Suriya's RETRO gets best Netflix deal / Ajith copied Vijay Leo look and weapon ?

Suriya’s Retro OTT Deal Proves His Star Power is intact Suriya Kanguva did not do well in theatres but did well on OTT Space: Even though Kanguva didn’t live up to the hype, Suriya’s strong pull in the digital market hasn’t faded one bit. "Kanguva" received mixed responses. However, its inclusion in the Oscars shortlist has sparked renewed interest among fans and the film industry. Netflix has grabbed the streaming rights for Retro for a massive ₹80 crore, covering all languages—showing the confidence they have in the film’s team of Karthik Subburaj and Suriya’s popularity. The movie stars Suriya and Pooja Hegde as the leads, with veterans like Jayaram, Joju George, Karunakaran, Nassar, and Prakash Raj making the cast even stronger. Directed by Karthik Subbaraj, produced by 2D Entertainment and Stone Bench Creations, and with music by Santhosh Narayanan, Retro first glimpse of the movie has already created buzz among fans, with 2 crore views and raising expectations for this romantic action drama. The title announcement teaser of ‘Retro’ was unveiled a few weeks ago. In the teaser, Suriya and Pooja are seen sitting together on stairs. Not much has been revealed about the film’s title but Suriya’s dialogues give some hints. He said in the video, “I will control my temper. Will quit working with my father. Violence, rowdyism, and hooliganism… will quit everything from this moment. Will try to smile and be happy. The purpose of my birth, in your language, my Dhammam, is love. Pure love. That’s it. I’m saying it cut and right. Now, tell me, should we get married?” retro hits theatres on May 1, 2025.

Has Ajith copied Vijay’s hairstyle and costumes of Thalapathy Vijay from Leo ? A post by Bharani on X feels so. He posted the pixs saying Parthipan Hair Style and Parthipan Dress code and Parthipan weapon code. Parthipan is character name of Vijay in Leo. Before AK fans coud react Actor Parthipan reacted by thanking the X post and that created a confusion about who was Bharani talking about, This sort of lead to a war between AK and Thalapathy fans from being sparked off. Ajith Kumar’s upcoming Tamil film “Vidaamuyarchi” has been dubbed into Telugu under the title “Pattudala.” Directed by Magizh Thirumeni and produced by Subashkaran of Lyca Productions, the film promises an adrenaline-pumping action thriller, with Ajith Kumar playing a high-octane action role. As the title suggests, Ajith appears to be a determined guy on a mission to find his missing wife in Azerbaijan. The clip shows Ajith undertaking incredible feats, which would provide an exhilarating experience to the audience in cinemas. Following 2011’s hit Mankatha (Gambler in Telugu), Ajith reunites with Trisha and Arjun. Regina Cassandra, Arav, Nikhil Nair, Dasarathi, and Ganesh have important roles in the film as well. Anirudh Ravichander is creating the music for this film.

Ajith , car racing and social media toxicity

This post on Reddit.com/kollyGossips and similar such discussions on FB pages by so called car enthuaists is what seemed to have provoked Ajith to comment on toxicity on social media. Excerpts in Ajith talk with Gulf News : Do you prefer the roar of engines on the racetrack or the applause from a cinema hall? Or can they even be compared? That’s a tough one. Beyond cinema and sports, I want to address the toxicity on social media. It’s affecting everyone, not just celebrities. Mental health is as important as physical health. I tell my fans that life is short, and our great-grandchildren won’t remember our names. So, why spread hatred? Be happy for others. Focus on your life and contribute to making the world a better place. Any final message for your fans? Live for the moment. Don’t dwell on the past or worry excessively about the future. Work hard, stay healthy — both mentally and physically — and be kind to others. I’d be happiest knowing my fans are doing well in life and being kind to my peers. Life is short; make it meaningful. Now the question that is raised is that Ajith was on the podium as team owner and that the car of his team that won therace was not driven by him. So it was like this guy with tons of money hired a team and after winning third slot, he took all the credit for it. He did not drive the car in the race. Some said that he way down in International ranking and that his team was overall the third but in only a particular section. Some explanations Green-Offer-9058 • 2d ago As I'm A MotorSports Fan, I Saw the Entire Race... In first Half He Raced With His Own Team in 992 Category Until He Crashed... Citing His Health Condition and Competitiveness In 992 category (20 In That Category alone) He Moved To Razoon Racing Team Which Competes in GT4 Category Which is Entry Level Category (6 In Total).. Technically He Didn't Race For His Team in the First place... Instead raced for Razoon Racing Team the whole time... For his Recovery post crash the organizers gave his team the Spirit of the race award for making the car Workin' again and make the same Racin' TheNerdyCroc • 3d ago To anyone who thinks he's having a midlife crisis and is being a terrible racer, keep in mind that he's doing something 99% of us can't even dream of. Win or lose, he's enjoying life. What's wrong about a man who just wants to enjoy life in the ways he can?

