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R Madhavan, who spent two years of his life bulking up to look like the raging ex-boxer in Sudha Kongara’s pugilistic drama Saala Khadoos, was floating in the air after Mike Tyson tweeted that he wanted to see his boxing film. Subhash K Jha revisits Madhavan’s brilliance in the film, which released in 2016.

Director Sudha Kongara Prasad gives us an unusual film where the stereotypical character of the cantankerous boxer meets his match when he picks up a foul-mouthed uncouth boxer for training into championship. There is nothing in the plot to suggest even a whiff of the unexpected.

As a fast-fading boxing coach who finds redemption in a livewire protégée played by newcomer Ritika Singh, Madhavan generates enough power through his performance to nourish the narrative and take us through two hours of unstoppable drama, conflict, humour, and pathos.

The first time when Madhavan’s raging coach...

Manisha Koirala reveals a last-minute script change in Dil Se: Shah Rukh Khan’s character wasn’t supposed to die ( Photo Credit – Instagram )

Shah Rukh Khan’s character in Mani Ratnam’s romantic thriller Dil Se (1998) wasn’t supposed to die, and it wasn’t in the original script. The film’s lead heroine, Manisha Koirala, revealed this.

In the film, Manisha Koirala plays a female terrorist, and in the end, her character dies in a suicide bombing along with Shah Rukh Khan. However, in a recent interview with a news agency, Ani, the Dil Se actress revealed that Shah Rukh Khan’s character wasn’t supposed to die. Per the original script, only her character was supposed to be dead in the end.

“In the original script that we had agreed on, the cause was larger than love for both the characters. In the original version, he lets her die,...

Film industry luminaries have paid fulsome homage to Indian DoP Santosh Sivan, this year’s recipient of the annual Pierre Angénieux ExcelLens in Cinematography award conferred during the Cannes Film Festival.

Hosted by professional cinema lens manufacturer Angénieux at Cannes, the award pays tribute to a renowned cinematographer and recognizes an emerging talent. Estonian-u.S cinematographer Kadri Koop will receive the Angénieux special encouragement honor.

Sivan has shot 55 feature films, including “Roja,” “Thalapathi,” “Dil Se” and “Iruvar” for Mani Ratnam, Cannes selection “Vanaprastham” for Shaji N. Karun, “Meenaxi” for M.F. Hussain and “Bride and Prejudice” for Gurinder Chadha, amongst many others. He has also shot more than 50 documentaries and directed 17 feature films including Sundance selection “The Terrorist” and Venice and Toronto selection “Asoka,” produced by and starring Shah Rukh Khan. Sivan is the first Indian member of the American Society of Cinematographers.

The DoP is the first Asian recipient of the Angénieux award,...

Anil Thadani’s AA Films has acquired the Hindi-language distribution rights for four highly anticipated 2024 southern Indian titles.

The films are: Sukumar’s “Pushpa: The Rule – Part 2,” starring Allu Arjun; Shankar’s “Game Changer,” headlined by Ram Charan; Nag Ashwin’s “Kalki 2898 Ad” led by Prabhas; and Koratala Siva’s “Devara,” starring Ntr Jr.

All these films are originally made in the Telugu language but will also be released across India and the world in several Indian languages, including Hindi. They are what is known locally in India as ‘pan India’ films.

In recent decades, India has been a patchwork of local cinema markets, defined partly by geography and language group, and with only limited overlap or transfer between them, except for the Bollywood (Hindi-language) segment which enjoys wider releases. That is now changing.

Pan India film is a term usually used for films made in one...

National Award-winning filmmaker Mani Ratnam, who last directed the magnum opus, the two part ‘Ponniyin Selvan’, shared an anecdote from his schooling days, when he would watch a film on the pretext of studying with friends.

The filmmaker who is known for films such as ‘Roja’, ‘Thiruda Thiruda’, ‘Bombay’, ‘Iruvar’, ‘Alaipayuthey’, ‘Yuva’, ‘Guru’ and others, recently spoke with filmmaker Imtiaz Ali during the Masterclass of Mami Mumbai Film Festival.

He spoke about his childhood days and also shared when his interest in cinema turned into a passion.

Mani Ratnam said: “Before I got into films I was just a cinema-goer, because I liked this world of films. I never thought I would choose cinema as a profession. I just used to go theatres every Friday and tell my parents that I’ll be away for group study with my friends but I would be in theatres watching a movie during that time.

The First South Indian Film Dubbed In Hindi Performed Better Than Rrr At The Box Office (Photo Credit – IMDb)

South Indian films earned a pan-India status a few years back when SS Rajamouli arrived with his beast Prabhas, who overnight shot to global stardom thanks to the epic action entertainer that was shot in Tamil and Telugu and later dubbed and released in Hindi.

However, Baahubali is not the first film that started a wave of dubbed South Indian films released in Hindi theaters. The same wave happened in the 90s as well when Mani Ratnam’s Roja arrived in the theaters.

But do you know which was the first South Indian film that was dubbed in Hindi and released in theaters as a Hindi film? It was neither Baahubali nor Roja. But the roots of dubbed South Indian films in Hindi go back to as early as the 40s!

Actress Preity Zinta recalled how filmmaker Mani Ratnam, on the first day on the sets of her 1998 film ‘Dil Se’, asked her to go make-up free.

Preity took to Instagram, where she shared a still from the film, starring Shah Rukh Khan and Manisha Koirala.

She said: “This picture was taken on the first day on the set of Dil Se. I was so excited to be working with Mani Ratnam sir & Shah Rukh Khan. When Mani sir saw me he smiled and politely asked me to wash my face…. But sir… my make up will come off, I said smiling …. That’s exactly what I want… Pls wash your face…. He smiled back.”

Preity thought Mani Ratnam was joking.

“I thought he was joking …. Then I realised he was not !!! So thanks to the amazing Santosh Sivan ( our Director of Photography) I filmed with a freshly washed face and got away with it.

Music composer A R Rahman, hailed as the ‘Mozart of Madras’, is celebrating his 57th birthday, even as the world toasts his musical prowess that has transcended cultural boundaries, earning him accolades and admiration worldwide.

The winner of six National Film Awards, two Oscars, two Grammys, a BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe, and the third-highest civilian award Padma Bhushan, Rahman has been creating music that is a testament to the universality of emotions. His compositions evoke a range of feelings that resonate with audiences from diverse backgrounds.

Born in Chennai on January 6, 1967, Rahman is known for the transformative impact he has had on the film industry, playing a pivotal role in redefining the role of music in Indian cinema, emphasising its importance in storytelling.

In his three-decade-long career, he has composed and produced original scores and songs for more than 145 films in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, English, Persian and Mandarin.

Ranbir Kapoor and Bobby Deol-starrer ‘Animal’ is currently creating a storm at the box-office with almost all shows going housefull. The performances and the story is praise worthy but major credit goes to the music in the film that leaves an impact too.

Sandeep Vanga Reddy paid extra attention to music by adding a Punjabi track to a Marathi number and an Iranian song. Here’s a look at the songs/ background score of ‘Animal’ which leaves the audiences humming from the cinema theaters.

‘Chinni Chinni Aasa’ or ‘Chhoti si Asha’: The progressive rock version of the song ‘Chinni Chinni Aasa’ by Threeory was used for Ranbir’s introduction in the film. The song starts with drum beats giving a pump to the star’s entry. The original song is from the film ‘Roja’, which was released in 1992 and the music was by A. R. Rahman.

‘Kadhal Rojave...

Ranbir Kapoor and Bobby Deol-starrer ‘Animal’ is currently creating a storm at the box-office with almost all shows going housefull. The performances and the story is praise worthy but major credit goes to the music in the film that leaves an impact too.

Sandeep Vanga Reddy paid extra attention to music by adding a Punjabi track to a Marathi number and an Iranian song. Here’s a look at the songs/ background score of ‘Animal’ which leaves the audiences humming from the cinema theaters.

‘Chinni Chinni Aasa’ or ‘Chhoti si Asha’: The progressive rock version of the song ‘Chinni Chinni Aasa’ by Threeory was used for Ranbir’s introduction in the film. The song starts with drum beats giving a pump to the star’s entry. The original song is from the film ‘Roja’, which was released in 1992 and the music was by A. R. Rahman.

‘Kadhal Rojave...

Leading Tamil filmmaker Mani Ratnam shared deep insights and filmmaking secrets from his illustrious 40-year career in a master class at Mumbai Film Festival, moderated by self-confessed fan and Hindi film director Imtiaz Ali.

