{{About|the film|the saint|Meiporul Nayanar}} {{Use Indian English|date=February 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=February 2025}} {{Infobox film | image = Meipporul poster.jpg | caption = Theatrical release poster | director = Natty Kumar<br />Krish Bala | screenplay = Natty Kumar<br />Krish Bala<br />Narayan Sundararajan<br />Rani Jayakumar | story = Natty Kumar | producer = Natty Kumar<br />Krish Bala | starring = Krish Bala<br />Anusha | cinematography = Chris Eldridge | editing = B. Lenin | music = Rahul Atul<br />Aub Delane<br /> Ponch Satrio<br />Nandha Swamee<br />John Mazzei <small>(score)</small> | studio = Dreams on Frames | released = {{Film date|df=y|2009|05|01}} | runtime = 126 minutes | country = India<br />United States | language = Tamil<br />English }}
'''''Meipporul''''', also known as '''''The True Meaning''''', is a 2009 Indian-American Tamil language thriller film produced and directed by Natty Kumar and Krish Bala. The film stars Krish Bala and Anusha, with Natty Kumar, Narayan Sundararajan, Rani Jayakumar, Lee Kuhn, Christopher Martin Bauer, Suren Vijaykumar, and Ritu Bhargava playing supporting roles.
The film was theatrically released on 1 May 2009. It won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize.<ref>{{Cite web |date=29 September 2009 |title=Rajini, Kamal win best actor awards |url=https://www.thehindu.com/news/states/Rajini-Kamal-win-best-actor-awards/article12312687.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210602213950/https://www.thehindu.com/news/states/Rajini-Kamal-win-best-actor-awards/article12312687.ece |archive-date=2 June 2021 |access-date=23 November 2019 |website=The Hindu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=8 December 2009 |title=Tamil Nadu State Film Awards 2009 Photos |url=https://moviegalleri.net/2009/12/tamil-nadu-state-film-awards-2009-pics-images-photos-stills.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240422081648/https://moviegalleri.net/2009/12/tamil-nadu-state-film-awards-2009-pics-images-photos-stills.html |archive-date=22 April 2024 |access-date=22 April 2024 |website=Moviegalleri.net |language=en}}</ref>
== Plot == An Indian couple is killed by their babysitter Lisa (Lee Kuhn) and she takes their daughter with her in a car. At the petrol pump, Devi (Anusha) notices Lisa's suspicious behaviours and sees the girl asking for help in the back seat of the car. Devi alerts the police, and Lisa is thus arrested.
Sam, a successful neurosurgeon, and Devi, a bold reporter working for a renowned Tamil magazine, are a happily married Indian couple living in San Francisco. They live normal lives in the company of friends Vishwa and his girlfriend Lakshmi. One day, Sam comes across Rajan, who claims to be an astrophysicist working for NASA, and Rajan hands him his wallet that he had lost in a bar. Sam then meets Rajan in a bar, and Rajan tells him that his next surgery is going to be a failure. Sam performs surgery on a girl, and the surgery turns out to be a success. Unfortunately later that day, the girl dies, thus upsetting Sam. Rajan claims to have extrasensory perception (ESP) and can predict the future with uncanny precision. Sinisterly enough, all his predictions turn out to be true, and Sam, who is a rational person, begins to believe him.
At one point, Rajan informs Sam that he would die in less than a week: on 10 August 2007. Sam seeks solace to his friend Vishwa, who advises him to not believe Rajan. On 9 August, Devi survives a car accident with minor injuries, but she loses her baby. The couple then returns home. A few hours before 10 August, Lisa enters Sam's house with a gun and tries to kill him. Chris, a detective, tries to enter the house to save Sam, but Lisa shoots Chris. Sam manages to unarm Lisa. Devi takes Lisa's gun, but she accidentally shoots Sam. Chris shoots Lisa dead and succumbs to his injury. Devi takes an injured Sam, and Rajan, who arrives with his car at that moment, takes Sam to his car. Vishwa, who comes from nowhere, knocks out Rajan with a golf club.
