News

veera-dheera-sooran-box-office-no-hit-for-chiyaan-vikram-post-covid-will-this-action-thriller-change-fortune (Photo Credit – Instagram)

The box office has changed drastically in the post-covid era, and many big actors have suffered. Chiyaan Vikram is one such actor who is struggling in the post-pandemic period. He tasted success with Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan 1, but none of his theatrical releases managed to get a hit verdict at the Indian box office. Now, all hopes are from his upcoming biggie, Veera Dheera Sooran. Keep reading for a detailed report!

Post-covid, Vikram was seen in four theatrical releases. It begins with Cobra (2022). The film had good hype around itself, but negative reviews and audience feedback made it a sorry affair. Backed by a reported cost of 90 crores, it earned only 43.47 crore net at the Indian box office and secured a flop verdict.

Up next was Ponniyin Selvan (2022). It’s Chiyaan Vikram’s only successful film post-covid. Made on a reported budget of 250 crores,...

Amaran Malaysia Box Office: Wraps Up Its Run By Being 7th Highest-Grossing Indian Film (Photo Credit – Netflix/Instagram)

Sivakarthikeyan’s Amaran has almost ended its run after posting a sensational total at the box office. Overseas, the film is already out of theatres, and particularly talking about the Malaysian market, the Kollywood biggie amassed a blockbuster collection. It has wrapped up its run by being a part of the top 10 Indian grossers in Malaysia and crossed the lifetime collection of Thalapathy Vijay’s Mersal.

Over the years, we have witnessed significant growth in centers that are favorable to Tamil films. Malaysia is one such center where the business of Tamil films has kept growing over the years. Except for Shah Rukh Khan’s Dilwale, all top grossers among Indian films belong to Kollywood. The Sivakarthikeyan starrer was the latest addition to the list.

Amaran closed its theatrical run at the...

Amid ongoing speculation about the state of her marriage with Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan was recently spotted visiting her in-laws’ residence, Jalsa, in Mumbai, accompanied by her daughter, Aaradhya Bachchan. The duo was captured by paparazzi as they arrived at the Bachchan family home. Aaradhya, dressed in her school uniform, seemed to have come directly from school, while Aishwarya was seen in a green outfit. Neither mother nor daughter posed for the photographers, and both appeared somewhat subdued, adding fuel to the ongoing rumors about their personal lives.

Aishwarya Rai in USA sans Abhishek Bachchan her holiday pic goes viral

The speculation about trouble in Aishwarya and Abhishek’s marriage gained momentum recently when Abhishek was seen without his wedding ring, and the couple made separate entries at a high-profile wedding in Mumbai. Abhishek further intensified the buzz by liking a post on Instagram that discussed divorce. Despite the mounting rumors,...

Anand Ekarshi’s Malayalam-language “Aattam” (“The Play”) was named best film on Friday at India’s National Film Awards. The film also won editing for Mahesh Bhuvanend and original screenplay for Ekarshi.

Sooraj R. Barjatya won best director for Bollywood film “Uunchai,” starring Amitabh Bachchan. Neena Gupta won supporting actress for the film.

Rishabh Shetty’s Kannada-language “Kantara” won the award for ‘best film providing wholesome entertainment,’ while Shetty also won best actor.

The best actress award was shared by Nithya Menen for Tamil-language “Thiruchitrambalam” and Manasi Parekh for Gujarati-language “Kutch Express.” “Thiruchitrambalam” also won the choreography award for Jani Master and Sathish Krishnan, while Niki Joshi won the costume designer award for “Kutch Express.”

Pawan Malhotra won supporting actor for Haryanvi film “Fouja,” which also won best debut director for Pramod Kumar and lyrics for Naushad Sadar Khan. Sreepath won the child actor award for Malayalam-language film “Malikappuram.”

Arpita Mukherjee and Rahul V.

Aishwarya Rai and her daughter, Aaradhya Bachchan, were recently seen leaving India, and shortly afterward, Aishwarya was spotted enjoying a holiday in New York. A fan named Jerée Reyna shared a photograph with Aishwarya on Instagram, expressing her joy at meeting her idol for the second time. Jerée captioned the photo, “Meeting your idol twice in one lifetime deserves a spot on the grid swipe to see me at my most unhinged.” The picture was taken at what appears to be a restaurant, and Jerée also posted an older photo of herself with Aishwarya.

