| Yodha | |
|---|---|
CD cover |
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| Directed by | Sangeeth Sivan |
| Produced by | Saga Films |
| Screenplay by | Sasidharan Arattuvazhi |
| Story by | Sangeeth Sivan |
| Starring | Mohanlal Madhoo Master Siddhartha Jagathy Sreekumar Puneet Issar Urvashi |
| Music by | A. R. Rahman |
| Cinematography | Santosh Sivan |
| Editing by | A. Sreekar Prasad |
| Studio | Saga Films |
| Distributed by | Saga Films |
| Release date(s) | 1992 |
| Running time | 149 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Malayalam |
Yodha (theatrical release name: Yoddha; Malayalam: യോദ്ധ; pronounced yōddha) is a 1992 Malayalam film scripted by Sasidharan Arattuvazhi and directed by Sangeeth Sivan. The film stars Mohanlal who plays the protagonist, who is told he is the saviour destined to rescue the Rimpoche of a Nepalese Buddhist monastery from practitioners of black magic. The score and soundtrack were composed by A. R. Rahman. The film is an adaptation of the movie The Golden Child and has borrowed subplots from the movie Bloodsport. The film was mostly shot at Palakkad in Kerala and Nepal. A sequel titled Yodha 2 has been planned, which hypes A.R. Rahman's second venture in Malayalam Film Industry.
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In an unknown location in the Nepalese Himalayas, a young monk (played by Siddhartha) is about to be crowned the Rimpoche of the monastery, when a gang of black magicians led by an unnamed character (played by Puneet Issar) kidnap him. It is revealed that the leader of the black magicians wishes to make a human sacrifice of the Rimpoche in order to attain invincibility. The other monks in the monastery also understand that the Rimpoche's saviour will arrive from across the Himalayas to rescue him from the clutches of the black magicians. In the meantime, the young Rimpoche manages to escape from the clutches of the black magicians and runs away to Kathmandu.
At the other end of the subcontinent, in a small village in Kerala, Ashokan (Mohanlal) is an unemployed youth who, along with the other members of his club, whiles his time away competing with his cousin Appukuttan (Jagathi Sreekumar) and his club in a series of trivial competitions. Appukuttan finds himself on the losing side of every such competition, adding to his insecurity complex, which leads him to suspect Ashokan of having an affair with his, Appukuttan's, fiancee Damayanti (played by Urvashi).
When an astrologer predicts to Ashokan's mother, Sumathi (played by Sukumari), that Ashokan is likely to commit a murder if he remains in Kerala, Ashokan is bundled away to Nepal to stay with his uncle Captain (retired) Krishnankutty Menon (M. S. Thripunithura), whom he hasn't met since childhood. Unbeknownst to Ashokan, Appukuttan flies into Nepal beforehand and establishes himself in Krishanankutty Menon (Kutty Mama)'s house, masquerading as Ashokan. Ashokan is cast out onto the streets of Kathmandu, where he meets the Rimpoche and forms a friendship with the young lad.
Appukuttan attempts to connive his way into marrying Kutty Mama's daughter, Ashwati (Madhoo) - a researcher into Nepalese traditions and black magic at a university in Kathmandu. But Ashokan, with the Rimpoche's assistance, manages to cast doubt into the mind of Kutty Mama and win over Ashwati.
Ashokan and Ashwati then witness one of the black magician's minions kidnapping the Rimpoche. Upon following the kidnapper, they end up confronting the black magician himself. In the ensuing melee, the black magician grievously wounds Ashwati and blinds Ashokan, and leaves the two of them to their deaths in the forest. Both of them are rescued by the adivasi tribe tasked with protecting the Rimpoche's monastery. Ashokan is then told of how he is the Chosen One, and is trained by an adivasi teacher to overcome his blindness and become a warrior tasked with rescuing the Rimpoche.
In the meantime, the jealous and suspicious Appukuttan follows Ashwati and Ashokan into the forest and is captured by a tribe of adivasis who torture him.
