Asal shooting to take place in foreign locations

Shivaji Productions is producing Asal after Rajnikanth starrer Chandiramukhi. Ajith is doing the lead role in this film. Samira Reddy is pairing with Ajith. Another heroine is yet to be finalized. This high budgeted film is directed by Saran. He has also written the story, screenplay and dialogues. After Kadhal Mannan and Amarkalam, Saran is joining with Ajith in this film.
The whole shooting of this film is to take place in Malaysia, Netherland and other European countries. The crew will be leaving for Malaysia on 12th.

AR Rahman and Aishwarya Rai’s IDEA-IIFA

AR Rahman and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan will be honored with the IDEA-IIFA award during the IIFA ceremony that is to be held this month. The two will receive this award for their outstanding contribution to the film industry.
In addition to this, Hrithik Roshan and wife Suzzane, for the first time, will walk the ramp at the IIFA Fashion Extravaganza. The couple will be showcasing the apparels designed by their sister-in-law Farah Ali Khan. Sonam Kapoor will also walk the ramp on June 12th at the IIFA Fashion Extravaganza. Designers that are a part of this show are Anamika, Farah Ali Khan, Rocky S, Manav Gangwani, and Chris Chang. The show will be hosted by Zayed Khan and Sophie Chaudhary.

Shekhar Kapur waiting for Sultan- The Warrior

The Chennai International Screenwriting Workshop (CISW) organized by Kamal Haasan’s Raj Kamal Films and IIT Madras was wrapped up recently. Shekhar Kapur, the top Indian film maker was down south to participate in this work shop and share his thoughts. After the final day events, Shekhar Kapur met the media.
Recalling his association with the Superstar, he said, I used to watch a lot of commercial Tamil movies. Rajnikanth was a newcomer then and had an extraordinary sense of style. I got in touch with him when he was experimenting with his career. We discussed a few scripts but then, both of us got busy that one film didn’t happen. I heard that his daughter is making an animation film with him. He is a phenomenon and it should be interesting to see him as an animated character. As soon as Sultan- The Warrior is ready, I am going to go catch it!
Shekhar has now signed two movies with Hollywood production house. Apart from that he is now busy with ‘Paani’ which is a movie set in future and is about a city with a population of 30 million which faces acute water scarcity.

Audio launch of Arumugam

Arumugam which has Bharath and Priyamani in the lead was produced by Shenbagakumar and directed by Suresh Krishna. The audio CD was released yesterday at Sathyam Theaters. The audio CD was released jointly by Tamil Film Producer Council President Ramanarayanan, Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners Association General Secretary Paneerselvam, Actors Pandiarajan, Prasanna, Directors S P Muthuraman and Shakthi Chidambaram. S P Muthuraman while speaking on this occasion said,” Cinema life is like a wheel. Success and failures will rotate like a wheel. If a film is good the audience will sing appraisals but if the film is bad they will push us to the pit. If an actor succeeds he should not take the success to his head and at the same time if he fails he should not get depressed.
One should be the same during the time of success and failure. Deva is one such example.” Rama Narayanan, Paneerselvam, Actors Bharath, Prasanna, Pandiarajan, Rajesh, Pasupathy, Santhanu, Ashok, Adhitya, Directors Shakthi Chidambaram, A Venkatesh, Producer Kalaipuli S Dhanu, Music composer Deva, Stunt Master Thalapathy Dinesh and Albert Theatre owner Madhu Kumaran spoke on this occasion. Nellai Jayandha welcomed the gathering. Director Suresh Krishna proposed the vote of thanks.

Aayirathil Oruvan was tough, says GV Prakash

Finally, the Selvaraghavan-directed Aayirathil Oruvan’s audio launch is scheduled to take place on June 14th. Speaking about his experience with the director, composer GV Prakash Kumar said that working with Selvaraghavan was very challenging as he has good knowledge of music and hence wanted the best.
Prakash is also working on another project, Madarasapatnam, which he considers to be very taxing. In fact, the music composer states that composing music for any period film would be a difficult task because one has to take care of the music of that period and also keep up with the expectations of the present generation.
Madarasapatnam has Arya in the lead and is touted to be a period film.

The Oscar changed my life: ARR

How life changes after one award. Ask our very own composing guru AR Rahman. After the Oscars ARR who had already been a busy man in India, has been receiving offers and accolades from left, right and centre. Rahman was also named as one of the top 100 influential persons in the world by the prestigious Times magazine recently!
For the Chennai-based music composer life definitely has changed after the Academy awards. When asked how he feels now after the world recognition, Rahman revealed that getting the twin Oscars was a very unnerving experience. The composer who cannot attend even places of prayer without being noticed feels he has to now concentrate more on his music because that is his first priority.
The Indian Mozart who has literally been living out of his travel bags (thanks to the adulations he has been receiving after the Oscars) literally broke his past records for traveling the past week. He was in New York, Dubai, Calicut, Chennai, Pune Delhi Mumbai, the list goes on!
There seems to be only one downside that the Oscars have brought into ARR’s life. The composer is not able to spend much time with his children. But ARR is not complaining. All he says is that before the Oscars his wife had dreamt that she was walking the red carpet by his side. She can now dream of walking to the Oscars with our children, says ARR.
To a scribe’s query on how he felt being voted as one of the top hundred influential persons of the world the music director said and we quote: At the function I was on the same table as Michelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey and the CEO of Time magazine. When I went up to stage a chant of ‘Jai ho’ went up in the house
Wow! ARR sir it must have been a moment to cherish!
We at IndiaGlitz wish you the best in all your future endeavors and hope your music will be a note of love and peace to the entire world!

Bharathi joins hands with Perarasu again

Bharath and Perarasu after their well-acclaimed ‘Pazhani’ are back in action for yet another commercial masala treat.
Aye! Both of them had witnessed good success with this film. However, Perarasu was wiped down with terrible flop of his ‘Thiruvannamalai’ with Action King Arjun.
With buzzes on air that he’s directing Vijay’s 50th film ‘Urimai Kural’, he has officially announced about his next film with Bharath. Earlier, he had titled his film as ‘Thiruthani’ and due to unknown reasons; the film’s title has been rechristened as ‘Thirumangalam’. None of the other star-casts have been finalized including technicians and looks like this time; he may opt for another music director than Srikanth Deva.

