{{More plot|date=February 2025}} {{Use dmy dates|date=June 2023}} {{Use Indian English|date=June 2023}} {{Infobox film | image = Mutham.jpg | caption = DVD cover | director = [[S. A. Chandrasekhar|S. A. Chandrasekaran]] | writer = '''Screenplay & Dialogues:'''<br />S. A. Chandrasekaran | producer = M. Arul Moorthy | starring = {{ubl|[[Arun Vijay|Arunkumar]]|[[Sathyan (Tamil actor)|Sathyan]]|[[Nagendra Prasad]]|[[Aniruddha Jatkar|Ajayan]]|[[Charulatha]]|[[Nanditha Jennifer]]|Anjali}} | cinematography = R. Selva | editing = L. Justin Roy | music = [[Bharani (composer)|Bharani]] | studio = Digital Magic Productions | released = {{Film date|df=y|2002|12|06}} | runtime = 130 minutes | country = India | language = Tamil }}
'''''Mutham''''' ({{translation}} Kiss) is a 2002 Indian [[Tamil language|Tamil]]-language [[slasher film]] directed by [[S. A. Chandrasekhar|S. A. Chandrasekaran]]. The film stars [[Arun Vijay]] (known at the time as Arunkumar), [[Sathyan (Tamil actor)|Sathyan]], [[Nagendra Prasad]], [[Aniruddha Jatkar|Ajayan]], [[Charulatha]], [[Nanditha Jennifer]] and Anjali. The film, produced by M. Arul Moorthy, was released on 6 December 2002.
== Plot == Joseph ([[Aniruddha Jatkar|Ajayan]]) and Sudha (Anjali) get married against their parents' wishes and they elope with their friends' help. Sudha's father (Vincent Roy), a politician, wants to kill Sudha and her friends. They arrive at a beach resort where they meet an old man ([[Thalaivasal Vijay]]) who warns them about the dangers at the resort. He tells them that the place is haunted and murders can take place. The friends arrange for the couple's honeymoon, ignoring his pleadings to vacate the place. However, in the forest, all the friends get murdered one by one. It turns out that the old man was the one who committed these killings as he explains his flashback of his granddaughter getting killed in the name of sacrifice by unscrupulous businessmen for the sake of buying the forest where the resort has been built and as for that, he kills each and every person who visits this resort. In the end, the old man gets stabbed and Arun and his lover escape from the place being worried about the situation.
== Cast == {{cast listing| *[[Arun Vijay|Arunkumar]] as Bharath *[[Sathyan (Tamil actor)|Sathyan]] as Pazhani *[[Nagendra Prasad]] as Anand *[[Aniruddha Jatkar|Ajayan]] as Joseph (Joe) *[[Charulatha]] as Bindu *[[Nanditha Jennifer]] as Aarthi *Anjali as Sudha *[[Thalaivasal Vijay]] as Killer *[[Madhan Bob]] as Unnikrishnan *[[M. S. Bhaskar]] as Maya *Vincent Roy as Sudha's father *[[Nithya Ravindran]] as Sudha's mother *Baby Divya *[[Alphonsa (actress)|Alphonsa]] in a special appearance }}
== Production == The film was developed under the title ''Muthamidalaama'' ({{Translation|May I kiss?}}) and was touted as India's first digital film made for theatres. The film was shot for fifty days in forests across [[Tirupati]], [[Hogenakkal Falls]], [[Yelagiri]] hills and [[Alappuzha]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mannath |first=Malini |date=7 October 2002 |title=Muthamidalaama |url=http://www.chennaionline.com/location/mutham.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030927084402/http://www.chennaionline.com/location/mutham.asp |archive-date=27 September 2003 |access-date=6 October 2015 |website=Chennai Online}}</ref>
== Soundtrack == The soundtrack was composed by [[Bharani (composer)|Bharani]].<ref>{{Cite web |date=13 October 2002 |title=Muthamidalama |url=https://www.jiosaavn.com/album/muthamidalama/VNANSbbXdnI_ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230622041534/https://www.jiosaavn.com/album/muthamidalama/VNANSbbXdnI_ |archive-date=22 June 2023 |access-date=22 June 2023 |website=[[JioSaavn]]}}</ref>
