In a recent interview to Ananda Vikatan, Gautam Menon talks about Vaaranam Aayiram in length. Vaaranam Aaayiram is rumored to have the storyline of Forrest Gump. This is Oscar Ravichandran's second big movie of the year after Kamal's Dasavatharam. The movie's website is almost ready to go.

Gautam's calls Vaaranm Aayiram as a man's saga and he is appreciative of Surya's effort in the film. The interview doesn't end there. When the interviewer asks if he is Surya's director, Gautam blasts kollywood heroes for dicatating terms to directors. He accepts that Sarathkumar in Pachaikilli Muthucharam was a bad choice.

This is what he has to say about Vijay -

இன்னும் சில ஹீரோக்கள் பொழுதுபோகலைன்னா கதை கேட்கக் கூப்பிடுறாங்க. நான் கதை சொல்லி முடிச்சதும், அவங்க எதிர்பார்ப்பு நான் சொன்ன கதைக்கு எதிர்திசையில் இருக்கு. விஜய்கிட்டே கதை சொல்லப்போனேன். அவ்வளவு அமைதியாக, எந்த எதிர்க் கேள்வியும் இல்லாம கதை கேட்டார். சொல்லி முடிச்சதும் 'அருமையா இருக்கு. உங்களோட வேலை பார்க்கிறதில் ஆர்வமா இருக்கேன். இந்த டிவிடிக்களைப் பாருங்க. இதில் உள்ள கமர்ஷியல் அம்சங்களை உங்க கதையில் கண்டிப்பா சேருங்க'னு அவர் கொடுத்த டிவிடிக்களை வெளியே வந்து பார்த்தேன். 'திருப்பாச்சி', 'சிவகாசி' டிவிடிதான் அது. என்னத்தைச் சொல்ல..!

BTW, Gautam's next film is with Ajith. Should that say something about this comment ?

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[Click image for a bigger view]

Thanks to Anoop for de-constructing the trailer.

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Flying cars, Kudumi mama, Mottai paati, Daler Mehndi, Apollo 13 and the Oval office. It's an all encompassing, a very shankar-like, trailer. Hurray !!

Himesh sure did his job pretty well, atleast in this trailer. I'm sure Rahman and Kamal, mutually missed each other.

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From Kamal's recent interview -

With an ambitious storyline featuring 10 characters, ‘Dasavatharam’ will have contemporaneous messages encompassing such concerns as the environment, science and faith. “Dasavatharam has a lot of Al Gore in it, and also Ramanujar,” he says.

Describing the film as “honest to the core,” Kamal says he has explored religion at length. “Are we going to continue using the same blunt tool…religion,” he asks.

Is there a strong story line that elevates it from other blockbusters that we have seen in recent times? “For one, there are 10 characters, ranging in scope from a Ramanujar and a Galileo to a particle physicist. Computer graphics bring to life many of the scenes.” ‘Dasavatharam’ has convinced him that audiences were ready for good film stories even a decade earlier.

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Writer Sujatha's dialogues on science of love from Mani Ratnam's Aayitha Ezhuthu.

And yes, the video was recorded from dvd using the flip video camcorder and runs from flickr. Didn't you know ?

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While I'm aware of the limitations that come along with Rajini in dance sequences, I still think Shankar didn't do a good job in picturizing this peppy tune of Rahman. Not just that but Rahman lent his voice for this cool number and it had zero creativity.

While listening to this number on the earphone, I particularly enjoy Rahman modulation while he sings,"Naan Naan Naan Superman Thaan" line. Unfortunately, it wasn't used too well in the movie. Shankar would have been better off making a complete animated song(ofcourse there is this new found graphics studio by Aishwarya which can be profited) transorming Rajini from Billa / Ranga / Baasha to Superman and Spiderman. Would have proved to be a great curtain raiser to Rajini's Sultan. Something that Kamalhassan tried briefly in Aalavandhaan.

Instead of doing something like that, Shankar and team resorted to doing silly gimmicks with the gun, which Shankar himself had earlier experimented in Mukkala Muqabla song. Pathetic.

Just when I typed Aalavandhaan, I realized this was a Rajini blogpost, following a Kamal one. And this sequence of Rajini blogpost following a Kamal one or viceversa has been happening on this blog for quite sometime. And honestly, sathiyama, I didn't realize it until now. Man, there seems to be a ghost residing in this blog. Run.....

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That is what the newspapers would read the next day, after the launch of Kamal's Dasavatharam audio album, when Jackie Chan himself will be present to felicitate the occasion. Jackie Chan has a huge fan following in Tamil Nadu and so expect long lines. Its going to be a doorbuster deal at Nehru stadium to get to see the duo.

