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Gautam Karthik

Yet another remake

It is a normal practice for production units to go in for backward integration to bring many activities under their control and benefit from lesser costs. But, here is an individual who favours forward integration. Ravi Prasad Outdoor Unit, started by P. Chengaiah several years ago, established itself as a premium facility for most filmmakers during their shooting stints. Chengaiah then moved to processing with the launch of Ravi Prasad Film Lab. Now, he is turning producer with the launch of the Tamil version of the Telugu super hit Ala Modalaindi . “The Telugu version was a runaway hit, starring Nani and Nithya Menon. The Tamil version will be directed by Ravi Thyagarajan (assistant to Priyadarshan) and will have Gautham Karthik in the lead. The music will be scored by D. Imman. Right now, we are in the process of finalising the other actors for the film which will be produced by our new banner, Raviprasad Productions. Having both the outdoor units and lab under our control, we will be able to complete the film fast,” says Ravi Prasad, son of Chengaiah.

Four at a time

It’s going to be a busy year for Richard, for he has four films in different stages of completion. There’s

Netru Indru , a multi-starrer in which he is featured alongside Vemal and Prasanna. And, in C. S. Amudhan’s Rendavadhu Padam , Richard stars alongside Vemal. “Then there’s Sutrula and the soon-to-be-launched Woo in which I play the solo lead. In this, my character is that of a playboy who has a wife and a girlfriend. Woo is a murder mystery directed by M. M. Jayaprakash, an associate of Keyar. This will be in striking contrast to the laugh riot Rendavadhu Padam , which is about three bachelors and their escapades,” says Richard.

He turns a tough guy

Many actors launched by veteran director K. Balachander have become successful stars, Kamal Haasan, Rajinikanth and Prakash Raj to name a few. Actor Uday Kiran wishes to follow a similar route after his introduction in Balachander’s

Poi. “It was rather unfortunate that things did not fall in place for me to capitalise on the success of

Poi . But, as they say, better late than never. I have worked hard at shedding my chocolate boy looks for my new film which demands a tough look. It is an action entertainer and the script is a morale booster for me,” says Uday. The big-budget film is being produced by Flying Colours and directed by Sudhakar.