Thursday, February 28, 2008

Kamal's hand written condolence message



Give them back – Vijay style



By Behindwoods News Bureau.

When it comes to taking care of people who work for him, Ilaya Thalapathy Vijay always goes the extra mile.

The actor who usually meets his fans at his Saligramam residence has decided on a change of venue. He has shifted his office out of the place and moved it over to his marriage


hall. Now the palatial house is separated into smaller compartments and has been given over to his support team. His driver, his personal make-up man and his favorite cook stay there free of cost.

His fans too are happy to meet him at the kalyana mandapam, since it is bigger place and can hold more people. Vijay has two marriage halls, one at Vadapalani and Saligramam each, and is building a third one near Ambatur.

Perhaps this is Ilaya Thalapathy style of saying thanks to not just his fans but those who work closely with him

Rajini’s movie releases tomorrow!

By Behindwoods News Bureau.


Sivaji - The Boss didn’t even need subtitles to pull people to the theatres in Mumbai. The magic of Rajinikanth was so empowering. Now the Superstar is set to weave his magic one more time on the people of cosmopolitan, but with his previous movie. Yes, that’s right, now Chandramukhi will be released in Mumbai, in Hindi and the best part is that Rajinikanth himself will be rendering voice.



The movie will be released by Dilip Dhanwani of the Royal Film Company with 150 prints. This is a new record for a dubbed movie.

Chandramukhi though based on the Malayalam original, Manichitrathazhu starring Mohanlal, did exceptional business in Kerala. It also broke couple of records in Andhra. The movie ran for close to 900 days at Shanthi theatre in Chennai. Now it is all set to woo the Mumbai cinema fans. In-spite of Bhool Bhulaiyaa, the Akshay starrer, which was again based on Manichitrathazhu running well in the city, distributor Dilip Dhanwani is very confident of the movie’s prospects. Talking to Behindwoods he said, “Rajinikanth is a big brand here. Though the actor has stopped doing Bollywood movies, people remember him for his unique style. I am sure they will come to just see him.”

Jeeva to follow Kamal and Ameer Khan

By Behindwoods News Bureau.


Jeeva, the Kattradhu Tamil star, is mellowing into a fine actor who is open to try out different characters and does not want to get trapped into an image bracket. He chooses his roles very carefully and has been found to hone his acting skills in film after film. While reacting to a complaint that his characters in films are much older than him, he says, “In Ram, Rameswaram and Kattradhu Tamil, people feel that I had acted in


roles which were much older than my age. But I do not think so. I have proved that I can do heavy roles perfectly. I do not want to stick to action roles either. Audience will reject me if I do stereotype films”.

He further added that he wants to follow Kamal, Vikram and Ameer Khan in experimenting with different characters. Currently he is at Theni working for Thenavattu directed by Kadhir. His other projects include ‘Siva Manasula Sakthi’ and a few projects with Super Good films.

Revathi performs for children

By Behindwoods News Bureau.


The summer vacation is round the corner and children must be gearing up for various interesting activities. To make their holidays even better, Mother Arts is coming up with a children’s film titled Vannathupoochi. Appropriately, this film will have children playing important roles. Another noteworthy issue about this film is that Revathi appears in a guest role. Interestingly, she has refused to


accept payment for the role. Baby Srilakshmi plays a pivotal role along with Balasingh, who acts as her grandfather.

Speaking about Vannathupoochi, its producer-cum-director said that when he approached various production houses with the story, he was given a cold shoulder; which led him to produce the film himself. The storyline is about kids being neglected by working parents. It emphasises that parents should shower love and affection on their young ones rather than being a tyrant.

Vannathupoochi has music is by Rohan and P.S. Dharan has handled the camera.

Ettappan in trouble

By Behindwoods News Bureau.


The name Ettappan, for long, has been associated with treachery. But it is not so, says Ettappan Ramkumar Raja, one of the members of the Ettappan family. According to him, the King has done many good deeds to his subjects.

Wonder why this issue is being raked up after so many decades? Well, it’s all about the film titled Ettappan.


Ramkumar Raja, from the Ettappan lineage, has filed a petition in the Madras High Court that the title of the film should be changed, as it affects the credibility of the King and his descendents.

