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June R

2006 Indian film

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June R is a 2006 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed by Revathy S. Varmha, in her feature directorial debut. The film, based on her English novella of the same name, stars Jyothika in the title role, along with Khushbu Sundar, Saritha and Biju Menon. The soundtrack was composed by Sharreth, while Madhu Ambat was the cinematographer. The film was released on 10 February 2006. In 2009, Varmha began directing a Hindi remake titled Aap Ke Liye Hum (transl.We are there for you), which remains unreleased.

01Plot

June R, an orphan, was born in the month of June and hence the name. She works in an advertising agency. One day she comes across a middle-aged woman badly hurt in an accident. She admits her in the hospital under the pretext that she is her mother Rajalakshmi in order to save her life.

Rajalakshmi is actually Raniammal, a widow who has strived hard to bring up son her only son Arun. Arun and his wife have plans to send Raniammal to an orphanage and settle in New York. Raniammal finds solace in June's company, who has always longed for a mother love since childhood. June and Raniammal cherish life together.

Then Arun returns to take Raniammal back, but she refuses to go with him. Arun quarrels with June to give back his mother. Raniammal falls sick and June decides to bring in her brother whom she yearns to meet before dying. On visiting Rajalakshmi's hometown June unveils the mystery behind Arun's sudden love for his mother.

Amudha, a leading lawyer aids June to legally get her new mother back. Though the court judgment favours June, fate has something else in store. June finds Raniammal is dead. Raja, a rich client of June's advertising agency who is in love with her consoles June and takes her along with him, just the way her Raniammal had wished.

02Cast

03Production

June R is the feature directorial debut of Revathy S. Varmha, previously an advertisement filmmaker. She had first published the story as a novelette in the English periodical Woman's Era and wanted to make it into a feature film. Varmha approached a Hindi film producer in Mumbai and decided that Jaya Bachchan, Tabu and Kareena Kapoor would play the lead roles in the film. However, after Varmha had a chance meeting with Jyothika and casually narrated the story to her, the actress decided it would be better made in Tamil than Hindi. Varmha said Saritha and Khushbu Sundar were the only actress considered for the roles she they were cast in. The lead actor of the film was kept a secret from the media until release. Cinematography was handled by Madhu Ambat, and editing by Jyothi Jayamaruthi. The film was shot at Chennai and Pondicherry. It is the first feature film produced by Ideawold 1 Celluloid, known mainly for producing advertisement commercials.

04Soundtrack

The soundtrack was composed by Sharreth. The song "Eano Eano" is a jazz number. The audio was launched at Green Park Hotel in Chennai on 10 September 2005 by M. Balamuralikrishna.

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Mazhaye Mazhaye"KavivarmanHariharan 
2."Puthu Puthu"Na. MuthukumarUsha Uthup, K. S. Chithra 
3."Anbe Anbe"Na. MuthukumarGayathri Varma 
4."Eano Eano"Na. MuthukumarSharreth 
5."Rim Jim" (female version of "Mazhaye Mazhaye")KavivarmanSujatha 
6."Puthu Puthu" (version 2)Na. MuthukumarUsha Uthup, K. S. Chithra 

05Release

The film was initially scheduled for release in September 2005 but was pushed back to release in the Diwali season that year so the film could be promoted more heavily. The film was also caught up when Khushbu's films were temporarily banned after her comments on pre-marital sex angered Indian political parties. It ultimately released on 10 February 2006.

06Critical reception

Malini Mannath of Chennai Online wrote, "It's a film on female bonding, of three women whose lives are interwoven, and who find moral support and succour in each other. But with the characters lacking depth, and the relationships not clearly defined or tackled, the story of female bonding fails to touch a chord". Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu wrote, "Revathi Varma is the story, screenplay and dialogue writer and director of the film. Is sensitivity to issues alone enough for a maker, is the query that arises when watching June R. Logic or the lack of it (in certain sequences) irks". Cinesouth wrote, "Revathi Varma being a woman director, there was a lot of expectation to see something different. But it was like attending a feast where the banquet was not served".

07Remake

June R was remade by Varmha in Hindi. The film, originally titled Chassni, was later retitled Aap Ke Liye Hum, with Jaya Bachchan, Raveena Tandon, Manisha Koirala, Ayesha Takia and Ranvir Shorey starring. Production began in September 2009, but in February 2011, Tandon expressed doubts over its release.

Watch videos about June RExplainers and documentaries on YouTube (opens in a new tab)

Sources and credits

This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article June R, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.

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