Director Shankar blames Producer for Game Changer flop- Rakesh Roshan says South stuck in safe formula

Director Shankar has said that Game Changer that was out was what was left out of the 5 hours of footage that he kept for trimming. He was indirectly implying that he was not satisfied with the footage was chosen. Only two persons can choose the footage and that is the Editor and Director. From Shankar’s outburst, it looks like apart him , the other person who can interfere is the Producer. Shankar seems to be blaming Dil Raju the film producer From Producer point of view is that the film has shot two times the budget and final product was way behind and to top it, a song costing crores had not gone on air We will have to wait for Raju’s reaction . As per trade, film box office is moving towards a disaster. The plight of Indian 3 is pitiable as the market is not going to touch it after Game Changer box office disaster outing. Who will fund Shankar’s next film Velpari ?

As we wait for Rakesh- Hrithik Roshan docu on NetFlix we have something for you -In a recent interview with Zoom, Roshan pointed out that South cinema sticks to traditional formulas. He said it relies heavily on the usual mix of song, action, and dramatic dialogue. “They’re not progressing. Technically, they are, but storytelling-wise, they’re doing the same formulas that work. They’re successful because they’re not breaking any path,” he explained. Roshan believes that while South films may be advancing technically, they are not innovating in their storytelling. On the other hand, he feels that Bollywood is “breaking paths.” He used his own career as an example, explaining how he chose to take a different route after the success of Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai. Instead of making another romantic film, he made Koi Mil Gaya, which introduced a superhero character played by his son, Hrithik Roshan. “These are the challenges we took. They don’t take them. They play on safe grounds,” Roshan said. Filmmaker Reveals He Was Shot By Gun After KNPH Release Rakesh Roshan is currently enjoying the success of Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai‘s re-release, which hit theatres on January 10. The 2000 film, which marked Hrithik Roshan‘s debut, has become a cult classic, loved by fans for its memorable music and story. But Roshan’s journey hasn’t always been smooth. In another interview with Bollywood Hungama, he revealed a shocking experience. Shortly after Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai‘s release, he was shot in broad daylight while leaving his office in Mumbai. He was hit by two bullets but managed to drive himself to the hospital and recover. Roshan later discovered that underworld figures had wanted Hrithik to star in a film backed by them. When Roshan refused their offer, saying Hrithik was unavailable, the violent attack occurred. “I never gave any indication that Hrithik could do a film for them,” he said, explaining the reason behind the attack.

Why Rajinikanth's Hukum still rules Tamil Box Office ?

No wonder Rajinikanth’s Jailer 2 promo released today continues to break the internet. Rajinikanth film Vettaiyan is in the 12th position of Indian Box Office of 2024 as per Ormax survey. Two other Tamil actors in this list are Thalapathy Vijay’s GOAT and Sivakarthikeyan Amaran. This is the answer to those who said that Vettaiyan is a flop !!! In 2024, two Regional film industries that did exceptionally well are Malayalam filmdom and Gujrati films. Kerala filmdom went on a historic high from collections of Rs. 572 crores in 2023 to Rs. 1165 crores in 2024. The industry crossed the Rs. 1000 crore mark for the first time ever and main factor was Manjumel Boys and Premalu. Gujrati filmdom from Rs. 50 crores in 2023 to Rs. 84 crores. A major factor behind it was the success of the horror comedy Jhamkudi, which collected Rs. 20 crores plus. Among the Indian actor’s , Ajay Devgan had two films in top list – Shaitaan and Sigham Again. As per The Ormax Box Office Report 2024, while the total gross box office collections of 2023 were Rs. 12,226 crores, the 2024 earnings dropped by around 3.32 % and stood at Rs. 11833 crores. The three saving grace films of the year were Pushpa 2 – The Rule, Kalki 2898 AD and Stree 2. These were the only films that crossed the Rs. 500 crore mark. The Tamil cinema finally made an entry to the list at the seventh and eight positions with Thalapthy Vijay’s The Greatest Of All Time (Rs. 305 crores) and Sivakarthikeyan’s Amaran (Rs. 258 crores). By collecting Rs. 174 crores, Rajinikanth’s Vettaiyan made it to the twelfth position. Malayalam film for first time entered the list. Manjummel Boys collected Rs. 170 crores .

Backed by Kalanithi Maran’s Sun Pictures, there have been no official announcements about the cast and crew of Jailer 2. Will it bring back Vijay Kartik Kannan who created magical frames for the film? Will the movie see the return of Shivarajkumar, Mohanlal, and Jackie Shroff? Will newer stars enter this galaxy? The four-minute teaser begins with the news channel announcing the impending Fengal cyclone, as we see Anirudh Ravichander and Nelson Dilipkumar discussing their project. Their conversation is interrupted by men who are being shot and attacked black and blue. Petrified by the sight, we see the most-awaited entrance by none other than Rajinikanth. A bomb comes rolling towards the duo, as Rajinikanth walks out of the house. We see some people with snipers pointing towards Rajinikanth, he takes out his eyeglass and we see through it the snipers blown away by torpedoes coming from behind him. It ends as the teaser is accompanied by Hukum soundtrack from Jailer. The promo ends with the duo announcement of Jailer 2.

