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{{short description|2012 film directed by Pon Kumaran}}
{{for|the 1964 Satyajit Ray film|Charulata}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2014}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Chaarulatha
| image = Charulatha Kannada Poster.jpg
| caption = Theatrical release poster
| director = [[Pon Kumaran]]
| producer = [[Dwarakish]] (Kannada) <br /> Ramesh Krishnamoorthy (Tamil)
| based_on = {{Based on|''[[Alone (2007 film)|Alone]]'' |[[Banjong Pisanthanakun]] and [[Parkpoom Wongpoom]]}}
| starring = {{unbulleted list|[[Priyamani]]|[[Skanda Ashok]]|[[Saranya Ponvannan]]|[[Seetha (actress)|Seetha]]}}
| music = [[Sundar C Babu]]
| cinematography = [[M. V. Panneerselvam]]
| editing = [[Don Max (film editor)|Don Max]]
| studio = Global One Studios (Tamil),<br />Dwarakish Chithra (Kannada)
| distributor = [[W. Hansraj Saxena#Sax Pictures|Sax Pictures]]
| released = {{Film date|df=yes|2012|9|20}}
| runtime =
| country = [[India]]
| language = {{unbulleted list|| [[Kannada language|Kannada]]| [[Tamil language|Tamil]]|
|budget = {{INRConvert|40|m}}
|gross = {{INRConvert|78.9|m}} (Both Versions)
}}
}}

'''''Chaarulatha''''' (also spelled as '''''Charulatha''''') is a 2012 Indian [[horror film]] made in [[Kannada language|Kannada]] and [[Tamil language|Tamil]]. The film was directed by [[Pon Kumaran]], a former associate to [[K. Bhagyaraj]] and [[K. S. Ravikumar]], and features [[Priyamani]] in the lead role.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-03-27/news-interviews/31244097_1_siamese-twins-priyamani-horror|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140104204437/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-03-27/news-interviews/31244097_1_siamese-twins-priyamani-horror|url-status=dead|archive-date=4 January 2014|title=Priyamani plays Siamese twins?|date=27 March 2012|work=[[The Times of India]]|access-date=23 May 2012}}</ref> The film was an adaptation of the Thai horror film ''[[Alone (2007 film)|Alone]]'' which itself was based on My Brothers Keeper an episode of Tale From The Crypt season 2. [[Sundar C Babu]] composed the film's music.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://ibnlive.in.com/news/priyamani-to-act-in-kannada-horror-film/264245-71-205.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140105195255/http://ibnlive.in.com/news/priyamani-to-act-in-kannada-horror-film/264245-71-205.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=5 January 2014|title=Priyamani to act in Kannada horror film |publisher=CNN-IBN|date=4 June 2012|access-date=4 June 2012}}</ref> The film’s story is about conjoined twins.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/showbiz/kollywood/priyamani-excited-801|title=Priyamani excited |work=DeccanChronicle|date=9 June 2012|access-date=9 June 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/movies/slide-show/slide-show-1-south-priya-mani-to-play-conjoined-twins-in--charulatha/20120725.htm |title=Priya Mani to play conjoined twins in Charulatha |publisher=Rediff |date=25 July 2012 |access-date=4 August 2012}}</ref> Produced by Global One Studios and distributed by [[W. Hansraj Saxena|Hansraj Saxena]]'s [[W. Hansraj Saxena#Sax Pictures|Sax Pictures]].

''Charulatha'' released on 21 September 2012 with dubbed [[Malayalam]] and [[Telugu language|Telugu]] versions with the same title. It is based on ''[[Alone (2007 film)|Alone]]'' a thai language film.

==Plot==
The story takes it off showing the conjoined twins Charu and Latha (both played by [[Priyamani]]). Charu and Latha lived in Vizag as one body and soul until Ravi ([[Skanda Ashok]]) comes into their lives. Both sisters fall in love with him, however, Ravi falls in love with Charu, causing a rift between her and Latha. Finally, their mother ([[Saranya Ponvannan]]) plans to separate their attached bodies through surgery. The surgery, however, results in Latha’s accidental death. Mysterious events begin to unfold as Latha begins to haunt Charu. Several twists take place in line as the story unfolds. She also sees the dead twin playing the violin they used to play in the past and the twin starts to come forward to reach her and disappears as Ravi touches Charu. Later, in the hospital, Ravi visits the twins' mother (Saranya) where she tries to tell Ravi something but is unable to do so. As the problems began to go down, Ravi again visits the twins' mother and she tells him something at the graveyard. Ravi goes to the cemetery, only to find that the real person who died was Charu and that Latha has been impersonating Charu. Flashbacks reveal that after falling in love with Charu, Ravi comes to visit Charu finally as he was leaving town which makes Latha angry. Latha refuses to follow Charu to the balcony to see Ravi for the last time. Ravi leaves after giving a paper to the guard containing a picture of Charu, delighting Charu but leaves Latha outraged. Latha tears the picture angrily and this creates problem between the twins. Latha fights with Charu on the stairs and both of them fall from the stairs. In this, Charu dies and Latha calls her mother to help. After this, both of them are separated. After fighting with Ravi, Latha ties him up to a chair and tells him the truth that she also loved him. Charu’s spirit burns the house in anger and Latha stays inside, refusing to leave unless Ravi tells that he too loves her. Latha's mother scolds and begs Ravi to save her only daughter. Ravi sacrifices his love to save Latha, and reciprocate’s the latter’s feelings. The film ends with Ravi and Latha keeping flowers for Charu at her grave, as Ravi watched Charu’s soul smiling at him as Latha walks towards him, implying that she has blessed their union.

