing wins in the Best Film – Tamil category at the Filmfare Awards and the Cinema Express Awards. Bala won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Director and the Filmfare Award for Best Director – Tamil. The performance also drew accolades for Vikram who won the Filmfare Special Award – South and the Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for his portrayal of the title character.[25][26][27][28] He was reportedly a strong contender for the National Film Award for Best Actor in a Leading Role but lost to Mohanlal.[29] Bala won the Dinakaran Cinema Award for Best Newface Director.[30]

Legacy

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Sethu was a milestone in Vikram's career. The film's success made Bala one of the most sought after directors in Tamil cinema. It continued the trend of films with themes that focused on realism and nativity. K. Jeshi, a journalist for The Hindu, placed it in the category of films which propagates social issues, like Kaadhal (2004), Veyil (2006), Mozhi (2007) and Paruthiveeran (2007).[31] Post-Sethu, Vikram has said that the film would always remain close to him regardless of its commercial success and that it put him on the "right path", with Vikram choosing to adapt the prefix of Chiyaan to his screen name.[10] Owing to its success, the film was remade in Kannada as Huchcha (2001),[32] in Telugu as Seshu (2002),[33] and in Hindi as Tere Naam (2003).[3]

References

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  1. ^ a b Dhananjayan 2011, p. 212.
  2. ^ "Did you know, Sasikumar appeared in a blink-and-miss part in Vikram's 'Sethu'?". The Times of India. 25 June 2020. Archived from the original on 10 May 2022. Retrieved 10 May 2022.
  3. ^ a b c d Rangan, Baradwaj (1 December 2013). "Man of Steel". The Caravan. Archived from the original on 18 September 2015. Retrieved 28 May 2023.
  4. ^ Navaneethakrishnan, Stalin (1 January 2023). "Sethu Movie: 'என் சொத்து எல்லாத்தையும் வித்தேன்' சேது தயாரிப்பாளர் நெகிழ்ச்சி!". Hindustan Times (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 1 January 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2025.
  5. ^ "வாரிசுகளுக்கு மட்டுமே வாய்ப்பு கிடைக்கக் கூடாது! விக்னேஷ் வலியுறுத்துகிறார்". Kungumam (in Tamil). 7 September 2018. Archived from the original on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  6. ^ "Atharva explains why is he indebted to director Bala". News18. 6 December 2012. Archived from the original on 31 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  7. ^ Sandya. "1997–98'ன் கோடம்பாக்கக் குஞ்சுகள்" [1997–98 Kodambakkam babies]. Indolink. Archived from the original on 2 December 1998. Retrieved 22 February 2008.
  8. ^ Sandya. "Tamil Movie News". Indolink. Archived from the original on 30 April 2016. Retrieved 25 November 2016.
  9. ^ a b Warrier, Shobha (17 August 2004). "Vikram's obsession gets its reward". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 31 July 2011.
  10. ^ a b c Sivakumar, M. (11–24 September 2004). "'I am a director's actor'". Frontline. Vol. 21, no. 19. Archived from the original on 7 May 2010. Retrieved 31 July 2011.
  11. ^ "Bala's Sethu". New Tamil Films Online. 26 September 1999. Archived from the original on 6 March 2001. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  12. ^ "Talent bides its time". The Hindu. 13 November 2009. Archived from the original on 22 February 2022. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  13. ^ Reddy, T. Krithika (29 November 2014). "Lingaa through Randy's lens". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 28 March 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  14. ^ "கோடம்பாக்கமாகும் கும்பகோணம்!". Kungumam (in Tamil). 21 October 2013. Archived from the original on 13 June 2024. Retrieved 13 June 2024.
  15. ^ "An Interview with Cinematographer 'Rathnavelu'". Cinesouth. Archived from the original on 11 December 2003. Retrieved 13 February 2025.
  16. ^ "Sethu (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) – EP". Apple Music. 1 January 1999. Archived from the original on 9 January 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  17. ^ "Mugavari – Sethu – Tamil Audio CD by Ilayaraaja – Deva". Mossymart. Archived from the original on 4 February 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  18. ^ Kamath, Sudhish (2 January 2003). "Making films for the real world". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 7 June 2013. Retrieved 31 July 2011.
  19. ^ Karthik, Janani (4 August 2016). "People expect me to do something spectacular: Vikram". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  20. ^ "Sethu director Bala". New Tamil Films Online. 24 January 2000. Archived from the original on 6 March 2001. Retrieved 30 January 2024.
  21. ^ Rangarajan, Malathi (17 December 1999). "Film Reviews: The Haunting / Sethu". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 17 November 2000. Retrieved 27 July 2023.
  22. ^ Vijayan, K. N. (12 February 2000). "Laughs and tears galore in 'Sethu'". New Straits Times. p. 28. Archived from the original on 21 April 2024. Retrieved 30 May 2023 – via Google News Archive.
  23. ^ பிரகாஷ்ராவ், காஞ்சனா (16 January 2000). "சேது". Kalki (in Tamil). p. 130. Archived from the original on 19 June 2023. Retrieved 19 June 2023 – via Internet Archive.
  24. ^ Manalan, Thamarai. "Review: "Sethu"". Dinakaran. Archived from the original on 30 December 2005. Retrieved 11 January 2025.
  25. ^ Dhananjayan 2011, p. 213.
  26. ^ "Awards: Tamilnadu Government Announces Cinema State Awards -1999". Dinakaran. 29 December 2000. Archived from the original on 22 June 2008. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  27. ^ Ashok Kumar, S. R. (15 April 2000). "Star-spangled show on cards". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 20 July 2021. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  28. ^ "Southern Filmfare awards presented at glittering ceremony". The Times of India. 26 April 2000. Archived from the original on 7 November 2024. Retrieved 16 December 2024.
  29. ^ Rajitha (21 July 2000). "Ajit backs off Nanda". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 26 October 2012. Retrieved 31 July 2011.
  30. ^ "Awards: "Dinakaran Cinema Awards"--1999". Dinakaran. Archived from the original on 25 June 2008. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  31. ^ Jeshi, K. (23 November 2007). "Formula is passé, freshness is in". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  32. ^ "Did you know? Kiccha Sudeep was not the first choice for 'Huccha'". The Times of India. 12 August 2020. Archived from the original on 12 February 2023. Retrieved 31 May 2023.
  33. ^ Tulika (29 April 2002). "Another one bites the dust". Rediff.com. Archived from the original on 2 June 2022. Retrieved 31 May 2023.

Bibliography

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