Producer deletes remix song

After a very long sabbatical Gangai Amaran has scored music for a film. The movie titled Raghavan is directed by Parandhaman and stars Vijith and Radhika Malhotra. Speaking about the film, Raghavan’s producer Selvaraj said that all the songs in the films have come out well. He went on to add that Gangai Amaran has remixed the popular number Kudimagane… Perunkudimagane, which featured in the film Vasantha Maaligai starred by Sivaji Ganesan.
However, this song has been deleted from the film, stated Selvaraj. It is to be mentioned here that Selvaraj had been advocating against remix songs for long. He clarified that he was not aware of the song beforehand.

Kalaignar Karunanidhi is back in writing

Kalaignar Karunanidhi seems to be elated with election results and now he is back in action… Earlier, he had penned story and dialogues for the film ‘Uliyin Osai’ starring Vineeth and Keerthi Chawla in lead roles.
Now he is back penning the script and dialogues for yet another film ‘Nee Indri Naanillai’. The film is produced by Nandini Arts with Udhay Kiran in lead with Meera Jasmine starring him opposite in the female lead role. Deva will be scoring music for the lyrics of Vairamuthu. The film’s shooting will hit the floors by next month and plans are to complete the film within a short span of time.

Rajini’s loss is Bharath’s gain

The Bharath-starrer Arumugam’s audio launch took place yesterday (June 4th, 2009). This film has Priyamani playing Bharath’s arm candy and Ramya Krishnan in a very important role. Suresh Krishna is donning the director’s cap.
Apparently, when Suresh mentioned about the film to Rajinikanth, the Superstar felt that he could have used the title earlier. Rajini had mentioned to Suresh that the title has mass appeal and regretted missing it. Reacting to this, Bharath said that he is happy to star in a film which had such an appealing title.
Arumugam’s music is scored by Deva and the lyrics have been penned by director Perarasu and Pa Vijay.

Divya’s attitude irks the press

Divya Spandana, who was featured in Tamil films like Polladhavan and Vaaranam Aayiram is currently acting in a Kannada film Jogadhara. The film has Prem as hero.
The producer of the Jogadhara, Ashwini Ramprasad, had convened a press meet in Bangalore for which Divya had arrived late by one hour. Irked by her behavior, the media persons present there demanded an apology from the actress. Refusing to apologize for arriving late, the actress got into an altercation with the press persons. At one point of time, Divya reportedly told them to leave the place if not interested. Angered by her outburst, all the reporters present at the venue staged a walk out. Speaking about this issue, Divya said that she was not aware of the press meet and came to the venue as the producer had invited her for lunch.

Kulir – The frozen one!

Starring: Sanjeev, Riya PoongodiDirection: Anita UdeepMusic: Bobo Shashi Production: Anita Udeep
The title could be reminiscent of all things pleasant in this inexorably hot weather, but watching debutant director Anita Udeep’s Kulir doesn’t have the same effect. Anita, after probably having set out to deliver a message-movie, has lagged behind soon enough and ended up doing just the opposite.
Sanjeev’s father Aditya is an infamous gangster and his mother splits from him to raise her son away from the bad father’s presence. Sanjeev, however, grows to be nothing less than a gangster displaying the characteristics of his genes – roughing up his teacher at school and getting expelled from the school. The mother sends him to Ooty to a better and disciplined school in a hope that her son gets a better life.
The Ooty school life, however, awakens his murderous instincts after the death of his roommate. He tracks down his rival classmates who are responsible for the killing and executes them one by one. Even better, the police do not find a clue and writes down the cases as natural deaths.


After having successfully vindicated, Sanjeev returns home only to find out that he is punished in a different manner.
Justifying the acts of murder by a teenager is precisely the major issue of the movie that sticks out like a sore thumb. Besides, the plot leaves a lot to be desired too. With a running time of 2 hours, the movie’s first half sustains only in the goofy antics of Bobo Sashi, who has also scored for the movie. Not to mention, the latter part trickles down to nothingness.
The title song sung by Silambarasan and the Mudanmurayaga song stand out in Bobo Sashi’s composition in the otherwise insipid background music scene. Anita is let down majorly by the lack of drive in the plot and she is going to hear a lot of ‘there is no story in the movie’ in the near future.
If you are in a mood for risk, we suggest you try Kulir. Chances are that the title will have an effect on you – when in an A/C theatre with only vacant chairs for company, that is.
Verdict: Experience the cold!

Ajith ropes Shah Rukh in ‘ASAL’

Wow! This is really interesting for the ardent buffs of not just Ajith Kumar, but Shah Rukh Khan too.
Remember Shah Rukh Khan once offered Ajith Kumar to play his brother’s role in Santhosh Sivan’s ‘Ashoka’.
Now as a gesture of reverting his gratitude, Ajith Kumar had requested SRK to don a prominent role in his forthcoming film ‘ASAL’.
As the film deals with world mafia groups, Shah Rukh will be performing one of that role… Of course, both the films ‘ASAL’ and ‘Don -2’ is expected to have the shooting at exotic locations of London. With accordance to film’s schedule, the duo will be joining hands together.