Later, it is revealed that Rajan's real name is Gowtham and he is married to Lisa. Rajan and Lisa were involved in child trafficking. When Lisa was arrested because of Devi, Rajan decided to take revenge on her. To do this, he befriended Sam, posed as a scientist, and made him believe that he had ESP. Rajan had done everything to make his predictions true. He then planned to kill Devi and frame Sam for the murder. Meanwhile, Vishwa sent his friend Chris, a private detective, to follow Rajan and Vishwa and discovered Rajan's plan. Rajan is finally arrested for his crime.
One year later, on 10 August 2008, Sam, the pregnant Devi, Vishwa, and Lakshmi place flowers on the grave of the detective Chris, who had sacrificed his life that day. The film ends with Rajan watching them at the cemetery.
== Cast == {{cast listing| *Krish Bala as Sam *Anusha as Devi *Natty Kumar as Rajan/Gowtham *Narayan Sundararajan as Vishwa *Rani Jayakumar as Lakshmi *Lee Kuhn as Lisa *Christopher Martin Bauer as Chris *Suren Vijaykumar as Dharan *Ritu Bhargava as Sashi *Vasanthi Raghavan as Vasanthi *Karunakaran Padmanabhan as Palani *Daryl Anthony Harper as Alan *Thirumudi Thulasiraman as Devi's coworker (uncredited)<ref>{{Cite AV media |title=Meipporul |type=motion picture |language=ta |publisher=Dreams on Frames |year=2009}}</ref>{{rp|12:26–13:09}} }}
== Production ==<!-- https://web.archive.org/web/20130715161519/http://www.sify.com/movies/specials/meipporul/ -->
Natty Kumar, son of T. N. Janakeraman who produced ''Mogamul'' (1994), Krish Bala; a software engineer for Napster; and Narayan Sundararajan, a research scientist in Intel, teamed up and decided to make a Tamil film because they wanted to shoot it entirely in the United States. The film was edited by B. Lenin, photographed by American cinematographer Chris Eldridge, and the background music was composed by John Mazzei who had several Hollywood films to his credit. The film was shot in San Francisco and other parts of in California in 40 days, while post-production took place in Chennai.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Kumar |first=S. R. Ashok |date=18 April 2008 |title=A dream debut? |url=https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-cinemaplus/a-dream-debut/article3022792.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250221165515/https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-cinemaplus/a-dream-debut/article3022792.ece |archive-date=21 February 2025 |access-date=23 November 2019 |website=The Hindu}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Mannath |first=Malini |date=5 June 2007 |title=Meiporul |url=http://www.chennaionline.com/film/Onlocation/2007/07meiporul.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080522183125/http://www.chennaionline.com/film/Onlocation/2007/07meiporul.asp |archive-date=22 May 2008 |access-date=20 November 2019 |website=Chennai Online}}</ref>
== Soundtrack == The soundtrack was composed by Rahul Atul, Aub Delane, Ponch Satrio and Nandha Swamee.{{Citation needed|date=February 2025}}
{{track listing| | extra_column = Singer(s) | headline = Track listing | total_length = 19:26 | title1 = Meiyye Meiyye | music1 = Rahul Atul | extra1 = Rahul Nambiar, Latha | lyrics1 = Perungavikko Va. Mu. Sethuraman | length1 = 4:15 | title2 = Get Away Day | music2 = Aub Delane, Ponch Satrio | extra2 = Aub Delane | lyrics2 = Aub Delane, Ponch Satrio | length2 = 3:07 | title3 = Sandhana Maram | music3 = Rahul Atul | extra3 = Srinivas | lyrics3 = Yugandar | length3 = 3:49 | title4 = Kalyana Kaviyam | music4 = Rahul Atul | extra4 = Prasanna, Rita Thyagarajan | lyrics4 = Yugandar | length4 = 4:15 | title5 = Minnum Minuum | music5 = Nandha Swamee | extra5 = Nandha Swamee | lyrics5 = Yugandar, Thendral R. Ramkumar | length5 = 4:00 }}
