The Diwali Clash Between Aadhavan and Vettaikaran


It’s official that Suriya’s Aadhavan will take on Vijay’s Vettaikaran , this Diwali!



Abirami Mega Mall’s newspaper ads appearing today (August 28), have clearly indicated that both the biggies are going to be their -“Grand Diwali Attraction”.

KARTHI REPLACES SURYA




Suriya was supposedly signed up for K V Anand's next venture. However reports say that his younger brother Karthi has now replaced Suriya. It wasn't competition but it was a fine gesture by the elder brother. Suriya's schedule is packed with dates for Singam, Raktha Charithra and an A R Murugadoss film which leaves K V Anand with no dates. So instead of waiting for Suriya to get free, he suggested that his brother would be the best choice in the given situation.

Shruthi will enter Tamil Cinema with Karthi




Kamal's daughter Shruthi who shocked entire Kollywood and Bollywood by her bikini show, will enter Kollywood by pairing with Karthi.

Initially it was said that she will pair with Madhavan. But the project was dropped and she went to hinid movie.

Now there are gossips that she will for sure come to Kollywood and will pair with Karthi.

Nakul | speaks about his future plans





Nakul, who made his debut with director Shankar's 2003 hit musical "Boys", says that he doesn't want to be labelled as a romantic hero.

"Please don't label me as a romantic hero. I want to establish myself as an actor who can do varied roles. I want my films to be different from each other. I am serious about making people happy with my movies. And I am walking towards the goal," Nakul said.

After "Boys", Nakul disappeared from the scene for a few years and resurfaced in 2008 with hit film "Kadhalil Vizhunthen", looking trimmer than ever. In the same year, he was seen in another successful film "Maasilamani".

"I got several offers after 'Boys', but I didn't rush myself. I waited patiently. It took almost four years to get the right role. Thanks to director Prasadh, I came into my own with 'Kadhalil Vizhunthen'," he said.

"I accepted the movie because I was thrilled by its story. I smelled its success immediately after listening to the script. And my guess was right. Besides, the song 'Nakka mukka' took me closer to the masses. I cannot forget this film," he said.

"I believe strongly that patience and perseverance pay off. 'Maasilamani' was another right step after 'Kadhalil Vizhunthen'," Nakul added.

In both films - "Kadhalil Vizhunthen" and "Maasilamani" - Nakul was paired with Sunaina. He says contrary to the rumours that he is dating her, the makers of "Maasilamani" roped them again because they liked their onscreen chemistry.

"They (romance reports) are baseless. Sunaina and I are friends and our screen chemistry is great. This could perhaps be the reason behind the director and producer roping us in for 'Maasilamani'. Since our chemistry is great on screen, it may look like love, but it's only acting."

Kandasamy movie reviews




Chiyaan Vikram has a winner in Kandasamy. It is pure commercial masala entertainer that strikes a fine balance between style and substance, and also has a neat message. Susi Ganeshan has constructed an engrossing action driven adventure with panache.
The film has all the trademark superhero-movie elements like flashy action scenes and eye-popping special effects. But in many ways, it is not the typical super-hero film that one imagines it to be. Well, that’s the twist in the tale which we will not reveal as it will be a spoiler.
Kandasamy opens with scenes showing ordinary people flocking to a Murugan temple which has become famous as all your wishes can be fulfilled at the temple. All those who submit their woes as petitions to Kandasamy (another name for Lord Muruga) on a piece of paper and tie it to a tree in the temple, their problems mainly financial are solved.

Soon Kandasamy (Vikram) becomes a phenomenon, a caped crusader dressed as a rooster, takes up letters of ordinary folks from the petition tree, and in a Robin Hood way provides cash and succor. The local DIG of Police (Prabhu) suspects that there is something unnatural about it and starts investigating.

Meanwhile there is this brave and daring CBI officer Kandasamy (Vikram), who is on a mission to uncover black money and illegal wealth of rich and corrupt Indians stashed in foreign banks, which he believes is responsible for all the crime in our society. And our hero has the IQ of a genius, the strength of a bull and the speed of a cheetah.

Soon he crosses swords with Pallur Paramajyoti Ponnusamy or PPP (Ashish Vidyarti), the man with a golden tooth and conducts a raid in his palatial bungalow and finds unaccounted cash and documents of various foreign deals worth over Rs 1000 crore! PPP is devastated after the raid and his only daughter Subbalakshmi (Shriya Saran) swears revenge and pretends to fall in love with the dashing IPS officer.

What is the connection between masked crusader Kandasamy and the CBI officer Kandasamy? Why is the CBI Joint Director Krishna Rao (Telugu actor Krishna) protecting Mr. Kandasamy? Can the villains- PPP, Rajmohan of RMG group, and Mexican Pitchumani (Alex) expose and bring Kandasamy to trial? Will the DIG succeed in proving that Kandasamy is no God? The underlining message in the film is, “Money (read black) is the root cause of all evil”.

