Thendrale Ennai Thodu

In the middle of the 80s, in Madras.

While her car, (one Volkswagen Beetle, such as Walt Disney's "Herbie") breaks down (frequently), Malu (Jayashree), a beautiful young graduate, very independent, stemming from the Tamil bourgeoisie, attends, dumbfounded, that Raghunath (alias Raghu) (Mohan) is a pickpocket. The young man who went to an interview misses his bus. Having got acquainted with Malu and having repaired her vehicle, she takes him to his meeting. She informs him on the spot, that the post is already taken, which puts Raghu beside himself. During his interview, he lets burst his anger, he becomes enraged in the face of his future employers, among which one, Rajasekhar (A. R. S.), who is the father of Malu, who finally, appreciates the frankness of Raghu. Raghu then gets acquainted with his new office colleagues, the old man Balu (Thengaï Srinivasan) and the young person Ramu (Y. G. Mahendran), the merry revelers. The first one is married, the second, a single man.

Both accomplices receive regularly, on their workplace, the visit of Ramaiya (Typist Gopu), a small procurer who arranges them meetings with harlots, for their pleasure. Ramu, who rents a room at Balu is joined by Raghu, as the second tenant. Later, Raghu finds Malu and announces her the good news of his new work. Both young people eventually fall madly in love. Malu, who is a player, persuades, for a moment, Raghu, that she is already committed, betrothed to a certain Shankar. Destabilized, Raghu understands nothing more. The young woman eventually reveals the truth. Happier than ever, they are love's young dream. Malu confirms to her father, the decision to marry Raghu. The father approves the choice of his daughter, but warns her all the same on the difference of their social class. It is then, at this moment, that a disruption comes to this beautiful love story... Raghu is invited to one of the pleasure parties, as a spectator, in a luxurious hotel with a restaurant, where Malu arrives with her uncle (Veera Raghavan) and her aunt. It is there that the mistake is formed... Actually, the girl committed by both accomplices, complains in the direction of the hotel, their uncalled-for, even exaggerated behavior. An explanation with the person in charge, little convinced, in front of Malu follows who went that way by chance, but without being spotted by the trio. The doubt forms in Malu, she wants to have a clear mind about it. She speaks to Raghu, apparently very embarrassed and lies deliberately. To test his honesty, Malu sets a trap, by making an appointment with him at the same hotel, being thought of as a prostitute. Accompanied by both accomplices, Raghu goes there, reluctantly and falls into the trap of Malu. In spite of the explanations and even the pleas of Raghu, Malu decides to break with him. Disappointed, having failed to get him to listen to reason, Raghu throws in the towel. He resigns from his post and leaves to his native area of Tanjore, where his mother is (S. N. Parvathi), to find a little serenity. Whereas Ramu tries to convince Malu, of the honesty of his friend Raghu. Malu eventually leaves. This is when the old man Balu obtains a promotion, he is transferred to Bangalore, with his wife, Sundari (Gandhimathi). He makes Raghu come with him, by proposing a very interesting post. He finds work with the paternal uncle of Malu, who moreover, came to see him to change his ideas. She comes face to face with Raghu. She tries vainly to retie the contact with him. Raghu suggests to Balu, that the page is turned between him and Malu, while it is not the case in reality. Both young people burn with love always, for both, but without being able to say it. Another problem forms. There, where Raghu lives, the young man enjoys a very robust reputation. All the girls of the district desire him and particularly, Meena (Anubama), the niece of Balu, on both sides, and Rani, the daughter of an owner of a taxi (Venniradai Moorthy).

It is a competition between both women, that Raghu takes advantage of...

• Mohan as Raghunath, also called Raghu
• Jayashree as Malathi, also called Malu
• Y. G. Mahendran as Ramu
• Thengai Srinivasan as Balu (a) Balasubramaniyam, Superintendent
• Gandhimathi as Sundari, Balu's wife
• Venniradai Moorthy as Taxi Owner
• A. R. Srinivasan as Rajasekar, Malathi's father
• Typist Gopu as Ramaiah

The same model (a Volkswagen Beetle, a nod to Walt Disney's "Herbie") was used for another Tamil film, the famous comedy, Paatti Sollai Thattathe, in 1988. The scene with this car (Beetle Super Car TMR 8790) remained memorable with the public at the time.

All lyrics are written by Vaali except where noted; all music is composed by Ilaiyaraaja

The tune of the song "Pudhiya Poovithu" has been used by Ilaiyaraja for the song "Kotha Kothaga" with a slightly different orchestration, in the telugu film Coolie No.1 (1991 )..

• Thendrale Ennai Thodu at YouTube