'96 is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film written and directed by C. Prem Kumar in his directorial debut. Produced by S. Nanthagopal of Madras Enterprises, the film was distributed by Lalit Kumar under his banner, Seven Screen Studio. Vijay Sethupathi and Trisha Krishnan are in the prominent roles as Ram and Jaanu, while newcomers Gouri G. Kishan and Aadithya Bhaskar played the younger versions. The film also stars an ensemble cast including Bagavathi Perumal, Devadarshini, Varsha Bollamma, Aadukalam Murugadoss, and others. The film revolves around the reunion of former students from the batch of 1996, twenty-two years after their graduation. The reunion also serves as an opportunity for two former lovers, Ram and Jaanu, to resolve issues surrounding their separation.
Prem Kumar wrote the script in December 2015, during the period of Chennai floods and completed the entire script within 20 days, which revolved around his life at his high school reunion. After the official announcement, the principal photography of the film commenced on 12 June 2017 at Kumbakonam, and was shot across various locations in Chennai and Pondicherry, while also being filmed in the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Kolkata, Rajasthan, and Kullu–Manali. The cinematography was handled by Mahendiran Jayaraju and N. Shanmuga Sundaram, with editing being handled by R. Govindaraju. The music and background score were composed by Govind Vasantha.
96 was released worldwide on 4 October 2018. The film received acclaim from critics, who praised the script, direction, music, cinematography, the nostalgic setting of the film, and the performances of Sethupathi and Trisha. It was a commercial blockbuster, grossing . In addition, the film won six Norway Tamil Film Festival, five Filmfare, Ananda Vikatan, four SIIMA, Edison, awards each, and also won an Asiavision, Asianet and Vanitha film award for Trisha. The film was remade by Preetham Gubbi in Kannada as 99 (2019), and by Prem Kumar himself in Telugu as Jaanu (2020).
Plot Ramachandran "Ram" Krishnamoorthy, a professional travel photographer, visits his former high school in Thanjavur, where he is overcome by nostalgia. Shortly after, he is added to his class's WhatsApp group, leading to the organization of a school reunion in Chennai. Ram attends the gathering and reunites with his close friends, Murali, Subhashini, and Sathish. During the event, Murali informs Ram that Janaki "Jaanu" Devi Saravanan—Ram's childhood sweetheart who now resides in Singapore—is traveling to attend the reunion.
In 1994, Ram and Jaanu were classmates in the tenth grade. Jaanu, a talented singer, and Ram developed a deep, mutual romantic affection. Following their final board examinations, Jaanu asked Ram not to forget her during the summer holidays. However, due to severe financial difficulties, Ram's family was forced to abruptly relocate to Madras (now Chennai) before the new academic year commenced. When Jaanu returned for the eleventh grade, she found his seat vacant and learned of his sudden departure. Devastated, she eventually moved on with her life, assuming she would never see him again.
At the reunion venue, Jaanu searches the crowd for Ram. Upon locking eyes, decades of unresolved emotions resurface. Though their initial conversation is strained and awkward, the two gradually grow comfortable and step away from the main party to catch up in private. They discuss Jaanu’s married life in Singapore and Ram’s choice to remain a bachelor. Leaving the party, they embark on a late-night drive through Chennai, where Jaanu confesses that she never truly forgot him and laments the circumstances that led to her marrying someone else.
During their conversation, Ram reveals a series of missed connections that left Jaanu stunned. He discloses that he had traveled to her college years prior to see her; however, unaware of his presence, Jaanu had dismissed a message from a stranger, assuming it was an anonymous stalker. Ram also reveals that he secretly attended her wedding, watching from the back of the hall as she married another man. Jaanu is deeply grieved by these revelations, recalling that she had felt an inexplicable sense of his presence on her wedding day, secretly hoping he would arrive to stop the ceremony. Confronting the finality of their separation, Jaanu asks Ram to spend her remaining hours in India together before her morning flight back to Singapore.
The two spend the night walking through the streets of Chennai. They encounter a group of Ram's photography students, who mistake Jaanu for his wife. To avoid awkwardness, Jaanu improvises a fictional love story for the students, narrating how they successfully reunited after college and have remained together ever since. Ram plays along with the fabrication. Later, as heavy rain begins to fall, Ram suggests they seek shelter at his apartment, where he provides her with a change of dry clothes.
At his apartment, Jaanu is deeply moved to discover that Ram has preserved a collection of their childhood relics, including her old school uniform, dried flowers, and personal poetry. Realizing the depth of his lifelong devotion, she tearfully urges him to move past his grief, marry, and start a family. In a poignant moment of closure, Jaanu fulfills a long-standing school promise by singing "Yamunai Aatrile," a song Ram had waited decades to hear her perform live.
