# Kolamaavu Kokila

Kolamaavu Kokila (transl. Kolam-powder Kokila) abbreviated as CoCo, is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language black comedy crime film written and directed by Nelson Dilipkumar in his directorial debut, and produced by Subaskaran Allirajah of Lyca Productions. The film stars Nayanthara, alongside Yogi Babu, Saranya Ponvannan, VJ Jacqueline, R. S. Shivaji, Charles Vinoth and Hareesh Peradi. It revolves around a woman who takes to drug smuggling to pay for her mother's cancer treatment, but soon her entire family is dragged into the conflict.
The film was announced in July 2017. Principal photography began the following month, and ended by January 2018. Anirudh Ravichander composed the music, while Sivakumar Vijayan handled the cinematography and R. Nirmal was the editor. The film was released on 17 August 2018 and became a commercial success, grossing ₹73 crore (US$8.4 million) against a budget of ₹8 crore (US$920,000). It received four nominations in the Tamil branch at the 66th Filmfare Awards South, including Best Actress (Nayanthara) and Best Supporting Actor (Yogi Babu) with Saranya winning Best Supporting Actress. The film was remade in Hindi as Good Luck Jerry (2022).

## Plot

The film opens with the killing of a police officer by a cocaine-dealer named Bhai and his henchmen. Kokila struggles to find a job to take care of her parents and sister. She stumbles on the cocaine smuggling business of Mohan. When her mother is diagnosed with lung cancer, Kokila is forced to work for Mohan. Her cunningness earns her a name in the business. The new inspector Guru is a no-nonsense cop who cracks down on drug dealers. Kokila is almost caught a couple of times but manages to evade the authorities. She convinces Mohan to kill two of his henchmen suspected of leaking information and then decides to quit the business. Mohan seemingly agrees but tries to kill her, however an enraged Kokila brutally murders Mohan and his men and tries to flee with her family but is caught by Bobi, who had recruited her initially.
He demands that she deliver one last consignment of 300 kilos to Alphonse. Kokila is forced to accept and enlists the help of her family. Shekhar and Lakshman Kumar join them unaware of their smuggling. She delivers the load, but it is revealed that she switched most of it for salt. She then tricks Bobi to double-cross Bhai and then frames him for swindling Bhai. She has him killed and continues the shipment run. On the way, she is caught by the police, who are Alphonse's men in disguise. She manages to avoid getting tortured and kills off her captors with the help of her family. Guru tracks her down and arrests her. Kokila makes a deal with him to nab Bhai and bring the whole drug business down. The plan works out, Bhai is shot dead by Guru, and Kokila and her family escape punishment with Guru's reluctant help as the latter's wife was tricked into being on the location during the drug bust. In the end, the family starts a legitimate business of Kolam powder, calling it 'Kolamaavu Kokila'.

## Cast

* Nayanthara as Kokila
* Yogi Babu as Shekhar
* Saranya Ponvannan as Kokila's mother
* Jacquline Lydia as Shobi (Kokila's sister)
* R. S. Shivaji as Kokila's father
* Hareesh Peradi as Bhai
* Charles Vinoth as Mohan
* Rajendran as Alphonse
* Saravanan as Inspector Guru
* Cheenu Mohan as Police Inspector
* Anbu Thasan as Lakshman Kumar (LK)
* Aranthangi Nisha as Guru's wife
* Vadivel Balaji as Remo Kumar (LK's uncle)
* Redin Kingsley as Tony
* Arun Alexander as Bobi
* Billy Murali as Police Officer

### Special appearances in the promotional song "Kabiskabaa CoCo"

* Bijili Ramesh
* Lollu Sabha Manohar
* Theepetti Ganesan

### Special appearances in the promotional song "Gun In Kadhal"

* Anirudh Ravichander

## Production

Nelson Dilipkumar announced a project in 2010 titled Vettai Mannan, which was to have been his directorial debut. But the film ran into production trouble and was shelved, despite some filming being completed. Later, on the recommendation of composer Anirudh Ravichander, Lyca Productions hired Nelson to direct a female-oriented film starring Nayanthara, which became his actual directorial debut. In late July 2017, sources from the production house announced that the film would be a black comedy like the actor's earlier film Naanum Rowdy Dhaan (2015). It further added that Nayanthara was impressed with the script and the production house had her dates as the actress relieved off all her other commitments. Sivakumar Vijayan and R. Nirmal were announced as the cinematographer and editor. While the title was initially announced as CoCo, it was revealed to be short for Kolamaavu Kokila. Principal photography began in Chennai in late August 2017, and was completed by early January 2018.

## Soundtrack

The film's six-song soundtrack and score is composed by Anirudh Ravichander, in his first collaboration with Nelson Dilipkumar. Lyrics for the songs were written by Vivek, Vignesh Shivan, Arunraja Kamaraj and actor Sivakarthikeyan, in his first stint as lyricist. After three songs — "Edhuvarayo", "Kalyana Vayasu" and "Orey Oru" — were released as singles on 8 March, 15 May and 13 June 2018, the soundtrack was released by Zee Music Company on 5 July 2018.

