Emakku Thozhil Romance

Emakku Thozhil Romance
Theatrical release poster
Directed byBalaji Kesavan
Written byBalaji Kesavan
Produced byM. Thirumalai
Starring
CinematographyGanesh Chandra
Edited byI. Jerome Alen
Music byNivas K. Prasanna
Production
company
Friends Festival Films
Release date
  • 22 November 2024 (2024-11-22)
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Emakku Thozhil Romance (transl. Romance is our business) is an Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Balaji Kesavan.[1] The film stars Ashok Selvan and Avantika Mishra in the lead roles alongside Urvashi, M. S. Bhaskar, Azhagam Perumal, Bagavathi Perumal, Vijay Varadaraj, Badava Gopi and others in supporting roles.[2] Nivas K. Prasanna composed the music.[3]

Emakku Thozhil Romance was released in theatres on 22 November 2024.[4]

Plot

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Umashankar, along with his friends Senthil and Sharanya, works as an associate director to a renowned filmmaker. The director's last film, Gandamirugam, was met with scathing criticism, leaving audiences infuriated and the film widely trolled upon its release. On Christmas Eve, Umashankar's life takes a dramatic turn when he meets Leona "Leo" Joseph, a nurse. He is instantly smitten and proposes to her, but she doesn't reciprocate. However, Leona, who had initially planned to relocate to Delhi, decides to stay back after Umashankar's request, apparently confirming her love for him.

Umashankar's friend Sharanya finds herself pregnant as a result of her relationship with Prashanth, who has since relocated to America. Desperate to terminate the pregnancy, Sharanya seeks Umashankar's assistance at the hospital. However, a misunderstanding arises when the hospital nurse mistakenly assumes that Umashankar is responsible for Sharanya's pregnancy. This miscommunication reaches Leona, who mistakenly believes that Umashankar has been unfaithful to her. Determined to reunite Leona and Umashankar, Sharanya devises a plan. Since Prashanth is in America, Sharanya recruits Vetri, an aspiring actor, to impersonate Prashanth. The plan succeeds, and Leona and Umashankar ultimately reconcile.

Umashankar's younger sister, Vasanthi's, wedding arrangements are underway in their native village. Over the phone, Leona mistakenly instructs Vetri, believing him to be Prashanth, to attend the wedding. However, Vetri's fiancée and her brothers, who have been tracking him, arrive at the village and assault Vetri, accusing him of deceiving his fiancée. With no alternative, Vetri reveals that he impersonated Prashanth to prove Sharanya and Umashankar's friendship. Leona, feeling deceived once again by Umashankar's friends' drama, departs from the wedding venue, heartbroken. Nevertheless, Umashankar's father intervenes, conferencing with Leona and explaining the situation, ultimately helping her understand Umashankar's genuine love for her.

Meanwhile, at the hospital, Umashankar's family and mother mistakenly assume that he is infatuated with the nurse Kavya. Believing this, Umashankar's family devises a plan to unite him with Kavya. They pretend that Bakkiyam, Umashankar's mother, has suffered a heart attack and, as a dying wish, requests that Umashankar marry Kavya. Umashankar, unaware of the ruse, promises to marry the person his mother has chosen. However, Leona, now aware of Umashankar's genuine feelings for her, becomes possessive at the prospect of Kavya marrying Umashankar. In a romantic gesture, Leona kisses Umashankar, finally confirming her love for him.

Cast

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Production

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Development

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On 15 March 2024, the first look poster of the Ashok Selvan starrer film titled Emakku Thozhil Romance was released by Vijay Sethupathi, Arya and others, featuring Ashok and Enna Solla Pogirai (2022) fame Avantika Mishra.[5] The romantic comedy film is directed by debutant director Balaji Kesavan and produced by director-turned-producer M. Thirumalai.[6] During the launch event, the director revealed that the title of the film was named after Bharathiyar's poems 'Emakku Thozhil Kavithai’ and replaced the word Kavithai with 'Romance' for their film title.[7] The film also stars Urvashi, M. S. Bhaskar, Azhagam Perumal, Bagavathi Perumal, Vijay Varadaraj, Badava Gopi and others in supporting roles.[8] The technical crew comprises Ganesh Chandra as the cinematographer, I. Jerome Alen as the editor and Nivas K. Prasanna as the music composer.[3] Principal photography was completed and the film was in post-production stage during announcement.[9]

Marketing

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On 23 April 2024, a one-and-a-half-minute-long teaser was released, showcasing the lead actor falling in love with multiple women and getting in trouble and Urvashi playing Ashok Selvan's mother in the film was shown[10] and on 17 May 2024, the trailer of the film was released.[11]

Music

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Emakku Thozhil Romance
Soundtrack album by
ReleasedJuly 27, 2024 (2024-07-27)
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length19:04
LanguageTamil
LabelThink Music India
ProducerNivas K. Prasanna
Nivas K. Prasanna chronology
Takkar
(2023)
Emakku Thozhil Romance
(2024)
Bun Butter Jam
(TBA)
Singles from Emakku Thozhil Romance
  1. "Paakura Thaakura"
    Released: 14 May 2024
  2. "Vaada Poda"
    Released: 27 May 2024
Audio Jukebox
Emakku Thozhil Romance - Audio Jukebox on YouTube

The soundtrack and background is composed by Nivas K. Prasanna while the lyrics are penned by Mohan Rajan.[12] The first single "Paakura Thaakura" was released on 14 May 2024.[13] The second single "Vaada Poda" was released on 27 May 2024.[14] Following an audio launch event on 27 July 2024, the audio jukebox was released.[15]