In a standing room only session that lasted nearly two hours, the celebrated filmmaker started by talking about how he was working as a management consultant when the films of masters such as Akira Kurosawa, Guru Dutt and Bimal Roy inspired him to seek a career in cinema.

“At that time, the only way you could become a director was to work as an assistant director with some big filmmaker – that would be a period of some seven or eight years and I was not patient enough for that,” Ratnam remembers.

“So I thought I’ll write a script, convince a director and learn everything about filmmaking that way. But when I finished writing, I thought...

Indian filmmaker Mani Ratnam, known for his works like ‘Roja’, ‘Bombay’, and Italian director Luca Guadagnino, who is known for ‘A Bigger Splash’, ‘Call Me By Your Name’, etc will be honoured with the ‘Excellence in Cinema’ award, here, at the Mami Mumbai Film Festival. Both the directors will attend the festival to receive this prestigious accolade, and will conduct masterclasses at the festival. It will be held at the Opening Night ceremony on October 27.

The award honours individuals who have made outstanding, long-lasting contributions to the world of film and cinema. Previous recipients include Darren Aronofsky, Sharmila Tagore, Fernando Meirelles, and Chen Kaige.

The festival will also screen Mani Ratnam’s most recent historical dramas — ‘Ponniyin Selvan: Part one and two’, and Guadagnino’s Golden Globe-nominated film ‘I Am Love’.

With a career spanning four decades, Mani Ratnam is one of the most celebrated directors from South Asia. Over the decades,...

Indian filmmaker Mani Ratnam, known for his works like ‘Roja’, ‘Bombay’, and Italian director Luca Guadagnino, who is known for ‘A Bigger Splash’, ‘Call Me By Your Name’, etc will be honoured with the ‘Excellence in Cinema’ award, here, at the Mami Mumbai Film Festival. Both the directors will attend the festival to receive this prestigious accolade, and will conduct masterclasses at the festival. It will be held at the Opening Night ceremony on October 27.

The award honours individuals who have made outstanding, long-lasting contributions to the world of film and cinema. Previous recipients include Darren Aronofsky, Sharmila Tagore, Fernando Meirelles, and Chen Kaige.

The festival will also screen Mani Ratnam’s most recent historical dramas — ‘Ponniyin Selvan: Part one and two’, and Guadagnino’s Golden Globe-nominated film ‘I Am Love’.

With a career spanning four decades, Mani Ratnam is one of the most celebrated directors from South Asia. Over the decades,...

Italy’s Luca Guadagnino and India’s Mani Ratnam will receive the Jio Mami Mumbai Film Festival’s 2023 Excellence in Cinema awards.

Ratnam will receive the Excellence in Cinema (South Asia) award and Guadagnino the Excellence in Cinema (International) award. The awards will be presented at the festival’s opening ceremony on Oct. 27. Both filmmakers will be present and will deliver masterclasses during the festival.

The festival will screen Guadagnino’s Oscar and BAFTA nominated “I Am Love” (2009) and both parts of Ratnam’s magnum opus “Ponniyin Selvan”.

Guadagnino’s films include “A Bigger Splash” (2015), the Oscar-winning film “Call Me By Your Name” (2017), “Suspiria” (2018) and feature documentary “Salvatore: Shoemaker of Dreams” (2020). “Bones and All” (2022) won Guadagnino the Silver Lion for best director at Venice. He made his TV debut with the HBO drama series “We Are Who We Are” (2020). His film “Challengers,” starring Zendaya, Mike Faist and Josh O’Connor, is...

Dijo Jose Antony, the director of the hit film Queen and the upcoming Jana Gana Mana, is reportedly working on a new project that will feature three of the biggest stars in South Indian cinema – Mohanlal, Prithviraj Sukumaran and Arvind Swamy. The film, which is yet to be officially announced, is said to be a mass entertainer that will showcase the acting prowess and charisma of the trio.

According to sources, the film will be produced by Listin Stephen and Prithviraj Productions, the banner that backed multiple Prithviraj movies. The script will be written by a newcomer and the shooting will take place in between the breaks of Empuraan, which is expected to start rolling next month. The film will also mark the Malayalam debut of Arvind Swamy, who is known for his roles in films like Roja, Bombay and Thani Oruvan.

#FDFS_Exclusive : Dijo Jose Antony – #Mohanlal project...

Review‘Kushi’ isn’t strikingly original. But the treatment of a familiar story, with a gentle push towards introspection, makes all the difference.Kushi, directed by Shiva Nirvana who is known for his films on messy relationships, brings together an atheist and a conservative Brahmin in a marriage that goes against the wishes of their respective families. Religion is an especially touchy subject in our current political climate, and it takes a fair amount of courage to place it at the heart of a romcom. The intervention of art is sometimes needed to remind us that the angry, volatile debates we have around such issues don’t exist in a vacuum, but concern human beings who come with their share of baggage and complexities. Vijay Deverakonda plays Viplav – meaning revolution – a Bsnl employee and the son of Lenin Satyam (Sachin Khedekar), a renowned atheist. He’s a Mani Ratnam fan...

Review‘Kushi’ isn’t strikingly original. But the treatment of a familiar story, with a gentle push towards introspection, makes all the difference.Kushi, directed by Shiva Nirvana who is known for his films on messy relationships, brings together an atheist and a conservative Brahmin in a marriage that goes against the wishes of their respective families. Religion is an especially touchy subject in our current political climate, and it takes a fair amount of courage to place it at the heart of a romcom. The intervention of art is sometimes needed to remind us that the angry, volatile debates we have around such issues don’t exist in a vacuum, but concern human beings who come with their share of baggage and complexities. Vijay Deverakonda plays Viplav – meaning revolution – a Bsnl employee and the son of Lenin Satyam (Sachin Khedekar), a renowned atheist. He’s a Mani Ratnam fan...

Music and poetry have been a crucial part of India’s freedom struggle against the British who ruled the nation for over 200 years.

The poetry of Sarojini Naidu inspired many in the resistance, even the legendary Bhagat Singh and his comrades Sukhdev and Rajguru sang ‘Mera Rang De Basanti Chola’ on their way to martyrdom.

As India celebrates its 76th Independence Day on Monday, here are some Hindi songs that you can add to your playlist and celebrate the spirit of Independence Day.

1. Sandese Aate Hain: The first song on the list is the iconic song from ‘Border’, a timeless melody with lyrics written by Javed Akhtar, and sung by Sonu Nigam and Roopkumar Rathod. The song perfectly showcases the emotional aspect of a soldier’s life as they often find it difficult to tell their families as to when they would return home.

2. Yeh Jo Des Hai Tera: An...

Karthi, one of the most versatile and popular actors in Tamil cinema, has announced his next project, tentatively titled Karthi27. The film will be directed by C Prem Kumar, who made his debut with the critically acclaimed and commercially successful 96, starring Vijay Sethupathi and Trisha. The film will also feature Aravind Swamy, the handsome and talented actor who has delivered memorable performances in films like Roja, Bombay, Thani Oruvan, and Bogan.

The film will be produced by 2D Entertainment, the banner owned by Karthi’s brother and actor Suriya. The production house has been known for backing quality films like 24, Pasanga 2, Magalir Mattum, and Soorarai Pottru. The film will have music by Govind Vasantha, who composed the soulful and nostalgic songs for 96. The film will also mark the reunion of Prem Kumar and PC Sreeram, the legendary cinematographer who worked with him in 96.

96 Songs Life of Ram

Karthi27 is...

Mm Keeravaani, the Oscar-winning music composer, has shared his experience of working on the music for the upcoming horror film Chandramukhi 2, starring Raghava Lawrence and Kangana Ranaut. He said that he had to spend two months of sleepless nights and days to compose the music for the film, which has some mind-blowing scenes.

Chandramukhi 2 is a Tamil horror film directed by P Vasu and produced by Lyca Productions. It is a remake of the Kannada film Apthamitra (2004), which itself was a remake of the Malayalam film Manichitrathazhu (1997). The film features Raghava Lawrence and Kangana Ranaut in the lead roles, along with Vadivelu, Radhika, Lakshmi Menon, Srushti Dange, Mahima Nambiar, and Ravi Maria in supporting roles.

Chandramukhi Video Song

The film revolves around a couple who move into a haunted mansion, where they encounter a vengeful spirit of a dancer named Chandramukhi. The film is expected to release on Ganesh Chaturthi this year.