== Release and reception == The film was released on 1 May 2009 in India.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Preview: ''Meipporul'' |url=https://www.sify.com/movies/preview-imeipporuli-imagegallery-kollywood-je3pOldbhgcsi.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220303042927/https://www.sify.com/movies/preview-imeipporuli-imagegallery-kollywood-je3pOldbhgcsi.html |archive-date=3 March 2022 |access-date=21 February 2025 |work=Sify |language=en}}</ref> Malathi Rangarajan of ''The Hindu'' said, "Many things about Meipporul appeal - some don’t. Yet, for first-timers who are new to the medium, the effort is laudable".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rangarajan |first=Malathi |date=1 May 2009 |title=Cross over for crime -- Meipporul |url=https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-cinemaplus/cross-over-for-crime-meipporul/article3021409.ece |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241210231925/https://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-cinemaplus/cross-over-for-crime-meipporul/article3021409.ece |archive-date=10 December 2024 |access-date=23 November 2019 |website=The Hindu}}</ref> Pavithra Srinivasan of ''Rediff.com'' wrote, "Despite its rather stilted performance, Meipporul is refreshing for its Hollywood-style take on things. Worth a watch".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Pavithra Srinivasan |date=1 May 2009 |title=Meipporul is worth a watch |url=https://www.rediff.com/movies/2009/may/01review-meipporul.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241210231811/https://www.rediff.com/movies/2009/may/01review-meipporul.htm |archive-date=10 December 2024 |access-date=23 November 2019 |website=Rediff.com}}</ref> Mythily Ramachandran gave it 2.5 out of 5 and said, "This is a film that you can enjoy with the family, popcorn and coke in hand. Meipporul certainly breaks away from the stereotypes and is a laudable effort by first-timers.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Ramachandran |first=Mythily |date=14 May 2009 |title=Meipporul Movie Review |url=https://www.nowrunning.com/movie/3925/tamil/meipporul/2147/review.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603030233/http://www.nowrunning.com/movie/3925/tamil/meipporul/2147/review.htm |archive-date=3 June 2013 |access-date=23 November 2019 |website=Nowrunning.com}}</ref> Bhama Devi Ravi of ''The Times of India'' gave 2.5 out of 5 and wrote, "A good screenplay coupled with slice-of-life acting will get you the target audience, and frankly 'Meipporul' scores from the word go".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ravi |first=Bhama Devi |title=Meipporul Movie Review |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movie-reviews/meipporul/movie-review/4474981.cms |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241210231810/https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movie-reviews/meipporul/movie-review/4474981.cms |archive-date=10 December 2024 |access-date=23 November 2019 |work=The Times of India}}</ref> Malini Mannath of ''Chennai Online'' said, "The heartening thing about the movie is that the narrative never tries to resort to gimmicks and the momentum is maintained through genuine use of suspense element".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Malini Mannath |date=4 May 2009 |title=Meipporul |url=http://www.chennaionline.com/film/Moviereviews/May09/13Meipporul.aspx |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090616155821/http://www.chennaionline.com/film/Moviereviews/May09/13Meipporul.aspx |archive-date=16 June 2009 |access-date=3 March 2022 |website=Chennai Online}}</ref>
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == * {{IMDb title}} * {{Rotten Tomatoes}}
Category:2009 American films Category:2009 Indian films Category:2009 Tamil-language films Category:2009 directorial debut films Category:2009 films Category:2009 thriller films Category:American thriller films Category:Films about Indian Americans Category:Films set in California Category:Films set in San Francisco Category:Films shot in California Category:Films shot in San Francisco Category:Indian thriller films Category:Tamil-language Indian films Category:Tamil-language thriller films