Ninaithen Vandhai

“Ninaithen Vandhai” (1998), directed by K. Selva Bharathy, is a musical rom-com flick. It starred Vijay, Rambha and Devayani in the lead roles. It was an adaptation of the Telugu movie “Pelli Sandadi” (1996). The film follows Gokulan, who becomes obsessed with finding a mysterious woman he sees in a dream. His quest takes an unexpected turn when he meets her in real life, just after being engaged to someone else by his father, leading to a series of emotional and comedic complications.

Gokula Krishnan is a music lover who dreams of his ideal girl, distinguished by a mole next to her navel. Determined to find her, he gets help from his uncle and brothers-in-law. However, his father, Sandhana Goundar, arranges his marriage to a village girl named Savithri, who loves Gokul. Gokul eventually sees his dream girl, Swapna, at a wedding and recognises her mole. After singing to her, they fall in love, but she leaves unexpectedly. Later, they reconnect in a music class.

Gokul struggles to stop his marriage to Savithri, as misunderstandings arise within Savithri's family. It turns out that Swapna and Savithri are sisters, both unaware of their love for the same man. Swapna overhears Gokul voicing his feelings against the marriage and pretends to be seriously ill to help Gokul forget her. Eventually, Gokul agrees to marry Savithri, while Vignesh, who loves Swapna, threatens violence if he cannot have her. After revealing his feelings, Savithri allows Swapna to marry Gokul instead.

Filled with music, colour, and a bunch of drama queens, “Ninaithen Vandhai” is a breezy musical romantic comedy that mixes love and dreams with an identity crisis and lots of drama into an interesting package. The film captivates right from the opening number, with a mix of vibrant music, colourful production design, and a narrative brimming with surprises that include surprising relationships, shocking revelations, and painful choices. Equal parts swoon and laugh-out-loud fun, it’s an epic, feel-good journey of love, sacrifice and fate that harkens back to the golden age of ’90s romantic blockbusters.