Nikish Patel – Hot gal hunted by SJ Suryah

Uh-huh! She’ll make you transfixed with her smile and will throw into astonishment in abundance.
Precisely, she kindles everyone’s passion right on the first look. Nikisha Patel is her name and she’s being hunted by SJ Suryah for his forthcoming flick ‘Puli’ starring Telugu Actor Pawan Kalyan in lead role. Here’s a sneak peak on her complete info…
Full Name: Nikisha Patel
Everyone calls her: Nikki
Day she was born– July 20
Height: 5.7”
Weight: 55
Native: Gujarat
Born and Brought up: London
Known Tamil Words: Po… Vaa
Best 5 she likes: Hyderabad Biriyani, Sleeping, Lexus Car, Jeans-T Shirt, A.R. Music.
Unforgettable moment: Crowned as Miss Whales 2007
Bad Habits: Sleep
Things she hates: Late Night Party
Cell phone Model: Sony Ericson W902I
Would she spot herself in bikinis: Definitely
One Tamil Film She watched: Vijay’s Villu

Santhanu Bhagyaraj enters Malayalam

Sakkarakatti in Tamil, Santhanu Bhagyaraj will be next seen in Malayalam movie Angel John. ‘Angel John’ directed by S.L .Jaya soorya, Mohan Lal has been casted as the hero. Santhanu son of Bhagya Raj and Poornima will do an important role in the film.

Angel John, supposed to be the reincarnation of an angel, strikes a friendship with a 20-year-old student and helps him to tide over his problems. Santhanu dons the role of a B Com Student who is intrested in doing business, but his father wants him to be a government employee. In a strange situation he attempts to commit suicide but he is brought back to his normal life by a man, Angel John.
Narayana Das is producing the film and directed by Jayasurya who earlier made the Dileep film Speed.

Sherin out of Kandein Kadhalai?

The bollywood superhit movie Jab we met is being remade in Tamil as Kandein Kadhalai with Bharat and Tamannah in the lead role. Sherin was supposed to play the all important role of Tamanna’s sister in the movie. Due to the seniority of Sherin over Tamannah the character had been changed a bit, and Sherin was to play Tamannaah’s elder sister.

The latest buzz is that Sherin who was uncomfortable playing the sister’s role has decided to opt out of the movie. Sapan Saran another bollywood model will debut in Tamil with this movie as Tamannah’s sister. Sapan has already been a part of many commercials like KitKat, Scooty Pep and Unibic Cookies.

Ajith to get his Naan Kadavul star?

Sameera Reddy will pair up with Ajith in Asal. While this news was confirmed by reliable sources, there were reports flowing in about the second heroine. Earlier reports suggest that Mamata Mohandas was being considered for the role. However, the actress denied it.
After scouting for a suitable heroine, the team had decided on Bhavana. It is worth mentioning here that Bhavana and Ajith were initially signed up for Bala’s Naan Kadavul.
Bhavana is currently busy with a Telugu film Mahatma directed by Krishna Vamsi and a Malayalam film Robinhood. She has also been signed up to play the female lead in the Kamal directed venture opposite Dileep.

Kamal Haasan’s stance on songs and dance

The international workshop on screenplay writing, which was organized by Raj Kamal International and the Indian Institute of Technology, came to an end yesterday. Speaking at the event Kamal said that he is not against songs and dances in Tamil films but was merely against inducing them in films where it was not needed.
The actors stated that he welcomed songs and dances in films where it is necessary to have them and pointed out that many of his films had some of the best songs and dance sequences. He added that filmmakers should concentrate on making films that are crispier and less time consuming.
Balu Mahendra, Ameer, Dharani, Parthiban, Lingusamy, Na Muthukumar, Ramesh Aravind among others participated in the event.

‘Jeyam’ Ravi ties wedding knot to Aarthi

Finally, after their much prolonged relationship Jeyam Ravi has tied wedding knot to Aarthi. The wedding ceremony was held today morning at 7.30 and at exactly on 8.45 am he tied knot to Aarthi in the presence of well-renowned celebrities of Tamil film industry at Park Sheraton Hotel.Those present for the occasion were Chief Minister’s daughter Selvi Selvam, Nalli Kuppusamy, Chief Secretary Sripathy, Actors Rajnikanth, Kamal Haasan, Jayaram and his wife Parvathy Jayaram, Arjun, Sundar C, Kushboo, Radha Ravi, M.S. Bhaskar, Abbas and his wife, Radhika Sarathkumar, Meena, Mohan, Sangavi, Sibiraj and his wife, Manjula Vijayakumar, Gayathri Raguram, Banu Chandar, Dhusyanth, Vikram (Prabhu’s son), S.Ve. Sekar and his son Ashwin, Filmmakers Venkat Prabhu, Ameer, SP Jananathan, Kireedom fame Vijay, Hari, SP Muthuraman, Subramaniam Siva, Mugavari fame Durai, Telugu filmmaker Muthailu Subbaiya, Producers AGS Kalapathy Agoram, SPB Charan, Ayngaran Arun Pandian and many others were present…

SRK’s 8-pack

Farah Khan is presently busy scripting her forthcoming venture, Happy New Year, with Shah Rukh Khan in the lead. With the script to be ready only by the end of this year, Shah Rukh has enough time to build up his 8 pack.
Happy New Year will in the lines of Main Hoon Na which was again directed by Farah and had the King Khan in the lead. Shah Rukh will also be undergoing some grueling schedules in the films and hence it is necessary for him to build the 8-pack abs, it is said.

Rahman overloaded with honors, he’s so tired

‘How can I say no when they honor me? They’re so elated about my Oscar triumph’ said Rahman during the occasion when he was honored by Times Magazine for ‘100 Most Influential People around the World’. The Madras Mozart was been constantly traveling throughout the globe and for past one week, it’s been a never-rest moment for him. Rahman added, ‘Oscars has landed me on different grounds as everyone around the globe recognizes me. I am into a different world now as even the small kids recognize me in the shops of United States and of course in prayer halls too… I am getting back to normal stage, where there are lots of pressures bounded on me to give the best out of best to all heeders.’
Sure Rahman! You’re a genius and magician indeed…

Endhiran and Unnai Pol Oruvan: A status report

The two most expected films in Kollywood at present are Endhiran and Unnai Pol Oruvan. While the former has Rajinikanth in the lead, the latter has his contemporary Kamal Haasan.
First let’s check out the status of Endhiran. There had been news constantly about this film ever since it hit the floors. Even a slightest move from the Endhiran camp would make it to the headlines. However, things seemed to be cooling down with not much news coming in from this camp. Apparently, this could be due to the fact the team is shooting sequences that do not involve Rajini and Aishwarya Rai.
Moving on to Unnai Pol Oruvan, we hear that Kamal Haasan completed most part of the shooting. Perhaps, this is the reason behind the actor finding time to participate in various events, including the workshop for screen play writers that was held at IIT. A very interesting piece of information about Unnai Pol Oruvan is that Kamal has chopped of a few scenes to make it crispier than the original version.
Behindwoods will keep you updated about these two films.