Set against the backdrop of Insurgency in Assam, “Dil Se” is one of the renowned examples of parallel cinema and also the final installment in Ratnam's trilogy consisting of “Roja” (1992) and “Bombay” (1995). The film was moderately successful at the domestic box office; however, it was a major success overseas, earning $975,000 in the United States and £537,930 in the United Kingdom becoming the first Indian film to enter the top 10 in the latter's box office charts and it was also a hit in Japan.

Follow our tribute to Netflix by clicking on the image below

Amarkant Varma is a program executive for All India Radio, dispatched from New Delhi to cover festivities in Assam. On his way there, he stumbles upon a very beautiful woman while stranded in a train station, who turns down his advances, however. Nevertheless, Amar becomes infatuated with her, and when he meets her once more in Silchar,...

Pune, May 1 (Ians) Adopting a stern approach, the Pune Police stopped midway a mega-concert of Oscar-winner music composer A.R. Rahman, disappointing his thousands in the audiences and his fans.

The incident happened late on Sunday night. The show was held at a sprawling open-air venue near the Rajbahadur Mills with several thousands of fans singing along, swaying or dancing to some of the top tunes of Rahman in his long musical journey of over 30 years.

However, at 10 p.m. sharp, a senior police officer, waving a torch on the dark stage and signalling, ordered the organisers to immediately halt the show as it was exceeding the permissible time limit.

Around that time, Rahman, 56, was himself performing his superhit number, “Chal Chhaiya, Chhaiyaa” and the cop went right up to him, pointed at his wristwatch and after apparently giving him an earful, asked that the show must end right away, to...

The term ‘pan India film’ is quite the rage across the country these days and four leading producers convened at the recently concluded Dakshin South India Media and Entertainment Summit in Chennai to break down the concept.

Organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (Cii), southern region, the theme of the conference this year was Beyond Borders and the pan India discussion fell neatly into that remit.

In recent decades, India has been a patchwork of local cinema markets, defined partly by geography and language group, and with only limited overlap or transfer between them, except for the Bollywood (Hindi-language) segment which enjoys wider releases. Change may now be afoot.

Pan India film is a term usually used for films made in one of the four south Indian languages – Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam – which is dubbed into Hindi and other languages and released across India and in diaspora markets.

Mumbai, March 11 (Ians) Oscar winning composer A. R. Rahman, who is known for his work in films like ‘Roja’, ‘Bombay’, ‘Guru’, ‘Rang De Basanti’, ‘Yuva’ and several others, feels heartbroken as not every contestant can go forward on the music platform, ‘Nexa Music’.

The platform is set to announce the 4 Super winners from Season 2. Spearheaded by Rahman, the headliner includes Shor Police, Monica Dogra, Mickey McCleary, and Uday Benegal. Rahman selected the top 24 contestants from over 2,400 entries received.

Out of the 24, the top 4 have been shortlisted and will be declared as the Super Winners of Season 2 by the Oscar winning composer. Each of these top 4 will get a chance to make an additional new original English music video the songs for which will be composed by world-renowned music producer and composer, Mickey McCleary.

Rahman said: “You want to give it to all 50-60 but you can’t, it’s heartbreaking to take somebody off.

Santosh Sivan, a filmmaker from Kerala, is one of the greatest modern cinematographers from the

Subcontinent. He has never restricted to just the Malayalam language area and worked on films in

Tamil, Hindi, and others. He is remembered for his fantastic collaboration with Mani Ratnam on such

movies as “Dil Se”, “Iruvar” or “Roja”. Quite early in his career, he also took the helm of the director.

He delivered various projects, some of which were recognized in the festival circuit, and some were epic blockbusters with a multistar cast (“Asoka” and

“Urumi”).

Moha is screening at International Film Festival Rotterdam

“Moha” is his latest directorial venture, obviously created with the festival audience in mind. It

detaches from conventional narrative storytelling and differs from the other films by Sivan-the

director. Slightly it may resemble

“Navarasa”, which was contemplative and very experimental in form.

There are no dialogues in the movie, but it introduces the omniscient narrator,...

Ace director Shankar, who is currently directing Kamal Haasan-starrer ‘Indian 2’ and Telugu star Ram Charan’s ‘#RC15’, has disclosed that Kamal Haasan will resume shooting for ‘Indian 2’ from the third week of September.

The ace director, who participated in the audio and trailer launch of director Mani Ratnam’s much-awaited magnum opus ‘Ponniyin Selvan1’, was asked for an update about his film with Kamal Haasan by the anchor.

The director replied, “We completed one schedule just yesterday (Monday). One is done. The next will start in the third week of this month with Kamal Haasan.”

Lauding Mani Ratnam for his ‘Ponniyin Selvan’, Shankar praised the ace director and called him the country’s first Pan-India director.

“As far as I know, Mani Ratnam is India’s first pan-India director. His films ‘Roja’ and ‘Bombay’ reached all over the country for his direction, style and content. Add to...

The A R Rahman-composed “Chola Chola” track from Mani Ratnam’s upcoming epic period action film “Ponniyin Selvan: I”, which was released on Friday, has a rhythm rooted in the cultural of Tamil Nadu and is sung in praise of the Chola emperor, Rajaraja Chola I.

The song brings back the combination of Mani Ratnam and Rahman, who have earlier given memorable soundtracks to Indian cinema with “Roja”, “Iruvar”, “Dil Se…”, “Alaipayuthey” and “Yuva”, to name a few.

The song uses South Indian folk instruments in a big way with a prominent percussion section. Composer Vishal Mishra has gone behind the mic with Swagat Rathod to lend his voice to the lyrics of the veteran Mehboob.

The orchestra brings together the sound produced by three powerful forces: Chennai Strings, the A.R. Rahman Foundation-based Sunshine Orchestra and Budapest Art Orchestra.

“Ponniyin Selvan: I”, the first of two-part spectacle based...

Late director K. Balachander’s Kavithalayaa Productions, which produced director Mani Ratnam’s blockbuster ‘Roja’, has recalled the words of K. Balachander when he introduced A.R. Rahman as a music director on the occasion of the film completing a glorious 30 years.

Taking to Twitter, Kavithalayaa Productions, on its timeline, posted two videos. The first video clip, which was a speech of the late director, was posted by the production house saying, “In his own inimitable style, Kb sir expressed his appreciation for ‘Roja’ artistes and technicians on the occasion of the silver jubilee of the film. Today, we offer this as Kavithalayaa’s tribute to them.”

The second video, which was posted on Tuesday night by the production house, was one that had clips of a recent A. R. Rahman performance.

In the video, music director A. R. Rahman is seen on stage saying, “Thirty years of ‘Roja’. I want...

CinemaRahman’s biggest achievement is the fact that in a very diverse country like India, his music has been widely accepted across geographies, writes the author.Anand Kumar RSFacebookMani Ratnam’s super hit film Roja was released on August 15, 30 years ago. When we saw the film, we understood why the makers opted for a Saturday instead of the customary Friday release for new films. The film had a subtext of patriotism and therefore it was a good marketing idea to release it on Independence Day when the air in the country is filled with patriotic fervour. Talking of marketing, no one realised back then that the film would give birth to a global homegrown brand called Ar Rahman. Roja was Mani’s eleventh film as a director and by then he had already become a cult figure in Tamil cinema with back-to-back hits. Yet, Roja had a few firsts to its credit.

MollywoodThe Malayalam film, directed by Jean Paul Lal, has Prithviraj Sukumaran and Suraj Venkjarammoodu in the lead. Digital NativeSeveral Malayalam films have been remade in Tamil and Telugu in the past and have turned out to be huge hits. And it now looks like the recent release Driving License will soon join the list. The film hit the marquee on December 20 to positive reviews. Following this, the latest buzz is that there is a strong competition to bag its Tamil and Telugu remake rights. Sources in the know say that leading actors in both the film industries have shown interest in the remake but it is still too early to speculate on which actor would step in to play the lead roles of Prithviraj Sukumaran and Suraj Venjarammoodu. Talks have been initiated following the good response for the film at the box office. Driving License is helmed by Jean Paul Lal alias Lal Jr.

A.R. Rahman, Oscar, BAFTA and Grammy-winning composer of “Slumdog Millionaire,” will world premiere “99 Songs,” his debut as screenwriter and producer, at the Busan International Film Festival on Wednesday.

The film, directed by Vishwesh Krishnamoorthy (TV’s “The Dewarists”), will play as part of the festival’s Open Cinema strand. The screening will be preceded by a live piano performance by Rahman where he will bow themes from the film.