In her heartfelt post, Jerée thanked Aishwarya for the positive impact she has had on her life, writing, “Aish, thank you for always being so kind to me. You listened so intently as I told you about the impact you’ve had in my life. It was always my dream to thank you for it. I...

Trisha Is Reportedly Charging A Massive Amount As Her Salary For Thug Life. (Photo Credit – Instagram)

Trisha is hands down one of the most popular actresses in the Telugu and Tamil film industries. She was last seen in Thalapathy Vijay’s Leo, which was a huge box office success. Now, she has multiple projects lined up, and one of those films is Kamal Haasan-led Thug Life. Now, the latest we have learned about the actress is a jaw-dropping hike in her salary. Keep reading to know more!

Trisha is in demand!

The 40-year-old actress was a part of Leo, where she reunited with Vijay after 14 years. The film was a blockbuster and earned over 600 crores globally. Before that, she also starred in Ponniyin Selvan 1 and Ponniyin Selvan 2, which were winners at ticket windows. With such a strong track record in the recent past, she has been flooded with several offers,...

Actress Trisha Krishnan, who is known for films like ‘Ponniyin Selvan: I’, ‘Khatta Meetha’ and ‘96’, has slammed her ‘Leo’ co-actor Mansoor Ali Khan for speaking about her in a “vile and disgusting manner.”

Mansoor had recently said that when he learnt that he was working with Trisha, he thought there would be a bedroom scene featuring the two of them but Trisha was not even shown to him on sets.

Taking to her X, she wrote a long note bashing Mansoor for his distasteful remarks.

“A recent video has come to my notice where Mr. Mansoor Ali Khan has spoken about me in a vile and disgusting manner. I strongly condemn this and find it sexist, disrespectful, misogynistic, repulsive and in bad taste.”

She further mentioned: “He can keep wishing but I am grateful never to have shared screen space with someone as pathetic as him and I will...

Actress Trisha Krishnan, who is known for films like ‘Ponniyin Selvan: I’, ‘Khatta Meetha’ and ‘96’, has slammed her ‘Leo’ co-actor Mansoor Ali Khan for speaking about her in a “vile and disgusting manner.”

Mansoor had recently said that when he learnt that he was working with Trisha, he thought there would be a bedroom scene featuring the two of them but Trisha was not even shown to him on sets.

Taking to her X, she wrote a long note bashing Mansoor for his distasteful remarks.

“A recent video has come to my notice where Mr. Mansoor Ali Khan has spoken about me in a vile and disgusting manner. I strongly condemn this and find it sexist, disrespectful, misogynistic, repulsive and in bad taste.”

She further mentioned: “He can keep wishing but I am grateful never to have shared screen space with someone as pathetic as him and I will...

The project formerly known as “KH234″ that reunites the talents of actor Kamal Haasan and director Mani Ratnam, has revealed a title and first footage.

The pair previously teamed on gangster epic “Nayakan” (1987). The film was a watershed in both their careers. It was a box office blockbuster, won Haasan best actor at India’s national film awards and was the country’s entry to the 1988 Oscars.

“Thug Life” is the name of the new film and the footage, which shows Haasan in violent combat with several opponents, reveals that his character is a gangster and that his name is Rangaraya Sakthivel Nayakan. In “Nayakan,” Haasan played Sakthivel, who later became known later in the film as Nayakan (hero).

The cast for “Thug Life” also includes Jayam Ravi and Trisha, both of whom starred in Ratnam’s blockbuster “Ponniyin Selvan” historical epic, and Dulquer Salman (“Sita Ramam”).

The film is written by Haasan and Ratnam.

Internationally renowned stunt director Kecha Khamphakdee has been roped in for Vishnu Manchu’s upcoming mythological-action film ‘Kannappa’. With this new addition, the actor hopes to elevate the film to a whole new level.

Kecha is known for his work in choreographing a lot of stunt and action work in some of India’s biggest blockbuster films such as ‘Jawan,’ ‘Ponniyin Selvan 1,’ and ‘Baahubali 2,’ among others.

Talking about roping in the stunt director, Vishnu Manchu detailed: “Kecha Khamphakdee’s expertise in crafting electrifying action sequences aligns perfectly with our vision for this epic project. With Kecha’s involvement, we’re taking ‘Kannappa’ to a whole new level, promising audiences a cinematic experience that will leave them spellbound.”