Vijay Sethupathi / Mohanlal / Nayanthara/ Kamal Haasan / Aishwarya Lekshmi in news

He was overtaken by Vijay Sethupathi in the race for 2024’s ‘Most Viewed Indian Actor’ by a mere margin of 0.2 million views, owing to the successes of Sethupathi’s ‘Maharaja’ and ‘Merry Christmas’ on Netflix.

Vikrant Massey was overtaken by Vijay Sethupathi in the race for 2024’s ‘Most Viewed Indian Actor’ on OTT by a mere margin of 0.2 million views, owing to the successes of Sethupathi’s ‘Maharaja’ and ‘Merry Christmas’ on Netflix. Vikrant Massey has been on a roll in 2024 with films like ‘Sector 36’ and ‘Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba’ garnered a total viewership of over 22.2 Million on Netflix, cementing Massey’s position as 2024’s most-viewed Bollywood actor

Mohanlal is said to have given the nod to Director Vijay Chandar who directed STR film Vaalu , Sketch with Vikram and Vijay Sethupathi film Sanga thamizhan. It is confirmed that Mohanlal is doing only a cameo in Mahesh Narayanan film with Mammooty- Fahad- Kunchacko – Nayanthara. He had only two days work in Sri Lanka schedule. The film completed work in Azerbhaijan and is now starting in Kochi. Both these portions do not have Lal and his screen time is only 20 minutes.

Nayanthara who turned almost six hours late for the Madurai success meet of her womens cooperative Femi 9 is facing heavy backlash from those who attended the event. The meet which has social influencers are invitees are angry that the actress did not appoligize for her late coming and children who wanted to click photos with her was not allowed.

Similarly Aishwarya Lekshmi is in talks for Suriya film directed by Vetrimaaran. In Vetri’s previous film Viduthalai 2 , Manju Wariier was the heroine. Vetrimaaran after Vaadivasal with Suriya is to direct a film for R S Infotainment and Dhanush is the hero.

Kamal Haasan was given a narration of the Gentleman film’s subject by Shankar. Kamal backed out saying that he had played a Brahmin in the fil Micheal Madana Kamraj and was not keen to do a repeat. Shankar who revealed this said that first choice was Sarath Kumar but he did not have the dates. Kamal Haasan recalling the shooting of Mumbai express in digital format recalled that Director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao who came to the location was stunned as he felt that he was shooting a film with a video camera used for weddings. Rao was used to filming with five to six cameras in one shot. Kamal said that his RKFI office has the Panasonic camera that was used and kept as an exhibit. It was the first film in Digital format to be censored and for that he had to get clearance from the Central ministry.

Vijay 69 Story revealed/ After Pushpa 2 , Yash Toxic most awaited

Vijay 69 is a remake of the Telugu film “Bhagavanth Kesari” starring Balakrishna , Sreleela and Kajol. This was confirmed by VTV Ganesh who acted in the Telugu film in the role of a minister. He said that Anil Ravipudi who directed Balakrishna film had declined to do a remake. Vijay liked the film and saw it at least five times. The message in the film is that girls should be encouraged to be self-reliant, and that our daughters should not be restricted to domestic life alone. Balakrishna’s slogan in the film is “Banao Beti Ko Sher” (Turn Our Daughters Into Lionesses). This message is laudable. Felt Vijay. Readl https://southfilmy.blogspot.com/2024/10/bigg-boss-6-vsp-salary-rumours-about.html The bonding between Balakrishna and Sreeleela is of that of a father and daughter and romantic portions are with Kajol. Dialogues were the highlight. Story Line : Nelakonda Bhagavanth Kesari (Nandamuri Balakrishna), just out of Warangal prison, assumes custody of a young girl whose cop father was killed in a car crash. He adopts the role of Chiccha (paternal uncle) to Vijji (Sreeleela) and works tirelessly to shape her into a self-reliant woman and future army officer. After an incident with Rahul Sanghvi’s (Arjun Rampal) men, Vijji finds herself in hot water with the business magnate. Bhagavanth Kesari comes in just as they’re about to kill her and saves her life. When Rahul Sanghvi learns that Bhagavanth Kesari rescued her, he is reminded of his encounter with Kesari many years ago in Adilabad. Can Kesari make Vijji an officer in the army? In what ways do he and Rahul Sanghvi enmity go back?

A recent report has claimed that Malayalam actor Tovino Thomas will play the antagonist in 'Toxic: A Fairy Tale for Grown-ups,' starring Yash The glimpse video of Toxic, starring Yash, has created a huge record in just 24 hours. Within 13 hours of release, it got more views than Pushpa 2’s glimpse video, which held the previous record with 27.67 million views in 24 hours for its Hindi version. Toxic’s glimpse video has now crossed 50 million views, becoming the most-watched glimpse video in India in 24 hours. This has increased excitement and expectations for the movie.