“It’s like a fairy tale, where a guy has to write a 100 songs to win the girl, but it’s not that simple,” Rahman told Variety. The peripatetic composer spends a lot of time on planes. That, coupled with his post-Oscars composing phase with Hollywood’s comparatively relaxed schedule, gave him the time to conceive the idea of writing a film about music.

“We have all the social stigmas, musicians are always drunk and dead at the end,” says Rahman.

Actor Arvind Swamy, best remembered for his roles in Mani Ratnam's "Roja" and "Bombay", is all set to play the late Tamil superstar and former Chief Minister Mg Ramachandran in the biopic "Thalaivi", which casts Kangana Ranaut in the central role of the late J. Jayalalithaa.

"Mgr and Jayalalithaa starred in 28 box-office hits between 1965 and 1973. While the makers needed a worthy actor to do justice to his role, another criterion was the artiste had to be fluent in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu," a trade source privy to developments revealed, according to a publication.

Also Read:?Meet the next Jayalalitha - Digangana Suryavanshi

"Arvind satisfied both criteria. The unit will kick off the shoot for 'Thalaivi' with Kangana from the first week of November in Mysore, and Arvind will join her on November 15," the source added.

"Thalaivi" is a multilingual film scheduled to go on floors after Diwali and an...

KollywoodAs per reliable sources close to the 'Roja' filmmaker, after nearly a year of pre-production, the highly anticipated project will finally go to sets from December this year.Digital NativeFilmmaker Mani Ratnam for long has toyed with the idea of adapting Ponniyin Selvan into a film with a huge star cast. Over a decade ago, he had almost announced the project with Vijay, Vikram and Mahesh Babu, and later with Karthi and Ram Charan. The highly anticipated project is happening and as per reliable sources close to the Roja filmmaker, the film will finally go to sets from December after nearly a year of pre-production. It has already been confirmed that Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Jayam Ravi are officially part of the cast but as per reports the film also stars Jyotika, Amala Paul and Keerthy Suresh in pivotal roles. Vijay Sethupathi is also said to be...

MollywoodThe film will mark the directorial debut of actor Kalabhavan Shajohn.Digital NativeActor Kalabhavan Shajohn is making his directorial debut with Brother’s Day, a film that will have Prithviraj Sukumaran playing the lead role. The team has returned from Greece where they wrapped up a schedule recently. On his return, Prithviraj is seen sporting a bearded look which is probably for his get-up in the film. Listin Stephen will be bankrolling the film under his banner Magic Frames on a budget of Rs 15 crore. Miya, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Prayaga Rose Martin and Aima Sebastian have been roped in to play the female leads in this film. Reports are that Prithviraj will be working on Brother’s Day and Driving License simultaneously and both the films will be out at the theatres this year. Driving License will be helmed by Jean Paul Lal. It is learnt that Prithviraj plays a car-crazy superstar.

CinemaThe film is touted to be musical romance.Digital NativeA few years ago, there was an announcement that music composer Ar Rahman would be penning and producing a film titled 99 Songs under his banner Ym Studios. It is touted to be musical romance. The latest update about this project is that 99 Songs, to be released in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi, will hit the marquee on June 21 worldwide. The film is a sensual story about art and self-discovery of a struggling singer who wants to be a successful music composer. 99 Songs is a musical directed by well-known ad filmmaker Vishwesh Krishnamoorthy of The Dewarists (season 1) and Bring on the Night fame. The film has Ehan Bhat and Edilsy Vargas play the lead roles. The shooting commenced in India and the team had completed a schedule in Ukraine as well. According to sources, all the actors in the star cast, including the lead pair,...

MollywoodThe last time Rahman composed music for a Malayalam movie was for the film 'Yoddha' in 1992, soon after his first ever film work 'Roja'.Digital NativeOscar winning music composer Ar Rahman will be returning to the Malayalam film industry after two and a half decades with Aadujeevitham. The film, directed by Blessy, has Prithviraj Sukumaran playing the male lead. The shooting of this film began in March this year and will take a couple of years to complete, say sources. Apparently, the hero will have to gain weight for the first half of the film and then reduce it for the second. This is the reason for the film’s shooting being spread out within a span of 1 to 2 years. On Ar Rahman’s music composition for the film, the musician himself had reportedly told that he has completed setting the tunes for two songs, one...

MollywoodThe untitled film, which is reportedly a thriller, will also have Soubin Shahir playing a pivotal role. Digital NativeReports from the Malayalam film industry are that cinematographer-turned-director Santosh Sivan is all set to wield the megaphone yet again. The film is not titled yet, but it is going to be a thriller with Manju Warrier and Kalidas Jayaram playing central characters. Actor-director Shoubin Shahir is reportedly playing a pivotal role. Aju Varghese, Suraj Venjaramoodu and Ramesh Pisharody will also be seen playing supporting roles in the film. Sources in the know say that the director will be bringing in top technicians from India and abroad for this project, which has not been titled yet. The shooting of this flick will begin on October 20th in Alappuzha. Earlier, Santosh Sivan had planned to make a film on Kunjali Marakkar IV with Mammootty in the lead but this project has been dropped,...

KollywoodThe launch began with Ar Rahman performing the song ‘Mazhai Kuruvi' from the album.Anjana ShekarThe audio from Mani Ratnam’s Chekka Chivantha Vaanam was launched on Wednesday in Chennai with Ar Rahman performing live. The film marks their 14th collaboration. Titled 'Cvv Live', the event saw the likes of poet and lyricist Vairamuthu, actors Arvind Swamy, Arun Vijay, Silambarasan, Aishwarya Rajesh, Diana Erappa and Aditi Rao Hydari in attendance. Hosted by singers Chinmayi and Karthik, the launch began with Ar Rahman performing the song ‘Mazhai Kuruvi' from the album. Accompanied by the transcendental percussion by Drums Sivamani, the song’s lyrics we learnt were taken from Vairamuthu’s poem. Speaking at the event, Ar Rahman shared that Mani Ratnam has been working with the same energy that he had from back when he started. “He has gone back to his Nayagan days," he said to thunderous applause. Actor Arvind Swamy,...

KollywoodHer last Tamil film was Balaji Mohan’s 'Vaayai Moodi Pesavum' in 2014.Digital NativeActor Madhubala returned back to the limelight in the year 2008 with the Bollywood flick Kabhi Socha Bhi Na Tha and has been bagging some impressive roles since then. Her last Tamil film was Balaji Mohan’s Vaayai Moodi Pesavum in 2014 and after four years she is all set to stage a comeback to Kollywood with Agni Dev. Wielding the megaphone for the venture will be the director duo John Paul Raj and Sham Surya. Bobby Simha will be seen playing the main lead with Ramya Nambeesan as his lead pair. Besides Madhu playing a pivotal role in it, the star cast also includes Sathish to offer comic relief. Touted to be a political crime thriller, Agni Dev is touted to be based on a popular novel. The film official pooja happened recently and the shooting began in Coimbatore,...

KollywoodWhile films in the pre-Independence era were about fighting colonisers, contemporary patriotism in cinema is about fighting terrorists.Anjana ShekarPatriotism is often portrayed in popular culture as one of the greatest virtues a person can possess. A trait of the highest order that immediately validates any action done in its name. Quite often, this notion of national pride, of unflinching devotion to one’s country, of pledging oneself for the sake of the country has been enforced through drama, films, music and art. The idea of patriotism is ever evolving and so is its portrayal in mass media over the years. In this piece, we take a look at how Tamil cinema introduced the idea of patriotism in its films, how this presentation changed later and what it has become today. Pre-Independence films The very first Tamil film to talk about independence, patriotism, and with it social evils like untouchability,...

