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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.
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."
