Thira (film)

Thira (transl. Wave) is a 2013 Indian Malayalam-language mystery-thriller drama film directed by Vineeth Sreenivasan and scripted by his cousin Rakesh Mantodi.[2] It stars Shobana alongside debutant Dhyan Sreenivasan in the lead roles. The film was produced by Manoj Menon under the banner ReelsMagic and distributed by LJ Films.[3]

Thira
Theatrical release poster
Directed byVineeth Sreenivasan
Screenplay byRakesh Mantodi
Story byRakesh Mantodi
Produced byManoj Menon
Starring
CinematographyJomon T. John
Edited byRanjan Abraham
Music byShaan Rahman
Production
company
Reelsmagic Productions
Distributed by
  • LJ Films
  • Tricolor Entertainments
  • Europe – Indian Movies UK Ltd.
Release date
  • 14 November 2013 (2013-11-14)
Running time
113 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageMalayalam

Thira was announced to be the first installment in a trilogy of thriller films.[4] According to Srinivasan, the film was inspired from the book The Road of Lost Innocence: The True Story of a Cambodian Heroine by Somaly Mam.[5] The film marks the debut of Vineeth Sreenivasan's younger brother Dhyan Sreenivasan and also the return of Shobana Pillai to Malayalam cinema after almost a gap of five years.[3] It was filmed by Jomon T. John and has music composed by Shaan Rahman. Principal photography of the film took place in Hyderabad, Chennai, Belgaum and Goa. It was released on 14 November 2013. Despite receiving critical acclaim, due to less screening time, the film was a flop at the box office. The film was screened in IFFK 2013. Dinesh Prabhakar was the casting director for the movie and it's the first movie that introduced the concept of casting director in Malayalam movie.[6]

Plot

The story is set in the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa.[2][3] Dr. Rohini Pranab, a busy cardiac surgeon, also rescues and shelters destitute and trafficked girls in a home she runs. One day, her girls are kidnapped by an illegal human trafficking ring. Rohini is charged with illegal trafficking after the kidnap of the girls and the news hits all major newspapers. A youth named Naveen also loses his sister to the same gang when she is kidnapped, right in front of his eyes. Rohini and Naveen meet due to similar circumstances and decide to rescue the girls before they are drugged and raped by high-profile clients during a party organised by a mining group. Rohini's friends also try to help, but the gang is well connected, well coordinated and a step ahead of them always.

By opening the bank locker of Pranab Ray, Rohini's husband, an investigative journalist who was killed by this very same gang, they get clues to the whereabouts of the girls, but his hard disk with the information is stolen when Rohini is kidnapped while coming out of the bank. Rohini escapes from the kidnappers car who drive away with Pranab's file and hard disk. Rohini remembers the photograph in Pranab's file and they figure out the place where the girls are. They then proceed to Goa to rescue the girls.

Cast

Soundtrack
Thira
Soundtrack album by
Shaan Rahman
Released2013
LanguageMalayalam
ProducerManoj Menon
Shaan Rahman chronology
Hotel California
(2013)		 Thira
(2013)

The film's soundtrack is composed by Shaan Rahman. Lyrics are penned by Anu Elizabeth Jose.

No.TitleArtist(s)Length
1."Theerathe Neelunne"Vineeth Sreenivasan3:40
2."Thazhvaaram"Hesham & Neha Nair5:05
3."Nithya Sahaya Nadhe"Neha Nair5:14
4."Thaazhe Nee Tharame"Sachin Warrier, Job Kurian, Sayanora2:50
5."Thazhvaaram"Neha Nair2:52

Critical reception

Thira received critical acclaim reviews upon releasing, but was a box-office flop.[7] The movie did not have a large reception mainly because the film got only a few releases and the telecasting of the movie wasn't widespread. The movie is deemed as "an underrated brilliance of Vineeth Sreenivasan".[8]