## Release

Kolamaavu Kokila was released theatrically on 17 August 2018. It is the first Tamil film distributed by Zee Studios.

## Reception
### Critical response

M. Suganth of The Times of India gave the film 3.5 out of 5 praising the direction and technical aspects and wrote "The film is an out-and-out star vehicle that keeps giving its star whistle-worthy moments. And most remarkably, it manages to stay true to its genre and ensures that the script comes before the star." Ashameera Aiyappan of The Indian Express gave the film 3 out of 5, praising the performances, writing and technical aspects. Vishal Menon of The Hindu noted the film's similarities to Breaking Bad such as the protagonist's moral decline, "Yet what sets it apart is how the film treats even the darkest situations with humour". He said it is "one of the better films we've seen this year and a departure from the sermons that have come to be defined as feminist films", calling it "quirky, ridiculous and fun". Baradwaj Rangan wrote for Film Companion, "The suspense factor is criminally low and this film could have been so much more, but it's so different in so many ways that I'm just glad it exists". Kirubhakar Purushothaman of India Today wrote, "Kolamaavu Kokila had all the potential of becoming a tear-jerker, but it avoids those cliches like a plague and stays true to the tone of the film — dark and fun. And that's what makes it unmissable".
Priyanka Sundar of Hindustan Times wrote, "Kolamaavu Kokila proves what spectacular writing can achieve. What could have otherwise been macabre becomes a great piece of black humour". Sudhir Srinivasan of Cinema Express wrote the film's "inefficient digressions into comedy are a big problem" because "You get joke attempts where they scarcely seem to belong". Writing for Firstpost, Sreedhar Pillai wrote, "The drawbacks are there in plenty. After a racy first half, the pace slackens in the second half, along with some logical loopholes in the plot. However, at the end of the day, it is a Nayanthara show and she shines bright once again". Vikram Venkateswaran of The Quint wrote, "Only in an evolved movie can you switch from deep sorrow to fits of laughter. And Nelson wields this power over the audience with abandon", and rated the film four stars out of five. Anupama Subramanian of Deccan Chronicle wrote, "There is a lot of quirky moments in this dark comedy and much of the hilarity comes from unexpected instants. The first half is entertaining with the director sticking to his genre, treating even the darkest situations with humor. However, in the second half, the film meanders a bit without any solid comic relief and the climax is also unconvincing".

### Box office

Kolamavu Kokila collected close to ₹4 crore (US$460,000) on the opening day. In its first nine days, the film had grossed ₹20 crore (US$2.3 million). Its closing collections stand at ₹73 crore (US$8.4 million) worldwide.

## Accolades

| Date of Ceremony | Award | Category | Recipient(s) and nominee(s) | Result | Ref. |
| 5 January 2019 | Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards | Best Comedian – Male | Yogi Babu | Won | |
| 25–28 April 2019 | Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards | Best Comedian – Male | Yogi Babu | Won | |
| 25–28 April 2019 | Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards | Best Screenplay | Nelson Dilipkumar | Won | |
| 15 August 2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | SIIMA Award for Best Actress | Nayanthara | Nominated | [30] [31] |
| 15 August 2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | SIIMA Award for Best Male Playback Singer | Anirudh Ravichander | Nominated | [30] [31] |
| 15 August 2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | SIIMA Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Saranya Ponvannan | Nominated | [30] [31] |
| 15 August 2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | SIIMA Award for Best Cinematographer | Sivakumar Vijayan | Nominated | [30] [31] |
| 15 August 2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | SIIMA Award for Best Comedian | Yogi Babu | Won | [30] [31] |
| 15 August 2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | SIIMA Award for Best Music Director | Anirudh Ravichander | Won | [30] [31] |
| 15 August 2019 | 8th South Indian International Movie Awards | SIIMA Award for Best Debut Director | Nelson Dilipkumar | Won | [30] [31] |
| 21 December 2019 | 66th Filmfare Awards South | Best Actress – Tamil | Nayanthara | Nominated | [32] [33] |
| 21 December 2019 | 66th Filmfare Awards South | Best Supporting Actor – Tamil | Yogi Babu | Nominated | [32] [33] |
| 21 December 2019 | 66th Filmfare Awards South | Best Supporting Actress – Tamil | Saranya Ponvannan | Won | [32] [33] |
| 21 December 2019 | 66th Filmfare Awards South | Best Music Director – Tamil | Anirudh Ravichander | Nominated | [32] [33] |
| 21 December 2019 | 66th Filmfare Awards South | Best Male Playback Singer – Tamil | Anirudh Ravichander (for "Kalyana Vayasu") | Nominated | [32] [33] |

## Remakes and sequels

Kolamaavu Kokila was remade in Hindi as Good Luck Jerry (2022). In July 2023 Yogi Babu said it would have a sequel at the audio launch of Nelson's Jailer. Later that August, Nelson confirmed the sequel was in development.