Movie:  Engalukkum Kaalam Varum

Director: Balaroopan
Cast: Livingston - Kausalya, Karan - Vinita, Vivek - Kasturi, Vadivelu - Kovai Sarala, Manivannan - Pramila Joshi.

When the story is run-of the-mill and the treatment is insipid, at times one gets some relief from the comedy track and team. But when the comedy team itself is allowed a free run on the screen like unbridled horses, then what results is chaos and mayhem. 'Engalukkum Kaalam Varum' is one such film.

The rustic Kuppan (Livingston) comes to stay at the house of his uncle Mannakatti (Manivannan) in the city. The globetrotting uncle has three daughters and a son. - the homely Lakshmi (Kausalya), the wildly dressed and behaved Pooja and Teja (Kasturi and Vinita) and son Vellaiyan (Vadivelu). Mannakatti selects the flamboyant, glib-talking Santosh (Vivek) as the husband for Pooja, and the hoping-to-make-it-big through his wealthy father-in-law Ramesh (Karan) for Teja.

Unable to bear the humiliation meted out to the cousin Kuppan, who is treated like a servant in the house, Lakshmi elopes and gets married to him. Vellaiyan is tricked into marrying Jennifer (Kovai Sarala) who lives in the slums and raises pigs. Kuppan and Vellaiyan prosper in the respective business they begin, and even bail out Ramesh and Santhosh who had fallen heavily into debts. 

It is a slanging match among the characters for the most part, with the sensible voices of Livingston-Kausalya sidelined. One feels like echoing what Vivek's character repeats often in the film - 'Intha torture thaanga mudiyalle'!.