In Kollywood, the beginning of the year (marked by big releases in Pongal & smaller ones over the course of Feb and early March) usually sets the tone for the remainder of the year as films to be released later in the year will only be at pre-production at that time & some huge successes early on can set the tone for those units at work. The quarter usually culminates rather dull owing to its incidence with Board & College exams but that is only for a brief period before the next quarter begins with the holiday season.

This year, the first quarter prospects were huge with the Pongal clash of two stars with huge fan following. The two Pongal biggies (Veeram & Jilla) featuring Ajith & Vijay harvested (Pun intended) on 2 weekends and a week of holidays in early Jan but besides that, the quarter was less on sound and has been one for the minnows.

We take a look at Kollywood’s quarter that was – Jan to Mar 2014 – and pick the films that deserve top honours for the quarter.Here is the list of the top 6 films from the quarter that passed. Quality of content is the criterion used for picking these and that is precisely why the biggest grosser of the quarter, Veeram will not feature in our list.

145 min

  • U Rated
  • Directed by Vijay Milton
  • Music by S. N. Arunagiri and A. Seelin
  • Shot by Vijay Milton
  • Edited by Antony
Full Review

Goli Soda

Goli Soda was a well made film that revolves around the lives of daily wage labourers in the city markets. The movie provided face value to a group of little known characters and won the hearts of movie goers due to the cast comprising of young boys and an intelligent story by Vijay Milton that sets aside the inherent sufferings of the underprivileged and etching out their positive characteristics as a lively presentation.
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Pannaiyarum Padminiyum (February 7, 2014)

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Pannaiyarum Padminiyum

In the era of short-film directors making the journey from the small screen (& of course YouTube) to the Silver Screen, comes yet another film born out of a successful comedy short film of the same name based out of a Madurai village. Although the premise sounds clichéd, director Arun Kumar and his team deserve a big applause for coming up with a story having multiple plot lines devoid of commercial elements such as item songs and double entendres. It surely is a sign of good things to come for the Tamil film industry when a film having a car in its central plot & showcasing the romance between an aged couple, is able to attract producers and movie-goers alike.
Full Review

152 min

  • U Rated
  • Directed by Arun Kumar
  • Music by Justin Prabhakaran
  • Shot by Gokul Benoy
  • Edited by A. Sreekar Prasad

Thegidi (February 28, 2014)

122 min

  • U Rated
  • Directed by P. Ramesh
  • Music by Nivas Prasanna
  • Shot by Dinesh Krishnan
  • Edited by Leo John Paul
Full Review

Thegidi

Thegidi, directed by debutant Ramesh focused on a fresh subject dealing with Shadowing & detection as a profession and was presented with an engaging screenplay. The film was also noted for the fresh casting led by its Hero Ashok Selvan who is an actor to watch out for. Nivas Prasanna's score has also made him earn his spot among the latest surge in up and coming music directors in the industry.
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Nimirndhu Nil (March 8, 2014)

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Nimirndhu Nil

Nimirndhu Nil received critical acclaim for a brave attempt by the established director-actor combo in Samuthirakani - Jeyam Ravi to deviate from their comfort zones by embracing a story with a social message to emphasise the ill effects of corrupt government officials. Despite being hampered by commercial elements, the movie was one of the top performers thanks to Jeyam Ravi’s consecutive attempt at dual roles which was widely accepted by critics.
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152 min

  • U Rated
  • Directed by P. Samuthirakani
  • Music by G. V. Prakash Kumar
  • Shot by M. Sukumar – M. Jeevan
  • Edited by A. L. Ramesh

Cuckoo (March 21, 2014)

162 min

  • U Rated
  • Directed by Raju Murugan
  • Music by Santhosh Narayanan
  • Shot by P. K. Varma
  • Edited by Shanmugam Velusamy
Full Review

Cuckoo

A film based on the love between two visually challenged people is generally a tear-jerker and manipulates the audience into pitying for the struggling couple on screen. However, writer-director Raju Murugan’s treatment of this film was different and it was inspiring to see the pair and their friends boldly taking on all obstacles with a determined face. Even though the film manipulated the audience in the stretched climax sequence, this novel-like film from a debutant director is one to savor.
Full Review

Inam (March 28, 2014)

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Inam was one rare movie that dealt with the sensitive issue of the human rights situation in war-torn Sri Lanka. It was presented with the pure intention bringing to the life, the account of a refugee and was not propagandist in nature to support either of the warring sides. It created a noticeable impact with lovely visuals courtesy the genius in Santosh Sivan, the director and cinematographer.
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123 min

  • U Rated
  • Directed by Santosh Sivan
  • Music by Vishal Chandrashekhar
  • Shot by Santosh Sivan
  • Edited by T. S. Suresh