Itsy-bitsy

Amitabh & Ganesh

Charmed by the Big B

Ganesh Venkataraman is just a couple of years old in the industry, and he's already worked alongside heavyweights such as Prakash Raj, Mohan Lal, Kamal Haasan, Sathyaraj, Amitabh Bachchan, and now, Ajith (in Mankatha ). The young actor is ecstatic when he recounts his experiences with the Big B: “I play his son in Kandahar (Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi). God! He is so humble and down to earth. I was quite nervous before my first shot with him. In fact, I told Mohan Lal that I had butterflies in my stomach, and he told me to “leave the butterflies where they belonged and come back with confidence”. Thereon, I found that Amitabh would go out of the way to offer help and advice and do everything possible to put even someone like me, a greenhorn, at ease.”

Challenging social mores

Even in this modern era, there continues to exist social stigmas, caste differences and community discord. And, trying to correct the situation, or, at least, aid the process of reform is director Veerapandian, with

Avargalum Ivargalum . “A couple from the village (Vimal Natarajan and Supraja) and another from the city (Satish and Aishwarya) meet during a train journey. Both are from different strata of society, and from different communities. The one similarity is that they are running away from a system that tries to break them up and not give them the freedom to choose their future. The movie is about how they discover each other's zest for life and decide that caste, creed, colour and community are only shackles that stifle growth,” he says.

Getting real

Bike racer-turned-hero Dilip Rogger flexes his muscles while depicting the character of Paruthi Vooran from a place called Paruthi-Oor (there was an earlier depiction of the same character by Karthi in Ameer's

Paruthiveeran) in

Udumban . Director Ramji S Bala says that a person by that name actually existed, and adds that he has attempted to take real-life incidents from Paruthi Vooran's life by shooting most of the film in the original locations. Starring opposite Dilip is Radhika. For Dilip, this is a totally different ballgame — from scorching the race tracks on super bikes in international races, to donning the grease paint. Says Dilip, who is on his last shooting schedule: “Every day has been a learning process. It is tougher than I thought, but I am thoroughly enjoying myself. I am even going in for dance and fight classes to give my best for every scene. Thank God, I am not camera-shy!”

Life-altering journey

The hero is new face Amaran, and the movie, interestingly, is called Amara . But the scene stealer in Amara is Sruthi (of Kavalar Kudiyiruppu fame). Director Jeevan, who is eagerly awaiting the release of Duet Films' Mayilu, is busy shooting for Amara . Portrayed as an action-based entertainer, the film is said to have liberal doses of dance and romance to cater to the masses. “It is the story of a youngster from a village and his journey to the big city. During his travels, he goes through various experiences that help him open his eyes to life, and the ways of the world at large,” says Jeevan. Sruthi, obviously, aids him in this process.

Inspired by Nature

New face Shobana Naidu sizzles alongside another new find Dilipkumar in director K. Arjunaraja's Mayyam Konden . The story draws analogy from Nature. “Just as how rain water rushes down the mountains and nourishes the plains, my hero is likened to the mountain and my heroine, water — Nature binds them, but they are not without inconsistencies. I've shot in picturesque locales — from the Kerala backwaters to the hills of Rajapalayam and Pollachi,” says Arjunaraja.