Galatta reports, that Jackie Chan was said to be "overwhelmed by Kamal’s amazing performance, Chan is believed to have agreed immediately to the proposal".

Kamal adds to the already growing hype - "It is the biggest project I've done. It is the longet project I've done and its the hardest project I've done."

More about Jackie Chan's attendance-

In addition, he also organized a party in Hong Kong to announce his confirmation. The Dasavatharam audio launch is all set to become a gala affair, one of the biggest the Indian film industry has ever seen. Already, Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai and ‘Mega Star’ Chiranjeevi have agreed to grace the function. The audio launch will be held in Chennai’s Nehru Stadium in the second week of March.

Everything seems perfect. Kamal is excited. KS Ravi Kumar is excited. Sujatha has always been excited about Dasavatharam. But my only bother is Himesh Reshammiya. Let's see how he fares on this one.

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Jayabharathi, the director of famous 70's flick Kudisai, who changed some perspectives for Tamil Cinema, cries over spilled milk. In his recent interview to Vikatan, he says that over the last couple of decades, he has been a believer of good Tamil cinema, but it hasn't reaped many fruits for him.

Having approached more than dozen tamil cinema 'artists' including Vadivelu, Vivek, Prakashraj and Rajinikanth, he hasn't had success converting those meetings into offer for a film.

I've haven't watched Kudisai but I have come across few people(artsy types) swearing on the film to be a one of the few modern Tamil films. Every two months, in Vikatan or Kumudam, there is an old Tamil Cinema technician, a director or crew member, cribs about being left behind with no money to run his life. Its easy to classify him as a loser but there is another angle to it. Irrespective of who cribs about it, the fact remains that cinema isn't just about art, even in the past. What fuels the handful of good Tamil cinema every year, are those masala flicks that make tons of money.

It's business guys. Not just some dream sequence like the song, Madai Thiranthu Thaavum Nadhi Alai Naan(one of my all-time favorites). Dreams of good cinema end up being painful and it hurts. It even ruins ones career. Meet Mr. Jayabharathi -

நல்ல சினிமாவின் மீது கவனம் படரப் பேசுகிறாரே என்று பிரகாஷ்ராஜைத் தேடிப் போனேன். 'வாழ்க்கை யின் வளமான பக்கங்கள் இன்னும் மீதமிருக்கிறது' என நம்பிக்கை வரும்படி ஏதேதோ பேசினார். ஆனால், இன்றுவரை அவரின் பேச்சுக்கள் எதுவும் உயிர்பெற வில்லை. அதன்பின் அவரைத் தொடர்புகொள்ளக்கூட முடியவில்லை. இன்றைக்கு ஆபத்பாந்தவர்கள் எனப் பேசப்படுகிற சாய்மீராவிலும், கிணற்றுக்குள் போட்ட கல் மாதிரிதான். என்னால் 60 லட்சம் ரூபாயில் அருமையான படத்தைத் தர முடியும். அதிகப் பணம் வேண்டாத, அதேசமயம் படுஇயல்பாக நடிக்கிற நடிகர் களும் என் வசம் இருக்கிறார்கள். கதவுகளும் ஏகமாக இருக்கின்றன. ஆனால், ஒன்றும் திறக்கிறபாடாகக் காணோம்!

தமிழ் சினிமாவின் மேலான படங்களில் என்னை ஈடுபடுத்திக்கொண்டது குற்றமா? இத்தகைய வெறுமை யான சூழ்நிலையில் நான் செய்ய வேண்டியது என்ன? தினமும் அவசியமான வேளைகளில் சாப்பிட வேண்டி யிருக்கிறது. சென்னையின் புறநகரில் வசித்தாலும், மாதம் தவறாமல் வாடகை கொடுக்க வேண்டியிருக்கிறது. உங்களிடம் நான் ஒன்றே ஒன்றுதான் கேட்கிறேன்... என் திறமையைப் பயன்படுத்த எனக்கு ஒரு படம் கொடுங்கள்; அல்லது, பிழைத்துக்கிடக்க ஏதாவது வேலை கொடுங்கள்!''

And those lines from Madai Thiranthu, "இசைக்கென இசைகின்ற ரசிகர்கள் ராஜ்ஜியம்" is a bloody myth, dude.

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When I first read that Kunal committed suicide, I thought that someone thoughtful will create a connection to Monal's suicide. Well, I wasn't trying to be cynical because it did happen. Kunal and Monal(Simran's sister) acted together in the movie Paarvai Ondre Pothumey.

Indiglitz sports filmbuffs in-house and they quickly made a connection.

It is sheer coincidence that the heroine of the film ‘Paarvai Onre Pothumey’ Monal too had committed suicide.

