Achchamundu! Achchamundu!

Achchamundu! Achchamundu!
Directed by	Arun Vaidyanathan
Written by	Arun Vaidyanathan
Produced by	Arun Vaidyanathan Asma Hashmi Ananth Govinda P. Srinivasan Ramzan Lakhani
Starring	Prasanna John Shea Sneha Akshaya Dinesh
Cinematography	Chris Freilich
Edited by	N. P. Sathish
Music by	Karthik Raja
Release date	17 July 2009 (2009-07-17)
Running time	135 minutes
Countries	India United States
Languages	Tamil English

Achchamundu! Achchamundu! (titled as I am Scared internationally) is a 2009 Indian-American social thriller directed by Arun Vaidyanathan, starring Prasanna, John Shea and Sneha. It is the first film in Indian cinema to be shot with the Red One camera system. The music was composed by Karthik Raja with cinematography by Chris Freilich. The film was released worldwide on 17 July 2009. The film features dialogues in both Tamil and English.[1]

Senthil Kumar (Prasanna) and Malini (Sneha) are a happily married couple in New Jersey, living life like any other India-born immigrant couple in the USA. Senthil submerges himself in the office and eats sambar rice at home, and Malini never misses a bhajan at the temple and shops at Indian grocery stores. They have a 10-year-old daughter Rithika (Akshaya Dinesh), the apple of their eye (their car's license plate carries the name of their daughter).

The family has just settled in a new, spacious home about which Malini, understandably, has fears. The couple squabbles amicably about everything from Malini's perpetual laundry and cooking; while Senthil argues with friends about the significance of viboothi and takes his family on weekend trips and birthday parties. It is a normal, happy life in the US until Theodore Robertson (John Shea) arrives, to paint the basement. Now, things are never the same at home again.

Robertson's unusually kind behavior towards children sets off warning bells, especially when he is shown to be a pedophile who exercises like mad within the confines of his home, always moving on towards his next target. How the couple saves their child forms the rest of the story.

• Prasanna as Senthil Kumar[1]
• John Shea as Theodore Robertson[1]
• Sneha as Malini[1]
• Akshaya Dinesh as Rithika[1]
• Vasanth Santhosham as Ron[2]
• Rick Pisarro as a police officer[3]

The film's title is the negative of the phrase "Achamillai Achamillai" coined by poet Subramania Bharati, and later used as the title of a 1984 film directed by K. Balachander.[4] The film was shot in New Jersey and New York with a cabin shoot happening near West Milford on 30 May 2008.[1][3] Dheepa Ramanujam worked as an assistant director.[5]

The soundtrack was composed by Karthik Raja.[6]

The film was officially selected for screening at the 12th Shanghai International Film Festival (under the International Panorama category),[7] the Digital Cinema Film Festival in Japan and the Cairo International Film Festival.[8]

Rediff wrote "For the guts in coming up with a unique, important theme that needs to be addressed sensitively, this movie works. A must-watch".[9] The Times of India wrote "The average Indian may shy away from paedophilia, but director Vaidyanathan makes a compelling case to watch this film. Subtlety is the byword here rather than gory, knife-edge moments. The approach makes a deeper impression than a dramatic one could have."[10] A critic from Deccan Herald opined that "Despite its shortcomings, ‘Achamundu Achamundu’ deserves a dekko (watch)".[11] Gauthaman Bhaskaran of The Seoul Times wrote, "Though “Achamundu, Achamundu” shows considerable restraint when it deals with paedophilia and murder, keeping the actual acts off screen, the film ends up compromising on the dramatic element. It remains pretty flat till about the last 15 minutes out of the total 90 minutes or so".[1]

• Achchamundu! Achchamundu! at IMDb
• NDTV Hindu - The Big Pic #13- Achchamundu Achchamundu-1 (3)
• Ndtv Hindu- The Big Pic #13- Achchamundu Achchamundu - 2 (3)
• Ndtv Hindu- The Big Pic #13- Achchamundu Achchamundu - 3 (3)