Pariyerum Perumal remake has Tripti Dimri ( Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 ) / Rajinikant pongal wave

After Baby John the remake of Vijay film Theri and it’s flop, now comes another remake. It is Dhadak 2 which is a remake of Pariyerum Perumal written and directed by Mari Selvaraj in his directorial debut and produced by Pa. Ranjith. n an interview with Filmfare, Triptii ( bhool Bhulaiyaa 3) who acts in the film spoke about her experience working on Dhadak 2. She mentioned that it’s been a “lovely” and “special” film, and she enjoyed the process of making it. She also described her co-star, Siddhant, as “an amazing guy” and noted that working with director Shazia Iqbal had been enjoyable. Dhadak 2 is presented by Zee Studios, Dharma Productions, and Cloud 9 Pictures. It was initially set to release on November 22, 2024, but the date has since been postponed.

Director Atlee has not given up on being a Bollywood Producer , even after Baby John. He is said to have signed Shahid Kapoor for a film that will be directed by his assistant and this time it is no remake. The film is to start next year. Triptii is also working on Vishal Bhardwaj’s upcoming film with Shahid Kapoor. The untitled movie, which also stars Nana Patekar and Randeep Hooda, began shooting on January 6, 2025. Fans of the original Tamil film, including producer Pa Ranjith, have expressed concerns that the core conflict of the story might be diluted to make it more palatable for Hindi audiences. Karn Johar the producer saud - "We are not holding back from the core conflict of the film or its depiction. I don't want to say too much for those who haven't seen the original, but we have stayed true to the story. It’s as hard-hitting and impactful as the original," he promised. Karan also highlighted that selecting Shazia Iqbal to direct Dhadak 2 signals his commitment to maintaining the essence of Pariyerum Perumal. Shazia Iqbal has been working as a Production Designer for thirteen years in the Indian Film & Advertising Industry. An Architecture graduate, she left a sheltered office job after being enticed by the idea of telling stories. Her debut Short film, Bebaak won her the Best Debut Director, International and Audience Choice award at the 35th Sao Paulo International Shorts Film festival. The film is inspired by a true event that moulded her religious, social and political ideology while growing up. Her debut feature film, Blood Circle was selected for Film Independent's Global Media Makers 2019 Residency lab in Los Angeles. She was the lead Production designer for International Emmy nominated, India's first original Netflix series, Sacred Games and Emmy nominated mini-series Lust Stories. She has studied, Directing for films at MET film school, Ealing studios, London. (- IMDb Mini Biography By: Shazia Iqbal)

Sun Tv will premiered the Rajinikanth film Vettaiyan on January 14th 6.30 PM. It will also telecast Lal Salaam the next day but it is not confirmed. Next day Lal Salaam of Thalaivar might come but not confirmed. Hindi version of Lal Salaam was telecast on Zee Hindi. OTT release has not come. Kavin's Bloody Beggar is coming on Sun - Jan 15 , 11 AM.

Ajith Kumar spells out future plans /Harris Jayraj son debut / Wamiqua Gabbi in Basil- Ranveer film

Ajith Kumar in an interview taken in Dubai has made it clear that he would not doing films during the car racing season starts. "From October-March, until the racing season commences, do films so that no one is worried. I can go full throttle w he said that he did not want to be told by his Producers to decide his choices. Due to this he had to discontinue British Formula 3 race in the schlarship class as he had to shoot. He has made it clear that when the car season ends and before the next starts , he would finish a film. By this the Producer need not not get jittery about his hero getting injured in the car races. Read; https://southfilmy.blogspot.com/2021/09/thala-ajith-discuss-world-tour-with.html

*Harris Jayaraj's son Samuel Nicholas makes a stunning debut with 'Aiyaiyo'* *Samuel Nicholas has composed, sung and starred in the youthful video song 'Aiyaiyo'* https://youtu.be/p6_lhImxcVo?si=qmDMTQaFh-8u6lqW Samuel Nicholas, the son of renowned music composer Harris Jayaraj, has made his grand entry into the world of music. He has not only skillfully composed and soulfully sung the energetic track 'Aiyaiyo', but also starred as the hero in the video song. Released by prominent label Think Music, the song is receiving widespread acclaim from various quarters. The youthful and exuberant song 'Aiyaiyo' captures the joy, celebration, and vibrancy of today’s youth, with its theme revolving around women with diverse characteristics. In this debut track, Samuel Nicholas has stamped his unique mark in music, singing and acting, presenting himself as a well-rounded talent. Talking about the song, Samuel Nicholas shared, "I started my musical journey as a chorus singer in the film 'Ezham Arivu'. I have also been part of my father’s music concerts as a guitarist and a vocalist. I sang a song for the background score of 'Dev' as well. It’s a great pleasure to be introduced as a music composer with the song 'Aiyaiyo'." From the age of four, Samuel Nicholas has been training in music under the curriculum of Trinity College of Music, making his musical journey notable from an early age. The song 'Aiyaiyo' was written by Mohan Raj and Samuel Nicholas, and directed by Sanaa Mariam. The song's production team includes cinematography by Zayd Tanveer, choreography by Alisha Ajit, costume design by Harshene Ravichandar, art direction by Pradeep Raj, and editing/VFX by Creative Crowd, Shivasundar, and Sai Muthuraman. Sound design was handled by Anand Krishnamoorthi, while the coloring was done by Manoj Hemachandar. With 'Aiyaiyo,' Samuel Nicholas has truly showcased his multifaceted talent, marking a significant milestone in his career.

