Puli Paarvai :The main objection in these films is either it is anti-LTTE or is funded by Rajapaksa

Dear Friends,

It is pertinent for the producers of films in Tamil Nadu to keep the pulse of the Tamils in Tamil Nadu and outside it in their minds, before they venture into a film. The main objection in these films is either it is anti-LTTE or is funded by Rajapaksa, who wants these films to be slanted in favour of Sri Lanka.  Rajapaksa has billions of Chinese US dollars to throw around and it uses PR companies to canvas for them and this is the worry of Tamils, especially the students, in Tamil Nadu.

The film companies producing Tamil films must be alert to the above objections of  the Tamils and avoid producing films that hurt the sensitivities of the Tamils. At the end of the day if the Tamil people who patronise these films boycott the films, the companies will lose money. So, it is to the advantage of the producers to work together with those objecting and delete the scenes that they object to. Dismissing those Tamils, who are objecting, as fringe protesters is a futile attempt to discredit the LTTE as a liberation movement. Now, the Tamils in Tamil Nadu and the Tamils the world over have accepted LTTE as a liberation movement that protected the Tamils against the Sinhalese vulgarities, such as rape of women and Children. Now that the LTTE power is no longer there in the Tamil Homeland, rape, murder, torture and disappearances are daily occurrences committed by the Sinhalese army. This the film producers must understand and not dismiss it as not their problem.

The films in dispute are Kaththi and Puli Paarvai. I am not sure what the students are objecting to in Kaththi. Here the students should talk to the producers and delete all the scenes that are sensitive to the Tamils. If the film is financed by Rajapaksa family, I think the students should go soft on it as long as they delete the objectionable scenes, as the financiers will soon realise that their finance has not produced any benefit to them and they will refrain from doing so in future.

Several scenes in Puli Paarvai must be changed. Puli Paarvai means Tiger's Look. Prabhakaran's son, Balachandran, not only has a Tiger's look, but also has the determination of a Tamil Tiger; this will make any father proud. A young boy of 11 years old facing death without fear is only found in ancient Tamil literature. There were several pictures of him during detention in the Sri Lankan army bunker, but not in one scene the fierce Tiger look disappeared. The forensic expert who examined the photo of his body, said the gun that fired five shots on his young body was held at Balachandran's arm length, so much so he could have even pushed it off. It will be interesting to know whether he whimpered even at that point of facing death. What a brave young boy, who lived up to the standards of a Tamil Tiger!

The other scenes, depicting him as a young boy in Tiger army uniform carrying a gun is far fetched and shows the LTTE in bad light. In Sri Lanka, the Tamils facing a ruthless Sinhalese army, that engages in rape and murder, had to resort to all methods to counter it, but the LTTE never recruited boys and girls, below the age of 15. That was how they built up their formidable army. They also didn't put the 15 year old boys in the battle field. It is ridiculous to show the 11 year old Prabhakaran's son in uniform. Scenes like that should be deleted.

The West, Russia, China, Pakistan, and India supplied arms to Sri Lanka to help them fight against the Tamil Tigers. So Prabhakaran had to use all the powers at his command to conduct the war and save the Tamils from annihilation. Therefore, he had to use the only asset he had - human power. What choice he had other than to train the youths at a young age. He also used the suicide corp to annihilate Sinhalese military installations, and this method was very effective. The West, who supplied arms to Sri Lanka to fight the Tamil 'terrorists', accused the LTTE of using under-age youths and suicide bombers. The Tamils main objection to Puli Paarvai is that it supports the Western objections, and the Tamil students views are valid.

It will be in the interest of both parties to talk to each other and rectify the defects in the films and avoid confrontation. The Tamils need the help of the film industry to advance their liberation cause and the producers of films need the support of the Tamils to make their ventures successful. It is only when all negotiations fail, they should resort to protests. In future this type of confrontation must be avoided for the sake of Tamil unity. Please click the link below and read

Regards,

Visvanathan