Don’t ask the answers to all these questions, the idea is to have a chill out time. Watch the action which is fast paced even though slightly long ( 3 hours 12 minutes), chew on your popcorn as the adrenaline goes pumping. The rooster Kandasamy introduction scene where he comes crashing through the dome of a police station, and plays around with the bad comic cop (Mansoor Ali Khan) is terrific.

But the highlight is Kandasamy dressed as a woman, a la Aishwarya Rai and teaching Charly and Mayilsamy a fitting lesson is hilarious. The verbal foreplay between the quarrelsome Kandasamy and Subbalakshmi is quite ticklish, and Kandasamy’s blindfolded action scenes in Mexico are stunning.

Technically the film is chic with slick production values. The innovative camera angles and lighting of cinematographer NK Ekambaram makes the film visually stunning. He has given a different colour tone to the Mexico episode of the film. Thotta Tharini’s set designs are fabulous, the luxury bedroom of the heroine and the interior of the plush bus used as villain’s hide out is fantastic. The VFX work of Movinstilz makes it picture perfect, the night effect scenes especially the fight scene in the corn field.

Music of Devi Sri Prasad blends with the mood of the film. Two of the six songs, Excuse me Mr.Kandasamy… and Yen Peru Meenakumari have been well picturised and lavishly shot. There is grandeur and richness in every shot in the film, no wonder it took two years to complete. Susy Ganeshan who does a cameo in the film joins the big league of directors in Tamil for directing an adventurous film with an underlying message.

But the film indubitably belongs to Vikram and he rocks. He is mesmerizing and has given an extra dimension to the characters he plays in the film and steers it to the winning post. There are very few people in Indian cinema who can do the larger-than-life fantasy character as easily as Vikram.

Shriya sizzles throughout and carries the glamorous role with élan and the attitude. Prabhu fits the role of an investigative cop, while the villains are a bit clichéd. Some of the film’s most enjoyable moments are Vadivel‘s comedy track as Thengakadai Thenappan. The scene where Prabhu takes him to the police station for questioning and uses water cannon is a scream!

In short, Kandasamy is a roller coaster ride of pure unadulterated masala. So go ahead, make your matinee

Soundarya to remake Kannada film Circus?



Rajinikanth, CEO of the production company Ocher Studios, who is working ovrtime on her debut directorial Sultan – The Warrior, seems to have been fascinated with Kannada Golden star Ganesh's recent film Circus!

Soundarya has reportedly approached her brother-in-law Dhanush to remake the film in Tamil. But the actor hasn’t cotnfirmed his interest as he is occupied with 3-4 projects to be shot simultaneously, it is heard.

Directed by Dayal Padmanabhan, Circus revolves around the foolish and risky adventures of five friends, headed by prankster Dhanush (Ganesh). The fun loving boys live in a railway colony and the railway station is their regular meeting point. Dhanush’s childhood friend Priya (Archana) is in love with him, but he is not interested in her.

Three of Ganesh’s friends try to play a trick to mar the reputation of a train that runs between Bangalore and Mysore. But it leads to a dangerous situation and they do not know how to solve it. Using his intelligence and courage, Ganesh bails out his friends from the tricky situation. In the process, he also finds that a terrorist group hatched a plan to place an explosive on another train, defuses it and emerges a hero.

Abhiyum Naanum goes to Kannada




Director Radha Mohan's critically acclaimed Tamil film Abhiyum Naanum (2008), starring Trisha, Prakashraj and Prithviraj in the lead roles, will be remade in Kannada under the direction of actor Prakashraj, who produced the Tamil version.

According to sources, the Kannada version will have Golden girl Ramya playing the role of Trisha in the original and Prakashraj in the role of her father. The movie is not titled yet. The selection of other cast members is presently going on.

Inspired by the English movie Father of The Bride, Abhiyum Naanum was released in Telugu as Akasamantha in March.

Sindhu Menon in Eeram




Popular South Indian actress Sindhu Menon, who debuted as a child artist with Kannada film Rashmi (1994) and emerged as heroine at age13 with Prema Prema Prema (1999) followed by many films in all South Indian languages, will play a key role in ace director Shankar's prestigious Eeram, being directed by his assistant Arivazhagan.

Produced under the banner of S Pictures, Eeram will have Sindhu Menon in different appearances, sources said. The audio of the film was recently launched by superstar Rajinikanth along with director Sasikumar. The songs are being widely appreciated by the public and already rocking the FM charts.

Released under the Think Music label, music is composed by S. Thaman, who composed the music for the recent Ravi Teja starrer Kick (Telugu) and Sindhanai Sei (Tamil). Starring Nandhaa, Aathi and Sindhu Menon in the lead roles, Eeram is expected to grace screens in September.

Lakshmi Rai: Mammootty's favourite?




Popular South Indian actress Lakshmi Rai, who has grabbed the No. 1 position among Malayalam heroines after the mega-blockbuster To Harihar Nagar, seems to be the favourite heroine of Malayalam super star Mammootty!

After romancing Mammootty in two films (super hit Annan Thambi and average Parunthu), Lakshmi Rai will now be his heroine for the third time in director Shafi's forthcoming action comedy Chattambinadu, scripted by Benny P. Nayarambalam.