Now that someone kick-started the rumor head, I would expect the astrologers union to jump in an take-over from here. They can potentially analyze the chemistry between Kunal and Monal. Incidentally(or spiritually) Kunal and Monal have the 'nal' as the ending syllable of their first name. Numerology can be used here. Since they both came from the north west of Chennai, astrology of directions can be put to vigorous analysis.

The IT experts can do data mining of all the celebrities who have commited sucides in the last few years and can publish white papers declaring the resulting pattern matches and suprising 'findings'.

Media, Enjoy the celebrity's death.

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Billa was painful. Excruciatingly. Even the best guy to do this remake job, Vishnuvardhan, failed, big time. With Billa, Ajith has exhausted all his options. What's left ?

Go back to the drawing board(if there is one), and he should rethink his options. He should be looking at his career and verify his career highs. Aasai, Kathal Kottai, Kadhal Mannan, Vaali and Dheena. The rest of his films are pure crap or moderately interesting films. All the above films are major hits, with due credits to the director/story/screenplay. Isn't it time to get a class in acting(the one that includes dialogue delivery) ? Seriously, no jokes.

The only other way, Ajith can pick up his career is comparing himself to Vijay, which is invariably happening, thanks to the fan clubs. But this wouldn't be fruitful to him. Why ?

Vijay's major success stems from the fact that he has accepted his limitations and started to tread on the path that has been laid by yester year heroes with similar limitations. Vijay should thank Rajini for being a veteran on this route. And he does.

Can Ajith pick-up the heroic path of Vijay. NO. Why ? Because heroism doesn't happen. One has to create it. Not a single scene of Billa, Ajith was trying to be heroic, including the scene where Ajith escapes from the bridge by diving down. There isn't a movie where I've seen Ajith as heroic as Vijay. And that's why he shouldn't be compared to Vijay.

Part of Ajith's success comes from his cool personality, lover-boy image, a typical middle-class south indian boy. A good family drama, a neat down-to earth comedy film can do the magic. There are hundreds of stories and tons of directors waiting for Ajith to make this happen. And Ajith has been quite successful to pick up fresh talent. It's just that he has shunned them for some time now.

There are two directors whom I really think can give Ajith a break provided Ajith changes his mindset and starts to concentrate on his areas of improvement. Not Mani Ratnam. Not Shankar. Go Figure.

Previous Ajith Kumar Rant.

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It is almost certain that India’s most sought after actress Aishwarya Rai Bachchan has signed the mega movie ‘Robot' directed by Shankar. Aishwarya Rai will play the lead role as the pair to India’s biggest superstar Rajinikanth.

As we have mentioned earlier, Rajinikanth has been trying to cast the beauty queen in his film right from the days of ‘Padayappa’. His dream to cast her has finally come true in the biggest movie of his career.

Just the last paragraph is enough to put down the fame of Super Star. Rajini should sue Indiaglitz for this. Read some more juice here. It's funny !!

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India Glitz is reporting that someone has unearthed a trailer of Kamal's dream project Marudhanayagam. And doesn't that seem like a joke. Yes, because the you tube generation found the trailer, more than a year back and it has been written and talked about in every single cinema blog. Suresh even went one step ahead of scoring a BGM for this muted trailer.

Now, read the joke, again -

When everyone is talking about Kamal Haasan’s upcoming project, someone has unearthed the trailer of Kamal’s dream project ‘Marudanayagam’ and put it in a website that provides free video shows.

The trailer is amazing, to say the least. The two minute video shows what is in store for us if the dream movie of Kamal gets a chance to take off. It shows a thrilling action scene set in the period of British rule in India. Another scene, in which an eagle tries to eat the flesh of the protagonist, is incredible. The scenes have the grandeur that stuns you instantly. The visuals are astonishing.

The film, if you go by the trailer, has the potential to become a real treat to those who love to see the movies with substance. The awesome visuals promise you that the movie would come out as an entertainer with an outstanding content.

Yeah !! right.

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The Pongal special interview with Director Shankar on Vijay TV was classy. Infact, its the best ever Shankar interview on any media. Shankar as usual was down-to-earth, straight and honest in replying to Gopinath's questions. Gopinath known for his well researched questions, did a fine job of bringing Shankar to a comfortable state where the interview just rushed through like well crafted flick.

Though it was rehash of what Shankar had already written his auto-biography, Sankar Muthal Shankar Varai(in Kumudam), it was good to see him elaborate on the films he worked before making his first film, Gentleman.

The interview brought out the best from Shankar, his humor, his approach to films and surprisingly, his (non-existetent) views on Tamil Cinema. Shankar did agree that Sujatha's dialogue(s) added to the success of his films and also gave distinct voices for his characters.

