Kamal Haasan to take House of Khaddar to Paris Fashion Week 2022

 Kamal Haasan will be showcasing the House of Khaddar at the upcoming Paris Fashion Week Fall/ Winter 2022. Amritha Ram, the fashion designer ,who is collaborating with Kamal revealed this in conversation to News 18. She said that  Paris , the second after Chicago , would the first of the kind for Khadi to be on an International platform as it has different weave of the same Khaddar. Fashion week happens twice a year in the major fashion capitals of the world; New York (February 7-15), London (February 15-19), Milan (February 19-25), and Paris (February 25-March 5

Amritha who designs the clothes gives an insight into how the actor gives his input -. "“Once I complete the design process I sit with sir. He has his own little fine tuning that comes to his mind which is so quirky. He says I don’t go by books, I never did it in cinema, never in fashion. I go by what I think, I go with the flow. So those are the things which my fashion school didn’t teach me, which I am still learning under his tutelage. I am doing an internship with KH sir. That’s how the design process works.”

With the recent passing of the New York Sustainability Bill, Khadi matches all the parameters and Amritha  feels thay the fabric would be the fabric of 2022. Says Amritha - “I believe that I have a responsibility towards holding up the history of the garment and yes, I strive to do it with pride. It’s art and love in its purest form. The fabric challenges me and brings the best out of me.”

She says that she was always in awe of Kamal Hassan's dressing sense. Truly inspired by his work of art and the way he styled himself over the years in his respective films, she considers him an institution of the highest grade. “My experience with working with sir from then to now has been a great journey. I have always considered myself as an understudy of him. What he has learnt over the past so many years in terms of textile, cuts, fits, and hats is unreal. I was so amazed by his style that during the pandemic I created an Instagram page called kh_thestykemanifest where I break down the looks created by him in his movies. In the 70s, he set a trend with the leather jacket, newsboy cap and the aviators. So, when I asked him about the inspiration behind that look, he said he took visual references from serial killer Ted Bundy and put it together.” From wearing khadi during political campaigns to walking the streets of Chicago in a khadi trench coat, Amritha says he’s like the modern Gandhi, embracing khadi with complete," gushes Amritha.

 She is also the costume designer for Kamal's Indian 2 and a personal friend of Sruthi Haasan. She has designed clothes for Sruthi in upcoming Telugu film - Vakeel Saab and Saalar . She has worked for actress Parvathy and Dulquar Salman. It is not just the current trendy costumes that Amritha has created but also was the costume designer for film Vada Chennai shot in North Madras and set in the 70's and 80's.era.

Shyam Singha Roy -Telugu film is ranked 3rd on Netflix globally

 

It is the turn of OTT Giant Netflix to inform that Telugu film Shayam Singha Roy is the first Indian film to be ranked third in the Non English category on a global scale. From Jan 14th to 17th, on Netflix it garnered 35 lakh views. It means no Bollywood film with a global audience and claims to be Pan Indian has ever got this distinction.. The film was dubbed into major Indian languages and put on OTT.

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Nani - Sai Pallavi - Kirthi Shetty are the actors. Director is Rahul Sankrityan a software engineer who in 2018 gave a hit `Taxiwala' with Vijay Devarakonda. After that he had been taking his own time to work on the story of Satyadev Janga and came out with the film which has a Bengali backdrop in the flashback,  As it was a  Telugu  film and had no great promotions , I skipped the film and more so as many said it was dragging. Add to this the supernatural element and other world experiences that I found in the synopsis made me give it a miss. Now after reading Netflix South tweet, I sat to watch why it was No 3 globally in Non English category ?

As a Tamil film buff, I found this storyline very similar to Kamal Haasan- Shobana- Sripriya film Enakkul Oruvan. directed by S P Muthuraman. Now this film is nothing but the remake of the musical hit Hindi film Karz.  In those days when English films screened only at major cities, not many knew that Karz was am `inspiration' of Reincarnation of Peter Proud. Now all this happened in 1984, today's Netflix viewers have taken to it in a great way.

In Tamil, Kamal is a  dancer  and has all girls drooling over him. Shobana is a virulent critic of his dance.  But  he likes her for the criticism. To cut a long story short, Kamal is son of Shobana's father's friend and so it is wedding bells. Now the couple goes to Darjeeling to take a break after  Kamal who saw his wife on stage as a Bharathanatyam dancer gets illusions. In this hill station , he gets more disturbed and finally meets the girl that comes in his illusion and it is Sripriya who in previous janma (birth) was his wife. He was a  rich Nepali biz man and his mother was a Tamil ( played by Pandari Bai). Sripriya's uncle ( Sathyaraj) murdered him and now how does the justice be carried in this janma ?