His action and stunt choreography in all these films has just the right mix of both masala and authentic grounded feel, making it both mainstream and yet very much relatable and exciting,...

Internationally renowned stunt director Kecha Khamphakdee has been roped in for Vishnu Manchu’s upcoming mythological-action film ‘Kannappa’. With this new addition, the actor hopes to elevate the film to a whole new level.

Kecha is known for his work in choreographing a lot of stunt and action work in some of India’s biggest blockbuster films such as ‘Jawan,’ ‘Ponniyin Selvan 1,’ and ‘Baahubali 2,’ among others.

Talking about roping in the stunt director, Vishnu Manchu detailed: “Kecha Khamphakdee’s expertise in crafting electrifying action sequences aligns perfectly with our vision for this epic project. With Kecha’s involvement, we’re taking ‘Kannappa’ to a whole new level, promising audiences a cinematic experience that will leave them spellbound.”

His action and stunt choreography in all these films has just the right mix of both masala and authentic grounded feel, making it both mainstream and yet very much relatable and exciting,...

Guadagnino’s 2009 drama ‘I Am Love’ to screen at the festival.

Indian director Mani Ratnam and Italian filmmaker Luca Guadagnino are to receive honorary awards at the upcoming Jio Mami Mumbai Film Festival.

Ratnam will receive the festival’s Excellence in Cinema Award (South Asia) while Guadagnino will accept the Excellence in Cinema Award (International) during its opening night ceremony on October 27. Both will take part in discussions about their careers to date during the Jio Mami Masters sessions.

The festival will also screen Ratnam’s recent box office hits Ponniyin Selvan: Part One and Ponniyin Selvan: Part Two, and...

Director-actor Prithviraj Sukuraman is gearing up for his upcoming political-thriller-drama ‘L2: Empuraan’, as he will kickstart the shooting of the film on October 5 with superstar Mohanlal taking the lead role.

A sequel to the director’s film ‘Lucifer’, which also marked his directorial debut, ‘L2: Empuraan’ was officially announced in August 2022. The movie’s shoot was put on hold due to the director suffering from a knee injury leading to a hiatus. Now, Prithviraj Sukumaran is ready to shoot and put his plans on camera.

A relief for fans as Prithviraj Sukumaran took to his social media and gave the update, sharing the news that ‘L2E – Empuraan’ is going on floors from October with its first official schedule, on Saturday.

The actor-filmmaker also welcomed on board the Tamil production company Lyca Productions, marking their debut in the Malayalam cinema with this high budget picture.

Lyca Productions is...

Director-actor Prithviraj Sukuraman is gearing up for his upcoming political-thriller-drama ‘L2: Empuraan’, as he will kickstart the shooting of the film on October 5 with superstar Mohanlal taking the lead role.

A sequel to the director’s film ‘Lucifer’, which also marked his directorial debut, ‘L2: Empuraan’ was officially announced in August 2022. The movie’s shoot was put on hold due to the director suffering from a knee injury leading to a hiatus. Now, Prithviraj Sukumaran is ready to shoot and put his plans on camera.

A relief for fans as Prithviraj Sukumaran took to his social media and gave the update, sharing the news that ‘L2E – Empuraan’ is going on floors from October with its first official schedule, on Saturday.

The actor-filmmaker also welcomed on board the Tamil production company Lyca Productions, marking their debut in the Malayalam cinema with this high budget picture.

Lyca Productions is...

The second night of the Siima (South Indian International Film Awards) saw the winners for Tamil and Malayalam cinema announced, with ‘Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1’, ‘Rocketry’ and ‘Vikram’ in Tamil, and ‘Bro Daddy’, ‘Nna Thaan Case Kodu’ and ‘Hridayam’ in Malayalam taking the spotlight.

In Tamil, director Mani Ratnam’s ‘Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1’ led the race with 10 nominations, followed by the Kamal Haasan-starrer ‘Vikram’ with nine. R. Madhavan’s ‘Rocketry’ nabbed the award for Best Leading Actor, while ‘PS1’ won the ultimate award for Best Film, narrowly inching out ‘Rocketry’, though Madhavan did win the award for Best Debutant Director.