Flix Flashback'Thiruda Thiruda' is among the most underrated of Mani Ratnam's works so far.Nandhu SundaramThiruda Thiruda (1993) Cast: Anand, Prasanth, Heera, Anu Agarwal, Salim Ghouse, Spb, Malaysia Vasudevan Director: Mani Ratnam It was only Ar Rahman’s second year in creating film music. It’s hard to see it now, but he had just established that he was not a one-hit wonder. There was a certain euphoria surrounding his music and I had bought every album leading up to 1993’s Thiruda Thiruda (Thief! Thief!). There was a while to go before the film’s release and I was incessantly listening to the album, not quite making out the lyrics or the complex, layered instrumentation. It was as if you had to learn the album before getting down to actually enjoying it. But a couple of weeks into the listening, it was not just me but my entire family that had was hooked. We were all enamoured by what we considered the album’s centrepiece -- Anupama’s rendition of ‘Chandralekha’ with its high-pitched notes, clashing drums and frenzied chorus. I was convinced that Rahman had quite improbably created at least his second masterpiece after 1992’s Roja. Back then, you could always decide on a movie by what your friends and family told you about it. I swallowed the movie hook, line and sinker and was delirious in praising it, but there were murmurs of dissent among my friends who had quarrels with the movie’s unlikely plotting and ludicrous storyline. I saw it as a tale of fantasy while they pointed out that the movie had almost totally departed from reality. In any case, it was clear to everyone that director Mani Ratnam, at the peak of his powers, had broken fresh ground yet again. Thiruda Thiruda was the improbable meat in the sandwich, coming as it did between Roja and Bombay (1995), the two movies when taken together form the core of Mani Ratnam’s reputation even today. While these two movies talked about terrorism and communalism, issues that continue to plague India, Tt was an excursion into the wilderness, plausibility be damned. There was really no message here, no issue to talk about, just pure fun to be had. It was a heist movie with strong comedic elements and it pushed buttons in you that you never knew existed before. The plot goes wild - Rs 1,000 crore in fresh currency printed at Nasik is stolen by the henchmen of the villain, Vikram (a bleary-eyed Salim Ghouse), as it is in transit on a train. With Parliament to meet in 10 days, a desperate government turns to its best man in the Cbi, Lakshminarayanan (Spb, in one his best roles as a cop), to recover the amount. “There are 10 zeroes in Rs 1,000 crore and I have 10 days to bring the crooks to book. It can be done, sir,” says Spb in the Brahmin dialect. The line is obviously funny, but Mani Ratnam is doing something on the sly -- he is pushing his fantasy agenda into the storyline. After that point, exhilarating as it is for us to see how Vikram is caught, we know that the emphasis will always be on entertainment. It is how well the ride is done, you see. This is precisely why Tt failed to get into the good books of some critics. Many of them, who heaped praises on Mani Ratnam’s more serious movies (especially the terrorism trilogy) failed to appreciate the adventurous spirit of Tt. And, the film remains, much to my dismay, among the most underrated of Mani Ratnam’s works. The investigation into the heist leads Lakshminarayanan to Vikram’s pointman, Ashok, played by Ajay Ratnam in one of his early roles. To avoid capture, Ashok mails a computer access card required to open the container with the money to Chandralekha (Anu Agarwal debuting in Tamil cinema). On the run, Chandralekha gets involved with two petty thieves, the Thiruda Thiruda in the movie played by Prasanth and Anand, who are also on the lam. Towing along with the two thieves is Rasathi (Heera), who is fleeing a ruthless uncle. The four keep dumping and double-crossing each other until the money brings them together. Treachery takes precedence over trust in the relationship between the protagonists. The characters of Azhagu and Kathir are the perfect foil for each other, but the woman in their midst spells trouble for both of them, until in the end they decide to become friends. Prasanth used to be the chocolate boy of Tamil cinema during the 1990s and he plays a variation of that stereotype in portraying Azhagu. Watching over him with the demeanour of an older brother is the sharper Kathir, played by Anand in his most plum role ever. And, thus we get a romantic tangle: Rasathi falls in love with the sensitive Kathir, who realises with a shock that Azhagu is love with her. The scene in which Rasathi tells Azhagu that she is not his “Thangachi” (younger sister) starts a playful romance between the two. But the director quite clearly wants to steer us into the comedy-caper territory. Heera appeared only in a handful of successful movies in the 1990s including Kadhal Kottai and Sathileelavathi. In both of those movies, she was the other woman. In Tt though, she is cast against type -- her character, Rasathi, is smart, but not amoral. When her uncle wants to marry her, she flees with the thieves trying to steal from her own house. Anu Agarwal had in 1990 made a stunning debut in the Hindi film, Aashiqui, making her an automatic choice for the role of Chandralekha in Tt. Endlessly resourceful, her character is often resigned to watching the machinations between the others in the film with a bemused expression. Though she dresses like a lady, she is really not one. And, because of that, Azhagu has a little crush on her. Some of the familiar tropes of Mani Ratnam movies are here: The camera that circles the subjects, horses that preposterously are found in a landlord’s stable and several sequences involving trains. The circling camera is prominent in the scene when Rasathi tells Kathir of her love and when Kathir responds by informing her of Azhagu’s love of her. In another scene, Rasathi questions Kathir, asking if he never had a chance to reform his ways and the answer is a monosyllabic ‘no’. A pure Mani Ratnam moment if there ever was one. The sequence involving the horses, during which our heroes make a getaway in tow with Rasathi, is underlined with a dramatic score by Ar Rahman. This gives us, quite strangely, the impression that Mani Ratnam was limited by available technology in mounting the stunt sequence. The shots are often framed by cinematographer PC Sreeram against light, which is by no means unusual for a Mani Ratnam film; the director practically invented the usage in Tamil cinema. But what is really unmissable is the use of filters in cameras on a scale not seen before in Tamil cinema. Towards the climax, there is a brief sequence involving flashing lights on top of a train, which is a depressing and trite cliché considering that this director-cinematographer team did the same in Agni Natchathiram (Coppola uses this trope to great effect in Godfather). Or perhaps Mani Ratnam was making references to his own movies. The dialogues are crackling with Suhasini, Mani Ratnam’s wife, entrusted with the task of providing the director’s peculiar touch to the conversations in the film. The late writer Sujatha, who also pitched in with his lines, was at his wittiest and his contribution to this movie cannot be underestimated. Malaysia Vasudevan plays constable Santhosam, who finds himself assisting the Cbi in nabbing the thieves. The two predominant male singers of the era -- Malaysia Vasudevan and Spb -- are part of the cast, and what’s more, both of them are cops. The picturisation of the songs is a quantum leap in Tamil cinema. The choreography was done by Sundaram, Raju Sundaram and Prabhu Deva. Suresh Urs’ work in the film won him the Best Editor Tamil Nadu State Award. Ar Rahman marks his presence in the background score as well. The computer card, for instance, has its own theme, and so does the villain, Vikram. The supporting cast also includes SS Chandran (at his hilarious best) and Madan Bob in a blink and miss role. One of the scenes I really enjoyed comes when Azhagu and Kathir watch a village meeting from a distance. As the village discusses the thorny issue of the recent spate of robberies, the duo is making their minds up on whom to rob. “I can’t decide whom to rob,” Azhagu confesses. “Look who has the most rings on their fingers. Watch whom the Valliyur Singari is seducing,” says Kathir. “Valliyur Singari is here? Where?” exclaims an excited Azhagu and has to be restrained from giving up their hiding spot. There is no shortage of chase sequences in the movie. After the thieving duo meets Chandralekha (Anu Aggarwal) and fall hard for her, there is a pretty lengthy chase sequence. At one point, the main cast tries to escape from the Cbi (ABC, as called by a horse-and-cart rider) even as the officials chase them in ambassador cars. When Kathir asks if the horse will go any faster, pat comes the reply: “Only if you give ganja”. Kathir raises the puzzling question if the marijuana is for the horse or the rider. It is hard not to get the humour and fun in this sequence, but trust me, such stuff is rarely done is popular Tamil cinema. Mani Ratnam, who was just 37 when Tt was released, showed an admirable sense of adventure in making the movie, infusing it with a remarkable pace and energy. This is quite evident in the picturaisation of the song sequences. If this doesn’t sent your pulse racing, you should probably march yourself to the hospital for there is something wrong with your soul. The contrast between the titular Kathir-Azhagu duo is very different from Vikram’s agenda to wreck the nation. The small-time thieves are out for fun along with earning a meal, but Vikram is just pure evil. This is the most adventurous of Mani Ratnam’s movies. He wasn’t playing it safe as his wiser self is doing today. It is a bit like watching Tendulkar before he ever hit a ton and that kind of zing is worth revisiting. Also read: 'Aval Appadithan': Why this '70s drama was ahead of its time in telling women's stories 'Bale Pandiya': With 3 Sivaji Ganesans, this classic set the trend for Tamil comedy...

