Continuity errors, goof-ups: Hilarious details in Tamil films that went unnoticed

Intensive stunts and dreamy romantic numbers, hilarious comedy sequences and dramatic and emotional scenes; Tamil film shoots are packed with technical challenges. Regardless of how meticulously the movie is planned or how carefully the makers construct its screenplay, minor errors may still slip through the cracks and enter the final cut. From background dancers forgetting a step to the general public being caught on camera, these errors remain hidden at large. 

In many cases, the makers either fail to spot the goof-ups or they simply don’t have the resources and the time to reshoot or rectify the shot. It is often rapidly edited to ensure that it remains unseen. That said, meme creators have taken a look back at a number of films and spotted the hilarious inaccuracies in them. Some have also inspired a spate of memes. 

We have put together a list of hilarious continuity errors, goof-ups and hidden details from popular Tamil films that might have gone unnoticed.  

1. ‘New York Nagaram’ from Sillunu Oru Kadhal : Featuring romantic sequences between Suriya and Jyotika, ‘New York Nagaram’ is popular among fans as a soulful and melancholic track where the protagonist Gowtham (played by Suriya), describes the time spent away from his wife Kundavi (played by Jyotika) in Sillunu Oru Kadhal. However, the song is now in the spotlight again for a hilarious goof-up in the backdrop, that has caught the attention of social media users. At one point in the song, we see a debonair Suriya singing about the pain of his loneliness while a man is seen pulling his pants down, to change, in the background of the shot. What’s funnier? A meme page came up with a hilarious backstory for the man in the video, explaining that he was going about his day and found a spot to change his pants without anyone seeing. But alas! He ended up becoming part of the video. Many people dropped comments below the original YouTube video mentioning that they are here after seeing the meme.  

2. ‘Yedho Ondru Ennai’ from Paiyaa: In ‘Yedho Ondru Ennai’  from Paiyaa, moments before Shiva (Karthi) bids a sorrowful goodbye to Charulatha (Tamannaah), he takes one final look at her as she walks with her family. It is a scene that would have been heartbreaking if not for two people in the frame who are seen recording videos without actually switching on the camera. As late actor Vivek would have put it, ‘We don’t know a lot about video cameras, but we know that one cannot record videos unless it is switched on’.  

Image Credit: Screengrab/ YouTube- Sony Music South VEVO

3. Anniyan: A few minutes into the film, we are introduced to Anniyan’s Ambi (Vikram) and Nandhini (Sada). An awestruck Ambi walks past Nandhini, while she is seen singing and teaching music to a group of kids. Nandhini has got Ambi’s undivided attention in the scene but not the viewers’ who also notice other elements in the frame, including the picturesque backdrop of the scene. If you take a closer look at the backdrop, you’ll realise how the makers made a continuity error in the shot by compiling two different takes of the sequence- one taken during the day and other at night. We see the reflection of lights on the water in the first half of the sequence, whereas a few seconds later, we see daylight. 

Image Credit: Screengrab/ YouTube- Pen Movies

4. Vel: How long does it take to travel from Mount Road in Chennai to Madurai’s Sokkampati? It would be safe to say that it’d take at least 90 minutes to commute by road, given that the duration of the flight between Chennai and Madurai is one hour. Not in Vetrivel (Suriya)’s world (in 2007 film Vel where he appears in dual role). Playing the protagonist, Suriya not only reaches the location within 10 minutes (Yep, that’s right, within 10 MINUTES) to take down the villain Sakkara Pandi, he also explains how he reached Sokkampati in a jiffy. “Are you wondering how I reached here so fast? It takes three minutes to travel from Mount Road to Madras airport, five minutes to reach Madurai airport and two minutes to land at Sokkampati from Madurai airport via Dindugal,” an enraged Suriya says. One wonders how the villain managed to look defeated in the scene instead of breaking into laughter.  