BOW has learnt that Wamiqa Gabbi has emerged as the top contender for the female lead in Ranveer Singh and Basil Joseph’s upcoming superhero film. The film is set to be directed by Basil Joseph, known for his successful superhero film Minnal Murali. The makers reportedly chose Joseph for his experience with creating compelling superhero stories rooted in Indian sensibilities. Ranveer Singh is expected to headline the film,The source added that Wamiqa is close to signing a Telugu film with Nani,Wamiqua is known to Kerala uadience for her film Godha and 9. In Tamil she acted in Modern Love Chennai anthology and Malai nerathu Mayakkam. She was last seen in Atlee film Baby John.

No Marco OTT deal - villain Anson is hero / Nayanthara v/s Dhanush case shifted / Babu Antony 1st Pan Indian baddie

In a first Nayanthara and Vignesh banner Rowdy Pictures has joined as co- producer of the Malayalam film Dear Students. After Love Action Drama, Nayanthara and Nivin Pauly are coming together. The film is directed by Sandeep Kumar and George Philip Roy. Pauly Junior the company of Nivin was the producer and now Rowdy Pictures along with Vineeth Jain of Maverick has joined as producers. Nayanthara plays the role of Vidya Rudhran , mod teacher wearing a blue kurta set with dupatta, and holding her round .glasses along with a sporty watch, sneakers, and an oxidized flexible bracelet. Madras High Court has postponed the final hearing of Dhanush v/s Nayanthara with regards to use of some visuals of the film Naanum rowdy Thaan, produced by Dhanush in the Netflix documentary by the latter without getting permission.

Tovino Thomas debut in Tollywood with NTR- Neel film Dragon. Malayalam’s top draw Tovino Thomas and known outside Kerala for his film Minnal Murali that was streamed on OTT, is appearing in NTR- Neel film Dragon and along with him is another actor from Mollywood and that is Biju Menon. Biju Menon had worked with Ravi Teja earlier and this is his second Telugu film. Biju is currently acting in A R Murgadoss film starring Sivakarthikeyan. Tovino film Identity with Trisha in the lead is running in theatres. Neel is the director of blockbusters the KGF series and Salaar.

Anson Paul the antagonist in Unni Mukundan’s hit film Marco has signed a new Tamil film with Aditi Rao Hydari as heroine.. Directed by Rajesh Selva , Director of Thoonga vanam and Cheekati Rajyam starring Kamal Haasan, Kadaram Kondan starring Chiyaan Vikran and produced by Kamal, also did a thriller Irai with Sarath Kumar for Aha Tamil. December end, Anson’s Tamil film Mazhayil Nanaigirane directed by T Suresh Kumar was released. Producer Shareef Muhammed clarified in a press release that no agreements have been signed with any OTT platforms regarding the release of Marco. Meanwhile, Marco has created history by becoming the first Malayalam 'A' rated film to enter the 100-crore club

Meanwhile Babu Antony after seeing Marco has this to say - hen there was no Pan Indian concept or such huge growth in social media, one of my movies also crossed the bounderies, but as remakes. The movie was called 'Poovinu Puthiya Poonthennal", made in Malayalam directed by Fasil. It was remade in Tamil ( Poovizhi Vasalile with Sathyaraj), Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Simhalese. All five language movies were hit and it became a cult film. I got the opportunity to play the villain, playing the same role in all the languages and became one of the highest paid villain in the country. It has been always a dream for me to do a big budget action movie

King of Comedy back on screen / Vidamuyurchi on Jan 30th / Coolie for August 14 th

Post from Vineeth Srinivasan has excited Jagathy aka Ambili chettan fans : The maestro of comedy is back !! Happy Birthday to the legendary Jagathy Sreekumar. Get ready to witness his iconic return in Vala as Professor Ambili, aka Uncle Lunar. The stage is set for a comeback like no other! #valathefilm #jagathysreekumar From the director of Gaganachari, Arun Chandu!