KollywoodStarring Jyothika in the lead, the Tamil version will be helmed by director Radha Mohan.Digital NativeJyothika is making some interesting career moves. After playing a ruthless, no-nonsense cop in Bala’s Naachiyaar, she will be seen playing a housewife who struggles to find her identity in the Tamil remake of Tumhari Sulu to be directed by Radha Mohan. The makers have revealed that the remake has been titled Kaatrin Mozhi, and that it’ll start rolling from May. It’s interesting to note that Kaatrin Mozhi is a popular number from Jyothika and Radha Mohan’s last outing, Mozhi. The makers are eyeing an October release for the film. Apparently, Mohan and Jyothika have been planning to work together for quite some time and both felt that the Vidya Balan starrer Tumhari Sulu, which struck gold at the box office, would be the best option. In the film, Vidya plays a hard-working homemaker who works as an Rj on a late-night show. National award-winning editor Kl Praveen and cinematographer Mahesh Muthusamy have been roped in for the remake, which will also star Vidharth and Lakshmi Manchu in crucial roles. While Vidharth will be seen playing Jyothika’s husband, Lakshmi will reprise Neha Dhupia’s role from the original. On signing the project, Jyothika said in a statement: “I’m a big Vidya (Balan) fan. I love her voice and command over Hindi, which is rare in Bollywood today. I’ve watched every Vidya film and Tumhari Sulu, in my opinion, is her most lovable work. I feel honoured to be stepping into her shoes. Kudos to the producers and to director Suresh (Triveni) for making such a lively, honest, real and feel-good film.” It is rumoured that before she commences work on Kaatrin Mozhi, Jyothika will wrap up her portion for Mani Ratnam’s Chekka Chivantha Vaanam. Teaming up with the Roja filmmaker for the first time, she’s believed to be playing Aravind Swami’s pair in the film. (Content provided by Digital Native)...

SandalwoodThe upcoming Kannada movie stars Nikhil Gowda and Rachita Ram in lead roles.Digital NativeDigital NativePopular ‘90s actor Madhubala has been roped in to play Rachita Ram’s mom in the upcoming Kannada movie Seetharama Kalyana, which has Nikhil Gowda playing the male lead. Son of the ex-chief minister of Karnataka HD Kumaraswamy and grandson of the ex-prime minister of India HD Deve Gowda, Nikhil has been bagging some of the best projects in Sandalwood and Seetharama Kalayana is one among it. Madhubala’s role in the film is said to be meaty and performance-oriented. Girija Lokesh will be seen playing Rachita Ram’s grandmother and Madhubala’s mother in this commercial entertainer. Directed by A Harsha, the film will have Ravi Basrur composing music. The star cast of Seetharama Kalyana also include veteran Tamil actor Sarath Kumar in a crucial role, and Sadhu Kokila and Kuri Pratap in supporting roles. Madhubala made her acting debut with the Tamil film Azhagan in which she got to share screen space with the mega star Mammootty. She then went on to act in several critically acclaimed films such as the K Balachander directorial Vaaname Ellai and Mani Ratnam’s Roja, where she played the eponymous village girl who turns into a resolute woman amid the snow-clad peaks of Kashmir. She has also acted in a number of Malayalam, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi movies in her long career. The actor completed her first innings in the film industry with the Bollywood flick Mulaqaat in 2001 and took a seven year long break. She then ventured back into films with the 2008 release Kabhi Socha Bhi Na Tha. In 2015, she was seen in the Kannada movie Ranna, which was the remake of the Telugu blockbuster Attarintiki Daredi. Madhubala’s last outing in Kannada was a couple of years ago with Naanu Mattu Varalakshmi which was directed by Preetham Gubbi. The film had Prithvi, Malavika Mohanan and Prakash Raj in the star cast. She was last seen in Balaji Mohan’s Tamil-Malayalam bilingual Vaayai Moodi Pesavum / Samsaaram Aarogyathinu Haanikaram. (Content provided by Digital Native)...

KollywoodHe is collaborating with Mani Ratnam for the sixth time and is very excited to be a part of the film.Digital NativeDigital NativeAce cinematographer Santosh Sivan is all excited about Maniratnam's Chekka Chivantha Vaanam. Santhosh is collaborating with Ratnam for the sixth time. The duo has previously worked together in films such as Thalapathi, Dil Se, Iruvar and Roja and were last seen together in Raavan. The film had gone on the floors earlier this month and the cinematographer has tweeted a series of pictures from the sets. Its a interesting combo of actors, Mani is a Director who loves innovations and willing to grow with a bunch of versatile , dedicated and punctual actors — SantoshSivanASC. Isc (@santoshsivan) February 23, 2018 pic.twitter.com/P17Xu41FyZ — SantoshSivanASC. Isc (@santoshsivan) February 23, 2018 Since Thalapathy dayspic.twitter.com/Hk3VJiPyJI — SantoshSivanASC. Isc (@santoshsivan) February 24, 2018 Various industry sources have confirmed that the film will be an action-thriller and will be a departure from the filmmaker’s usual style of films. The film will be featuring Str, Arvind Swamy, Vijay Sethupathi, Fahadh Faasil, Jyothika, Aishwarya Rajesh, Prakash Raj and Aditi Rao Hydari, who reunites with Ratnam after Kaatru Veliyidai. While it was also rumoured that Vijay Sethupathi will be seen in a special cameo role in the film as a cop, the actor came forward with a clarification during a recent media interaction that he will be playing a full-fledged role and would be seen throughout the movie. There are rumours that the film also stars senior actors Prakash Raj and Jayasudha, who have collaborated on several occasions. Apparently, they’ll be seen playing a pair and Arvind Swami, Fahadh and Simbu will be seen as their sons. Bankrolled by Ratnam's home banner Madras Talkies, double Oscar-winning Ar Rahman has been roped in compose the music and the multiple national award-winning editor Sreekar Prasad will also be a part of the team. Stunt choreographer Dhilip Subbarayan will choreograph the stunt sequences. David and Wazirfilmmaker Bejoy Nambiar, a longtime disciple of Ratnam, is listed as one of the film's creative producers. Sharmishta Roy will be the art designer and Eka Lakhani is signed as the film's costume designer. (Content provided by Digital Native)...

Bollywood Rahman said he was also told to change his name in order to make it in Bollywood.Tnm StaffPTI PhotoAR Rahman needs no introduction. For over two decades now, the Mozart of Madras has been wowing audiences across the world with his musical creations. Rahman’s stint in the film industry began in 1992 when he delivered hit tracks for Mani Ratnam’s Roja. There’s been no looking back since then with the Oscar-winning composer scoring popular tracks across film industries, including Kollywood, Mollywood, Bollywood and even Hollywood. Rahman, who hails from Chennai, recently revealed that during his entry into Bollywood, he had been told that a person from south India could not cross the wall to the Mumbai music industry. “I come from the south, from Chennai. In those days people used to tell me, ‘Nobody can cross this wall and nobody will help you enter Mumbai’,” he told Bombay Times. Rahman said that while he was also told to change his name in order to make it in Bollywood, those turned out to be nothing more than stories. “I was also told to change my name. But they just turned out to be stories. Everyone accepted me here just as I was – Ar Rahman. You guys embraced me with love. There was so much of joy as you all celebrated me. And not only that, when I stand here today in India, I experience the cherished memories I have of the time when I started in the ‘90s.” The recipient of four National Film Awards, two Academy Awards, two Grammy Awards, a BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe, some of Rahman’s hit music projects in Bollywood include Bombay, Taal and Lagaan, the last helping him earn a special spot on the global front. Rahman is also entering direction with Le Musk, a Virtual Reality (Vr) multi-sensory episodic film that has been shot across various locations in Rome. He has not just directed it but has also written it.

MollywoodAR Rahman began his career in 1992 with the Mani Ratnam directorial 'Roja'. The same year he scored music for 'Yodha', his one and only Malayalam movie till date.Digital NativeDigital NativeAfter 25 years, the Oscar-winning music composer Ar Rahman will be returning to the Malayalam film industry. He will be scoring music for the Prithviraj starrer Aadujeevitham. The last time he composed tunes for the Malayalam film was Yodha which had Mohanlal in the lead role. The Academy Award winner confirmed during an event in Dubai that it will be for the Prithviraj starrer. While he had confirmed that he would be scoring music for Aadujeevitham, he also has a couple of Tamil movies to compose for. One is the Siva Karthikeyan starrer and the other is the Vijay starrer which is being directed by Ar Murugadoss. Aadujeevitham is based on Benyamin’s novel of the same title and will be directed by Blessy. In the movie, Prithviraj Sukumaran plays Najeeb Muhammad, an Indian abused migrant worker in Saudi Arabia forced to herd goats in tough weather conditions in the deserts over there. Ar Rahman began his career in 1992 with the Mani Ratnam directorial Roja. The film went on to win him the National Award for Best Music Director. The same year he scored music for Yodha, his one and only Malayalam movie till date. There is also buzz that he may go on to score music for the Mohanlal starrer Randamoozham, which is touted to be the highest budget movie ever to be made in the history of Indian cinema. According to reports, the film will be made on a budget of Rs. 1000 crores and will be released in two parts. The pre-production of Aadujeevitham has begun and it is expected to hit the silver screens early next year. p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 15.0px; font: 12.8px Arial; color: #222222; -webkit-text-stroke: #222222; background-color: #ffffff} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; line-height: 15.0px; font: 12.8px Arial; color: #222222; -webkit-text-stroke: #222222; background-color: #ffffff; min-height: 15.0px} span.s1 {font-kerning: none}...

