Films release round the year. But what’s special about this summer is the milestones that are to be crossed by the Tamil film industry — actor Sathyaraj’s 200th film, directors Bharathiraja’s and Manivannan’s 50th film and Devayani’s 75th film. Also it’s the holiday season that will attract audiences to theatres. The next two months have a lot in store for film aficionados. Not just biggies, even small-budget films are in the fray for their share of the box office pie. S. R. Ashok Kumar offers a sneak peek at the films
Annakodiyum Kodi Veeranum
Director: Bharathiraja
Music: G.V. Prakash Kumar
Cast: Lakshman Narayan, Karthika Nair, Manoj, Renuka, Meenal, Subiksha.
Director’s Cut:Annakodiyum Kodi Veeranum is a village-centric film. As this is my 50th film, I have taken a lot of effort to delineate each and every character in an interesting way. I am sure my fans will like the film which is packed with several twists and turns.
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Ethir Neechal
Director: R.S. Durai Senthilkumar
Music: Anirudh
Cast: Sivakarthikeyan, Priya Anand and Nandhitha.
Director’s Cut: Having gained considerable experience working under directors Balu Mahendra and Vettrimaaran, I decided to strike out on my own with Ethir Neechal . I must thank Dhanush for entrusting me with directing his maiden production venture. A song written by me and sung by him for which he has danced with Nayantara is a highlight of the film. A love story, laced with sentiment and comedy, Ethir Neechal is sure to appeal to both the masses and the classes. Anirudh’s songs are already creating a sensation.
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Nagaraja Cholan MA MLA
Director: Manivannan
Music: James Vasanthan
Cast: Sathyaraj, Manivannan, Seeman, Mruthula, Komal Sharma, Varsha Ashwathi, Ansiba, Vaiyapuri, Raghu Manivannan.
Director’s Cut:Amaidhi Padai was a landmark film in every sense. Its sequel Nagaraja Cholan MA MLA is my 50th film as director and Sathyaraj’s 200th film as actor. So we both have worked really hard to make the film riveting for viewers. With politics as its premise, I am sure, Nagaraja Cholan MA MLA will rock the box office with repeat audiences.
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Maryan
Director: Bharat Bala
Music: A.R. Rahman
Cast: Dhanush, Parvathy, Appukutty, Uma Riyaz, Jagan, Saleem Kumar, Ankoor Vikal, Vinayagam.
Director’s Cut:Maryan is going to be a different film not only for Dhanush and the others in the unit, but for the audience as well. Dhanush plays the role of a courageous fisherman who enjoys the risk of deep sea diving. I shot the film in reverse order — the last shot was canned first and the first shot last. One half of the film happens in Kanyakumari and the other in Sudan, Africa. Music director Rahman has come up with some excellent tunes. The film has all the entertaining elements in the right proportion to delight viewers.
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Chandra
Director: Roopa Iyer
Music: Goutham Srivatsa
Cast: Prem, Shriya, Ganesh Venkatraman, Vivek, Suhanya, Vijayakumar, Srinath, Sumithra.
Director’s Cut: After my first movie The Cover Page , I wanted to take up a period subject. Chandra deals with the life of a last generation princess and her love story. The members of the cast, especially Prem and Shriya, have acquitted themselves well. They have done a wonderful job of the action sequences too. The music is again a big plus for the film.
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Thirumathi Thamizh
Director: Rajakumaran
Music: S.A. Rajkumar
Cast: Rajakumaran, Devayani, Keerthi Chawla, Ramesh Kanna, Livingston, ‘Ganja’ Karuppu, Rohini, Radha Ravi, Sri Durga, Madhan Bob, Fathima Babu, ‘City’ Babu, ‘Thalaivasal’ Vijay, Prithviraj (Bablu), Sathyapriya, Delhi Ganesh, ‘Sisar’ Manohar, ‘Crane’ Mahonar, Charuhasan, Pandu and ‘Nellai’ Siva.
Director’s Cut: This is my fourth film after Nee Varuvai Ena , Vinnukkum Mannukkum and Kadhaludan . Thirumathi Thamizh happens to be the 75th film of my wife Devayani who plays the heroine. I am happy I am able to do something for the cause of Tamizh — the film has a couple of songs in praise of the Tamil language and both have been shot beautifully. The screenplay and the climax are the noteworthy features of the film.
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Moondru Per Moondru Kadhal
Director: S.M. Vasanth
Music: Yuvan Shankar Raja
Cast: Arjun, Cheran, Vemal, Muktha Banu, Surveen Chawla, Lasini, Thambi Ramaiah, Appukutty.
Director’s Cut: It is not a love story but a story about love. A neat entertainer, I am sure, the audience will be able to relate to any one of the three stories portrayed in Moondru Per Moondru Kadhal.
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Sonna Puriyadhu
Director: Krishnan Jayaraj
Music: Yathish Mahadev
Cast: Shiva, Vasundhara Kashyap, Blade Shankar, Manobala, Singamuthu, Alva Vasu, Gangai Amaren, Harathi, Meera Krishnan.
Director’s Cut: This is my debut directorial venture. I have worked as a co-director on Amudhan’s Thamizh Padam. It’s been my dream to make an entertaining film with a liberal dose of comedy. The hero of Sonna Puriyadhu is a dubbing artist who is against getting married. But at his mother’s insistence he agrees to meet his prospective bride. What follows forms an amusing climax. One of the highlights in this laugh riot is Shiva has sung a Hindi song.
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Theeya Velai Seiyanum Kumaru
Director: Sundar C
Cast: Siddharth, Santhanam, Hansika, Ganesh Venkatraman.
Director’s Cut:Theeya Velai Seiyanum Kumaru is an out-and-out comedy with Santhanam playing the ‘Love Guru’. Siddharth is a not-so-happy guy working in an IT company. Enter Hansika as a trainee. Siddharth falls in love with Hansika but does not know how to express it to her. He approaches the ‘Love Guru.’ At two hours and fifteen minutes, Theeya Velai Seiyanum Kumaru will take you on a fun ride, from beginning to end.
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Arjunan Kadhali
Director: Parthy Bhaskar
Music: Srikanth Deva
Cast: Jai, Poorna, Thambi Ramaiah, Lakshmi Ramakrishnan, Vijay Mithran.
Director’s Cut: Veteran film producer Sivasakthi Pandian’s 12th film is Arjunan Kadhali . He has given many hit films of which three won National awards and two State awards. I hope this film too proves a success. An emotional love story, Arjunan Kadhali also explores the father-daughter sentiment.
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Kutti Puli
Director: Muthaiah
Cast: Sasikumar, Lakshmi Menon, Saranya Ponvannan, Ramesh Prabha, “Adukalam” Murugadas, Balasaravanan.
Director’s Cut: I must thank my mentor Sasikumar for making me direct Kutti Puli in which he plays the titular hero. The film is based on a real-life incident that took place at Mettu Theru in Srivilliputhur. The film has Sasikumar’s brand of comedy, love, sentiment and action.
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Gouravam
Director: Radha Mohan
Music: Thaman
Cast: Srish, Yami Gautham, Nasser, Sricharan, Kumaravel and Prakash Raj.
Director’s Cut: The story of Gouravam deals with honour killing and I feel there should be awareness about this sensitive issue among our youngsters. This subject has not been dealt with before in Indian cinema.