{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:95%;" ! Song !! Singer(s) !! Lyrics !! Duration |- | "La La La" || [[Tippu (singer)|Tippu]], [[Harini (singer)|Harini]] || [[Snehan]] || 4:59 |- | "Laiko Laiko" || [[Malgudi Subha]] || [[Thamarai]] || 4:56 |- | "Orampo Orampo" || [[Harish Raghavendra]], [[K. S. Chithra]] || Snehan || 4:54 |- | "Oru Murai Nee Yennai" || [[P. Unni Krishnan]], [[S. A. Chandrasekhar]] || Newton || 3:31 |- | "Saturday Sunday" || Tippu || [[Pa. Vijay]] || 5:05 |- | "Tigirtana" || Harish Raghavendra, [[Swarnalatha]]|| Newton || 5:17 |}
== Critical reception == A critic from ''[[Sify]]'' wrote that "S.A.Chandrasekhar’s blend of tacky horror mixed with Alphonsa’s dance number in the jungle is all intolerable".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Mutham |url=http://www.sify.com/movies/mutham-review-tamil-12200621.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130628134515/http://www.sify.com/movies/mutham-review-tamil-12200621.html |archive-date=28 June 2013 |access-date=26 December 2012 |website=[[Sify]]}}</ref> Tulika from ''[[Rediff.com]]'' wrote that "As a film, ''Mutham'' is eminently forgettable. But at the technological level, it could turn out to be the trailblazer that changes the way films are shot in India".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Tulika |date=25 January 2003 |title=Kiss of the future |url=http://www.rediff.com/movies/2003/jan/24mutham.htm |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100419064020/http://www.rediff.com/movies/2003/jan/24mutham.htm |archive-date=19 April 2010 |access-date=26 December 2012 |website=[[Rediff.com]]}}</ref> Malini Mannath of ''Chennai Online'' wrote that "But while they've [Hindi filmmakers] borrowed the main plot, they've worked on the script and added their own interesting touches. But Chandrasekhar has not been able to do that, with both his inspirations turning out to be just bad copies".<ref>{{Cite web |last=Mannath |first=Malini |date=13 December 2002 |title=Mutham |url=http://chennaionline.com/Moviereviews/tammov233.asp |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021217023112/http://chennaionline.com/Moviereviews/tammov233.asp |archive-date=17 December 2002 |access-date=21 April 2022 |website=Chennai Online}}</ref> ''Cinesouth'' wrote, "Tamil's first digital experimentation didn't have to turn out to be so pathetic".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Muththam |url=http://www.cinesouth.com/scopes/reviews/mutham.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040411103820/http://www.cinesouth.com/scopes/reviews/mutham.shtml |archive-date=11 April 2004 |access-date=20 October 2024 |website=Cinesouth}}</ref> ''Yahoo'' wrote "Director S A Chandrasekar (father of actor Vijay) seems to think that a few girls in 'trendy' (read skimpy) clothes will cover the huge lapses in content. But alas! 'Mutham' ends up as a film that does not do justice to either the 'love' or the 'suspense' genre!".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://in.movies.yahoo.com/021206/113/1yuwa.html|date=6 December 2002|website=Yahoo Movies|access-date=3 January 2026|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20021208224508/http://in.movies.yahoo.com/021206/113/1yuwa.html|archive-date=8 December 2002|title=REVIEW: Mutham(Tamil)}}</ref>
== References == {{reflist}}
== External links == *{{IMDb title}} *{{Rotten Tomatoes}}
{{S. A. Chandrasekhar}}
[[Category:2002 Indian films]] [[Category:2000s serial killer films]] [[Category:2000s slasher films]] [[Category:2002 Tamil-language films]] [[Category:2002 films]] [[Category:2002 thriller films]] [[Category:Films directed by S. A. Chandrasekhar]] [[Category:Films scored by Bharani (composer)]] [[Category:Films shot in Alappuzha]] [[Category:Films shot in Andhra Pradesh]] [[Category:Films shot in Tamil Nadu]] [[Category:Films with screenplays by S. A. Chandrasekhar]] [[Category:Indian serial killer films]] [[Category:Indian slasher films]] [[Category:Indian thriller films]] [[Category:Tamil-language Indian films]] [[Category:Tamil-language thriller films]] [[Category:Films distributed by Kalasangham Films]]