I've enjoyed most of Shankar's films except the recent ones like Sivaji and Anniyan. And I've always seen Shankar as a director who makes films for his audience and not just for himself. They have mostly been pedestrian fantasy flicks but sometimes end as a nonsensical film like Sivaji, where the screenplay went off-track and wasn't in his control.

BTW, if you can get a hand on the video of this interview, its a must watch.

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Bachelor of Sultan Service.

Atleast the trailer has more creativity than the entire BOSS flick. Yo Rahman !!.

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And what a robo-coaster it has been. Atleast I'm happy that its finally making it to the screen. If only Shankar gives up his vigilante genre, if only Rajini stops his vishk-vishk, if only Rahman gets back to his Thiruda Thiruda BGMs and if only Sujatha scripts a modern day science fiction, what a film this can become.

As of now, no one knows the story yet and it is certainly not Sujatha's Enn Iniya Iyandhira. But then who wouldn't love to speculate.

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Even after KSR failed to capture the magic of Rahman in Godfather aka Varalaru, Rahman plays his keyboard, once more for him.

This one also has Ajith starring in 4 roles. We had enough of Ajith in Varalaru with pathetic dialogue delivery and awfully bad characterization. I wish this one proves to be better than the previous attempt.

P.S - And as you read in the comments, this movie is a hoax and this post, inane !!

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From wikipedia -

A montage sequence is a technique in film editing in which a series of short shots is edited into a sequence to condense narrative. It is usually used to advance the story as a whole (often to suggest the passage of time), rather than to create symbolic meaning as it does in Soviet montage theory. In many cases, a song plays in the background to enhance the mood or reinforce the message being conveyed.

I guess this part of the Wiki entry was written by an Indian - a song plays in the background to enhance the mood or reinforce the message being conveyed. That's typical bollywood style stuff.

And we have all seen montages before we even realized it as one. An easy example of montage would be Rajinikanth's transformation from the milkman to a Five Star Hotel owner in Annamalai.

I've always loved montages. I don't know why but I just love them. I even think, in slight extreme that an entire film could be made effectively just through montages. Akira Kurosawa is known for making montages into popular art.

Yesterday, while traveling through the Seattle Tunnel, I was thinking of making a montage of the entire tunnel route. I don’t even have a camera to start with and that's a different topic. But it led me to think of montages in Tamil cinema. When thinking about montages in kollywood that were made to the level of world cinema, only two of them struck me instantly. And that's because they were elegantly made. Both of them cannot be called montages theoretically as they don't help move the plot too much.

The first one is truly world class. Appu Kamal trying to hang himself and Sri Vidya, his mother talking to him at a circus tent. The camera pans across the room and cuts frequently and disolves into close-ups and long shots. It may not be as vivid as I say here but it was a great one.

The second was a shorter one in Priyadarshan's Snehithiye. I vaguely remember the context but on a dramatic scene, the shot collapses to a different scene where the girl recalls cycling with Jothinka on a lush green park.

Both these scenes had great BGM and was strikingly well made. Mudhal Mariyadhai had some nice montages but can't recollect any particular one. Should anyone re-collect other nice montages in Tamil cinema, there is a comment box right below.

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Who ? What ? When ?

Congrats Susi !!

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and also Shankar's denim. No Brainer !!

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From the official site - A unique story of a unique individual. Motivated and driven, a go-getter. Like Vaaranamaayiram, the strength of a thousand elephants – strong of mind and body. Shooting starts December 2006.

Yeah, Dec 2006. Atleast that's what the official website says. We know it started long after that. But it is slated to release for the pongal of 2008.

After a much derailed effort, Pachaikilli Muthucharam, Gautham Menon goes back to his legendary hero, Surya. And ofcourse, it's his same old team except for the cinematographer. Sethu fame R. Ratnavelu takes on the lens department and this is the fourth change of cinematographer for Gautham. After RD Rajasekhar in Kakkha Kakkha, it was Ravi Varman in Vettaiyaadu Villaiyaadu and for Pachaikilli Muthucharam it was Arvind Krishna for Selvaraghavan's camp. Now Ratnavelu comes from the Bala camp and is known for his realistic cinematography.

Vaaranam Aayiram is a great title for the movie and there should be a sub-text to it, other than the obvious strength-of-thousand-elephants message.

In Nov 2006, Sify reported that the movie was named Udal Porul Aavi and it was gossiped to be a super natural thriller(!!). The wiki page states that this could be kodambakkam's version of Forrest Gump. Hopefully Gautham didn't gulp vodka on the rocks before watching Hrithik's Krrish and Hank's Forrest Gump, back to back. Good Luck !!

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I admit, I've been excessively obsessed with this song. Partly because I think Selvaraghavan made a crappy video of a cool song. The camera and Ravi Krishna eyes are fixated on Sonia's bosom and I think thats a cheap thing to do, given the realistic lyrics and a great rhythm.