==Cast==
* [[Priyamani]] as Charu and Latha (Dual role)
** Baby Gagana as Child Charu
** Baby Gandhana as Child Latha
* [[Skanda Ashok]] as Ravi
* [[Saranya Ponvannan]] as Charu and Latha's mother
* [[Seetha (actress)|Seetha]] as Ravi's Aunt
* Sai Sasi
* [[Aarthi (actress)|Aarthi]] (Tamil) / Sunetra Pandith (Kannada)
* [[R. N. Sudarshan]] as a violin class teacher
* [[P. Ravi Shankar]] as Priest
* [[Master Manjunath]]

==Production==
[[Priyamani]] was recruited to enact dual roles as conjoined twins in a film loosely based on the Thai horror film ''[[Alone (2007 film)|Alone]]''.<ref name=toi/> [[Skanda Ashok]] was signed to play the male protagonist. Actors such as [[Saranya Ponvannan]], [[Seetha (actress)|Seetha]] and ''Vettaikaran'' Sai Sasi were signed on for crucial roles.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/tamil/article/82620.html|title=Priyamani is 'Chaarulatha'|publisher=IndiaGlitz|date=2 June 2012|access-date=2 June 2012}}</ref> Yoganand, Shabari and Kalidas penned the dialogues. The budget of the film was reported to be {{INRConvert|60|m}}.<ref name=toi/> Priyamani denied that the film was based on the Hollywood film ''[[Stuck on You (film)|Stuck on You]]'', asserting that it had an "original storyline".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-04-17/news-interviews/31350317_1_priya-mani-malayalam-film-women-centric-films | archive-url=https://archive.today/20130411033128/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-04-17/news-interviews/31350317_1_priya-mani-malayalam-film-women-centric-films | url-status=dead | archive-date=11 April 2013 | work=[[The Times of India]] | title=Priya Mani to essay her most difficult role | access-date=29 March 2013}}</ref>

The film went on the floor on Ugadi festival day at Kanteerava studio [[Bangalore]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/kannada/article/79860.html|title='Charulatha' launched|publisher=IndiaGlitz|date=24 March 2012|access-date=2 June 2012}}</ref>

==Music==
The audio launch function of ''Charulatha'' was held at Sathyam Cinemas, Chennai. [[W. Hansraj Saxena|Hansraj Saxena]], Dhananjayan Govind, Priyamani, Saranya Ponvannan, composer [[Vijay Antony]], lyricist [[Madhan Karky]] alongside directors [[K. Bhagyaraj]], [[K. S. Ravikumar]] and [[R. Kannan]] graced the event. Ravikumar released the audio and Bhagyaraj received it.{{citation needed|date=March 2013}}

== Release ==
The film was released in Kannada and Tamil version. The film was also dubbed in [[Malayalam]] and [[Telugu language|Telugu]] languages.<ref name="toi">{{cite news | url=http://lite.epaper.timesofindia.com/mobile.aspx?article=yes&pageid=27&edlabel=TOICH&mydateHid=02-08-2012&pubname=Times+of+India+-+Chennai+-+Chennai+Times&edname=&articleid=Ar02700&format=&publabel=TOI | title=No comparisons please! | date=5 August 2012 | access-date=5 August 2012 | last=Christopher | first=Kavya | newspaper=[[The Times of India]] | location=Tiruchirappalli}}</ref> While the Malayalam version was dubbed from Kannada, the Telugu version was dubbed from the Tamil print.<ref name=toi /><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/tamil/article/84351.html|title=Priyamani dubs in 4 languages for Charulatha!|publisher=IndiaGlitz|date=2 August 2012|access-date=2 August 2012}}</ref> While the Kannada version received a [[U/A certificate]] from the censor board, the Tamil version received a [[U certificate (India)|U certificate]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.supergoodmovies.com/49421/sandalwood/different-certificates-for-charulatha-why-news-details |title=Different Certificates for 'Charulatha' – Why? |publisher=Supergoodmovies.com |date=14 September 2012 |access-date=19 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130812024103/http://www.supergoodmovies.com/49421/sandalwood/different-certificates-for-charulatha-why-news-details |archive-date=12 August 2013 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref>