Come to Shyam ----- Roy, Nani is an aspiring film director called Vasudev. He has to make a short film and show it to impress producers. He finds it in a girl at a cafe and through her father gets her to act in the short. ( Girl is Kirthi Shetty who had a hit in Uppenna) He gets a three film deal from producer after his first film is a hit. Now comes the twist- the subject was plagiarized from a story Bengali writer - revolutionary Shyam Singha Roy.. ( was the plagarism bit to tell those who saw Karz ?).  Vasu has not heard of Roy and goes in search of him .In comes a world of Devadasi and the beautiful Sai Pallavi in all those Bengali cottons ( though my girl friends swear by it , it was after Shyam --- that I knew they were right ). Hats off to costumer.

Now this flashback is something that is a visual treat. First credit goes to Sanu, the cinematographer . For OTT guys, he cranked the camera for Fazil's Malik. Next is music director Mickey J Meyer . I heard that Rahman said no to this film. Mickey music is just superb. Pranavalaya shot on Sai Pallavi and Sirivenella lyrics is just magic. Nani in dual role pulls it off but when you finish the movie , it is Sai Pallavi that lingers in your memory. Oh yeah, we have Madonna Sebastian too in the film.

Rahul should be complimented for not taking any of those fancy styles of narration and gives a non linear style that does not give your brain any work. A perfect way to keep it simple.

In short, I still do not know what to make out of Netflix viewers of Non English language films ?. Anyway, Dont expect me to review Ram Asur .

After Pushpa comes Ram Asur in Amazon Prime top trending films

Bollywood gets another shocker with Telugu film Ram Asur being the second most trending movie after Pushpa in Amazon Prime. Released on January 14th, same day Pushpa's Hindi dubbed was released, Ram Asur according to the numbers got from Amazon, has become second most trending film. The film has new comers in the lead except for Chandini Tamilarasan, the actress known in Kollywood for her TV serial Rettai Roja . Ram Asur being a film of debutants  hardly got any hype when released in theaters but critics had praised it. For the budget, the film did okay at the box office. If Pushpa ! is still running in movie halls after OTT release, Ram Asur after the theater release Nov 19, 2021) has now got an extended life through OTT.

Ram Asur might look like a crime thriller  by the story but what makes it stand out is the concept. Director Triparna Venkatesh takes us to the world of synthetic diamond making , a new area. Here e one story is set in 1989, the other story runs concurrently set in 2020. What’s the connection between these two stories - Ram (Ram Karthik) tries to make a synthetic diamond. He tries hard but doesn’t get lucky, leading to depression and fissures  in his relationship with Priya (Sherry Agarwal). They break up, and Ram is disturbed by all the failures. With the help of a friend, Ram meets Ramachari (Shubhalekha Sudhakar), a scholar from Vaidishwarun Koil, Tamil Nadu, with the intention of recovering from the bad phase of his life. At his suggestion, Ram tries to meet a man named Suri (Abhinav Sardar). Who Suri is and how Ram’s life changes after meeting him forms the rest of the story.  

Both Ram Karthik and Abhinav perform excellently. Music by  Bheems Ceciroleo ( Bengal Tiger fame) especially Emchesavo Maya song featuring Chandini was good. Prabhakar Reddy camerawork too is good. The first half goes towards sketching out the characters and second half is just full action and fast paced. Budget constraints play a spoilsport.

KGF Yash- Prabhas or Dhanush in Pushpa The Rule - Atlee next in `Guru' Shankar banner

Pushpa The Rule, sequel will have a major Bollywood STAR to play the baddie, says a source. Even before the writing started, OTT has offered Rs 400 crores for a premiere. As the offer is very big, director Sukumar has decided to make the film on a big scale and bring in more actors from different language film industries. The second part was to be a fight between Pushpa and the bald pated cop ( Faahad Fazil) and action shifts to Chennai as it is the focal point of smuggling out red sanders from the country .