I propose someone to re-shoot it and make a pretty good video. Maybe with available resources, I would even re-shoot it myself at Seattle and edit it using Final Cut . Imagine this, as the electric guitar plays, a tall desi guy with a hooded black t-shirt, the mountain ranges on the backdrop, walks on a bridge while its raining. Cut it to a mall, a desi girl with her American teenage friends, walking past this chap with a wink in her eye, eating baskin robbins. Cut back, to the raining bridge. Cut again to wide angle shot, the guy walking on the alki beach with a backdrop of seattle downtown. I'm sure it will do justice to Yuvan's cool beat. Some day...

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On Mani Ratnam's Guru -

I have scripted the first 20 scenes of Guru. Mani bought me a ticket and asked me to go to England, where my sister lives. He sent me blank paper and some ideas, so it was a paid holiday. Mani grew up in the city, whereas I am from a small village even though my family was full of lawyers. I went to a government school and know the nuances of village life better. Guru is a village film in the beginning, before it shifts to the city.

On working with Mani Ratnam -

Mani wanted me to work in Anjali, but he thought even that wasn't good enough for me. He wanted to have something substantial to cast me. I would like to be directed by Mani Ratnam but, of course, it is not a big deal. I know the man. I think Balachander will make me act better. Mani's characters will be good but, when it comes to performance, I think Balachander is even better; or, for that matter, Bharati Raja, Mahendran or Kranti Kumar. Mani has considered me for many of his films -- Mouna Ragam, Nayagan (for the daughter's role). He is a good director -- he does not need a co-director. He just needs help with writing so he can concentrate on the making. I wrote the dialogues for Iruvar.

Read more from the Rediff's interview with Suhasini Maniratnam.

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Sujatha details his friendship with Balu Mahendra in a recent Ambalam article, Baluvin Kanaakaalam. Very importantly he mentions two things about Balu Mahendra's Kathai Neram serial.

Those who had watched Kathai Neram can vouch that it was one of the best serial ever made for television. Each episode was a seperate shortstory. And as Sujatha says it was a perfect example of adapting a shortstory for the screen. He also goes on to say that Balu Mahendra was able to tell a shortstory in 20 minutes without making it embarassingly loud or terribly boring. And as someone who saw most of those episodes, I have to say that Sujatha's words aren't an exaggeration.

Sa.Kandasaamy's Tholaindhu Ponavargal was my other favorite serial. If I could re-collect it right, it was broadcasted on Thursdays from 10 - 10:30 pm. In Channel 2. Remember, Channel 2 of DD ?

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[Source - Vikatan]

Usualy a quiet guy, PC Sreeram, in this small interview to Vikatan, actually talks.

And to my joy(!!), he also reflects his worries on the information overload thats prevalent in the contemporary society. Boy, I'm just about too convinced that information overload should be curbed. Starting from this blog.

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Do you see Vijay here ? I see Prabhu Deva.

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Guru's first poster from Tamil Pakkam. Seems pretty original. And that's a nice font to write my name !!

P.S - Nitin calls it a spoof. He is probably right[scroll down to october month of the calendar].

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Kamal Hassan's shortstory in Vikatan[28 May 2006] named, Anayaa Neruppu, is a dazzling sample of his story-telling skills. I'm not hinting the story. But it's a class apart. No jokes. Tell me if you weren't amazed.

P.S - I read it for the second and third time. I'm still amazed. Much more than the first time. How could he ever think of this dimension, from a story that's so common. Every single sentence has been crafted after much thought. Brilliant. I'm not going ga-ga because it's Kamal. For a short story, this is one helluva trip.

P.P.S - Just came back after watching the Da Vinci Code. It did strike me that Kamal just explained, in this story, how Dan Brown managed a Da Vinci Code. This story is a sort of mini Da Vinci Code on Hinduism.

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[Source - Vikatan]

That was Simbhu shouting.

Vikatan reports that Simbhu and Nayanthaara are head-over-heels in love. And Simbhu's naturally vivacious personality is making him more possesive towards Nayanthaara, resulting in missed film chances and financial hiccups for the Vallavan team. The report also speculates that Simbhu blocked Nayan's car near Vadapalani Ram theatre and asked forced her to get into it. Thoda !!

Here's the background. The Overaa Illa kiss generated intial publicity for the Vallavan movie. A year after that, looks like the producers want to get going with the film. The report says the movie is already sold for 8 crores and now the distributors have to get it back. Given a year of delay in releasing the movie, the post-production build-up is quintessential to generate hype. It seems to me that this Simbhu - Nayan love matter is a well staged hype, a marketing effort in boosting Vallavan's release.

