Kollywood has always been a topic of interest for me, naturally, as I am from Tamil Nadu. The Tamil film industry is constantly evolving, and the post-2010 era is particularly fascinating. This period saw the emergence of many new-generation filmmakers like Pa Ranjith, Karthik Subbaraj, and Lokesh Kanagaraj.
It was also an era that gave us some outstanding commercial hits from veteran directors. Among these, a couple of films from that decade became the talk of the town, leaving an undeniable impact on audiences.
Enthiran (2010)
The filmmaker of Enthiran is Shankar, renowned for his high-budget movies. Watching a Shankar film used to be an event. At the time of Enthiran’s release, both the star—oops, sorry, superstar—Rajinikanth and Shankar were at the peak of their careers. Expectations were sky-high, not just because of these two. The premise involving a robot heightened everyone’s curiosity, and audiences were confident it would indeed be a cinematic event.
When the film finally hit screens across Tamil Nadu and India, it was a massive success. It exceeded everyone’s expectations with its high-concept narrative and outstanding action set pieces. These action sequences and the dramatic scenes involving the robot character, Chitti, brought immense joy to the audience. The fun part? That was just the beginning. Audiences knew Rajinikanth would also be playing a villain, and they eagerly anticipated his performance. His mannerisms and portrayal of the antagonist elevated the film, making it an even more memorable experience.
I remember back in school, during morning assembly, our P.E.T. teachers would imagine themselves as Enthiran’s Rajinikanth and reenact the ‘black sheep’ scene as a joke. Enthiran has played a significant role in Kollywood’s growth. Its cultural impact is evident in how people engage in discussions about its scenes and constantly reference its famous dialogues.
7aum Arivu (2012)
Biological warfare, viruses, genetic engineering, Bodhidharma, and a mind-controlling villain—these are not concepts usually seen in Kollywood’s commercial films. Yet, these were the primary marketing buzzwords for the premise of 7aum Arivu. After Ghajini, Suriya and Murugadoss teamed up once again for this film, which heightened audience anticipation for its release.
While 7aum Arivu is far from a perfect film, with its flaws and dragged runtime, it is filled with some truly remarkable moments. The most exciting part of the film is the cat-and-mouse chase between a seemingly ordinary man (Suriya) and the powerful villain Dong Li (Johnny Trí Nguyễn), a martial artist capable of mind-controlling people with just a movement of his eyes.
Johnny Trí Nguyễn’s portrayal of Dong Li reminded me of Arnold Schwarzenegger in The Terminator. As a fresh face for Indian audiences, he became one of the primary reasons for the film’s success, thanks to his charismatic and brutal performance as the antagonist.
The chase scenes are a visual treat, especially the sequence set in a high-traffic area of Chennai, where Dong Li uses his mind control to manipulate drivers and block Suriya’s escape. It’s a marvel to watch and a testament to the immense effort and resources that went into creating such scenes—something that feels increasingly rare in today’s commercial films.
Decline
There were many changes in the industry after those two films. The most significant change was that stars became more powerful. As a result, commercial films watched by the general audience increasingly relied on the star image of the actor rather than the story. The star has become the primary—and sometimes the only—focus of marketing and box office strategies. While actors have always been a major selling point for films, it was never to this extent. This shift has gradually worsened the quality of commercial cinema and its impact on everyday culture.
On the other hand, small-budget films like Lubber Panthu have found their way into people’s hearts and have had a greater influence on pop culture than many big-budget commercial films featuring star actors. However, this does not mean that the quality of mainstream films is poor overall.
New-generation filmmakers are attempting to blend their parallel cinema sensibilities into the mainstream narrative with films like Kaala, Petta, Vikram (which is the most successful), and Jigarthanda Double X. As remarkable as these films are, they are yet to fully break the mold and surpass the benchmarks set by industry-defining trends like Enthiran and 7aum Arivu.