Now the film director has been told by Bollywood trade to get on board a STAR from their ranks to play the baddie. Hrithik Roshan is already playing a baddie in Tamil film Vikram Vedha's Hindi remake. He has refused to act with SRK in Pathan and Salman in Tiger 3. Ajay Devgn is already in pan Indian films. The idea to put Yash of KGF in that role has excited trade circles and already KGF 2 that is releasing is creating high expectations. The next alternative is rope in Dhanush who is known to Hindi audience ( recent release Atrangi Re ) and top draw in South  Third option is modify the script and not give it a total grey touch to suit Prabhas ( known after Baahubali and Saaho and awaiting Radhe Shyam release)

Sources say that Atlee who was tipped to direct Allu Arjun's straight Hindi film for LYCA Productions will collaborate with his ` Guru' Shankar for a afilm to be produced under the latter's S Production banner. This has kicked off a speculation that Atlee would be helming the debut film of Shankar's son Arjith and the sequel of Kadhal 2 that was to be the launch pad would be kept in the back burner.

Director Shankar son Arjith to debut in `Kadhal 2'

Director Shankar's son Arjith is to debut as hero in the sequel to the film `Kadhal' sequel directed by Balaji Sakthivel and produced by S Pictures. Sources say that Arjith completed direction course in New York Film Academy and returned back to Chennai. Now it looks like Arjith will don the grease pain instead.

Kadhal film had been an evergreen romantic tale that launched the career of director Balaji Saktivel and actors Sandhya and Bharat. Arjith's sister Aditi is already acting in a Tamil film Viruman  with Karthi as hero.  Arjith was first spotted in public when he came for the 2.0 audio launch in Dubai. Dhanush had come with his son and Rajinikanth's family. Later Arjith , Dhruv ( son of actor Vikram) and  Ameen ( son of A R Rahman) are good friends and posted pixs of them together. Dhruv is two films old and his second release Mahaan with Papa Vikram as co- actor is coming on OTT in FEB. Rahman's son is already a playback singer who has sung for a Hollywood film. Now Arjith will make his entry. Will friends Dhruv and Ameen join him?

Shankar- Vikram- Rahman came together for I.

JAI BHIM clip on Oscars YouTube Channel gets 1.6 million views ; Critics silenced

JAI BHIM clips featured in You Tube channel of Academy's Scene At the Academy was dubbed by a section of netizens that it was a paid promotion and not an honour as made out by the Production House 2D Entertainment. Many posted on the social media that any producer who paid $ 3000 for a film shortlisted for eligibility could give 20 minutes of the clip to promote it to Oscar jury. The film's clips were not selected by the Academy and not an an honour as made out by the production house. It costs Rs 3.75 lakhs.

Many termed it as cheap marketing and misleading the public. Some even termed it scandalous. Inquiries revealed that the clips with director Gananvel breaking down the narrative for viewers is a permitted tool by Academy. “Scene at the Academy is an opportunity to create exclusive content – spotlighting the filmmaking and creative process behind the movies – for the Academy’s global members and fans,” reads the guidelines explaining the requirements to get featured under Scene At the Academy. Academy’s Marketing team may also make the content available to the public via Academy digital/social platforms. Members will receive weekly updates about new Academy Screening Room titles and content made available by studios/distributors, and other related materials uploaded by the Academy,” it says

 With + 1.6 million views within a week of its release, Jai Bhim has emerged as the most popular movie on the Oscar’s YouTube channel. In comparison , many of  the directors’ commentary of popular Hollywood movies did not get one-tenth of Jai Bhim’s total views so far.  Though there are 276 films waiting for shortlisting and to be announced on Feb 8th, very few have bothered to spend money to be on the Oscars You Tube Channel. From India, Marakkar Lion of the Sea is another entry. Those in the know feel that hiring an agency and spending money is non productive.  Sources point out that director Thomas Vinterberg’s Danish-language film Another Round, which won the Best International Feature Film at the Oscars 2021, had also featured a director’s commentary under the Scene At the Academy. This year's  Annette and Encanto, also have similar promotional materials on the Academy’s digital platforms. 

Update; Nalini Ramarajan niece in Aishwarya R Dhanush Valentine video

 

Latest report is that Aishwarya , dancer and daughter of Vishnu Deva choreographer and brother of actress Nalini Ramarajan will play the female lead in Aishwarya R Dhanush directed video for Valentines Day.  Meanwhile, cinematographer of film Vaathi for which Dhanush is shooting in Film City has quit citing other committments. 

 Vishnu 's father was a choreographer . Vishnu  worked with dance master Ganesh Acharya and married his sister Kamala Nair. Aishwarya Dhanush  is currently in Sitara Hotel inside Ramoji Rao Studio Hyderabad . Dhanush too is in the same hotel as it is the only one inside the Film City and comes with the producer's package. 