Starring Mammootty in the role of Veerendra Mallaya, a Karnataka-based Malayalee estate owner with a Kannada accent, the film will start rolling on September 9 in and around Pollachi. Produced by Mammootty's recently-launched production company Play House, Chattambinadu will a Christmas release.

LTTE funded Rajinikanth films?



While the sources for funding movies remains a great headache for the authorities, mainly because many sources remain unknown, a Sri Lankan minister alleged on Thursday that some movies by South Indian superstar Rajinikanth (Kuselan and initial stages of Robot, which was later bought by Sun Films from Ayngaran and renamed Enthiran) were funded by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

"The money was not sent directly. Millions of US dollars were given to a London-based Tamilian. He was asked to produce Tamil films in Chennai with top stars like Rajinikanth," Resettlement and Disaster Relief Services Minister Abdul Rishad Bathiudeen told a leading newspaper. He also said that "the aging super star received the blood money", adding that he was paid "lavishly" without elaborating how much money was paid.

Actor Rajinikanth, who is currently in Chennai shooting for Endhiran, chose not to respond to the statement. His public relations officer said the actor, who was informed of this, did not wish to make any comments.

Meanwhile, the Tamil film industry has sharply criticized the Sri Lankan minister's statements. Condemning the remarks, Ramanarayanan, president of Tamil Nadu Producers’ Council, reportedly said: "There’s no need for LTTE to fund a Rajinikanth film indirectly through anyone. And Rajinikanth has no necessity to take up a project financed this way. There are a lot of producers here waiting to do a film with him and he will not participate in such a project. Whoever has claimed it would have done so for cheap publicity, because they know anything about Rajinikanth makes its way to the headlines."

Dhanush to remake Maapillai



Dhanush’s next film is a remake of the 1989 super hit Rajinikanth film Maapillai with the same title.

The film, (often referred to as Padikkathavan-2) is going to be directed by Suraaj and produced by Hitesh Jabak.

Says Dhanush: “It is the only film of Rajinikanth that I always wanted to remake. I know that remaking old classics is not easy and by doing so, we are not disrespecting them. There are hundreds of youngsters who have not seen the old movie. If the same story is presented in a different format with improved technology, it will appeal to them”.

The buzz is that Suraaj is making the necessary changes to suit today’s youth audiences with more comedy. The hunt for the characters made memorable in the original by Srividya and Amala, are in full swing.

The basic concept of the film is based on Shakespeare’s immortal play “Taming of the Shrew”, which has a universal appeal, if presented well.

Dhanush also adds that, Maapillai will be the last and only film which he will be remaking from the Rajinikanth library of old classic..

Unnaipol Oruvan only in September!



It looks like Kamal Hassan will not be able to keep to his original plans of releasing his eagerly awaited Unnaipol Oruvan on August 12.

His fans wanted it as the date has a significance- 50 years back as a child artist Kamal’s first film Kalathur Kannamma was released on August 12, 1959!

The dubbing of Unnaipol Oruvan is going on and it looks like it will take another fortnight before the first copy would be ready.

Then the sales of the film has to start and it looks like the film will make it to the theatres only in the third week of September.

Another important factor was that Ramzan Fasting period is to start on August 21 and will go up to September 17, during which collections will take a big dip especially in Malabar area in Kerala and Nizam territory in Andhra.

And the film’s Tamil Version has Kerala’s biggest star Mohanlal, whose role in the Telugu version is being done by superstar Venkatesh. Both of them have advised Kamal to release the film only after the Noyambu (Fasting) period.

K.V Anand to direct Ajit’s 50th film




The Kollywood grapevine is abuzz that K.V Anand is going to direct Ajit for his 50th Golden Jubilee film!

The film a big budget action entertainer is going to be produced by the leading production house AGS Entertainment.

Ajit was back in Chennai from Malaysia where he was shooting for Asal on Saturday. He will be meeting Anand later in the week to discuss the proposal and script.

Meanwhile Anand has to wait for over a year before he can start his next film with Suriya. The actor by the time will complete Hari’s Singam, Ram Gopal Varma’s Hindi film where he is playing a cameo, and will be half way through A.R Murgadoss’s film.

So during this one year break, Anand can do Ajit’s film and make his 50th film memorable. Ajit and Anand would be a deadly combination of style, class and total entertainment.

Mani to start climax shoot of Raavan!




Mani Ratnam is planning to shoot the climax of his magnum opus Raavan in his favourite Chalakudy forest locations from July 16.

The buzz is that the artists who are doing this tri-lingual in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu mainly Abhishek Bachchan, Vikram and Aishwarya Rai have told the director that they have already given him over 100 days, and they cannot spare any further dates.

Mani and his buddy cameraman Santosh Sivan is planning to shoot the climax for the next 45 days in Chalakudy and Mysore forest areas. They have to shoot deep inside forest areas, for which permissions have to be granted by the respective state governments.

Added to that a few helicopter scenes inside forest areas have to be shot, for which special permission have to be obtained. Let us hope that Mani is successful in his mission to complete Raavan, this time.

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