Vaikarai Pookkal

Vaikarai Pookkal is a 1996 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by E. Mu. Vetrivalan. The film stars Raja, Rajashree, Ponvannan and newcomer Annam, with Shanmugasundaram, Samikannu, A. K. Veerasamy, Karan and Tharini playing supporting roles. It was released on 26 January 1996.

Plot
Many years ago, in the village Rasarasanpatti, Nallathambi (Ponvannan) who was from a poor family fell in love with Maari (Tharini) who was from a wealthy family. Her brother Vellaisamy Gounder (Shanmugasundaram), the village chief, was against their love and humiliated him for being poor. Thereafter, Nallathambi married a lower-caste woman and Vellaisamy Gounder who strictly followed the caste system forced them to live outside their village. His wife (Varalakshmi) then died during childbirth.

Back to the present, Nallathambi's son Soori (Ponvannan) is a vagabond smuggling sandalwood in Kolli Malai. Deivanai (Rajashree) and Dhamayanthi (Annam) are sisters and they are the relatives of Vellaisamy Gounder. Deivanai and the village doctor Raja (Raja) fall in love with each other while Soori is still in love with his childhood sweetheart Dhamayanthi. In the meantime, Vellaisamy Gounder's son Shankar (Karan) who studied in the city returns to his native village and rapes a mentally ill village woman.

Raja and Deivanai eventually disclose their love affair to Vellaisamy Gounder and when he asks about Raja's caste, Raja refuses to tell him, therefore, Vellaisamy Gounder refuses to marry them. Deivanai then marries(Rajkanth) who has been fraudulently married to many women and the groom is arrested just after the marriage. Shankar was behind this scam and he now wants to marry her sister Dhamayanthi. Thereafter, Vellaisamy Gounder disowns his son Shankar for raping the mentally ill woman and decides to take care of the victim, and Vellaisamy Gounder finally understands that being a caste-oriented was stupid. The film ends with Raja and Deivanai falling in love again and Dhamayanthi accepting Soori's true love.

Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed by Devendran.

Reception
The Hindu wrote, "The harmful  effects of caste considerations  form  the theme  of  Navachitra Cine Arts' Vaigarai Pookal,  the  stage atmosphere prevalent right through the movie robbing it of value, if  any".