It is curtains on this season of ‘Neengalum Vellalaam Oru Kodi’ anchored by Arvind Swami.
Certainly disappointing for the innumerable fans of the actor, who re-surfaced with a bang in ‘Thani Oruvan’!
The magic of the film is very much alive, is the thought that crosses my mind as I watch ‘Jayam’ Ravi and Arvind Swami interact in the 61st and final episode of NVOK, on Saturday.
An episode with a lofty purpose because the money Ravi won was handed over to Mariyappan Thangavelu, the gold medallist Paralympic high jumper at Rio this year.
Cashing in on the Swami charisma after the runaway hit of ‘TO’, Vijay TV accomplished a casting coup when they roped him in for their latest edition of NVOK.
The face and formatting keep changing every season. But this time when Swami addressed the computer as ‘Vadhyarey,’ and repeatedly announced breaks with the words ‘Zingnu Poyittu …’ the incongruity was obvious. Absolutely not in sync with the anchor’s demeanour! But such antithetical aspects were relegated to the background for the rest of the time because of the aura Arvind Swami exuded.
‘Jayam’ Ravi and his wife Aarthi were the guests that evening. The camaraderie between the actors, Ravi’s deference for his senior, the friendly banter and funny exchanges when Arvind Swami pulled Aarthi’s leg, his various questions on Ravi’s upcoming projects and on ‘Bhogan,’ their next film together, were interesting.
Ravi said that Aarthi and he had been reading up assiduously for the barrage of GK questions on the show. And the couple acquitted themselves well, going in for just one lifeline, when they sought the help of Ravi’s brother, director Mohan Raja.
Even though it was over phone, you could visualise Raja’s beaming smile as he hit the nail on the head. He helped the Ravis move on to the next round when he fielded the question on the name of the director of ‘Wide Awake’ and ‘Last Airbender,’ for them.
“You will win. Manoj Night Shyamalan is the answer,” he chuckled.
Interspersed with significant excerpts from past episodes (previous winners had also been invited) and AV clippings of Arvind Swami, the episode was lively and engaging, the credit for which goes to a large extent to the commendable manner in which it had been conceptualised, directed and edited.
As Arvind Swami went around his seat, placing his hands on the chairs, announcing, “This is Arvind Swami signing off for the last time this season,” the nostalgia was palpable.
