Sri MGR Year 100, 29th June, Thursday
Science fiction genre is seldom used in Tamil movies and we all know that our beloved Leader Puratchi Thalaivar MGR had acted in one sci-fi movie "Kalai Arasi" which was released in 1963. Nowadays frequently aired though the movie is more than 50 years but still has the entertainment value.
Below is the review written for "Kalai Arasi" movie in Indian Express newspaper in April 1963.
Film stories revolving round "doubles" have been quite numerous on the screen. Sarodi pictures "Kalai Arasi" adds one more to that category of pictures.
A social-cum-fantasy, the film is now running to crowded houses at Plaza, Murugan, Mekala and Jayaraj in the city.
The physical resemblance between two women and the complications it creates are treated here more as an off-shoot of the story than being its main plank.
The central character in the story is a young woman (P.Bhanumathi) who is kidnapped by a man from outer space, and is whisked off to a planet in a flying saucer. There she teaches music to the daughter of a space-king and propagates the cultural heritage of South India to the inhabitants in the planet.
Meanwhile, the father of the girl continues his search for her and through his ward meets another insane girl, looking exactly like his own daughter.
Mohan (M.G.Ramachandran) the college-mate of the zamindar's daughter, takes upon himself to find the girl and after over-powering one of the spacemen, air dashes to the planet in the flying saucer. He finds her and works his way to come down to the earth. How the young man overcomes all his obstacles in the planet and how the identity of the two girls is established, form the climax of the film, which is studded with a plethora of synthetic thrills, stunts and chases.
M.N.Nambiar, P.S.Veerappa, N.S.Narayana Pillai, Rajashree, Kumari Saraswathi, G.Shakuntala, S.R.Janaki, C.T.Rajakantham, Kamala and Mohana are the other members of the cast.
Directed by A.Kasilingam, the film has all the ingredients that make a successful box office production.
The film is exceptionally good in outdoor and trick photography, for which credit goes to the cinematographer J.G.Vijayam. Music by K.V.Mahadevan is good.