Aishwarya with Bay films Salman Shaik and Sampat were in a pre- production discussion last two days  and has kick started today the shooting of a video to be released on Valentines Day, said a source. The source says that the video is for TIPS and produced by Bay Films. It is directed- produced by Prernaa Arora. Rajeev Sen, brother of Sushmitha Sen might be playing the male lead in the video.

Aditi Shankar ( daughter of director Shankar) is acting in her first film opposite Kaarthi in Kollywood. Producer Prernaa Arora served a eight month jail sentence in Economic Offences Wing custody and came out in  December over a case filed by Producer Vashu Bhagnani for a Rs 16 crore fraud. She faced complaints from actors - directors in John Abraham's 'Parmanu: The Story of Pokhran', Aishwarya Rai Bachchan's 'Fanney Khan', Shahid Kapoor's 'Batti Gul Meter Chalu' and Sara Ali Khan's debut film 'Kedarnath.'. The ‘Pad Man’, ‘Pari’ and ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’ co-producer is Arora.

The Instagram post of Bay Films LLP also mentioned Aishwarya along with her hubby's name. Sources say that unlike in Samantha's case, the couple have yet to trash out the division of properties jointly held by them. Till a legal exit route is not agreed, Aishwarya has been asked to not drop Dhanush's name.

BRO DADDY Movie Review : You can sleep off and still not miss anything.

 

BRO DADDY movie is no laugh riot as the teasers make it out. It is something that you can sit in your arm chair with a cup of tea and samosas and watch it on TV. Once you get to know the plot   in the first half , then the latter half proceedings make you fall asleep as there is not much of a comedy and when Shoubin crops up, you expect something but here too there is nothing to retain your interest. Finally when the expected climax happens, you can get up with a feeling of NOT BAD ( koyampam illa).

The film starts with a good timing between Mohanlal and Prithviraj and a nice set of actors like Meena- Lalu Alex - Kanikha - Kalyani Priyadarshan, palatial bungalows, rich settings , tasteful costumes,  nice colour sense and a cinematography that captures it all. Now as the wafer thin plot is laid out, you need is a screenplay that has moments of rollicking laughter. It's  here that director Prithviraj totally fails , You do not have any great song sequences either.

This film makes you realize the worth of Priyadarshan - if only this was given to him !. Anyway the idea to  came on OTT ( Disney Hotstar) is good as it will keep the  50 + age group tuned in . There are  no loud BGM's to wake you up. Of the whole lot, Lalu Alex is only one with a role that calls for acting and he does it with ease. 

Prabhu Deva as Karnan in R S Vimal's next

  Prabhu Deva will be essaying the role of ` Karnan' in the multi- lingual film Suryaputra Mahavir Karna to be directed by R S Vimal. Chiyaan Vikram was to play Karnan and even a making video was released on the actor's birthday. It was later dropped and Vikram moved to another mythological Ponniyin Selvan directed by Mani Rathinam.

R S Vimal directed Ennu Ninte Moideen the all time evergreen romantic film starring Prithviraj and Parvathy along with Tovino . The film released in Feb 2016 and was a runaway hit and all songs a craze. Music director Jeyachandran won the national award.

 Vimal did extensive work on Karnan, the character in Mahabharata and it was the story told from his perspective. He had prepared a story board for 2.5 hrs and enough documentation. At first `Mamamangam' film producer was to fund it but backed out.  Bollywood Producer Vashu Bhagnani came on board and even the logo was released. Names of many Bollywood actors were speculated but surprisingly the choice was Vikram. Suresh Gopi was to play an important role.

Now the film is being funded by a UK based production company . 50 % of the film will be shot in a virtual reality and live action at UK studios. As UK has lifted pandemic curbs, shoot would begin next month said a source. Instead of Suresh Gopi, Malayalam actor Lal ( who acted in Dhanush's Karnan) is in the mythological film. Budget is  Rs 300 crores.  

Thalapathy Vijay v/s KGF 2 in April

 Thalapathy's Vijay  Beast, Ajith's Valimai, Simbhu's ‘Vendhu Thanidhathu Kaadu’ are three blockbusters that are confirmed to come in April and so also KGF 2. With producers not willing to back out, Pan Indian film like KGF 2  will have to literally wash their hands off Tamil Nadu, feels trade.

