Man like a lion, man like a prince: 12 Malayalam songs that deify male heroes

From 'Drona' to 'Narasimham,' here are 12 hyperbolic songs that introduced the hero in Malayalam cinema.
Man like a lion, man like a prince: 12 Malayalam songs that deify male heroes
Man like a lion, man like a prince: 12 Malayalam songs that deify male heroes
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By, Mini Mathew

Around the turn of the millennium, Malayalam cinema started looking to Tamil and Telugu songs for inspiration, notably tunes that eulogise the hero. If you look at some of our superstar films, the hero always gets a swashbuckling entry and is even compared to deities and superheroes in their introduction songs. We bring you 12 such hyperbolic gems that range from silly and laughable to fun or believe-it-or-not. We're also adding a few song taglines that are also out of this world. 

'Prince' (1996)

It’s not surprising that this Mohanlal film set the precedent for such hero-worshipping ditties in Malayalam cinema. After all the film was directed by Suresh Krishna, the man who created Bhasha, one of Indian cinema’s biggest mass heroes. Mohanlal plays Jeeva, a mafia don who is called ‘the Prince’ in his circles. And shockingly, his intro BGM tagline goes something like this — “He walks like a prince, he talks like a prince, he dances like a prince… he is (rolling the ‘s’) the prince!”

'Natturajavu' (2004)

Mohanlal’s Charlie is locally christened ‘Natturajavu’ and introduced through this song in which parallels are drawn between him and the wind, storm, and tough rock. In one word, he is the unbeatable king of good times.

'Drona' (2010)

Mammootty’s indomitable Drona in this Shaji Kailas film breezes onto the screen, and he seems to be the antidote for a lot of things. Besides being as powerful as Duryodhana, he is as skilful as Dronacharya, Narasimha, and as powerful and enlightening as the sun himself.

'Mr. Fraud' (2014)

Or dubbed “one man, many faces.” A slightly mind-boggling chorus of words welcomes the man known as Mr. Fraud. Then comes the descriptions — from being called a tongueless voice, invisible force, nameless face to the sun that never sets. Can there be a better glorification of a con man?

'Puthiya Mugham' (2009)

Ushering in a brand new face and identity, as well as someone with lot of fire and grit, this is Prithviraj’s re-entry as a toughie song. A few years later, this same song was used in a hilarious context for the actors on 'Amar Akbar Anthony.'

'Casanova' (2011)

Roshan Andrews directs this film about a middle-aged Casanova who is out on a mission to heal broken hearts. Mohanlal’s Casanova zooms onto the screen in the middle of a desert, in an Enfield, with Casanova printed in bold in the backdrop. He is immediately claimed by a set of skimpily clad beauties who describes him as a magician, Lord Krishna, secret lover, and what have you in this song. The lyrics are hilarious, and matches the picturisation.

'Narasimham' (2000)

Shaji Kailas and his undiluted obsession with his alpha male heroes reaches its zenith in 'Narasimham' where he frames an entire song on his hero (Mohanlal) and likens him to every possible Hindu deity and the mighty lion. The song has various wide-angle and zoom shots of Mohanlal meditating, fighting the wind, and floating in water.

'Valyettan' (2001)

Shaji Kailas is at it again. This time he portrays Mammooty as a roaring lion, who looks after his cubs with dedication. The brothers are in awe of this moustachioed warrior whom they think is as magnificent as the rising sun (what’s Kailas' obsession with the sun?!) and other similar attributes.

'Pulimurugan' (2016)

As the tiger roars its way to make short work of his uncle and two others, Murugan uses his knife attached to a chord as a dart that astonishingly stops the “400 kilo” tiger in its tracks. What follows is a battle of wits between the man and the beast — somersaults, mowgli-like long jumps, running between gigantic trees, tree hopping and finally, within the blink of an eye, Murugan throws a loop around his neck and finishes the “400 kilo” beast with his knife. So, to come to the point, this is a hero-welcoming chant that seems to say, Murugan is unbeatable and can cut you down several sizes.

'Thandavam' (2002)

A Shiv thandava BGM ushers in the hero Kashinathan, thereby leaving us with no doubt as to the best laid plans of director Shaji Kailas regarding his alpha-male hero.

But these two are fun…

'Chotta Mumbai' (2007)

Probably the most fun hero introduction song of the lot. The one that encapsulates the quirky, fun, adorable and mischievous Thala—it’s also a hilarious subversion of the usual hero-worshipping ditty.

'Premam' (2015)

George’s second intro comes with this spirited, effusive BGM that’s fresh, filmy and edgy. It’s how Alphonse Puthren places it that makes it a lot of fun.

And lastly, the only song that describes the hero's beauty so poetically...

This article was originally published on Fullpicture.in. The News Minute has syndicated the content. You can read the original article here.

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