Comedy Actor Vivek is a playback singer now

It’s been off-the-wall scenario when it comes to Vivek. The actor made his debut before couple of decades introduced by K. Balachandar and later with his outstanding potentials grabbed everyone’s attention. With much of his unparalleled crème de la crème satirical conceptualizations, he turned on spotlights on him. Well, he has been felicitated with the commendable honors for this indeed.
Alas! But it’s a pitiable moment to witness that couple of his flicks where he did the role has been remaining under the cans over for a long time. On the pars, there’s a great exciting news for all his ardent buffs as he turns to be a playback singer with the film ‘Ithanai Naalai Engirundhai’ a film based on the lives of silk weavers herein Kanchivaram… it’s a peppy folk-fangled fast beat number with Rita accompanying him on the tracks.

Happy birthday, the Master of Modulation

He is in the Guinness Book of World Records for having sung the highest number of songs that have peaked at over 35,000. He remains the most loyal and lucky voice of Rajinikanth, one that even a music maverick like AR Rahman doesn’t risk not having in a Rajini album. He is Kamal’s most trusted voice for dubbing in his Telugu flicks, even as he shares a friendly rapport with the actor. SP Balasubramaniyam is not a fastidious singer, but an entertainer that you will encounter as a singer, music director, producer and actor in South Indian cinema.
A 35-year-long affair with the Indian music scene, SPB has had the privilege to work with the industry’s legends, including MS Viswanathan and KV Mahadevan, apart from his long-time friendly and professional association with the Isaignani. He interestingly is also the recipient of the National Award for songs in Hindi (Tere Mere Beech), Tamil (Thanga Thamarai), Telugu (Cheppaalani Undi) and Kannada (Umandu Ghumandu Ghana Gar Je Badara).
In terms of music, he has scanned the entire spectrum, from carnatic to jazz. And not belonging to the prudish clan of singers, Balu, as he is fondly called, is still a hot choice in live in concerts and is an unfailing entertainer with his antics on stage.
Being in an age when singing talent is found dime a dozen, SP Balasubramaniyam, a Padmashri recipient, has awards and records up his sleeve that none can imagine of. Let’s celebrate him as he lives on for many more years. Happy birthday, the Master of Modulation.

Happy birthday, Priyamani

There’s certainly more to Priyamani than her coveted National Award. The actress, a Tamilian raised in Bangalore, holds a distinct position none others in the competitive race today hold: being introduced by a doyen on cinema, Barathiraja, only to have her acting skills polished by Balu Mahendra. One of the most promising young directors, Ameer, and now, Mani Ratnam, only add glory to her elite list of associated directors.
She has been lucky with directors but that is not it all. Priyamani is among the handpicked actresses today to dub in her own voice. Having proven her prowess in many offbeat roles, Priyamani today stands to say she doesn’t necessarily belong to art house cinema. She can dabble in mainstream song-dance routines as well. If there was ‘Paruthiveeran’, there was also ‘Malaikkottai’. The tightrope walk kept intact.
The actress today is doing a role of her lifetime, in a bilingual, ‘Raavana’. There are stories about her planning to move to Bollywood as there are legends about her tacky sartorial senses. But there’s no denying that Priyamani is an actress of a kind.
Here’s wishing her, a very happy birthday!

Bharath & Perarasu: Returns of the Pazhani

Perarasu – surefooted filmmaker has delivered colossal hits in box office filling the sacs of his producers with more profits. Unfortunately, some of his previous flicks didn’t turn to be good grosser and naturally that made actors turning down from his offers. Nevertheless, Bharath has been the chap splendidly saying ‘Cheers’ to him as he made a commendable hit with ‘Pazhani’.
With prior information stating that Perarasu will be titling his flick as ‘Thiruthani’, he has now rechristened it as ‘Thirumangalam’. Female lead roles and rest of the star-casts are yet to be finalized. Meanwhile, project of Vijay’s 50th film is in the pipeline and he doesn’t reveal anything on conclusions.

Shakthi Chidambaram lashes out Mani Rathnam’s spouse

Alas! It was a pitiable moment to witness Producer-Director Shakthi Chidambaram drenched in absolute shock. It’s all after watching Suhasini reviewing his film ‘Rajathi Raja’ in the previous week’s episode.
Speaking on the occasion, Shakthi Chidambaram said, “What does this lady think about herself? She is a film personality and isn’t just a film critic… How dare can she make bad comments about my film. I would have accepted her review if she was an eminent filmmaker like Mani Rathnam, Balu Mahendra or K. Balachandar who elevated the standard of Tamil Cinema. Raghava Lawrence has made his way to Manthralayam after getting more shocked with Suhasini’s take on him. She gets paid with just Rs. 10,000 for an episode to review a film and she’s crossing her limit. She is supposed to point the mistakes and needn’t give us suggestions of how to make a film. Even one of her directorial has been a terrifying flop…”

Actor forces re-shoot with Genelia

Shahid Kapoor is adamant on re-shooting the entire portion that was shot with Jiah Khan. Jiah, it is well known was replaced with Genelia and the director wanted to shoot just those sequences that were shot close up. Sources say that the producers of Yahoo, UTV Motion Pictures, were keen on completing the film soon as it is behind schedule already and decided to go with the director’s plans.
However, Shahid Kapoor had been insisting on re-shooting all the scenes with Genelia as he felt it would have an adverse effect among the audience watching the film. Finally, the producers were also willing to toe the line with Shahid, as he is the hero in their yet another venture, Kaminey.