The latst reports say that Vidaamuyarchi release date is locked and said to have informed their distributors that they are getting ready to release the film on 30th January. Sources say that discussions with the production team of Hollywood film, Breakdown, and a solution is expected to arrive very soon .January end release has no holidays but the producers have only that release option as Ajith’s Good Bad and Ugly (GBF) release date has been announced. Suriya's RETRO had planned for April 10th but GBD coming on that date has made them eye May 1st as Coolie is likely to be postponed.

Coolie starring Rajinikanth and with Aamir Khan in a cameo is looking at August 14th as release date. Directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj, the film has all the potential to get North Indian audience but it looks like that Hrithik Roshan – NTR Jr’s WAR is coming on that date. This means that Coolie is at risk of losing the North audience and also that it will lose both Telugu speaking States as WAR has NTR Jr. NTR post RRR which was a big hit in North is a familiar face in North. Overseas too the biggest pull is from Hindi and Telugu audience and WAR has the advantage.

Sivakarthikeyan on Aamir Khan offer / Game Changer Tamil weak response

Sivakarthikeyan who entered the elite 4 club of Kollywood has revealed that his Bollywood debut will be with Aamir Khan and his banner. Speaking to a portal, he said that - “He (Aamir) mentioned that whenever I decide to step into Hindi films, it would be under his production banner. He also encouraged me to share any script ideas I have.”. SK is now working with A R Murgadoss who is directing Salman Khan in the film titled Sikandar. Now he has also started working in Sudha Kongara film. In between he has a film BOSS directed by Cibi Chakravarthy. Already Vijay Sethupathi has worked in Bollywood.

Game Changer Tamil print is having a weak response in USA. Only five Tamil version shows have opened in USA and rest is Telugu – Hindi. In the State, itself the distributors feel that audience response is cool and there is no buzz that is usually connected with a Shankar film. Though the cancellation of Chennai event is seen as result of Lyca v/s Shankar dispute, the reason seems to be poor response in Tamil Nadu. Shankar and Lyca has arrived at a agreement and it will be conveyed to High Court tomorrow. Tamil market is important for a Telugu film to reach the blockbuster and so also in Hindi, the media event of GC in Mumbai was a low affair. Shankar with 2.0 made a nig splash in Bollywood and in South language industries. His other films draw has been limited to Tamil and with GV, he has the chance to make a presence in two Telugu States. However, his brand is now not a draw in his home State. Rockfort Murugadoss has bought the film for Rs 25 crores.

Nayanthara Dubai holiday spoiled by Rajini film Producer/ Ajith GBD release out/- Atlee new investment

 

Atlee buys a Pickleball team and names it Bengaluru Jawans and Nayanthara who is holidaying in Dubai on board the yacht owned by actor Madhavan is said to have been issued a legal notice from Sivaji Productions for using clips from Chandramukhi in the Netflix documentary without permission.

What is a pickleball game?

Pickleball is a paddle sport that combines elements of tennis, badminton, and ping-pong using a paddle and plastic ball with holes. It is a game that is appropriate for players of all ages and skill levels. Rules for pickleball are simple, making it a great introductory sport.

The much awaited World Pickleball League is expected to see the light of day this year and the new team owners joining the tournament is filmmaker Atlee, the man behind one of the highest grossing Hindi films of 2023-- 'Jawan'.

Along with his wife Priya Atlee, the filmmaker now owns Bengaluru franchise called Bengaluru Jawans.

"We share a deep spiritual connection with Bengaluru, a city where we have been warmly embraced by the affection and support of countless fans and friends. The city’s unique charm and growing significance in our lives continue to leave a lasting impression," said Atlee in a release.

The Bengaluru Jawans team consists of Indian pickleball sensation Vrushali Thakare who is better known as Hammer Thakare for her dashing style of play. She will be joined by Jack Foster, Katerina Stewart, Trang Hyunh McClain, Marcelo Jardim, Alejandra Bobaria, Felix Grunert, Mauro Garcia.

Atlee and wide co-produced Baby John the Hindi remake of Tamil film Theri. The remake rights was bought for Rs 10 crore. Film bombed badly at box office.

Sivaji Films that produced Chandramulkhi the Tamil film starring Rajinikanth and Nayanthara has send a legal notice to the actress and OTT giant Netflix for using scenes from the film in wedding documentary. Popular actor and YouTuber Chitra Lakshman revealed this information on Monday through his channel. Earlier, actor-producer Dhanush had sued Nayanthara for Rs 10 crore for using scenes from his production venture Naanum Rowdy Dhaan. Sivaji Productions has demanded Rs 5 crores as compensation.

As Lyca the Producers off Ajith’s Vidamuyurchi  announced a postponement from this Pongal season , Mythiri Movie makers announced April 10 as the release date of Good Bad Ugly. It has Trisha as leading lady. Lyca is said to be pressuring Tamil film Federation to stall Game Changer release as Shankar has not completed Indian 3andt hey term it as an breach  of contract.

