Mani Ratnam’s magnum opus period film, Ponniyin Selvan , is growing bigger by the day even before its filming is underway.
After Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Vikram, Karthi, Jayam Ravi, R Parthiban, Keerthy Suresh and Amala Paul, Ashwin Kakumanu is the latest actor to have confirmed his participation in Ponniyin Selvan . The actor has been growing out his hair and beard, a requirement that Mani Ratnam has mandated of all male actors in the cast.
Interestingly, Ashwin had auditioned for Chekka Chivantha Vaanam , and though Mani Ratnam liked his work, it did not work out in his favour in the end. The actor told The Hindu that Ratnam’s office reached out to him in March about the opportunity to be a part of Ponniyin Selvan. “They told me that Mani sir wanted to test me again because he had liked my audition for Chekka Chivantha Vaanam . They wanted to check if I could speak dialogues in senthamizh ,” he says.
When he auditioned, Ashwin met Mani Ratnam and was offered the role. “I will have to schedule my other projects for the next eight months to balance with Ponniyin Selvan ,” says Ashwin, adding that it is going to be the “experience of a lifetime for him”.
“Period films are not usually made in Tamil, and by Mani Ratnam no less. So, it was a no-brainer. I have started preparing for the role. I am learning horse-riding and I’m trying to lose weight,” Ashwin adds.
The actor took to Twitter to share his excitement, tweeting, “Looking forward to enjoying the process & the journey. I was part of background sound fx for the college students in #Aaythaezhuthu and so it’s extra special to play a role in #PonniyinSelvan #longroads (sic).”
Ponniyin Selvan is bankrolled by Lyca Productions, who distributed his previous film CCV as well. The film is based on the historical novel Ponniyin Selvan (meaning: the son of Ponni) written by Kalki Krishnamurthy, and which was published in the 1950s. It chronicles the story of Arulmozhivarman, who went onto be crowned as Raja Raja Chola I.
Mani Ratnam’s film is a two-part film similar to the Baahubali series, and is expected to go on the floors in 2020 with a possible 2021 release for the first film.