In Malayalam, ‘Bheeshma Parvam’ led the race with eight nods, followed by ‘Thallumaala’ with seven, though the biggest award was nabbed by ‘Nna Thaan Case Kodu’, which won Best Film.

The race was a steep one in both categories, because much like the first night where Telugu and...

The second night of the Siima (South Indian International Film Awards) saw the winners for Tamil and Malayalam cinema announced, with ‘Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1’, ‘Rocketry’ and ‘Vikram’ in Tamil, and ‘Bro Daddy’, ‘Nna Thaan Case Kodu’ and ‘Hridayam’ in Malayalam taking the spotlight.

In Tamil, director Mani Ratnam’s ‘Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1’ led the race with 10 nominations, followed by the Kamal Haasan-starrer ‘Vikram’ with nine. R. Madhavan’s ‘Rocketry’ nabbed the award for Best Leading Actor, while ‘PS1’ won the ultimate award for Best Film, narrowly inching out ‘Rocketry’, though Madhavan did win the award for Best Debutant Director.

In Malayalam, ‘Bheeshma Parvam’ led the race with eight nods, followed by ‘Thallumaala’ with seven, though the biggest award was nabbed by ‘Nna Thaan Case Kodu’, which won Best Film.

The race was a steep one in both categories, because much like the first night where Telugu and...

New Delhi, Aug 17 (Ians) August 16 may have been a working day, but Rajinikanth’s ‘Jailer’ and Sunny Deol’s ‘Gadar 2’ not only did well, but also left the Akshay Kumar-starrer ‘Omg 2’ and Chiranjeevi’s ‘Bholaa Shankar’ way behind.

At the end of Day 6, ‘Gadar 2’ was sitting on a worldwide collection of Rs 338.50 crore.

Interestingly, Tara Singh’s one-man war against Pakistan seems to have touched a chord in Chennai, for the southern metropolis saw a 73.75 per cent occupancy in theatres for ‘Gadar 2’. Pakistan-bashing, clearly, works as much in the south as it does in the north, that too on a working Wednesday.

‘Jailer’, being a Tamil film, doesn’t have as big a footprint as ‘Gadar 2’, yet with Thalaiva Rajinikanth headlining it, by its seventh day, it had amassed Rs 420 crore.

Of course, the film’s domestic collections have come mainly from the four southern states,...

Melbourne, July 13 (Ians) The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (Iffm) has announced the nominations for its 14th edition, which includes titles such as ‘Darlings’, ‘Kantara’, ‘Pathaan’ and ‘Bhediya’, among many others.

This year, the festival welcomes a new addition to its jury panel, the Oscar-winning Australian filmmaker Bruce Beresford, known for directing films such as ‘Driving Miss Daisy’ and ‘The Contract’.

The Iffm advisory committee after meticulous consideration of hundreds of films and series from across Indian cinema, have finalised the nominations of films and series which have been released between June 1, 2022 to May 31, 2023.

Leading the pack in the film categories, including Best Film, Best Actor, and Best Actress, are notable productions such as ‘Darlings’, ‘Monica O My Darling’, ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ and ‘Kantara’.

In the Ott category, series such as ‘Trial By Fire’, ‘Jubilee’, and ‘Delhi Crime Season 2’ have garnered the highest number of nominations. The winners of the prestigious...

Mumbai, June 8 (Ians) A day after the ‘Adipurush’ teaser was launched at a grand event in Tirupati, and garnered over 109 million views on YouTube in 24 hours, and the producers of ‘Karthikeya 2’ announced that they will give away 10,000 tickets for free in Telangana, the distribution of the Rs 500 crore pan-India film in the Telugu-speaking states has hit a speedbreaker.

A major distributor, Dil Raju, has backed out of picking up the rights for the Telugu version of the Prabhas and Kriti Sanon-starrer in what is known as the Hyderabad and Uttarandhra regions in the film trade jargon.

This setback comes within a day after it was reported by the trade media that the Ott rights for ‘Adipurush’ have been sold to an unconfirmed platform (Amazon Prime Video is the punters’ favourite) for Rs 250 crore.

According to Track Tollywood, People Media Factory (Pmf), which operates out of Seattle and Hyderabad,...

The Indian media and entertainment industry grew 20% to reach INR2.1 trillion ($26 billion) in 2022, 10% above pre-pandemic 2019, according to the annual Ey report released during the ongoing Frames conference in Mumbai, organized by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry.