Santosh Sivan replaces Manikandan in Ravan

Mani Ratnam has replaced cameraman Manikandan in his Ravan movie. Cameraman Santosh Sivan will join the Ravana unit and the remaining part of the movie is going to be shot by Santosh Sivan .

It seems, Manikandan was finding it difficult to give continuous dates as he had commited for a film with Shah Rukh Khan starting in June.
According to MID-DAY, The movie has already been delayed by a couple of months due to Ratnam’s health. It is getting a little difficult to get Aishwarya’s and Abhishek’s dates too.

After Revathy, Suhasini it’s Nandhini!

The list of women directors are increasing as Kollywood is also having its own share of new comers in this field. Director Nandhini who is a product of film institute with a gold medal in 2003 for her short film ‘Ottam’ has started her first commercial venture under very big banners of Satyam Cinemas and Real Image. The movie titled Thiru Thiru Thuru Thuru has two characters. Ajmal will take the Thiru Thiru role and the Thuru Thuru role will be played by Rupa.
The story is very simple, revolving around the two main leads where one gets into trouble and the other untangles the mess. It is a comedy-romantic flick says the director who worked as the assistant director with Revathy and Priya.
One novel feature in the film is said to be the introduction of characters till the climax scene. Mouli has done a good job it is said.
The heroine of the film Rupa was selected after trying out number of new faces. The most interesting part that attracted the team was Rupa’s eyes, which was similar to actress Archana’s.
The film is an easy going love story but without any cinematic touch and more inclined to real life happenings. The movie is 85% over and is due for release this July.

‘Tamils being disregarded’: Cheran

The audio launch of Aaru Maname was held in the city yesterday. The film marks the debut of Deepak on the big screen. Sudheesh Shankar debuts as director. Karthika (Dindigul Sarathi fame) and Nicole (Adada Enna Azhagu) play the female leads in Aaru Maname. The film has been produced by debutante Deepak’s father K.S.Rajan under the Al Shola productions banner. This is the producer’s first Tamil film as he has earlier made quite a few Malayalam films.
Speaking at the function, K.S. Rajan said that he chose to launch his son in the Tamil industry because of his close association with many people from Tamil Nadu over many years. He also added that new faces were accepted more readily in Tamil cinema. Cheran, who was present at the function, replied to this by saying that Tamil Nadu was indeed famous as ‘Vandhavanai Vaazha Vaikkum Mannu’, but Tamils were being disregarded world over, especially in Sri Lanka. Even in India, their rights are being overlooked. He said that it is people like K.S. Raja who have deep regard for Tamils who should speak up for them in their home states.

Is Arya turning villain?

Looks like the ‘Naan Kadavul’ actor will be the next in line to turn dark in his characters. After his ‘Sarvam’ and ‘Naan Kadavul’, the actor is currently working on the period flick, ‘Madrasapattinam’. This film is being directed by ‘Kireedam’ Vijay and is said to be a story set in the pre independence period.
Apart from these, it is now said that the actor will also launch himself in Telugu films, with an Allu Arjun starrer. And what’s more, reports have it that the actor will play a baddie in the film. With Sibiraj recently making a move to play the villain, it looks like the next to toe the line will be Arya.
Apart from this flick, the actor also has ‘Chikku Bhukku’, to be directed by Jeeva’s assistant Manikandan on the cards.

Can Vijay be MGR just with titles?

It’s really disgusting to see that young actors are using the titles of Superstars of Tamil Cinema’s flicks to get more popularity. According to all the sources, Dhanush has bought the title rights of almost all the films of Superstar Rajnikanth. Precisely, Vijay has gone a step ahead in stapling his films with MGR Films’ titles.
Although his ‘Villu’ was just the name, the title song had the ‘Nanmai Undu’ of MGR’s yesteryear film. Now his forthcoming film directed by Babu Sivan has been named as ‘Vettaikaaran’ and his 50th film as ‘Urimai Kural’.
Oops! What these young buddies think they’re actually doing? Will they inherit superstars’ popularities just with titles…

Can Vijay be MGR just with titles?

It’s really disgusting to see that young actors are using the titles of Superstars of Tamil Cinema’s flicks to get more popularity. According to all the sources, Dhanush has bought the title rights of almost all the films of Superstar Rajnikanth. Precisely, Vijay has gone a step ahead in stapling his films with MGR Films’ titles.
Although his ‘Villu’ was just the name, the title song had the ‘Nanmai Undu’ of MGR’s yesteryear film. Now his forthcoming film directed by Babu Sivan has been named as ‘Vettaikaaran’ and his 50th film as ‘Urimai Kural’.
Oops! What these young buddies think they’re actually doing? Will they inherit superstars’ popularities just with titles…

Can Vijay be MGR just with titles?

It’s really disgusting to see that young actors are using the titles of Superstars of Tamil Cinema’s flicks to get more popularity. According to all the sources, Dhanush has bought the title rights of almost all the films of Superstar Rajnikanth. Precisely, Vijay has gone a step ahead in stapling his films with MGR Films’ titles.
Although his ‘Villu’ was just the name, the title song had the ‘Nanmai Undu’ of MGR’s yesteryear film. Now his forthcoming film directed by Babu Sivan has been named as ‘Vettaikaaran’ and his 50th film as ‘Urimai Kural’.
Oops! What these young buddies think they’re actually doing? Will they inherit superstars’ popularities just with titles…

Subramaniapuram heroine pairs up with Jai

Remember the “Kangal Irandaal” girl, Swathi, who played her role to perfection in the blockbuster Subramaniapuram? It looks like the lass, who definitely is in no hurry to sign roles, will finally do a Tamil film, almost a year after ‘Subramaniapuram’ happened.
Swathi, who was a TV anchor turned actress in Telugu, struck gold in Kollywood through her very first film, ‘Subramaniapuram’, playing the demure school going Thulasi. Following this, the actress was tad disappointed at having received only such village-girl roles in Tamil cinema, and so, had decided to not do any uninspiring project here, and concentrated on her career in Tollywood.
But it now looks like she has received an interesting project in Tamil. And surprise, she will be paired yet again with her ‘Subramaniapuram’ co-star, Jai.
The film will be produced by Amma Creations and will be directed by debutant Sripathi.
The film is likely to start shoot very soon, and Swathi is said to be delighted at receiving such an interesting role. Patience pays for sure!