Leave alone all that, here is the punch. Vikatan also reports that Simbu took the entire footage of Vallavan to edit it in his house. We don't know its true but this is just enough to reduce all the hype surronding the film.

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Usual Stuff - For starters, guess the movie and the sequence. There is a clue available in every(well, mostly) kollywood car quiz. This is important - If you are planning to guess the answer, don't open the comments box and spoil the fun yourself. Once you have guessed go straight ahead and comment it without looking for answers.

Past Cars - 1, 2, 3 & 4.

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[விகடன்]

போஸ் எல்லாம் சூப்பரா கீது. படம் எப்போ தல !!

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Sify reports[Via Praveen / Vijay] -

Now Vetayadu Vilayadu one of the most awaited films of 2006 will release on June 2 or 9 after Kamal comes back from US and completes the dubbing work for the second half of the film.

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50 - 50 chances here. Pretty easy sometimes but if you haven't seen this carefully when you watched the movie this could be pretty tough. I know this kinda becomes like Google-Da Vinci code contest but play along and let's see where it takes us.

For starters, guess the movie and the sequence. There is a clue available in every(well, mostly) kollywood car quiz. This is important - If you are planning to guess the answer, don't open the comments box and spoil the fun yourself. Once you have guessed go straight ahead and comment it. After all some wrong answers are more fun than the correct ones.

Past Cars - 1, 2 & 3.

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This one should be pretty easy. Still let's go with it. Guess the movie and the sequence.

Past Cars - 1 & 2.

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Sudish has the uncut version of his interview with Gautam Menon. Gautam Menon talks abuot Vettaiyadu Vilaiyadu, his next flick Silandhi and ofcourse the Kamal.

Something that he said in the interiview intrigues me. Gautam says that he has lost weight recently. Many others including Yuhi Sethu, Ramesh Arvind, KS Ravikumar, Kiran and so on have lost weight while working with Kamal Hassan. Yuhi actually said that it was because Kamal literally forced him to have some healthy food during the shoot of Panchathanthiram that brought down his weight down. Or is it because he is such a tough task master that people are losing weight nervously. I know i'm joking here but that was quite an observation. Agree ?

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This is a similar kollywood car quiz just like the previous one. No changes are made to the image. It's just how the image appears on-screen and that is a clue.

Guess the movie and the sequence.

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the movie and the sequence. Just tweaked the pic a little bit to distract you.

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From Pudhupettai, Kokki Kumaru is now online.

Expect some bad graphics which requires you to use the knife, at places. Yeah, that's a clue.

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[Source - Vikatan]

Lingusamy talks to Vikatan on his new venture Bheema, starring Vikram, Trisha. Add Nana Patekar for the spice. Vikatan's article also has a nice picture of Vikram with a gun, sitting on a wall.

Glance the picture above, once more. A tough bike, a tougher guy and a sweet chick. Do you smell something ? Yeah, underworld. Lingusamy says Bheema is based on the Chennai underworld. With AM Ratnam as producer and a technical crew which includes Harris Jayaraj and Rd Rajasekar, Bheema would be a typical lingusamy entertainer.

BTW, do you also see what I see ? Vikram and Trisha as Kamal and Amala.

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[Source - Vikatan]

Only time has to say if there is a histoical value for this picture.

Recently vikatan did a nice job of bringing Vijay and Vikram together, for an interview. Having studied in Loyola, both bragged and bragged about it. Would have been more fun if they only pulled in Vijay's class collegemate at Loyola, Surya.

How I wish they did a Kamal - Rajini interview like this, some 20 years back. By now, that interview would have become a kodambakkam treasure. There must be one. Just that we don't have our hands on it.

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Pick-up the key and unlock the hunter. He is all set to find his new buick. Good cop.

Via Keerthi.

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Filled with tight close-ups and trolley shots, the 5 minute sequence where Deva - Surya meet Arvind Swamy, is probably one of the best edited scenes in kollywood. The broad view of Arvind Swamy's office is never shown until the conflict happens. Until then the camera just captures the emotions on the faces. As the trolley moves and the camera comes behind someone it cuts surprisingly to another face. May seem to be an old technique now but then it was so new.

A true team effort from the cast, Mani Ratnam, Suresh Urs and Santhosh Sivan. Illayaraja seems to have provided ample support with a perfect silence during the close-ups. Classy.

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[Image Courtesy - IndiaGlitz - SR Plus launch]

[tip - sort of inside joke, obvious only to sujatha readers. ofcourse you know its all imaginative]

Kamal - Oh !! Idhuthaan Andha mexico salavaikaari Joke'a. Itha Dasavathaaram'la Poturlaamaa.
Sujatha - Itha Vechukittuthaan Ivalo Naalaa Naaney Jalli-Adichittu Irukken, Neenga Vera !!