Nowrunning.com remarked that "Vineeth Sreenivasan's Thira is a thoughtful exploration of a theme that is often discussed in hushed whispers. It's quite resolute in its objective, is extremely detailed, is involving for its most part and is charmingly acted as well."[9] Oneindia.in rated it 4 out of 5 and says "Here comes a movie which stands apart from the rest of Malayalam films, which entertains the viewers from start to end and makes us crave for more. Yes, Thira by Vineeth Sreenivasan is a well directed, well acted, engaging movie which can be termed as paisa vasool."[10] The Times of India gave 3 stars out of 5 and mentioned "The narrative of the film moves at a steady pace despite the predictability that comes along with it".[11] Sify.com described the film as average, "an okay one-time watch", while pointing out inspirations from the 2007 film, Trade.[12] The New Indian Express wrote, "Thira is a satisfying thriller carried successfully by lead actress Shobhana".[13]

Sequel

Thira was announced to be the first of the trilogy thriller series by Vineeth Sreenivasan. Vineeth wrote on his official blog, "Thira is not one film. It's a trilogy. If everything goes well by god's grace, Part 1 will be releasing in 2013. Part 2 and Part 3 will follow....".[14] Vineeth also revealed that Thira 2 will have a popular young actor of Mollywood in lead role and he will also star in Thira 3, along with Shobana, who played the lead in Thira. The sequel was planned to be more character oriented, rather than being an extension of Thira. It was confirmed by Vineeth that Thira 2 will be focusing more on the character, Amar and the part of Dhyan is over with the first film.[15] However, Vineeth confirmed that the sequel didn't materialize due to several reasons.

Festival screenings

The film was an official selection for the following film festivals:

  • Gwinnett Center International Film Festival – International Competition section.

Awards
Vanitha Film Awards[16]
  • Best Actress – Shobana Pillai
Asianet Film Awards[17]
  • Best Debut Actor – Dhyan Sreenivasan

References
  1. Pillai, Gayathry V. (12 November 2013) Vineeth Sreenivasan's Thira Bags Clean U Certificate. Entertainment.oneindia.in. Retrieved on 2021-06-27.
  2. Nagarajan, Saraswathy (14 November 2013)On the trail of a mystery. The Hindu
  3. Setting off on the road less taken. New Indian Express. 14 November 2013
  4. Thira review. futurecreater.in. November 2013
  5. 'Yes, Thira is inspired', confesses Vineeth. sify.com (20 November 2013). Retrieved on 27 June 2021.
  6. Anand, Shilpa Nair (9 October 2017) Living a dream. The Hindu
  7. "Kerala Box-Office – October/November". Sify. 27 November 2013. Archived from the original on 14 September 2014.
  8. "Kerala Box-Office – December 1 to 9". Sify. 10 December 2013. Archived from the original on 13 December 2013.
  9. Thira Review | Thira Malayalam Movie Review by Veeyen. nowrunning (16 November 2013). Retrieved on 2021-06-27.
  10. Pillai, Gayathry V. (14 November 2013) Thira Movie Review: A Must Watch. Entertainment.oneindia.in. Retrieved on 2021-06-27.
  11. Thira Movie Review {3/5}: Critic Review of Thira by Times of India. Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved on 27 June 2021.
  12. Thira. sify.com. Retrieved on 27 June 2021.
  13. Nidheesh M K (18 November 2013) A wave that refuses to crash. New Indian Express
  14. Thira: Thira is a trilogy: Vineeth Sreenivasan. Times of India (7 June 2013). Retrieved on 2021-06-27.
  15. Vineeth Sreenivasan: Many incidents in Thira are based on real life. Times of India (29 November 2013). Retrieved on 2021-06-27.
  16. "Vanitha Film Awards 2014". keralatv.in. 6 January 2014. Retrieved 6 January 2014.
  17. V.P, Nicy (9 September 2014). "Shobana to Play Lead in 'Thira' Sequel". www.ibtimes.co.in. Retrieved 28 March 2021.
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