Track listing
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Paakura Thaakura"Kapil Kapilan, Nivas K. Prasanna3:45
2."Un Goppamavale"Nivas K. Prasanna, Reshma Shyam4:29
3."Vaada Poda (Reprise)"Shakthisree Gopalan3:38
4."Nenjamelaam Kaadhal"Varshini Muralikrishnan, Nivas K. Prasanna3:48
5."Vaada Poda"Vaishali, Nivas K. Prasanna3:24
Total length:19:04

Release

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Theatrical

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Emakku Thozhil Romance was released in theatres on 22 November 2024.[4] Initially, the film was scheduled to release on 15 November 2024,[16] but was postponed citing the heavy rains predicted to hit Tamil Nadu.[17] The film had received a U/A certification from the Central Board of Film Certification.[18]

Reception

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Critical response

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Thinkal Menon of The Times of India gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "Emakku Thozhil Romance reminds us of various yesteryear rom-coms that had an appealing screenplay and convincing performances."[19] Sreejith Mullapilly of Cinema Express gave 2/5 stars and wrote "Depth in writing has never been a strong suit for mainstream rom-com cinema, and Emakku Thozhil Romance is no exception to the rule. [...] it tries to be—an innocuous entertainer—its utter lack of ambition is baffling."[20]

Controversy

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During the audio launch held on 27 July 2024 in Chennai, Thirumalai severely criticized Ashok Selvan's lack of participation and the actor's unavailability to attend the film's promotional audio launch event.[15][21]

References

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  1. ^ "Ashok Selvan's next titled Emakku Thozhil Romance". DT Next. 17 March 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  2. ^ "'Emakku Thozhil Romance': First look of Ashok Selvan's next out". The Hindu. 15 March 2024. Archived from the original on 28 March 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Ashok Selvan plays an assistant director in this romcom". The Times of India. 18 March 2024. Archived from the original on 9 April 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  4. ^ a b Features, C. E. (17 November 2024). "Ashok Selvan's Emakku Thozhil Romance gets new release date". Cinema Express. Retrieved 17 November 2024.
  5. ^ "Ashok Selvan's next titled Emakku Thozhil Romance; First-look poster is here!". OTTPlay. Archived from the original on 18 April 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  6. ^ Bharat, E. T. V. (25 April 2024). "റൊമാന്‍റിക് കോമഡിയുമായി അശോക് സെല്‍വന്‍; 'എമക്ക് തൊഴില്‍ റൊമാന്‍സ്' ടീസര്‍ പുറത്ത് - Emakku Thozhil Romance Teaser". ETV Bharat News (in Malayalam). Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  7. ^ "Emakku Thozhil Romance – Ashok Selvan's character in the rom-com revealed | Here's what the director said". OTTPlay. Archived from the original on 19 April 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  8. ^ மணிவேலன், த மோகன்ராஜ் (16 March 2024). "Ashok Selvan: எதிர்பார்ப்பை எகிற வைக்கும் அசோக் செல்வன் படம்!". tamil.abplive.com (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 16 March 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  9. ^ Features, C. E. (17 March 2024). "Ashok Selvan's next titled Emakku Thozhil Romance". Cinema Express. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  10. ^ Features, C. E. (23 April 2024). "Emakku Thozhil Romance Teaser: The cupid strikes multiple times for Ashok Selvan in this romantic comedy". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 22 May 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  11. ^ Features, C. E. (17 May 2024). "Emakku Thozhil Romance Trailer: Ashok Selvan plays a romantic with filmmaking ambitions in this drama". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 14 June 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  12. ^ "அசோக் செல்வனின் 'எமக்குத் தொழில் ரொமான்ஸ்' முதல் தோற்றம் வெளியீடு". Hindu Tamil Thisai (in Tamil). 15 March 2024. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  13. ^ Features, C. E. (14 May 2024). "'Paakura Thaakura' from Ashok Selvan's Emakku Thozhil Romance out". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 20 May 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  14. ^ Features, C. E. (28 May 2024). "'Vaada Poda' song from Emakku Thozhil Romance out". Cinema Express. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  15. ^ a b தாரா, ராகேஷ் (29 July 2024). "பத்து தயாரிப்பாளர்கள் செத்த பிறகுதான் நடிகன் உருவாகிறான்..அசோக் செல்வனை சாடிய தயாரிப்பாளர்". tamil.abplive.com (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 29 July 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  16. ^ மலர், மாலை (11 October 2024). "'எமக்கு தொழில் ரொமான்ஸ்' திரைப்படத்தின் ரிலீஸ் தேதி அறிவிப்பு". www.maalaimalar.com (in Tamil). Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  17. ^ Features, C. E. (13 November 2024). "Ashok Selvan's Emakku Thozhil Romance release postponed". Cinema Express. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  18. ^ "எமக்குத் தொழில் ரொமான்ஸ் படத்தில் உதவி இயக்குநராக அசோக் செல்வன்". Hindu Tamil Thisai (in Tamil). 15 June 2024. Archived from the original on 17 July 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
  19. ^ "Emakku Thozhil Romance Movie Review : A mediocre outing that has more misses than hits". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  20. ^ Mullappilly, Sreejith (22 November 2024). "Emakku Thozhil Romance Movie Review: A bland rom-com devoid of ambition and direction". Cinema Express. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
  21. ^ "Thirumalai criticizes Ashok Selvan for absence at Emakku Thozhil Romance audio launch". News Today Net. 30 July 2024. Archived from the original on 10 August 2024. Retrieved 1 November 2024.
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