As dawn approaches, Ram accompanies Jaanu to her hotel to collect her luggage and drives her to the airport. At the terminal, the two share a bittersweet emotional embrace before Jaanu proceeds through the boarding gate to return to Singapore. Back at his apartment, a composed Ram carefully folds the dry clothes Jaanu left behind and places them inside his suitcase of memorabilia, permanently sealing the memories of his first love.
Cast
Production
Development
In October 2016, it was first reported that Trisha had agreed to be part of a project opposite Vijay Sethupathi that was to be directed by cinematographer C. Prem Kumar, who worked with the latter in Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom (2012). Two months later, Trisha announced the project via her Twitter and revealed the title as 96. Prem Kumar originally had Manju Warrier in mind for the role of Janaki, but he was not able to reach her and was replaced by Trisha. Furthermore, the film was considered to be a romantic thriller genre, but was later revealed to be a "light-hearted romance film revolving about the childhood sweethearts who rekindle their relationship at a school reunion gathering".
From May 2017, Prem Kumar first talked about the film, telling that Vijay Sethupathi would play the role of a travel photographer, and that the film revolved around "characters who belong to the same batch: 1996", revealing the meaning of the film's title. Prem Kumar had written the entire script in 20 days in December 2015 during the Chennai floods when he was stuck in his apartment. According to Prem Kumar, the inspiration for the story came from his high school reunion. He missed the reunion but when talking to his classmates who attended the function he became fascinated about two people they were speaking about and began meeting the two and developing a story around their characters. The film's story was originally supposed to happen over a week, before the time span was changed to 24 hours, and eventually to a night.
Casting
The technical crew of the film includes N. Shanmuga Sundaram and Mahendran Jayaraju as the cinematographers, Govind Vasantha as the music director, R. Govindaraj as the editor, Vinoth Raj Kumar handling the production design and Uma Devi and Karthik Netha as the lyricists. Apart from the lead actors, Bagavathi Perumal, Devadarshini, Rajkumar, Aadukalam Murugadoss and Varsha Bollamma were roped in for supporting roles. Veteran actor Janagaraj made a comeback with this film, essaying the role of a school watchman. About his role, Kumar had said that "School watchmen, in general have child-like behaviour and innocence that schoolkids have. He wanted someone to have that naturally in him" and thought of Janagaraj in mind. After approaching Janagaraj in his home, he gave the script papers without taking much time to decide, he eventually agreed to be on board.
The crew was then looking for suitable actors to play the younger versions of Sethupathi and Trisha's characters, which delayed the commencement of principal photography. The team eventually selected Aditya Bhaskar, son of actor M. S. Bhaskar, and Gouri G. Kishan for the roles, both making their acting debuts with the film. Devadharshini's daughter, Niyathi Kadambi, played the younger version of her role. Subhashree Kaarthik Vijay, who was recruited as the costume signer, was a close friend of Prem Kumar and created the look of the lead female character Jaanu based on her own style. The team shot a scene where the lead characters meet singer S. Janaki, though this was later deleted from the film. Post-release, the makers uploaded the scene to YouTube.
Characters Vijay Sethupathi's character Ram, was a travel photographer. Discussing about his portrayal, Prem Kumar stated that his life was considered to be "inconsistent and nomadic and his thoughts were unsettling like his job". The character was also unable to forget his first love in childhood, even though she was married, which had Kumar referred of a "few men who have remained the same as they were in their teens". He also quashed rumours that the title 96 was not referred to Sethupathi, playing a 96-year-old man, unlike Orange Mittai (2015) and Seethakaathi (2018), where he played an aged person in the film. Initially, Kumar wanted to write the script under the perspective of Trisha's character Jaanu, as she had a significant role and also his idea of writing characters with his women in mind, felt that women are superior to men and have many layers in their life, apart from other male writers who write stories on a man's point of view.
The character also had a connection with music, since she had a rich and textured voice with that of singer S. Janaki. Kumar believed that in some ways or the other, the film serves as a tribute to the singer. Both the characters, along with the similar artists are in their mid-30s, where the "unusualness and experimentation stops after 25", however, the two characters were in abnormal situation, which excited Kumar to write the film. The common aim is to depict the emotion of love without boundaries, as Kumar stated that "There is a sort of imperative about how a man and woman should be. The same way, love too is regulated. But love comes out even in uncommon situations. Love is the purest form of expression. That is what we have underlined in the film."
Filming