Mouna Ragam

Mouna Ragam (English: Silent Symphony), also spelt Mouna Raagam, is a 1986 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written and directed by Mani Ratnam, and produced by G. Venkateswaran. The film narrates the life of Divya (Revathi), who is robbed of her carefree existence when she reluctantly marries Chandrakumar (Mohan). Divya, mourning the shooting death of her former lover Manohar (Karthik), did not really want to be married. The story follows Divya's inner conflict between holding onto her past and coming to terms with the present and making a life with Chandrakumar. The film's development began when Ratnam began writing a short story, "Divya", while the production of his first film, Pallavi Anu Pallavi (1983) was delayed. As the script developed, he renamed it. Ratnam did not plan to film the story until he had finished writing it, and could not begin production until after the release of his fourth film, Idaya Kovil (1985). Mouna Ragam was the first film produced by Venkateswaran's Sujatha Films (later renamed GV Films), and was filmed primarily in Chennai, with additional filming in Delhi and Agra. The soundtrack album and background score were composed by Ilaiyaraaja, with lyrics by Vaali. P. C. Sreeram was the film's cinematographer, and its art director was Thotta Tharani. It was edited by B. Lenin and V. T. Vijayan. Mouna Ragam was released on 15 August 1986, India's Independence Day. Despite a modest beginning, it became a box-office success, with a theatrical run of over 175 days, and a major breakthrough in Ratnam's career. The film received critical acclaim; it won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil, and Ratnam received the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Director. The soundtrack by Ilaiyaraaja has been regarded by critics as one of his greatest works. Mouna Ragam also became a landmark film in Karthik's career despite his role being a cameo. It was later dubbed in Telugu with the same title. The film was remade in Hindi in 1992 as Kasak, and in Kannada in 1999 as Chandrodaya.