Sun Pictures with Beast, Madurai Anbu- Boney Kapoor's Valimai and Dr Ishari Ganesh's VTK are three big production- distribution houses in Kllywood. Already, trade had agreed that three weeks from date of release , Valimai will be given more than 60 % screens. At that time it was RRR that was a competitor. Now Sun Pictures has made it amply clear that it will release Beast on April 14 and it seems Actor Vijay too has made it clear that there should be no going back on it. KGF being an All India release too cannot back out.

Trade can juggle with Valimai and VTK release dates to give each at least two weeks between Beast. But RRR and KGF 2 ?. Here again, RRR will stick to March 18 Friday release as on April 14th, Bollywood has Aamir Khan's Lal Chaddha coming. Given this scenario, Radhe Shyam is stuck and might move to OTT.

Given this scenario, Gautham Menon film Joshua with new face Varun and produced by Dr Ganesh ( hero happens to be producer's nephew and his debut) as well as Sani Kayidhidam starring director Selvaraghavan and directed by Arun ( Rocky fame) are to release on OTT. In February itself, Sun Pictures is coming with Etharkkum Thunindhavan  starring Suriya. After Jai Bhim, Suriya has got a good reach all over India, This could see it's Hindi release too.

Latest pixs of DD aka Dhivyadarshini to debut in Telugu film opposite Tamil hero ?

 DIDI in Kerala is synonymous with Singer Usha Iyer and in Tamil Nadu for  telly viewers, it means Dhivyadarshini - DD the most popular TV anchor on Tamil Screen. Latest photoshoot of her in traditional saree and in a very joyous mood has excited her fans. Some say that she is to debut in Telugu as heroine opposite one of the popular Tamil heroes who is going to do his Telugu debut. Thalapathy Vijay- Dhanush - Sivakarthikeyan are the heroes bound for Tollywood. Enjoy the pics: Latest shoot

Hridayam movie review : It is no `Premam'

Hridayam is from  the genre of films of which ` Premam' belongs. So comparing  Hridayam to Premam , is inevitable. Hridayam is no patch on that movie. Secondly, Vineeth Srinivasan has slipped badly in fleshing out the main protagonist Arun played by Pranav Mohanlal. From here onwards take place  the slide in creating a film about relationships that one encounters in life's journey.  Arun is shown as one who has had no strong friendships with his peers except for the girl Darshana with whom he breaks up at the start of the movie and his other is a sidekick. With this character , how do you work out a subject of bonding and emotions  ?

The only friend that made an impression on Arun is Selva, a Tamil student who motivated him to study and clear the arrears. This guy meets with an accident and dies. After that Arun is shown to have not have kept in touch with his Tamil pals or any body else. it was only with Darshana .It is justified if all college mates turn up for Darshana's wedding but Arun who is not shown to have any bonding with his mates in and after college has a big gang turn up. Strange guys !!!.

So many cliches like the wedding in rain, lush green meadows, soft mushy music , college ragging, funny teachers and some what we call  cringe moments are filled in to keep the narrative going. When the wedding photographer falls in love with Kalyani Priyadarshan saga starts and the entire length up to the marriage and the baby care- in- laws is one that just does not merge with the main movie. It stands out like a sore thumb.  Kalyani plays the butter will not melt in my mouth role with ease.

Now as climax moves to Darshana's wedding , we expect some intense exchange between her and ex BF Arun.  We see this bold girl ask questions to Arun about what if the guy she marries turns to be  a bad choice and he gives a reply which means that a hubby/ wife and a baby is what everybody's  moment is all about.

Technically the film is top notch. Given a role that is not well defined, Pranav does not have much of scenes for us to see the actor in him, Only one scene is what you take home- When he video calls his ex and tells about him being a father. Wish Vinneth had given as much care to Arun character as much to Darshana's. Among the hollow characters around, Darshana had to shine and she did. Some actors like the side kick to Pranav and the guy who played Selva are a few you remember.

We have to talk about music separately in this film as the director has put in 15 songs and even got back the old cassette tape back for audio launch. Hesham steps in place for Vinneth's regular -Shaan and no doubt he does full justice ( except for the Hindi - Tamil bits ).  Except for three songs, all others are fillers. 

Is Hridayam as memorable as `Premam' - No.  In the middle of  all the muck- over exaggerated box office claims and pretensions of being a trend setter, Hridayam can definitely be watched. It is not big screen experience and so even an OTT will do. 