5. ‘Azhagiya Theeye’ from Minnale: Minnale is considered to be one of the most evergreen music albums in Tamil cinema. The songs have become fan favourites over the years. However, when it comes to the visuals of songs, a lot could go wrong when the crew films the video. From background dancers being out of sync to heroes not getting a step right, viewers often spot errors in dance videos. In Minnale’s ‘Azhagiye Theeye’, we see Madhavan dancing with a group of background dancers, all dressed in white. At one point in the song, we see one of the supporting dancers calling 'cut' even before Madhavan finishes his steps. It is surprising that the sequence made it to the final cut. In another shot from the same song, one of the background dancers ends up with a stubbed toe after he jams it on the stool by mistake. It is commendable how he continues to dance without paying heed to the pain. Some Tamil YouTubers have not only pointed it out in their videos, but have also drawn parallels with comedy scenes from Tamil movies wherein, comedians met with an injury while dancing.  

Image Credit: Screengrab/ YouTube- Best of Tamil and Telugu Movies- SEPL TV

6. ‘Thaai Thindra Mannae’ from Aayirathil Oruvan: In a dance video from Aayirathil Oruvan starring Rima Sen, the actor is seen shaking a leg along with background dancers in the song ‘Thaai Thindra Mannae’. One of the dancers pushes a fire holder by mistake. In addition to memes mocking Parthiban’s dance in ‘Thaai Thindra Mannae’, this sequence too has piqued the interests of meme creators.  

Image Credit: Screengrab/ YouTube- Sony Music South VEVO

7. Viswasam: Continuity errors are commonplace in films across genres. Ajith’s well-known family drama Viswasam is not free of lapses either. Viswasam takes off with the occurrence of a vibrant Tiruvizha (a fest), attended by everyone in the village. In an emotional scene, Thooku Durai's (Ajith) family members urge him to try reaching out to his wife, from whom he is separated. Much later in the film, when Thooku Durai meets his daughter Swetha (Anikha) and puts her on a call with his family members, the latter are seen in the same attire that they had worn in the first scene. The background too is strikingly similar, hinting that both the shots were taken one after the other during the shoot. 

Image Credit: Amazon Prime Video

8. ‘Uyire’ from Bombay: Indian films have risen to fame across the globe for a number of reasons including their exemplary music, an indispensable part of Indian cinema. In one shot, you see the romantic leads in a moving scene and before you know it, they break into a song and dance on hilltops, with the heroine dolled up in a chiffon saree more often than not. Hence, it goes without saying that most of the songs are fictional in the context of the film. Nevertheless, that’s not the case with songs that are part of the film’s plot and serve as important links to the story, as is the case with Bombay’s ‘Uyire’. The story takes place in the town of Mangudi, which was part of Nellai district. Knowing that their families won’t bless the interreligious marriage, Shekhar (Arvind Swami), who is in love with Shaila Banu (Manisha Koirala) tells her that he is ready to elope with her to a different city. Shekhar also adds that he will wait at the fort. In the melancholic track ‘Uyire’, Shaila leaves her family behind and meets Shekhar. Originally shot in Bekal Fort, the soulful song melts one’s heart. But have you wondered how the song is filmed against a backdrop of a beach?  Given that Mangudi is nowhere close to the coast, does this count as a continuity error in the film? 

9. Baahubali: Though originally made in Telugu, this film is too iconic not to be included. It was dubbed in Tamil and is popular across the state, after all. ‘Why did Kattappa kill Baahubali’, became the question of the year following the release of SS Rajamouli’s hit period film Baahubali Part 1. Be it memes, WhatsApp forwards or social media posts, everyone took a chance at guessing what the reason might have been. Even after the answer to the question was revealed in the second part of the film, the scene continues to remain etched in our memories. But here’s a quick question to test your memory- in the shot where Kattappa stabs Baahubali from behind, do you remember seeing a rock in front of Baahubali? In the scene, the first cut shows an injured soldier falling down in front of Baahubali, while in the subsequent cut, the soldier as well as other injured men are no longer seen in the frame and all we see is a rock that Baahubali chooses to lean against. Did the makers of the extravagant Baahubali franchise- one of the most meticulously assembled films- overlook the continuity error (though a minor one), in perhaps the most important scene in the film?  

Image Credit: Disney Plus Hotstar

10. Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam: Messing up the dates in films is one of the most common continuity errors that filmmakers tend to overlook. In Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam, the date of Lathapandi’s wedding is mentioned as 12.06.2012, while it is 21.05.2013 in the board kept at the venue on the day of the wedding.

Image Credit: Instagram/ be_like_biggboss