The report collates data from television, digital media, film, animation and VFX, out of home media, live events, music, radio, online gaming and print. Overall, the M&e sector is projected to grow 12% to reach $28.6 billion in 2023, the report says.

While television remained the single largest component of the M&e sector in 2022 with a valuation of $8.6 billion, it shrank 1.5% from 2021 levels, despite advertising revenues growing 2% to reach levels just behind 2019. The reason for the shrinkage is that subscription revenue continued to fall for the third year in a row, reducing 4% due to a reduction of five million pay-tv homes and stagnant average revenues per user. Linear TV viewership declined 7% over...

Ponniyin Selvan 1 was all about introducing the audience to the plethora of vivid characters that stand behind the giant walls of the fortresses and palaces, making plans to remain powerful for ages to come. One of the key players in making sure these plans are put into action is Nandini Devi, the wife of the powerful Periya Pazhuvettaraiyar. Nandini Devi did not just have qualms against the Chola Kingdom; she had a deep-rooted hatred for the men who ruled this kingdom for a very definite reason. Mani Ratnam not only managed to portray the aspect of Nandini being the most beautiful woman but her ability to use her beauty as a weapon is showcased with such an intensity that has seldom been explored in cinema. But why does Nandini carry such hatred for the Chola Kingdom?

The first movie only lets the audience know of the hatred Aditha and Nandini have for each other.

Actor Vikram, who is gearing up for the release of Mani Ratnam’s magnum opus ‘Ponniyin Selvan: 2’, had a lasting impact on the audience with his performance in the 2005 Tamil psychological action thriller ‘Anniyan’.

The actor played the role of a person who suffers from multiple personality disorder as he feels let down by the society when it comes to abiding by the rules.

A scene in the film which stood out was the one where Vikram switches between two personalities — of a simpleton Ambi and the violent vigilante Anniyan.

The actor shared that while the world may think it must have been taxing for him to switch between the two personalities, it was actually quite easy for him because it came to him very naturally.

Vikram said during the promotion of ‘Ps 2’, “While I would like to maintain the enigma around the performance in that particular scene, the artiste...

The cream of the southern Indian film industry was present in force at the just concluded Dakshin South India Media and Entertainment Summit in Chennai.

Organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (Cii), southern region, the event kicked off with recent south Indian Oscar winners, Kartiki Gonsalves, director of winning documentary short “The Elephant Whisperers” and Prem Rakshit, choreographer of winning original song “Naatu Naatu” from “Rrr” being felicitated.

The stage was then set for a heavyweight filmmakers panel moderated by former Variety correspondent Anupama Chopra, with Mani Ratnam, director of Tamil-language blockbuster “Ponniyin Selvan: 1”; Vetrimaaran, whose acclaimed Tamil-language “Viduthalai Part 1” is currently on release; Rishab Shetty, star and director of Kannada-language smash hit “Kantara”; and Basil Joseph, director of Malayalam-language Netflix superhero film “Minnal Murali” participating.

Films made in the four southern Indian languages – Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam – together account for more than 50% of production and revenues in India.

Sobhita Dhulipala, who’s best known for her part in “Raman Raghav 2.0”, talked about her transition to Tamil cinema and the portrayal of women in celebrated director Mani Ratnam’s period spectacle, “Ponniyin Selvan-2”.

Speaking with interaction with the media in the Capital on Tuesday evening, Dhulipala said: “This is my first Tamil film and the experience has been so exciting. I got a chance to work with Mani Ratnam sir and the amazing cast of the film. I relished every moment of it.”

She added: “The kind of work I did in this movie is very different from the previous ones. As actors we always want to do something different and this is what I got to do in this film.”

In the film, Dhulipala plays the character of Vaanathi, Princess of Kodumbalur. She is a shy but playful princess who is devoted to Ponniyin Selvan, or Rajaraja I,...

The trailer of Mani Ratnam’s upcoming epic period action film ‘Ponniyin Selvan-2’, which was unveiled at a glittering public event in Chennai graced by Kamal Hassan on Wednesday, is all about Arunmozhi Varman, who became the mighty Chola emperor, Rajaraja I.

This sequel to the hugely successful ‘Ponniyin Selvan-1’, 2022’s top-grossing Tamil film that raked in Rs 510 crore, features the same stellar star cast, A.R. Rahman’s dramatic music and larger-than-life cinematography that captures the enormity of the action effortlessly.