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Was watching Shankar's Kadhalan on the DVD player. Didn't expect that I would hate it this much. Talk about yelling like mad for 'once more' of Oorvasi and Mukkabla at Sathyam Theatre on the First Day First Show. While the corrupt governor talked about Shankar's social sense, the love story woven around it, I think, didn't blend very well. Who observed all these, when it was released. All I knew was to bang the tiffinbox for Errani Kurrani Gopala song, alongwith the hundreds of New College dudes. SPB gets to be the aatharsa appa. Remember the appa in Sujatha's Pirivom Sandippom who gives his son a couple of bucks for a smoke. Here SPB sips a bottle of Golden Eagle beer with his son. Shankar's improvisation.

Rahman was obviously the highlights of this musical. The variety of the songs was just phenomenal. From Jeyachandran in Kollayila Thennai Vaithu to Unnikrishnan's Ennavaley to Suresh Peters & Rahman's own Oorvasi, the grandeur songs and their picturisation just minisculed the stamp-sized story.

When it was released, I used to wait to catch a glimpse of Shankar and Raju Sundaram in the song, Kadhalikum Penin. Until today I was thinking it was only those two who were noticeable in that crowd. Today, I even saw another guy sitting left of Shankar. The one smiling at the camera in the picture above. I am sure we all know him by know. But just in case, guess ? Raju Sundaram is connected to this guy through the movie Jeans.

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Jeeva, R B Chaudary's son, seems to be a natural actor. Couple of days back, I watched his first flick Aasai Aasaiyai and some parts of his latest flick , Dishoom. He is completely cool about his on-screen presence which I think most of our new generation heroes fail badly. Either they have to keeping moving on screen or they have to do something to hide their nervousness. Jeeva seems very very cool and his dialogue delivery is so natural that Vijay / Ajith / Simbhu can rightaway take join a two hour training session with him. And yeah, he is pretty tall and also capable of some good kollywood's gyrating dances.

Contrary to the public opinion, I disliked his characterization and his performance in Ram. And the movie sucked so badly that I wished it was never taken in the first place. If only he could sign-up for the 'right movies' unlike Ram, I'm sure he is going to hang around for some more time to come.

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The above pic has a self-explanatory email sent to me by Sriram.

Before that, my rambling note. I saw. I read. I was thrilled, excited and also sad. I hate to believe rumors that Camel Hassan's 'to-be magnum opus' Marudhanayagam will never get to see the light of the silver screens. I have my own reasons why Marudhanayagam should and should not release. The reasons why it should outplay the others. I expect just like millions of other kollywood fans, Kamal's dream would reach the screens and entertain us. Though wanting to explain the reasons in detail, holding you back before reading the email isn't quite right. Here you go.

Read More..."Camel 'Marudhanayagam' Hassan" »

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Coming to a browser near you. Tomorrow.

To be precise, read this aloud in the famous SUN TV tone - Akila Ulaga Internetil Mudhal Muraiyaaga.....geek blogil...putham puthiya matter, Camel Hassan !!.

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[Via Arun Kumar]

Update Feb 07 - The above pic is confirmed to Kamal Hassan. This picture seems to be shot by Atul Kasbekar but there is no mention if this was for Dasavatharam or not. The link to the picture is here.

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Was Tamil cinema slowly reaching up to international standards set by Hollywood, asked a scribe. "No," he said. "Maybe our cinematography and sound are world class today but in the screenplay department, we have progressed only just a little since the silent era. It is unbelievable that the land that produced Kamba Ramayanam cannot produce scripts. We have lost the art."

This is probably the biggest truth of our Kollywood. I agree with every inch of this comment. Many film buffs would agree too. The dude who quoted this was a film buff himself. Guess ??

P.S If you had read the original interview where it was quoted, I would request you to restrain from giving out the answer. Guessing is so much fun.

Update No points for guessing it right. As many guessed it was none other than Kamal. Here's the link to the mentioned interview. The most odd guess was Sarath Kumar and Cheran(?!) made by Cocoa. I assume he/she was mocking at this whole post by making a guess like that.

BTW, the musical show that Kamal was mentioning in that interview was Banyan's Netru Indru Nalai. It was actually planned to be executed last year and was washed out due to rain. Sudhish says its back with a bang. Flashback 2002 - Netru Indru Naalai.

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Ezhai Dhinam Dhinam Sirikanum
Oru Pidi Soru, Avanukku Kidaikanum
Maayam Vilakanum
Arasiyal Saayam Velukanum

Medai Pechum
Vaarthai Veechum Enn !!
Theemai Engey
Thedi theerpom Vaa !!