MusicRahman has experimented across genres of music and has left his stamp on each of them.CV Aravind ar rahman pti-compressed.jpgPTIAs a young boy, he used to hang around when his father, Rk Shekar used to compose music for films. At nine, Dileep Shekar lost his father and had to don the mantle of the family’s breadwinner soon after. Renowned music directors like Dhanraj and M K Arjunan took him under their wing and young Dileep could by then play the synthesizer like a young pro. After the family embraced Islam, Dileep was re-christened as Alla Rakha Rahman and came to be known in the field of music as Ar Rahman. With music in his genes, he soon gained mastery over several instruments and with a group of friends, he formed a music band called. ‘Roots’. From there, he graduated to composing music for jingles. He also earned expertise in his craft by freelancing for music directors like Ms Viswanathan, Ilaiyaraaja and Raj Koti and also found opportunity to accompany stalwarts like Zakir Hussain, Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan and L Shankar. In 1992, veteran director Balachander produced Roja under his home banner with Mani Ratnam as director. The duo decided to introduce a new music director for their film and the opportunity came Rahman’s way. Until then, Ilaiyaraaja had been Mani’s favourite composer and his scores had embellished films like Mouna Ragam, Agni Nakshathiram and Nayagan among others. But the gamble paid off and Roja heralded the arrival of a new composer who would eventually conquer the world of film music in the years to come. With a baton like a magic wand, Rahman would regale audiences around the globe, working not just in Kollywood and Bollywood but in Hollywood films as well. Roja became a trendsetter for its music score and Rahman made bold by introducing singers like Minmini (Chinna Chinna Aasai) while relying on proven performers like Sp Balasubramanian, Chitra, Sujatha, Unni Menon and Hariharan. Vairamuthu’s lyrics set to Rahman’s music in Roja became a rage and the two of them would later work together in several movies, enthralling listeners of all ages. If Kadhal Rojave had a ring of pathos to it, Rukkumani Rukkumani was a foot tapping number and Hariharan’s rendering of Thamizha Thamizha was rich in its soulful quality. Rahman might have worked in any number of films after Roja but there are many admirers who still feel that he is yet to surpass Roja, the lyrics of which also became chartbusters in Hindi and Telugu. And incidentally Time magazine has included Roja in a list of top ten soundtracks of all time. A commonly heard quip is that Rahman has always reserved his best for films directed by Mani Ratnam who was instrumental in giving him his first break. And logic supports this argument as Rahman has won two of his four National Awards for Mani’s films (Roja and Kannathil Muthamittaal) and their combination turned Bombay into one of the largest selling albums in Tamil cinema. Rahman has also been an integral part of Mani’s Hindi films like Dil Se, Yuva, Guru and Raavan. The soundtracks of other Mani films like Kadal, O Kadhal Kanmani and Kaatru Veliyedai too bore Rahman’s stamp. Apart from Mani, Rahman has also shared a great rapport with director Shankar who has repeated Rahman in all his films right from his debut film Gentleman. Their latest collaboration 2.0, starring Rajnikant which is slated to hit the screens next year, is eagerly awaited by the diehard fans of the actor, the director and the music director as well. While most of the films for which he composed the music were set against an urban backdrop, Rahman was not found wanting when working for films with pastoral themes either. His films with Bharathiraaja, Kizhakku Cheemayile and Karuthamma amply proved that rural themes were right up his street. Sangamam was another classic example of Rahman excelling in compositions with a distinct folk flavour. Jana Gana Mana and Vandhe Madharam, his non film albums too were huge hits. Rahman was no stranger to Bollywood as the lyrics in the dubbed versions of his films like Roja and Kadhalan had turned out into smash hits. However, his first break in Hindi cinema came through Ramgopal Varma’s Rangeela, the Aamir Khan starrer which was a runaway hit. A number of films like Taal, Swades, Rang De Basanti, Lagaan and Jodhaa Akbar enabled him to establish himself firmly in Bollywood. Veteran director Subhashi Ghai who directed Taal once confessed that he was almost driven to despair by the unique working style of the maestro whose composing generally began after all the cows had reached home and went on till the wee hours of the morning. But Taal was an inspiring score that was instrumental in the success of the film at the box-office. Rahman won a National Award for Lagaan a film based on a rural subject and the tunes became chart toppers in no time .His scores in films like Rockstar, Ranjhaana and Highway too were highly appreciated. While Rahman also composed music for stage productions like Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Bombay Dreams and Deepa Mehta’s Water, the crowning glory came with Danny Boyle’s Slumdog Millionaire a blockbuster which had riveting music. Two Academy Awards, BAFTA Award, a Golden Globe and two Grammy’s were among the honours that have come to Rahman for his overseas assignments. While fast, peppy numbers like Chikku Bukku Rayile (Suresh Peters, G V Prakash), Muqabla Muqabla (Mano, Swarnalatha) have been his forte, his melodies like Munbe Vaa (Naresh Iyer, Shreya Ghosal), Mannipaaya (Shreya Ghosal, A R Rahman ) and Yaarumilla Thiraiarangil ( Swetha Menon) have tugged at the heart strings of listeners across the world. There is hardly any genre of music that the Mozart of Madras has left untouched and his versatility has been the hallmark of his musical career. Experimentation has been a key word in his dictionary and in instrumentation, using non-traditional voices and so on, Rahman has blazed a new trail. Rahman’s expertise has stretched to classical, western, pop, reggae and sufi, music and he has left his stamp on all of them. Apart from his international awards, Rahman’s tally includes four National Awards, 15 Filmfare Awards, 16 Filmfare Awards ( South) and a Padma Bhushan as well. His state of the art Panchathan Studio in Chennai and a highly popular music school are among his abiding passions. Enanble Notification: NoTNM Marquee: No...

KollywoodThe untitled film will star Vijay Sethupathi, Simbu, Fahadh Faasil, Jyothika and Aishwarya Rajesh in lead rolesDigital Native simbu_mani_ratnam.jpgIt was already reported that Mani Ratnam’s next will be a multi-starrer. The untitled film will star Vijay Sethupathi, Simbu, Fahadh Faasil, Jyothika and Aishwarya Rajesh in lead roles. The latest update is that Simbu has begun working on the project and is currently undergoing an acting workshop in preparation for his role. On Tuesday, a picture featuring Simbu and Mani Ratnam leaked online and went viral. After the debacle of Anbanavan Asaradhavan Adangadhavan, Simbu has pinned all his hopes on this project. Simbu will shed weight and sport a new look for this project which will see him share screen space with a bevy of actors for the first time. Meanwhile, it has been confirmed that the project will be officially launched in January 2018 and will start rolling from February. A source from the film’s unit said that the Roja filmmaker is eyeing 2018 summer release. “After an official launch in January next year, the principal shooting will begin from February. The first schedule will be shot in Chennai. Mani sir might shoot a few scenes in January itself but the full-fledged shooting will happen in February. The supporting cast is in the process of being finalised,” a source from the film’s unit said. The film will be produced by Madras Talkies, and double Oscar-winner A R Rahman has been roped in compose the music. The cinematographer will once again be Santosh Sivan. This will be their sixth collaboration. The source confirmed the film will be an action-thriller and will be a departure from the filmmaker’s usual style of films. Ratnam has pinned high hopes on this project following the debacle of Kaatru Veliyidai, which sank without a trace at the box-office. There are rumours that the film also stars senior actors Prakash Raj and Jayasudha, who have collaborated on several occasions. Apparently, they’ll be seen playing a pair and Arvind Swami, Fahadh and Simbu will be seen as their sons. It has also been confirmed that Vijay Sethupathi will be seen in a special role as a cop. Enanble Notification: NoTNM Marquee: No...