The ‘Ponniyin Selvan’ films are based on Kalki Krishnamurthy’s modern Tamil classic of the same name.

The trailer opens with the shipwreck that was the highlight of the end of ‘Ponniyin Selvan-1’ and concludes dramatically with Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s character of Nandini vowing to destroy the Chola Dynasty.

And it winds through the manipulative politics and succession battles that take place after the death of king Arunmozhi...

Chennai, March 30 (Ians) The makers of the Mani Ratnam film, ‘Ponniyin Selvan 2’ have released the trailer of the second installment of the magnum opus.

The trailer was released at a glittering function on Wednesday.

The movie based on the novel by Kalki Krishnamurthy, depicts the story of 10th century Chola dynasty. Raja Raja Cholan, the emperor from the Chola empire, is a major character in the movie.

At the function, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan who plays a stellar role of Nandini in the film, walked the red carpet in a pink ensemble.

While Trisha, who plays the role of of Princess Kundavi, stunned in a Blue embellished saree.

The official page of the producers Lyka productions shared the video of Trisha sitting on the throne.

The first part of the movie, ‘Ponniyin Selvan 1’ shows the Chola dynasty and the different feuds within the dynasty.

‘Ponniyin Selvan 2’, according to its makers,...

KollywoodPS-2 is the sequel to Mani Ratnam’s Ps-1, both of which are based on Kalki’s magnum opus ‘Ponniyin Selvan’. Screengrab/YoutubeThe much-anticipated trailer and audio of Ponniyin Selvan-2 or Ps-2 was released on Wednesday, March 29 at the Jawaharlal Nehru indoor stadium in Chennai. Ps-2 is the sequel to Mani Ratnam’s Ps-1, both of which are based on Kalki’s magnum opus ‘Ponniyin Selvan’. The film is scheduled to be released on April 28 across the world. Actor and politician Kamal Hassan was in attendance along with Mla Durai Murugan, director Shankar, music director Ar Rahman, and various cast members including Vikram, Aishwarya Rai, Trisha Krishnan, Karthi and Jayam Ravi. Ponniyin Selvan-1 was based on the first two novels of Ponniyin Selvan written by Kalki Krishnamurthy published in 1954. The second part will be based on the last three parts. The story revolves around Vanthiyathevan - played by actor Vikram,...

The hotly anticipated first trailer for director Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan: II was released at a grand, star-studded event in Chennai, India, on Wednesday. Ps: II is a follow-up to Ratnam’s blockbuster Ponniyin Selvan: I, which was released to positive reviews in September. At the time, Ratnam had promised that the second part, which was shot back-to-back with the first, would arrive within nine months.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan took to her Instagram handle and dropped a new poster of the much-awaited Ponniyin Selvan 2.

It is the sequel to Mani Ratnam’s hit Ponniyin Selvan 1, which ruled the box office last year. The trailer for the next chapter is slated to release on Wednesday.

In the video, Aishwarya is looking at a distance with a mysterious expression. Sharing the post, she simply dropped folded hands emoticon in the caption. A while ago, she also dropped a poster featuring her and Vikram.

In the poster, Aishwarya can be seen lighting some diyas (earthen lamps), while in the background, Vikram appears worried. Sharing the poster, the actress wrote, “Fire in their eyes. Love in their hearts. Blood on their swords. The Cholas will be back to fight for the throne! #PS2TrailerFromMarch29 #PS2 #PonniyinSelvan2 #ManiRatnam.”

Ponniyin Selvan is adapted from Kalki Krishnamurthy’s novel of the same name.

The ‘Aga Naga’ song of Ponniyin Selvan-2 was released a few days ago and the song has lived upto the hype it has created. The song with the music by the legendary A R Rahman and with the debutant lyricist Ilango Krishnan fitting in with some exemplary Tamil usage has already given music lovers an awe feeling.

The screen chemistry between Kundhavi (Trisha) and Vanthiyathevan (Karthi) in the song has given fans high expectations for the movie Ponniyin Selvan-2 to be released globally on April 28.

Ponniyin Selvan-1 directed by ace director Mani Ratnam was the highest money-collecting movie of 2022.