Sathyaa. One of those rare films, dropped by the us(Tamilians), in the box-office. How crazy can we get ? From Sathyaa to Mahanadhi to Hey Ram to Anbe Sivam, we owe Kamal Hassan more than what we can comprehend.

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The knife on my neck would be drilled-in, if I wouldn't link to the most famous Vettaiyadu Vilaiyadu trailer. More than 10 emails and a bunch of comments on this blog is good enough to ensure the expectations on this movie.

First Impression. Very mediocre. Maybe I expected more, but that rap for the trailer is a grave mistake. Kamal looks and walks with extra firmness. The shots don't appeal too much. They didn't create a 'wow' factor. And those tag lines like A Cop From India are starting to get on the nerves. Maybe I haven't got back from the Kakka Kakka hangover.

Its good to restraint from over-analysing a mere trailer which could be the bad twin of a wonderful flick. This is kamal rasigan in me, hoping/talking.

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[Source - Vikatan.com]

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[ Pictures from Sify and Indiaglitz]

Ajith's Paramasivan and Vijay's Aathi go head to head this pongal.

Truly, I'm not keen to see how they fare in box office. Was just entertained by the Ajith's hairstyle and Vijay's facial makeover.

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Testing the new option given by Google Video to put a video on site. I wanted to test with a right video. All I could find was this Sivakasi Trailer. This is like providing a link to the video, I'm not sure if it will overload the already overloaded host server. Will take out this link tomorrow to make sure loading of this blog doesn't get delayed because of a movie trailer that's already a success. All I did was to go the page of the video, click on the link, 'Put on Site' and copy paste the code provided. It's as simple as that and you know how such audio and video distribution would revolutionize the media in coming days.

The worrying part is you find videos that go against copyright. Incidentally I found an entire second part of a hit movie, a first part of a not-so-hit movie and all the songs of a movie that was just released. I am wondering how Google Video team actually allowed a clipping for close 1 r 30 mins. Google hasn't clearly tightened its watch on copyright violation or its planning to just point the people who uploaded the videos in cases of copyright violations. This is a new cause of concern especially for kollywood, which had a financially bad year of 2005 except for Chandramukhi. Good cinemas are always a rarity in Kollywood so let's not talk about it. Every single advancement in video distribution has proved to be a hinderance for not just kollywood but even for the International Film Industry. This is one more. They have to be countered just like thiruttu VCD/ DVD. And its a pain, you know.

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Baradwaj Rangan's posts an old column on Mani Ratnam's Iruvar in his blog, Blogical Conlclusion. Given the lucid flow and his 'too' perfect references to the most appropriate trivia/persons of Tamil Industry, makes this column an eminent research material.

I aspire to pen one such article on both Iruvar and Hey Ram. But after reading this column, I probably wouldn't do that with Iruvar. If you are tamil cinema geek or a Mani Ratnam fan, this is a must read. One hell of a read, this is.

From Two People, One Industry -

Iruvar has a breathtaking style that brings to mind Tamil cinema, both old and new. The film is a passage through time, and an early song sequence showing Anandan – this name is itself that of a small-time hero of the fifties and the sixties who starred in the likes of Vijayapuri Veeran and Veerathirumagan – romancing his lady is shot in black and white, with the elaborately ornamental wipes found in films of the Ambikapathi period. Vairamuthu’s lyrics here incorporate suitably chaste Tamil words, AR Rahman’s heavily Carnatic-style music appropriates the characteristics of early composers like G Ramanathan and SV Venkataraman, and this song is sung by Unnikrishnan and Bombay Jayashree.

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In and As Saravana[Remember Saravanan Irukka Bhayamen in Chandramukhi].

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[Click Pic for a bigger version]

[Scanned from newspaper, this morning]

Recieved this Sivaji poster a few minutes back from Karthi, a friend and a theevira Rajini fan, who eventually told me first about Jaggubhai stuff. If only I got my hand on this yesterday...what a birthday post, it would have made. Yo !! is that Rajini, looks a lot younger with the new hairstyle(!!).

So they are starting today in Hyderabad and there you go, I'm already drooling the sort-a-dream-team - Rajini(obviously), Rahman, Sujatha and ofcourse Shankar. Add to it K.V Anand, Thotta and Raju. Are they selling tickets already ?

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Seems like movie of the year has finally arrived. Ananda Vikatan's review of Thavamaai Thavamirundhu[needs uid/pass] would even make a Cheran basher, develop an urge to watch the movie.

Cheran has been writing a series for Vikatan on making of this movie. Vikatan's overwhelming response could be a result of that but I choose to think that this is truly good cinema. All I could do is keep hoping that way until I get to watch it.

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Shankar & his team manages a mallu back-up. A hefty back-up thats