The recently trending song, Kanmani Anbodu Kadalan which came up in the the trailer of Manjummel Boys, my music apps has the same song on repeat but the repeat is on the cover version by Shahid Khan! The original song is from the Tamil movie “Guna” which was shot in a very popular hill station and a tourist spot Guna Caves, in Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, India. Situated at an altitude of 2,200 metres, the Guna Caves are a thing of mystery and wonder that attracts travellers in hordes. Known earlier as “Devil’s Kitchen”, the place interestingly got its name ‘Guna’ after the 1992 Tamil blockbuster movie “Guna” was shot here. These caves offer stunning rock formations and serene surroundings, attracting tourists and nature enthusiasts which provides a tranquil escape amidst the lush greenery of the region.
The movie “Guna” revolves around Guna, portrayed by Kamal Haasan, an individual navigating mental health issues, deeply infatuated with Abirami, played by Roshini. The movie intricately explores Guna’s obsessive love and his relentless pursuit of Abirami despite societal disapproval. Amidst the complexities of their relationship, the song “Kanmani Anbodu” emerges as a poignant expression of Guna’s affection for Abirami. The song beautifully captures the essence of their bond, showcases a moment of vulnerability amidst their tumultuous journey. “Kanmani Anbodu” stands as a pivotal juncture in the narrative, symbolising the depth of Guna’s love and underscoring the emotional complexity of their relationship in the movie. It is an expression of his undying affection and unwavering love for her. To add more context, the song “Kanmani Anbodu” is actually a letter Guna wants Roshini to write for his Abirami which Roshini instead of reading it back to him ends up singing his words as a song.
My Birthday, last year, was during a road trip with my labs team and one of the pitstops through the trip was Kodai. Being the first stop of the trip, we were all at the highest of energy and we were back to being kids. We were playing hide and seek, got bubble wands, racing with each other and got were at the peak of happiness doing all that our heart wanted to.
Very similar to my Memories blog, this visit to Kodai was also a relive of my first family trip was to Kodaikanal. This was the first time ever that we went on a trip as a family. We took an entire property with 5 rooms and a garden and the property has a few ducks, swans, puppies and hens in the backyard too. Now that I think of it, it was an airbnb even before airbnb was a thing :D. We got this property booked through a travel agent and it felt like the best decision ever. We had the full place for ourselves and played in every nook and corner of the house literally falling dead tired.
Being the tourists we were, we had to visit the Guna caves and I still remember the cold early morning when we left in a Tempo Traveller and reached the destination. The walk from the parking to the actual view point of Guna caves is about a Kilometre or a little more than that. Through the way each of us were super excited because Guna caves was super famous because of the movie and the thought of being in the place where the movie was shot was thrilling! Just when we reached close to the caves, dad started, “Kanmani Anboda Kadhalan….naan Nnaan… naan….hmmm…. ezhuthum, ezhuthum… kaditham…haan padi” (Guna asking Roshini to write a letter and starts to dictate the letter saying, “Hey Precious, this is your beloved, writing you a letter”. Then asks Roshini to read it back). Out of no where, mom started singing, “Kanmani Anboda Kaadhala, Naan Ezhuthum Kadithame”(Roshini ends up singing the things she had noted down). We all starting smiling wide at this point and when dad said, “Paatave Paaduchhittiyaa?”(Guna, overjoyed by the song, appreciates Roshini that she sang instead of reading back), we all bursted into loud giggles of joy! We all started singing along and aloud, the rest of the song and were humming it for as long as I remember. The other tourists around us had mixed reactions to this entire incident. Some of them looked at us with an expression of “what the hell is wrong with these people?” and some of them smiled and hummed along but most of them were confused on how grown ups could behave like this and some of them ended up telling it to us as well which we merrily chose to ignore.
Both these incidents make me wonder why we go all care free only at a few instances and if we lived life as carefree as we did during the visit to Guna Caves, would make life more joyous and memorable. I think this was just a few ways the inner child in all of us came out in the most unexpected way.
Would love to hear from all you readers about such memories in your life in which your inner child sneaked out and lived care free.