Rajinikanth close pal Malaysian Biz man cheated of Rs 15 crore by Producers Council Chief

 

 

Tamil Film Producers Council President Murali Ramasamy is facing an FIR filed by Malaysian Businessman Datuk Abdul Malik Dasthigeer of Malik Streams Corporation of having cheated him of Rs 15 crores by misrepresenting to have the overseas rights to films Rajinikanth's Petta, Raghava Lawrence Kanchana 3 and Dhanush's Naan Rudhran. Murali took Rs 30 crores from him and later gave back Rs 15 crores only, is the FIR.

Abdul Malik is a Malaysian businessman and in film circles, his closeness to Rajinikanth is well known. Malik had distributed Kaabaali in Malaysia and also oversaw the shooting of the film in the island nation, where it was mostly shot. Rajinikanth who does not endorse any commercial ventures had inaugurated the showroom of his fan Datuk Abdul Malik Dasthigeer at Jalan Tun Tan Siew Sin. It is called Wisma Malik.

According to the FIR filed by West Mambalam Police, Murali pocketed Rs 30 crores and later as Malik asked for the rights, he gave back Rs 15 crores. Except for Naan Rudhran   films rights  which was produced by Murali, the other two were not with him. Rudhran never took off and was shelved. At first Rajinikanth was to co- star with Dhanush. It was later Nagarjuna who came o board.

As per Malik complaint, Murali refused to pay the money and told him that nothing can be done against him in Tamil Nadu. Murali is son of Late Rama Narayanan, a prolific producer and close to Karunanidhi family. Murali produced Vijay's Mersal and also distributed films for Sun Pictures. Murali is said to be in financial debts and has two incomplete films .

Filing of FIR against Murali has shocked Tamil filmdom. Murali won the Council poll defeating Actor- Producer T  Rajinder ( father of actor STR). TR who is facing many troubles from the Council over his son's film release, had alleged that Murali has been using the name of Udhayanidhi Stalin ( actor- producer - MLA son of TN CM ) to browbeat him. There is another body called the active producers association that has all big wigs in it and headed by Bharathiraaja.

Update : Bollywood halts next Allu Arjun storm on January 26

Hindi version of Allu Arjun's Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo (AV) will not release on theaters as Kartik Aryan's Shehzade makers had asked Allu Aravind ( father of Arjun) to stop GoldMines Manish Shah from going ahead. Allu Aravind is also a co- producer of the Hindi film. Kartik film will release only in November. This postponement has made Shehazade producers and Bollywood in general running scared of Allu Arjun. Earlier Report :

Bollywood is bracing for a second Tsunami from Allu Arjun . Already a leading Bollywood portal has headlined that no Allu Arjun can match the opening of a Salman Khan film in Hindi belt , just in case the upcoming film is a hit.   Yashraj films is to sign a three film deal with Samantha as her item song is creating repeat audience for Pushpa 1 (still running in North theatres and with excellent box office proving pandemic as reason for flop is baseless)

Hindi version of Allu Arjun's Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo (AV) is releasing on January 26^th in North India theatres. AV is already available on Netflix with subtitles. Goldmines who has a vast library of South dubbed films for showing it on their YouTube channel had bought this film in 2020 and kept in the coolers so long. The film AV is according to Box Office portals third highest grossing film in India after Baahubali two series and that too without Hindi version.

One section of Bollywood is telling that Pushpa is a flash in the pan. They are making AV release as a warning to all those Bollywood guys who bought the remake rights of South films. AV is being remade in Hindi with Kartik Aryan. So if AV Hindi dubbed film is a hit then other’s will follow and so who will see the remakes is the question?

Rangasthalam is another film that is to release as the director of the film is Pushpa fame Sukumar and Samanatha ( item song girl of Pushpa) is the heroine. Manish Shah of Goldmines who holds the Hindi rights would be the first to cash in on the RRR promotions as Ram Charan who is the hero has become more visible to North audience.

Now Thalapathy Vijay’s Mersal and Ajith’s Viswasam that were not released in Hindi will also get a release. Theatre owners say that due to pandemic, digital servers are charging only 50% and apart from this they get  70% of collection shares . This deal is a bonanza that they can never expect from straight Hindi films. Despite an OTT release, Pushpa is still doing well in North is giving movie halls lots of hope.

 

Bhoothakaalam Malayalam Movie review: A satisfying watch

 

Bhoothalakalam on Sony Liv is a very satisfying watch, It will not only engage the ordinary movie goer but also the arty film critics. A fine balance. The film will engage those who watch a horror film with the stance- See if you ca scare me and that oh no not another spooky tale. For those who take to the psychological dimension of the two main characters in the film, the treatment will look real and justified.