Thru Thiru Thuru Thuru

Sathyam Cinemas and Real Image are producing their first film tiled under the banner Thiru Thiru Thuru Thuru. This film is to be directed by a woman director JS Nandini. This film will be released in digital format in India and abroad. This film will also be made in Telugu. Director Nandini is a gold medalist from the Film and Television Institute. She was earlier an assistant to Director Priya. Ajmal is doing the lead role. Rupa, a new face who is a model is pairing with Ajmal. Mouli will be seen in an important character.
Mani Sharma composes the music for the lyrics penned by Yuga Bharathi and Lalith Anand. M S Surya is editing this film. The shooting of the film is over. The audio launch of this film is to be released shortly. The film was shot in Red One camera.

Asin meets the winners of TATA SKY Contest

It was an evening of excitement for those 40 winners who were picked to be the lucky winners of meeting Asin… TATA Sky had hosted the contest of ‘Dine with Asin’ where 40 from South Indian regions were selected and met the gorgeous actress last evening at Taj Coromandel.
Vikram Kaushik, Managing Director of TATA Sky was also present for the occasion. It was a fun-filled moment of fiesta as winners took their occasion of chatting with their favorite star Asin. Much prior to it, couple of latest commercials of TATA SKY were screened that gives a clear cut view about their company’s well-mannered service.

Hail Dr. Kalainger!

Born to Thiru Muthuvelar and Thirumathi Anjugam Ammaiyar on this day in 1924, then Dakshinamurthy, grew up to become one of the most powerful leaders in the Indian sub-continent.
Dakshinamurthy, better known to us all as Mu. Karunanidhi does not need any introductions. He began his career as a script writer in Tamil films. Dr. Kalainger, as he is adoringly referred to, entered politics at the age 14. When Kalainger was 20, he married Padmavathy Ammayyar. He was working as a script writer for Jupiter Pictures at that time.
His first film as a script writer was ‘Rajakumari’, and it was here that he learned the nuances of script writing. Even after entering politics Kalainger has shown a keen interest in films. He has script written more than 70 films, many of which have turned out to be block-buster hits. Some dialogues as well as monologues of his films are still remembered by us verbatim.
Dr. Kalainger who has never lost an election in which he has contested still continues his successful march being the chief minister of Tamil Nadu and wields immense power in the centre.
Apart from having a very fulfilling film career Dr. M. Karunanidhi struck gold in politics with his intelligence and wit in oratorical skills in Tamil. His contributions to the field of Tamil literature in the form of poems, letters, screen plays, biographies, novels, stage plays, historic novels, dialogues as well as songs are aplenty.
IndiaGlitz wishes Dr. Kalainger, who celebrates his 86th birthday today, a long, prosperous and healthy life and we also wish he brings a lot of good to Tamil Film Industry as well as to the whole Tamil Nadu with his efficient rule.

Seedan is Dhanush’s next

Remember talks were held sometime ago about Dhanush doing a film for director Subramaniyam Siva, who directed Dhanush’s earlier superhit Thiruda Thirudi?
The film, which is actually a remake of the Malayalam film ‘Nandanam’, was originally called ‘Un Mugam Parthene’. But now, it seems like the crew has zeroed in on the title ‘Seedan’, which will have Dhanush playing an important negative role.
The film has another hero, and it is said that the director is planning on casting a new actor for it. Subramaniyam Siva, who is yet to complete his ‘Yogi’ with Ameer, will next start on this project.
This will also be the time when Dhanush would have completed shooting for his ‘Kutty’, with most part of his ‘Aadukalam’ already being shot.

Sneha is Vijay’s heroine in ‘Urimai Kural’

Don’t get frizzled up with the old news about Thamannah pairing up with Vijay in his 50th film ‘Urimai Kural’.
Of course, Thamannah has been already signed up for this film. But then, there is a new twist in this tale.
Aye! It has two heroines pairing up with Vijay and there has been a long time search. Trisha, Shriya Charan and many others have been knocking Vijay’s door for a very long time. Nevertheless, Vijay indeed knocked the doors of Sneha. When approached the actress, she says, ‘Why you’re all in hurry? Please wait for a while’. What does it mean? It’s confirmed to 100% as talks are under pipeline.

Dhanush fainted while shooting for ‘Kutty’

Actor Dhanush has been an aggressive youngster who has been aspired to try his best on all genres of films.
However, during his previous year, there weren’t more of his films released except ‘Yaaradi Nee Mohini’.
Precisely, he’s busy shooting simultaneously for various projects and his ‘Padikadhavan’ has been released. Meanwhile, he has completed 90% for ‘Kutty’ a remake of Telugu Movie ‘Aarya’…
Dhanush was shooting for this film for past 10 days at sun-kissing hot beaches of Chennai. Due to extreme climatic conditions of ‘Agni Natchathiram’ (Terrific Heat), he went dehydrated and fainted. Bounded to much commitment, he was back to the shots after hydrated treatment.

Tamil music has a name: Illayaraja. Happy birthday!