KollywoodThe film is said to be an action thriller.Digital Native mani ratnam DN3x2.jpgIt has already been reported that Mani Ratnam’s next will be a multi-starrer. It was officially announced not long ago that the untitled film will star Vijay Sethupathi, Simbu, Fahadh Faasil, Jyothika and Aishwarya Rajesh in lead roles. A source from the film’s unit had said that the project will start rolling from later this year and the Roja filmmaker is eyeing a 2018 summer release. However, it has now been confirmed that the project will be officially launched in January 2018 and will start rolling from February. “After an official launch in January next year, the principal shooting will begin from February. The first schedule will be shot in Chennai. Mani sir might shoot a few scenes in January itself but the full-fledged shooting will happen in February. The supporting cast is in the process of being finalised,” a source from the film’s unit said. To be bankrolled by Madras Talkies, double Oscar-winning musician A.R Rahman has been roped in compose the music. Lensman Santosh Sivan will crank the camera and it’ll be his sixth collaboration with Ratnam. The source confirmed that the film will be an action-thriller and will be a departure from the filmmaker’s usual style of films. Ratnam has pinned high hopes on this project following the debacle of Kaatru Veliyidai, which sank without a trace at the box-office. There are rumours that the film also stars senior actors Prakash Raj and Jayasudha, who have collaborated on several occasions. Apparently, they’ll be seen playing a pair and Arvind Swami, Fahadh and Simbu will be seen as their sons. It has also been confirmed that Vijay Sethupathi will be seen in a special role as a cop. Enanble Notification: NoTNM Marquee: No...

BooksTNM catches up with Krishna Trilok, the man behind Ar Rahman’s official biography. Prathibha Parameswaran rahman_biography_03_650.jpgYoung and upcoming writer Krishna Trilok will pen the first official biography on the Chennai-based musical maestro Ar Rahman. The 24-year-old writer, who had previously come out with a fantasy novel- Sharikrida, has been working on the book tentatively titled ‘Ar Rahman: The man in the music’ that will hit the stores early next year. Krishna is the son of renowned ad filmmakers Sharada and Trilok Nair, who had earlier collaborated with Rahman for several popular commercials and also introduced him to Mani Ratnam. The Rahman biography will explore the lesser known facets of the award-winning composer’s personality, his daily life and views on relevant issues. While Rahman has been busy composing music for films like Rajeev Menon’s Sarvam Thaala Mayam starring Gv Prakash, Shankar’s 2.0 with Rajinikanth and Majid Majidi’s Beyond The Clouds, he has also been recently exploring newer territories. He’s turned writer and producer for the musical 99 Songs and has also ventured into direction with a virtual reality film, Le Musk. What prompted you to work on this biography? Two other biographies have already been written on Rahman-Nasreen Munni Kabir’s ‘The Spirit Of Music’ and Kamini Mathai’s ‘Ar Rahman-The Musical Storm.’ What fresher insights do you hope to provide for his fans and music lovers? The earlier books written on him were either compilations of brief conversations with Rahman or collections of journalistic pieces, with the authors spending very little time with the person himself- if at all. Both the books chronicled the sides his life and career that many people were, up an extent, already aware of. With this biography, I have strived to get to the heart of the person behind the music, awards and films. He’s a man whose personality has not been explored—someone who’s very humorous, great and a gentle human being. It’s of course impossible to write about him without talking about his music and other works, but the aim has been to bring his personality to the fore. The book will feature some nice anecdotes from all the people that he’s worked with in his earlier years—Bharat Bala, Mani Ratnam, Sharda and Trilok Nair, who introduced him, Vijay Modi—who ran Audio Vision where he recorded his earlier jingles, Rajeev Menon, Rahman’s sisters Raihana and Fathima, Jyoti Nair Belliappa from Km Music conservatory, a few film directors, R Samidurai, his man Friday right from the 70s, his audio engineers, his business manager-Karan Grover and Vijay Iyer, his personal manager. They have all shared some interesting stories, like what he thought of Mani Ratnam and Tamil films before becoming part of the industry. Krishna Trilok There’s a lot of information on him out there, how do you think a biography will be relevant at this point? He’s pioneered the evolution of film music in India in a lot of ways. He introduced a lot of musicians to the technology and equipment they use in India today. He made film music composing lucrative for many upcoming music directors and with the help of his strong legal team pushed for procuring copyrights for his songs. I think he should be given his due. Right now, he’s becoming a lot more than just a musician and composer. He’s branching out into production and writing with 99 Songs, he’s directing a virtual reality film- Le Musk and he’s also come out with a concert film—One Heart. He’s becoming wider in his scope of activities. He has got the Km Music Conservatory going and he’s also set up a shooting floor and visual effects facility-ym Studios in Red Hills. From being an instrument player during recording sessions to composing jingles; to scoring music in Tamil and Hindi films; to going to Hollywood- he’s always been evolving. I wanted to write a book focusing on the turning points in his life. Your parents were some of the first people to discover his talent and introduced him to Mani Ratnam too. What have your interactions with Rahman been like before the idea of the book came about? What inspired you to write about him? It was a sudden plan. I’ve grown up with his music and I love his work. He was the only Indian artist from the film industry, who seemed intent to make a global impact. He has revolutionised his stage performances- moving from singers just standing with pieces of paper and mikes on stage, he’s brought in dancers and lights and made it a spectacle. He’s incredibly ambitious but also very humble and grounded—I find his persona very paradoxical. There’s a lot of information available on his work, but very little about the man himself and that was definitely intriguing. He’s never lost touch with anyone whom he knew earlier or been friends with. My parents would often talk about him and I would just be a disinterested listener because I never imagined myself becoming a writer one day and drawing on all this information. He would visit us once in a while or my parents would attend his closed-group Qawwali concerts that he conducted along with members from his music school. Unless I went with my parents, he couldn’t have recognised me earlier. There was an element of familiarity and it wasn’t like I met him for the first time when I approached him for the book, but I got to know him a bit during the course of writing this book. Poster of Le Musk, a virtual reality film directed by Rahman How did he react to the idea of a biography? What are the facets of his life and music that the book will be touching upon? He was very enthused by the idea of the book. I got a sense that he wanted someone other than a journalist or someone who would fit into the regular profile of biographer to interview him. He had glimpsed through my first book and he was on board. There’s a lot more to him than being a spiritual person or a composer who works late nights and wins a lot of awards-that’s often been written about. For example, his wife spoke to me about the kind of relationship that they share. He’s an extremely loving husband and father. She told me, “It’s a gift to have a husband like him.” It’s common knowledge that he does a lot of charity work. But you know, he remembers everybody who’s been connected with him in the past and calls them whenever an opportunity arises that could help them in anyway. He has a fantastic sense of humour and his one-liners and on the spot jokes are amazing. He loves technology and his mind is like sponge that can absorb any amount of information. He had to drop out of school early on, but he’s got that childlike curiosity to learn about stuff even other than music. '99 songs', a musical has been co-written and produced by Rahman How have you been finding the time to converse with him amidst his busy schedules and tours? Whenever he’s in the country, even if he’s in Mumbai, I would spend about a week with him following him around from morning to evening. So sometimes we have conversations while travelling in the car or I’d have meals with him in his house with others there. I think that most of the questions that could possibly be posed to him have already been asked and you can find almost anything about him on the internet. I wanted to observe him while he worked, interacted with others, his quirks and habits, the food he liked and his routine. I did that in Mumbai and Chennai. I have spoken to a lot of people connected with him over the years. Besides merely recounting the information gathered, I have tried to interpret them and put it in a larger context. Lot of people say that he arrived in the music scene with Roja in 1992. But we also need to see it in the context of the huge shift that the entertainment industry in India was going through post-liberalisation when western influences were setting in, cassettes were in vogue and the reach was more. His evolution as a composer is also in sync with the evolution of technology and the social sentiment at the time. In 2008, the global socio-political setting seemed just ideal for Rahman to win the Academy Award too. Were you allowed to observe him while he’s at work? He doesn’t let anyone in while he’s actually composing. Nobody is allowed to disturb him—it’s like prayer for him. But he comes back and is willing to share what went on and talk about it. He allowed me in during recording sessions though. He’s very chilled out and jovial for the most part but obviously if you mess up too much he’s going to get angry—just like any other human being. He cracks jokes to put new singers at ease. I think at heart, he’s still that boy who’s jamming with his band. There’s a lot of love and light-heartedness, but also a lot of passion. He always makes his singers feel like they’re part of a team; there’s absolutely no attitude. Was it hard to get him to open up? He was shier earlier on, but now he’s pretty talkative. He would not just answer my questions, but would touch upon various other things and I would often go back with more information than I had hoped to gather. The whole experience was just like two people chatting, so getting information was quite easy. Krishna Trilok’s biography on Rahman is nearing completion and is expected to hit the shelves in early 2018. Enanble Notification: NoTNM Marquee: No...