The story is said to be about a youth cheating people with false promises of obtaining them employment. Srikanth and Navya Nair play the lead pair.

When the issue came up for hearing, the High Court judge ordered the opposite party to file a reply statement within two weeks substantiating their claims.

Just be the actor

By Behindwoods News Bureau.



Director-turned-actor Ameer is busy with his forthcoming venture Yogi. In fact he is taking care of Yogi’s story, screenplay and dialogues and Subramania Siva directs it. Ameer has decided not to wield the megaphone this time but hone his acting skills.

Relaxing after a hectic 40-day shooing stint, Ameer spoke about his



experience facing the camera. He disclosed that for the first 10 days he was concentrating on the technical nitty-gritty of filming making such camera angles and trolleys. But all this lasted only until director Subramania Siva made it clear to him that he is just an actor and his focus should not go beyond that. “Just be the actor”, pointed out the director to Ameer.

Yogi is about a slum youth, says Ameer. In this film, he plays the role of a beggar’s son. While it is the norm in Tamil films to show youngsters from the slums as rowdies, Yogi portrays them in a better way. This is bound to be a path breaking film, added Ameer.

Madhumitha plays the female lead. Yuvan Shankar Raja has scored the music.

Will Gopika say yes to Shankar?

Director Shankar’s assistant Arivazhagan is all set to direct a movie very soon for Shankar’s production company S Pictures. This assistant director is very famous for describing scenes to the actors and actresses. Sources say that Arivazhagan is keen on roping in Gopika for his impending project. Now, it is well known that with no big offers to lure her to Kollywood, Gopika is busy with Malayalam films.



But this does not necessarily mean that she may not act in Tamil films at all, as she has starred in Prakash Raj’s Vellithirai. This is a clear indication that she is considering only offers that are worthwhile. It is expected that Gopika might disclose her consent to star in this film on her visit to Chennai for Velltithirai’s premiere during the first week of March. Will Gopika say yes to Shankar’s S Pictures?

By Behindwoods News Bureau.

A brand new look for Maddy

The six-pack fitness syndrome gripping Bollywood has reached Chennai. Guess who’s working towards one now? Maddy! Oh, yes, chocolate faced Madhavan. He went all the way to London to work out. Apparently Madhavan, unlike so many stars who take vacations abroad to indulge their palates, puts himself on a strict diet and does a punishing



physical workout with trainers. His idea of a break from work is to go as far away as possible and shed pounds. But now with the six-pack abs fever reaching new heights, Madhavan is said to have worked out even harder. The results? He looks smashing, says everyone who has seen him recently. Even his face has a lean, chiseled look, minus his baby fat.

It’s quite likely that his new image is part of a huge movie project – a Bollywood movie maybe, or could he have a part in the new Mani Ratnam film? Fans will recall that the one time Maddy looked totally in shape was for Mani’s Ayutha Eluthu, playing a violent henchman. Is Maddy getting ready to play a role that requires something close to a six-pack fitness or is the star just keen to stay fit at all times?

By Behindwoods News Bureau.

Veteran’s big comeback in Black and White

One of Bollywood’s most veteran directors has returned to the floor and the film will hit theaters on the 7th of March. Subhash Ghai- the dream merchant of Bollywood, hit maker is back with Black and White. Produced by his own Mukta Searchlight Films which aims at bringing out fresh faces brimming with talent, the movie will star newcomer Anurag Sinha along with a Subhash Ghai favorite Anil Kapoor.



The movie looks at the volatile atmosphere in the country with terrorists and various naxalite outfits trying to disrupt peace at the slightest opportunity. The main protagonist/antagonist played by Anurag Sinha is an extremist on a deadly mission in the movie.

Black and White is being keenly followed by many in the industry who are interested to see whether Subhash Ghai can recreate his old magic after a few off color years and a brief sabbatical during which he was busy setting up Whistling Woods International, the world- class film and multimedia institute in Mumbai.

2008 will also see a multistarrer Yuvaraj also being directed and produced by Subhash Ghai. So, this year is going to be a big one for the veteran of hits like Pardes after his last release Kisna in 2005 sank without a trace.