To many, the sound of music is his voice, his musical arrangements with cascading violins, matched with the equal mellifluence of S Janaki and P Susheela. Illayaraja is more than one person. A phenomenon would be an understatement. A musical movement, would perhaps do justice to the maestro. For, it is by invoking his name that most of today’s music geniuses compose their music. AR Rahman, a former assistant to the Isaignani, is a confessed fan of the composer, and in Devi Sri Prasad’s studio, stills hangs a long portrait of the composer, simply calling him the face and figure of music, in all its divinity. Musicians make music. The Isaignani however, made magic. Film music, which until then was tied to the mercies of the lyrics it contained, broke free in his tunes. Music was regarded for its own reason, some even without bearing any lyrics. Voices, even baritones like his own voice, could carry with them the soothing effect that music is bestowed with, only when Illayaraja strung them together. If film music is what the Isaignani was known for, music buffs recognize his inane talent for background score, where silence matters as much as music. Isaignani sure knew how well to use both to good effect. Music isn’t about volume, it is about impact. And it was this ideology that drove him to compose simple, yet spectacular tunes. If Rahman composed a song with only vocals for background music in Thiruda Thiruda (Raasathi), it for sure had its roots in Iasignani’s superhit attempt in this regard, in Thalapathy (Raakamma). If Devi Sri Prasad is noticed for his jazzy numbers, like in Something Something, the tune definitely has a lot to lean on the peppy Rum Bum Bum, in Micheal Madana Kama Rajan, by the maestro. Here’s wishing the face, voice and figure of our music, Isaignani Illayaraja, all happiness, peace. Here’s also wishing his innumerable fans many years of His music on this special day.

Item girl turned entrepreneur

Actress Sona, who shot to limelight with her role in Kuselan, has turned into an entrepreneur, and a successful one at that! The lady has her own artificial jewelry store “Unique” in the city and plans to expand it into a chain of stores.
Sona said that she has started a production house and would offer opportunities to other actors and actresses. Though she has ventured into production, Sona would continue her career in acting. In fact, the actress intends to produce one film a year but she has no plans to star in it. The actress added that she is working on starting a pub soon.

Kanthaswamy sold out!

The much awaited, mega budget film of the year Kanthaswamy has created all the hype ever since it was announced. The film has Vikram and Shriya in the lead and is directed by Susi Ganesan. The latest news we hear about Kanthaswamy is that the overseas rights have been lapped up by Ayngaran International for Rs. 5 crore. Both the producer of Kanthaswamy, Kalaipuli S Dhanu and Arun Pandian of Ayngaran International has confirmed the news. However, both were not available for further comments.
Kanthaswamy will be distributed by AL in the US, the UK, Malaysia, Singapore, Canada Europe, Dubai and Sri Lanka. Interestingly, the film will be dubbed in Spanish and Italian to attract the European market.

Vijay’s title now with Sundar C

The groundwork for Vijay’s 50th film has already begun. It has been confirmed that Perarasu will be directing the movie which will be produced by Sangili Murugan. The cast is yet to be decided though there have been speculations that Sneha has been signed up to play one of the two heroines in the movie. But the immediate problem facing the team is the title. It had earlier been reported that there were plans to use the title of a yesteryear MGR starrer, or a catchphrase from any one of his hit songs for this movie. Vijay himself is reportedly very keen on having his 50th film titles as ‘Enga Veettu Pillai’ after MGR’s cult hit. Acquiring this title might not have been problem in the normal course of things. But, the problem is that this title has already been registered by Sundar C. So, Sundar C’s permission will be required for this title to be used for Vijay’s film. There are also reports that there are many other prospective takers for this title in Kollywood but Sundar C is very keen to retain it.
Vijay, who is currently out of station, is expected to meet Sundar C on his return to the city and negotiate this matter in order to use ‘Enga Veettu Pillai’.
What’s in a name, we tend to think. But in Kollywood, especially when it comes to landmark films like the 50th, the title does seem to be of very high importance.

Rajini for Lawrence

Ragavendra Lawrence entered the film industry as choreographer. Eventually, the choreographer diversified his skills and started to try his hands in direction and acting. The actor-turned-choreographer is also an ardent devotee of lord Ragavendra. Incidentally, his favorite actor Superstar Rajinikanth is also a devotee of Ragavendra.
Ragavendra Lawrence announced a few months earlier that he is building a temple in Ambattur for lord Ragavendra. According to the sources close to the actor-director-choreographer the temple construction is in the final stages and will be inaugurated in August. There are also reports that Rajinikanth will grace the occasion and inaugurate the temple.

‘I dance while tuning music in studio’ - Devi Sri Prasad

Devi Sri Prasad hasn’t just transfixed the masses with his musical score, but his tremendous dance. Aye! He’s been a great entertainer on many podiums with his stunning dance for the melodies he has composed. Well, it was more illustrious with his dance steps for Kandasamy number recently held herein Chennai. Speaking about this he says, ‘I have seen many musicians tuning melodies with much concentration and full passion for it.
But on the contrastive lines, I keep dancing while composing tunes. That offers me much enthusiasm to my senses and gradually entertains every listener of my music.”

Jayam Ravi’s second turning point

Jayam Ravi is all set to enter wedlock on June 4th. The wedding will take place in Chennai and a reception for the newlyweds will be held at the Mayor Ramanathan Chettiar Hall in Chennai.
Jayam Ravi said that though it was love marriage, both the parents have given their consent wholeheartedly. The actor said that reports that his parents were against his love was baseless.
According to the actor, Jayam, his debut venture proved to be a turning point in his life. Likewise, he expects his wedding to his love Aarthi to turn out to be another turning point.

‘I feel chilled when I’m with Ajith’ - Sameera Reddy

Ah! What a astonishing statement? Of course, it’s a clichéd statement made by every actress pairing up with Ajith Kumar. Sameera Reddy who shot to fame right on her debut with ‘Vaaranam Aayiram’ is arriving in Chennai shortly by this weekend for her ‘ASAL’. The actress who hasn’t met Ajith Kumar more than a time (she met him while signing agreement for this flick) speaks a lot about him. She says, “ Ajith is a cool person to move along with. He’s so chilled and for a great surprise he can speak fluently in Hindi and that would help me a lot while filming for ASAL…”
Speaking about her psychological thriller with Gowtham Menon, she adds “I have no idea about what the complete script is? But I have a great confidence on Gowtham with his brilliant scripting…
So, Ajith’s ASAL is an Action-Thriller while Gowtham Menon’s one is a psychological thriller.