The film was released on 21 September 2012. The satellite rights of the Tamil Version of film were sold to [[Sun TV (India)|Sun TV]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://m.timesofindia.com/tv/programmes/charulatha/params/tvprogramme/programmeid-30000000549822165/channelid-10000000000590000/starttime-201803301000 |title=Archived copy |website=[[The Times of India]] |access-date=20 April 2018 |archive-date=22 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180422121149/https://m.timesofindia.com/tv/programmes/charulatha/params/tvprogramme/programmeid-30000000549822165/channelid-10000000000590000/starttime-201803301000 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

=== Reception ===
''Charulatha'' received mixed to positive reviews. ''In.com'' wrote that it "works in parts" and added that it was a "good movie in a horror genre".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.in.com/news/entertainment/chaarulatha-works-in-most-parts-50135263-in-1.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120924094632/http://www.in.com/news/entertainment/chaarulatha-works-in-most-parts-50135263-in-1.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=24 September 2012 |title=Chaarulatha works in most parts! |publisher=In.com |date=24 September 2012 |access-date=19 June 2013}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.newstrackindia.com/newsdetails/2012/09/21/347--Charulatha-Neither-scares-nor-entertains-Tamil-Movie-Review-.html |title='Charulatha' – Neither scares nor entertains |publisher=Newstrackindia.com |date=21 September 2012 |access-date=19 June 2013}}</ref> ''[[The New Indian Express]]''' reviewer A Sharadhaa days that director Pon Kumar "does show signs of his hold on film making", further adding that it did not "seem to keep up to the hype", although Priyamani was lauded for her "splendid" and "stellar" performance.<ref>{{cite web|author=A Sharadhaa |url=http://newindianexpress.com/entertainment/reviews/article1237927.ece |title='Charulatha' (Multilingual) |publisher=The New Indian Express |date=22 September 2012 |access-date=19 June 2013}}</ref> Srikanth Srinivasa from [[Rediff]] labelled it as "Priya Mani's show all the way" and that it was is a "brilliant film that could have been more emotionally appealing".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.rediff.com/movies/report/south-review-chaarulatha-is-priya-mani-s-show/20120921.htm |title=Review: Chaarulatha is Priya Mani's show all the way |publisher=Rediff |date=21 September 2012 |access-date=19 June 2013}}</ref> [[Sify]]'s critic noted that the film "turns out to be a watered down Indian remake which is neither spooky nor entertaining", going on to add: "The saving grace of the film is Priyamani’s twin role as otherwise the script and presentation is shoddy".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sify.com/movies/charulatha-review-tamil-15008320.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140311041036/http://www.sify.com/movies/charulatha-review-tamil-15008320.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=11 March 2014 |title=Movie Review : Charulatha |publisher=Sify |access-date=19 June 2013}}</ref> ''Behindwoods'' rated the film 2.5 out of 5 stars, saying "For a horror film, there is not much of spookiness or eeriness but for the oft-repeated 'spirit’ual sojourns. Nevertheless Charulatha gets its brownie points for the novelty factor, good performance and fitting visual effects coupled with a fairly engaging narration."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movie-reviews/reviews-2/sep-12-04/charulatha-review.html |title=Charulatha Review |publisher=Behindwoods |date=4 September 2012 |access-date=19 June 2013}}</ref>

==Box office==
The film below average mark at the box office ranging 20% - 35% occupancy on first day collected only {{INR}} 16.6 million (Both versions).The film under performed during its first weekend grossed {{INR}} 40 million (Both versions) despite having huge number of theaters.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://behindwoods.com/tamil-movies/charulatha/charulatha-box-office-oct-07.html | title=Charulatha box office collection }}</ref>

==Accolades==
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Ceremony
! Category
! Nominee
! Result
|-
||[[2nd South Indian International Movie Awards]]
|[[SIIMA Award for Best Actress|Best Actress]]
|[[Priyamani]]
|{{won}}
|}

==See also==
* ''[[Geethaanjali]]'', a 2013 Malayalam-language film with a similar story-line

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb title|3144084|Chaarulatha}}

{{Dwarakish}}

[[Category:Indian horror films]]
[[Category:2012 films]]
[[Category:Indian remakes of Thai films]]
[[Category:Twins in Indian films]]
[[Category:2010s Kannada-language films]]
[[Category:Indian multilingual films]]
[[Category:2010s Tamil-language films]]
[[Category:Films scored by Sundar C. Babu]]
[[Category:Indian horror film remakes]]
[[Category:Fictional conjoined twins]]
[[Category:2012 multilingual films]]
[[Category:Films directed by Pon Kumaran]]
[[Category:2012 horror films]]

Chaarulatha - Revision history

UpdateBot at 15:32, 24 June 2022