Nayanthara's film “Sri Ramarajyam” has joined the list of films affected by the standoff between the Film Employees Federation of South India and the Tamil Film Producers Council. The mythological film, with Balakrishna and Nayanthara in the lead, went on to set the cash registers ringing in Andhra Pradesh. Impressed with its success, the makers chose to dub the film into Tamil and release it on Tamil New Year's Day. However, thanks to the conflict between two of the most powerful bodies in the industry, the makers have not been able to complete work on the Tamil version. Says a source, “It looks like the Tamil version of the film will now release only on April 20.”
*****
Confusion on campus
Actor Vinay Rai, who hasn't had too many releases in Tamil recently, may make an impact at the box office with his next film, “Mirattal”, if one were to go by what sources say. Those close to the unit say the film has all the ingredients of an action entertainer in the right measure. Directed by Madesh, the film features Sharmila, a newcomer from Bangalore. Says a source, “Recently, a kidnapping sequence for the film was shot at a university in the U.K. It was so realistic that some international students at the university, who were unaware it was a shooting sequence, got alarmed.”
Confirming the news, director Madesh says, “Yes, there is a sequence in which the heroine Sharmila gets kidnapped. We shot it in the University of East London where she is shown studying. A group of masked men kidnap her and take her to a private jet stationed at the Oxford University airport, from where she is flown to Chennai. We hired some Albanians to perform the role of the kidnappers. When some students saw masked men kidnapping a girl on the campus, it created a flutter. However, we immediately swung into action and calmed them down by announcing that it was just play acting.” Apart from Vinay and Sharmila, the film features Santhanam, Prabhu, Pandiarajan, Pradeep Rawat and Mansoor Ali Khan in important roles.
***
Taxi, taxi
Actor Nitin Sathya, known for his fine performances in “Raman Thediya Seethai” and “Chennai-600028,” will next be seen in “Mayanginen Thayanginen,” the audio of which was released on Monday. Says Nitin, “I am looking forward to the release of this movie which is based on a real-life incident. It highlights the issue of sexual abuse that happens in some mental asylums in the State. I play a call taxi driver who falls in love with a call centre girl, whom he's not met. I am sure my performance in this film will stand out and help me get noticed.”
Directed by Vendhan, the film has Disha Pandey playing the female lead. The audio was released by director Venkat Prabhu and received by actor Namitha.