Watch : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ngvCs6DQui4

Vijay Sethupathi enters Rs 200 cr club / Viduthalai franchise makes Rs 100 cr profit

Vijay Sethupathi ( VJS)  becomes the sixth actor from Kollywood to join the 200 Crore club after Rajinikanth, Kamal Hassan, Vijay , Ajith & Siva Karthikeyan. 

Maharaja grosses ₹200 Crore worldwide as Last show in China screened today

Maharajas China collections as of yesterday night stood at ₹91.83 Crore in the Mainland and ₹ 199.56 Crore worldwide

However under Chinese rules - the minimum estimated run of the film was 78.71 Million Yuan and the State pays the difference in final collection and minimum estimated run to the movie

So this means Maharajas final collection will stand at 78.71 Million Yuan or ₹92.48 Crore

This takes the total gross to ₹ 200.21 Crore. The Film however will be unable to join the exclusive $ 11 Million Club in China - missing by just $ 206,000

Budget

Most of it combined Budget of two parts .

VJS - 20 cr for two parts

Soori - 5 cr for two parts

Manjuwarrier - 50 lakhs (Some sources saying 1 cr but I don't think so)

Rest of the cast for two parts - 10 cr

Vetrimaran - 10 cr

Illayaraja - 4 cr

Rest of the crew - 6.5 cr

Production budget (Including prints and publicity for both parts )- 24 cr

Total - 80 crs

---

Business

Non theatricals for both parts - 55 cr

Theatricals for first part - 15 cr

Theatricals for second part- 18 cr

Theatricals revenue for first part for producers

19 cr

Total returns for producer till date - 74 cr

Theatrical business

TN- Own release

Telugu states - 2 cr (MG basis)

OS (Outright ) - 3 cr

KA +KL+ ROI - 2 cr (MG basis )

Now for collections so far as of Jan 3rd

TN -41 cr gross or 21.5 cr share

KA +KL+ROI - 3.4 cr gross or 1.6 cr share

TS - 2.3 cr gross or 1.2 cr share

OS - 10 cr gross or 4.9 cr share

Final - 56.7 cr gross or 29.2 cr share

Producers compensated the loss of Karnataka - Kerala - two Telugu States 

Overall - 26 cr profit

Hence overall returns for producers by end of two parts- 100 cr

Budget - 80 cr

Profit - 20 cr

A Profit venture for all.

Now efforts to discredit Marco Hindi success by using BJP name

 Why is Marco success in Hindi belt now credited to BJP ?  Why suddenly is Marco become obnoxious to many twitter users after two weeks ?.

As collections increase after word of mouth publicity is positive for Marco’s Hindi print and many YouTube channels have started giving positive reviews and added to that Unni Mukundan’s press conference in Mumbai in chaste Hindi has come as an eye opener. No Malayalam actor has such fluency in Hindi and no one has cut ice with Bollywood media like Unni.

The growing success had prompted people like RGV to post about the film. Marco is said to be most violent film of Mollywood and not of Indian cinema. But after release, it turned out to be a Indian sensation and benchmark in Indian cinema  as far as action film is considered.

Mammootty to my knowledge is one who acted in straight Hindi films and that too as hero. Not as sidekick !. If Mammooty wanted to be an addition to a Hindi film , he could have done it but he wanted to be an integral part of it. Secondly, he was not willing to camp in Mumbai and wait for an audition or appointment with Producer’s. He told me when I conveyed to him about a big banner interested in meeting him in their office in Mumbai , he said “ Let them come and meet me. After that I will  even stay at their office”.

Now a section of media is portraying that BJP channels are behind the Marco Hindi success story and that they are saying that he is a Malayalam Superstar and all that is falsehood. Unni is a BJP man and has roots are in Gujarat. He himself in his media interactions clearly said as an introduction that he is not known outside Kerala. He made his debut with Tamil film Seedan which is a remake of Malayalam film Nanadanam. It was the debut film of Prithviraj in Mollywood. In Seedan, Dhanush played a secondary role. Latest Tamil release is Garudan.

 

Thalapathy Vijay scares Bollywood - Marco answer to Blue Sattai Maran - Samudrakanni lucky charm

 

The remake rights of Baby John was bought from Tamil film Producer Thanu for Rs 10 crores and the Tamil film Their starred Thalapathy Vijay with Samantha in the lead and directed by Atlee of Jawan fame. Baby John is an utter flop. Now Bollywood and Salman Khan fans are terrified after hearing the news that Sikandar is remake of Thalapathy Vijay’s Sarkar directed by A R Murgadoss.  Murgadoss who is coming back to Bollywood after a long gap and makers have not responded. Tamil film Producer Kalanithi Maran of Sun Pictures has not confirmed this.

After Baby John, Thalapathy Vijay has become a bad word in Bollywood. Now after Thanu said that Rs 10 crores was got for They remake , many feel that Paramount asking Rs 85 crore as remake rights for Breakdown being remade as Vidamuyurchi with Ajith is not too much.