 A widowed mother and her unemployed son ,  who have mental issues are battling a personal issue in their life. After the death of aged mother. the mother who has not much communication with her son  and was under treatment for depression slips back to an even bad state. The son battles the pain of being unemployed and feels that his future was spoilt as his mother for her selfish reasons. Relatives see the son as an alcoholic and drug addict. 

As we get braced for a son- mother playout, scene shifts to unnatural happenings within the home. The son at first thinks it to something that he alone is experiencing and later towards the climax the presence of a third force within the house  also becomes evident to the mother.

The setting of the story in an ordinary run down middle class house is the first victory  to lure your mind to the ongoing happening, secondly there is no shrieks or BGM to scare you and this is a big letdown to those who wait to hoot at this place, thirdly camerawork. It moves slowly and calculatedly Fourth is the actors. Shane Nigam at first is a repeat of himself from the earlier movies and it is Revathi who carries the show forward. In the second half , Shane turns his body language, eyes and expressions into a boy scared for what he is seeing . A mind blowing performance.

The small characters too have an important link in the story plot. As a rationalist you can interpret the film as the hallucinations of two mentally disturbed people or as weak minded persons being victims of a past that lingers on in the house. Why the romantic angle when it is left incomplete and a song to boot  ?, Hats off to Anwar Rasheed.

Credit:

Teresa Rani and Sunila Habeeb -Producers
Banner	Plan T Films and Shane Nigam Films
Distributor	A&A Release
Story	Rahul Sadasivan
Written by	Rahul Sadasivan
Screenplay	Rahul Sadasivan & Sreekumar Shreyas
Co Producer
DOP	Shehnad Jalal
Editor	Shafique Mohamed Ali
Music Director	Shane Nigam
Lyrics	Shane Nigam
Stunts
BGM	Gopi Sunder
Executive Producer	A R Ansar
Associate Director
Production Controller	Binu Murali
Art
Makeup	Ronex Xavier
Costumes	Sameera Saneesh
Choreography
Sound Designer	Vicky, Kishan (Sapthaa)
PRO
Stills	Shaheen Thaha
Publicity Design	Aesthetic Kunjamma
Title Design
Production Designer	Manu Jagadh
Production Executive	Riyas Pattambi
Finance Controller

Yesteryear actress daughter behind splits Ville says Kodangi

 Kodangi is happy that his info  about a Star couple came true. His second info on a project which Complete Actor features is swinging towards what he said. ( Both in story from the archives -https://southfilmy.blogspot.com/2021/05/didi-rocks-star-family-and-complete.html )

We met Kodangi wearing a mask and waiting at the bus stop near Palmgrove Hotel.  We picked him up and offered to drop him at his Lodge located on the road to Lord Muruga in Vadapalani. As we congratulated him on this info given way back in May last year, he said that at that time that was the only reason for a possible divorce but now the reason is different.

Kodangi quizzed us - Which heroine has worked with father- in - law and son - in law and her mother had worked with father in law in yesteryears ?. We asked the driver to go to Green  Park Hotel and decided to take a memory tonic to get the right answer. Kodangi had his curd rice - pickle first round . We gave up. He said Third EYE. We said the name of two heroines in the film and asked  to which film did son in law act with daughter of one of this heroine ? He quipped - A train journey. So the cat was out of the bag.

Now mike over to Kodangi - " It all happened when father and daughter were together at the shoot location. The heroine got close to the daughter and soon it was a girl's club. As this heroine was also close to one of the cousins of this daughter, things were more smooth. In one of those moments, the heroine said that the  Star  and daughter's hubby like many other actors had the hots for her but the difference was that no one inflicted so much torture and behaved like a sex maniac. She said that every spare moment she had to be in the vanity van of the Star. She added that this was already a talk in Kodambakkam about this great actor's son in law ".

Father was told by daughter about this and both sat and discussed it. Father advised the daughter to take a bold decision and not think about what outcome it will have on his ( father's ) image. . " We have given him everything and he still behaves like a Pokkiri" was his judgement. Son in law said that it was his way of life and walked away.

Jai Bhim featured in Oscars You Tube channel

 Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on its official YouTube channel called the 'Oscars'.featured a video on the blockbuster hit, 'Jai Bhim', starring Suriya, Lijomol Jose and Manikandan in the lead. The video clip, which has some scenes from the film, which was produced by Jyotika and Suriya under 2D Entertainment, has the film's Director TJ Gnanavel explaining all about the film, including its theme.