THE TELUGU AUDIENCE IS VERY ENCOURAGING. EVERYONE HERE IS A BIG MOVIE BUFF

Tollywood is becoming a hot spot for imports from the Tamil film industry. Almost all Kollywood actors have tried their luck in Andhra shores. And the latest to hop on to this bandwagon is Tamil’s favorite lover boy Shaam. He shed his chocolate boy image and grew a moustache to play a tough cop in Kick. Having received rave reviews for his performance, the 14film-old actor is all set to star in two Telugu movies now.
Shaam who is “learning Telugu” for his roles, says, “Apart from Antony, I’m working on Agampuram. Many may have criticized my move to play a second lead in Kick, but I chose the role since I always wanted to enter the Telugu film industry. I’ve gotten loads of Tollywood offers before, but since I was not too familiar with and it is not just his enthusiasm for learning the local language that makes this actor a hit with producers of Tollywood. His “Telugu looks” will take him a long way, he feels.
“When I was shooting for Kick, people kept telling me that I look like a Telugu boy. Very few actors can boast of this. Now wonder, actors who are successful in one industry don’t click in another. I’m going to make full use of my local looks to get movies,” he quips.
Fact, has much to do with the “the local audience.” “I find the Telugu audience much the language, I backed out. Now, I’ve learnt a little bit of Telugu and I’m on a signing spree in Tollywood.” Shaam’s eagerness to work in Tollywood, in more encouraging. In Tamil Nadu, people go to the theatres to watch a movie only if it is a big hit. Here in Andhra, everyone is a movie buff. They appreciate every film. I love that attitude,” he says.

And the audiences love him too. He may be just one film old in Tollywood, but he already has many fan clubs dedicated to him online.
In fact, sources say that when Shaam was shooting in Malaysia, female fans kept hovering around him. Wonder if that made lead actor Ravi Teja jealous, considering that critics too stated that Shaam overshadowed Ravi Teja.
“I’ve earned the tag of a ‘romantic hero’, thanks to my Tamil films. And since they have a great audience in Malaysia, many fans were happy to see me. Ravi Teja kept pulling my leg about how I’m more popular than him. It was all in good humor. He took care of me like my brother,” he clarifies.
Apart from the many Tollywood offers, this actor also has his eyes set on Bollywood. “I want to play interesting roles and not just act in the same old love stories. I’ve signed a Hindi film titled Mujhe Maaf Karo to be directed by Faisal Saif,” says this actor who adds that he plays cricket matches and parties with “good buddies” like actors Ajith, Srikanth, Jeeva and Abbas to de-stress on weekends.

Image Make-over of Shaam

Actor Shaam turned to be the heartthrob of many missies in town with his chocolate boy image. With his debut ‘12B’ and following film ‘Lesa Lesa’, he captured the attention of tinsel town. But, now he has transcended to greater change by Telugu film ‘Kick’ that’s doing successful business in box office. The film portrays him in the role of a rough and tough police officer. Right now, he has set on to make his debut in Bollywood with ‘Muje Maaf Karo’ directed by Faizal Syed. The film has 8 heroines pairing up with him.
Shaam says, ‘Earlier, I had a doubt whether a Tamil speaking Hero can make it a successful endeavor therein other regional film industries. But my hopes were more with the triumph of Kannada Film ‘Dhananam Dhanaman…” With Shaam’s action packed image getting on for more acclamations, many Kollywood filmmakers have offered him such role in their forthcoming flicks.

Actress Meenakshi insulted by Director Thirumalai

Actress Meenakshi made her debut in a commendable way of homely girl looks in ‘Karuppasamy Kuthagaitharar’. But accidentally, she has stepped on for the glamorous quotients in her recent films ‘TN 07 AL 4777’ and ‘Rajathi Raja’. The actress had recently completed shooting for ‘Agam Puram’ starring opposite Shaam in female lead and Thirumalai has directed the film. After completing her call sheet schedules for this film, the actress rushed to catch her flight to Mumbai and unfortunately, she missed it. Immediately, she buzzed up Director Thirumalai and asked him to book tickets for the right next flight. But, he kept delaying everything and finally booked her tickets for night flight. Meenakshi had to wait for the entire day in airport.
Oh! What a pity Meenakshi?

Genelia and her Rs 1 crore denial

Sometimes, the news about an actresses’ refusal carries as much spice as her agreement on any issue does. Genelia is no exception to the rule. Following her smashing success in Bollywood with ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’, buzz has it that the petite actress has demanded a salary of Rs 1 Crore for her films.
To put things in perspective, it must be realized that this is no big money to seek in an industry as big as Bollywood’s, where actresses are paid over even Rs 5 crores. And Genelia, who made a forceful reentry in Bollywood with the Imran starrer, had anyway demanded upto Rs 70 lakhs for her other films, including the remake of ‘Santhosh Subramaniyam’, in Hindi.
But if it is true that producers have agreed to pay Genie, as she is fondly called, the Rs 1 crore remuneration, she would be the next South Indian actress after Nayantara and Anushka to charge the fee.
But any questions about this touchy issue was met with fierce denial by those on Genie’s camp, who said she has not been demanding more than she deserves. One only wonders who said she doesn't deserve the eight-digit salary.

Ajith’s new villain: Rajiv Krishna

News is trickling in about Ajith’s project, Asal, just as shooting for the film has begun. The film stars the Ultimate Star and Sameera Reddy in the lead, and it is said that Mamta Mohandas could be playing second fiddle in the film.
The latest we hear about the flick is about its villain. Remember actor Rajiv Krishna, who played a soft chocolate boy in Aaha? The actor, who later did smaller roles in films like ‘Hey Nee Romba Azhaga Irukka’, turned to a villain with S J Suryah’s ‘Newtonin Moondram Vidhi’. It is now being said that this actor, who is a relative of Suresh Menon, Revathy’s husband, will play villain in Ajith’s ‘Asal’.
But that’s not all we have for you. It seems like director Saran, conceding to requests from Ajith’s fans, has inserted a bike race sequence in the film. The actor, who was a racer until he quit it to concentrate on films, has earlier featured such a bike chase scene in his ‘Paramasivam’. This scene of the film is also proposed to be followed by a song about the actor being No 1 in every track, which his fans always see him as. ‘Asal’ surely promises to have some ‘Asal’ Thala action.