Ashokan then ventures into the black magician's hideout, rescues the Rimpoche, and brings him back to the monastery. The Rimpoche then, aided by an ailing old monk, restores Ashokan's eyesight. As the solar eclipse nears, the monks begin the coronation of the Rimpoche. The black magician rushes to the monastery to kill the Rimpoche before he is crowned. But Ashokan stands in the black magician's way, and in the climactic fight, kills the latter.
Ashokan then discovers that Ashwati is not dead as he had previously feared. Appukuttan makes a final appearance, trained as a warrior by the adivasis who captured and tortured him previously. In the comical fight that ensues, Appukuttan is beaten up by Ashokan.
The movie, which was released as an Onam release of 1992, was the biggest hit in 1992 and now has a major cult following.
| Yoddha | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by A. R. Rahman | ||||
| Released | 1992 | |||
| Recorded | Panchathan Record Inn | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Label | Tharangini | |||
| Producer | A. R. Rahman | |||
| A. R. Rahman chronology | ||||
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The original score and songs were composed by A. R. Rahman; the lyrics for the songs were penned by Bichu Thirumala. This is the only released Malayalam movie for which Rahman has composed the music so far. (The audio of his second Malayalam venture Vaishnavar was released even though the film got shelved.)
The soundtrack was also released in Tamil (as Asokan), Hindi (as Dharam Yoddha) and Telugu (as Yoddha). The respective soundtracks featured versions of all songs except "Mamboove", which was not featured in the film. "Mamboove" was later reused for the Tamil movie Pavithra as "Sevvanam". The lyrics were written by Vairamuthu, P. K. Mishra and Veturi respectively for the Tamil, Hindi and Telugu versions. The Hindi version was added with five songs composed by Pappu Khan.
The soundtrack was met with positive responses upon release. The track "Padakali" is often considered one of the most popular film songs ever in the Malayalam film history. Besides the tune of the song, the tongue twisting lyrics by Bichu Thirumala and choreography by Kumar were also noticed.
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| No. | Title | Singers | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Padakaali" | K. J. Yesudas, M. G. Sreekumar | ||
| 2 | "Kunu Kune" | K. J. Yesudas, Sujatha | ||
| 3 | "Maampoove" | K. J. Yesudas, Sujatha | ||
| 4 | "Theme Music" | Malgudi Subha | ||
| Tamil (Asokan) | ||||
| No. | Title | Singers | ||
| 1 | "Om Kari" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam | ||
| 2 | "Kulu Kulu" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra | ||
| 3 | "Theme Music" | Malgudi Subha | ||
| Hindi (Dharam Yoddha) | ||||
| No. | Title | Singers | ||
| 1 | "Main Dilli Ka Shehzada" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam | ||
| 2 | "Mujhko Yeh Lagta Hain" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra | ||
| 3 | "Theme Music" | Malgudi Subha | ||
| 4 | "Kangna Kalai Mein Khanke" | Kavita Krishnamurthy | ||
| 5 | "Yeh Resham Ki Sari" | Kumar Sanu | ||
| 6 | "Kal Raat Mujhse Tu" | Abhijeet Bhattacharya, Poornima | ||
| 7 | "Ek Do Teen Char" | Jolly Mukherjee, Alka Yagnik | ||
| 8 | "Chori Se Chupke Chupke" | Jolly Mukherjee, Poornima | ||
| Telugu (Yoddha) | ||||
| No. | Title | Singers | ||
| 1 | "Kule Kule" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, K. S. Chithra | ||
| 2 | "Theme Music" | Malgudi Subha | ||
This new project will be directed by Sanjeev Sivan and will be made in Hindi, as well. Big names like AR Rahman, Richard Herrovites, Sreekarprasad, Santhosh Sivan and Sean Kerbey will team up for this thriller which will be produced by Network 18. The movie will be presented in 3D version also and will be shot at Nepal, New Zealand and parts of Kerala. The other details about the title of the project, and its cast and crew are awaited.
The original movie was directed by Sanjeev's brother Sangeeth Sivan, who later turned out as a famous director in Bollywood.