The video has been featured under the 'Scene At the Academy' segment.   The Oscars channel described the video saying, "Jai Bhim weaves in real case studies helmed by Activist-Lawyer Chandru, who brought justice to indigenous tribes in Tamil Nadu through his relentless efforts. Writer-director TJ Gnanavel reveals how the story narrative was formed and executed."
Speaking on the development, Co-producer & CEO of 2D Entertainment Rajsekar Karpoorasundarapandian said, “We are very happy that our film Jai Bhim, which portrayed the story of marginalised people is getting recognised the world over.”

Director Gnanavel said, “Our genuine attempt to tell the story of the unknown has served its purpose by creating world wide attention and now, needy people are reaping the benefits. This is the best award we could get.”

The news that the film has made it to the Oscars channel has not only delighted the makers but also the fans of the film, which released on Amazon Prime Video on 2nd nov 2021.

Dhanush- Aishwarya wedding that publicly ended Rajini- Jayalalithaa war

 Dhanush – Aishwarya Rajinikanth wedding was dramatic as the divorce tweet that came yesterday night. It was the wedding that signaled to the Superstar fans and AMMA followers that the hatchet has been buried. The climax to a political war that had Jayalalithaa humbled at the polls saw AMMA elevated to the eldest person of the family and gave the thaali to Dhanush to tie the three knots. 

Ego bruised Rajinikanth could not forget the moment when cops at the road leading to his house told that he could sit in the car and wait in the footpath till Amma passes by or walk down to his house. When AMMA security informs that she is leaving office for home, all traffic is frozen. Only after her car goes inside the Veda Nilayam does the freeze order is lifted. Rajini walked to his house. Rajini and Jayalalithaa are not next door neighbours and actually live quite away from each other.

Many barbs against her through dialogues in films took place. 1996 the adopted son wedding gala fest and corruption added to Rajinikanth’s cryptic speech appealing to save Tamil Nadu did her in. Rajini continued with his barbs till 2001, when he fell silent. Jayalalithaa came back to power. She changed her security measures and became more people friendly. 

There were gossips of Rajini’s daughter Aishwarya and Simbu (actor- son of TR) seeing each other. They were studying in the same school run by Latha Rajinikanth.  A coffee shop was the meeting place. Soon scenario changed and rift happened between the two. Around that time, Kadhal Kondain with Dhanush as hero and his brother Selvaraghavan as director got released. At a preview, Aishwarya met Dhanush. Next day, a bouquet landed at Dhanush house. 

They met each other at many joints. At this time, Rajinikanth found that Dhanush was a simpleton and though his father Kasthoori Raja was a director – producer, he did not have any of the trappings of a filmy brat (  Simbu had in plenty).  Arranged match between two families took place and when it was said Jayalalithaa would come, many thought it was wishful thinking. It did happen. M Karunanidhi came for the reception. It was Latha Rajinikanth who through Sasikala got Madam to see them and accept the invitation. Before that Rajinikanth too chipped in his bit by calling Amma as Dhaariya Lakshmi (Goddess of courage) at the felicitation function. Aishwarya is three years older than Dhanush. He was 21 at time of marriage. 

Simbhu nursed his wounds of being ditched and made many barbs against Dhanush in his films and his fans enjoyed it. Dhanush got prime roles and soared ahead. Simbu got caught in charges of unprofessionalism. Simbu got in to relationships with Nayanthara and Hansika and broke up. On November 25th, 2021, release of Maanaadu changed everything. Simbu aka STR is hottest property in town. He was conferred a doctorate by Vels University in Chennai. ( Many upcountry media wrote it as Wales University). 

Leaked photos of Dhanush with Star Vijay anchor Divyadarshini ( DD) was one that did much damage. It was said that director A L Vijay ( Thalaivi ) and actress Amala Paul separated as the latter was in a relationship with Dhanush. Even  Dhanush name was dragged into the Samantha – Naga Chaitanya split. 

Aishwarya herself is a director ( film 3 ) and the song Kolaveri Di did give her mileage. Her Bharathanatyam recital at UN was heavily trolled. Despite all her shortcomings, she comes across a woman with a mind of her own. A quote from an interview with her - “ "The best thing about our relationship is the fact that we give each other plenty of space. Neither of us believes in changing for the other person just because we want to be together. When you are in your mid-20ss your mind is set in terms of what you believe in and it is very hard to change yourself.". 

Incidentally younger sister Soundarya (married the second time) tweeted a congratulatory post on Simbhu getting doctorate and it had Dhanush fans fuming.