As if an answer to Tamil film critic Blue Sattai Maran, After reigning dominance in the Indian movie market, Unni Mukundan’s latest blockbuster ‘Marco’ made with a budget of just Rs 30 crore, is heading to Korea. The producers of the movie have inked a deal with Korea’s famous Noori Pictures is distributing the film. Maran termed Marco as a cheap Korean film copy.

After Pushpa 2, yet another film is giving good moolah to theatres in North India is Marco. The Hindi dubbed version of Malayalam film Marco has been doing good business and what drove the Day 13 collections is the increase in screens for its Hindi version, which brought in Rs 1.2 Cr (Marco’s highest single-day collection for a dubbed version since its release), and the Telugu version that hit theatres on January 1, fetched Rs 1.15 Cr.

The Hindi version of the film, which is rated A for its non-stop violence and bloodletting , played 1200+ shows, with Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad leading with 224, 93 and 57 shows, respectively. The Hindi-dubbed version had also released in GCC countries on January 1 reports OTT play. On January 3, Tamil version has been released. It is first Malayalam film to do a Rs 1 crore collection in North India.

Book Samudrakanni and release film on Pongal/ Sankranti for a hit. This is new belief that Tollywood has discovered. He played Appala Naidu in Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo, which released in 2020, then came Krack in 2021, where he played the cruel and menacing Katari Krishna, and in 2024, he played Vibhishana in Hanu Man. He is now portraying the role of Ram Charan’s uncle in the film Game Changer, which is all set to release on January 10 as a Sankranti treat.

+++

Will TVK Thalaivar Vijay and SuperStar Rajinikanth attend Ram Charan Game Changer Chennai event ?

 

Will Thalapathy and Thalaivar join Ram Charan and Shankar for the Game Changer ( GC) promo event in Chennai ?. If Thalapathy joins GC event , there is a possibility of him going into a kutty story and given the fact that he heads the TVK, it would be broadside against DMK government is for sure. What if Rajini joins Thalapathy ?. It could see him talk about budding politicians and taking on the Goliath and here too it could be another kutty story . This combination could bring together the biggest ever viewership for the event and much needed publicity to get the opening.

The two actors have not given any nod to the invite. Shankar has directed Vijay and Rajinikanth. Dil Raju has proximity to both and another factor is that Mega Star Chiranjeevi is also keen that Ram Charan GC do a Pushpa 2. Chiru and Rajini are friends from Film Institute days. Apart from all this, Dil Raju’s distribution network and contacts can be of help to Vijay next and Rajini’s Coolie.

If the fans of both give support to GC, this could work wonders. Given that Ajith’s Vidamuyurchi is skipping Pongal, the only other possibility is that of Chiyaan Vikram’s Veera Dheera Sooran jumping into the fray.

The film is a political thriller. From what we get from those who saw GC in Chennai the average opinion we get is it's way better than Indian 2 , Slightly better than 2.0 I Nanban etc .

• But don't compare it to say Mudalvan or Indian or Enthiran or Gentkement or any 90s or 2000s Shankar movies. Second half is where we see Shankar brilliance film making

·         Politics game play is extremely good apparently.

·         Sj Suryah once again impressed with his acting, Srikanth gets a good meaty role. Jayaram also does well . Samuthirkarni role is very regular.

·         Songs looks good on screen

Vanangaan, Kadhalikka Neramillai  ( not confirmed yet), Ten Hours, Padai Thalaivan, Madraskaran, Tharunam,and Sumo are the Tamil films that will be be released for Pongal 2025.  Out of this Bala’s Vanangaan has the advantage.

GC censor report shows that there is no cuts for abusive language or violence excess. Liquor bottle labels shots were cut, mention of IAS officer Durga  shakti Nagpal name was changed to Suchitra Pandey. Other were technical cuts.

GC in Kerala will face Marco as opposition and Telugu version too opened yesterday to good response. In Tamil Nadu too, Marco Tamil is releasing this week.

 

Ajith fans backing Thalapathy TVK - Raju and Lyca deal over Vidamuyurchi postpone

 

In what could be a future move that could upset political calculations, Ajith fans are gearing towards backing Thalapathy Vijay's TVK. Posters have sprung up in various parts of  hennai and on bacj side of autos announced Ajith Rasikan Vijay thondan. ( Ajith fan and Vijay party worker) As Ajith is not politically inclined, Ajith fans are said to be gearing up ti support Vijay in coming polls. Similarly Vijay fans who felt orphaned as Thalapathy is said to be calling it quits after the present film under production is released, they feel that after that it is better to back Ajith the Actor. This cross connection will nolster TVK figures and at the box office it make Ajith invincible.

 Though Lyca has not announced the reason for change in release date of Vidamuyurchi, it is said that they have struck a deal with  Dil Raju the Game changer producer to ensure that the Ram   Charan film does not face a competition.  As within Telugu States, Balayya Daaku Maharaj is a big threat and Venkatesh film is just behind. Vikram’s Veera Dheera Sooran scheduled for January 26 might advance to Pongal.