‘Aga Naga’ is about Princess Kundhavai’s love and yearning for Vanthiyathevan as she is waiting for his return from Sri Lanka.

Ever since the super duper hit movie, Ponniyin Selvan’s part 1 was released last year, there has been a wait for the ‘Aga Naga’ song which was played briefly...

The much-decorated Japanese drama “Drive My Car” was named the best film Sunday at the Asian Film Awards, defeating hot favorite “Decision to Leave.”

Other notable awards went to Japan’s Hirokazu Kore-eda whose “Broker” debuted at Cannes, but which was largely shunned in his home country.

“Decision to Leave,” which started the evening with ten nominations, was nevertheless rewarded with three awards, best screenplay, best production design and best actress for China’s Tang Wei.

While nominations were geographically diverse, the awards on Sunday skewed heavily towards North East Asia –Japan, Korea and Greater China – to the total exclusion of films from India, Indonesia and The Philippines. Snubs included the exclusion of Indonesia’s “Autobiography” and Happy Salma, both of which have been widely lauded on the festival circuit.

The awards ceremony returned to Hong Kong after detours to Macau and Busan and a Covid hiatus in previous years.

Siva Ananth, one of the producers of Mani Ratnam’s magnum opus “Ponniyin Selvan: 1,” is ecstatic about the film’s rich haul of nominations at the Asian Film Awards.

The film has received a total of six nominations, including for best picture. It is an adaptation of Kalki Krishnamurthy’s classic Tamil-language novel.

The story is set in 10th century India during a tumultuous time in the Chola empire, when the power struggle between different branches of the ruling family caused violent rifts between the potential successors to the reigning emperor and a civil war became imminent. All the political and military turmoil led to the Cholas becoming the most prosperous and powerful empire in the continent and one of the most successful and longest-reigning in history.

“Ponniyin Selvan” was serialized in the Kalki magazine between 1950 and 1954 and was published as five novels in 1955. Ratnam, alongside Elango Kumaravel and B.

Mumbai, Feb 21 (Ians) Actress Sobhita Dhulipala, who made her acting debut with ‘Raman Raghav 2.0’ and is currently seen playing the mysterious role of Kaveri in the web series ‘The Night Manager’, recalled an experience in Sri Lanka during which Aditya Roy Kapur got terrified by fireflies.

She shared: “When we had gone to Sri Lanka, I was struck by its beauty, a beautiful tropical island, a new set, a whole new bunch of people and I couldn’t sleep first couple of nights so I went out for a walk in the vicinity. Aditya, me, Anil (Kapoor) sir, Sandeep (Modi), all our rooms were adjacent to each other and one night, I saw a swarm of fireflies outside Aditya’s room and I got damn excited.”

The actress is part of a spy thriller and she remembered how she got excited after looking at the fireflies outside Aditya’s room.

South Indian mega-hits like K.G.F: Chapter 2 and Rrr and Disney’s Avatar: The War Of Water helped drive India’s box office to its second biggest year ever in revenue terms in 2022, but the gains are also partly attributed to rising ticket prices as overall admissions are still down on 2019.

Although cinemas were closed in January, India’s total box office revenue reached $1.28Bn (Rs106BN) in 2022, according to a report from Ormax Media and GroupM, the second biggest year on record and just a shade off the $1.31Bn (Rs109.5Bn) achieved in the record-breaking year of 2019.

By contrast, in the first year of the pandemic in 2020, total box office was just $238M (Rs20.6Bn) and grew to only $455M (Rs37.7Bn) the following year when the Delta variant of Covid-19 hit India.

However, admissions only reached 892M in 2022, compared to 1.03Bn in 2019, the highest year on record. Referred...

Director Mani Ratnam released the biography of Kalki Krishnamurthi, author of the iconic book on which his blockbuster historical action movie ‘Ponnayin Selvan’ is based. Kalki Krishnamurthi was a multi-faceted personality. He was an editor, art critic and lyricist, besides being a patriot and freedom fighter. He had participated in the freedom struggle and was imprisoned thrice. His life, like his writings, is very interesting.

Journalist S. Chandra Mouli has written the biography in Tamil. Titled ‘Kalki: Ponniyin Selvar’, it has been published by Kalaignan Padhippagam.

Mani Ratnam handed over the first copies of the book to Seetha Ravi and Lakshmi Natarajan, grand-daughters of Kalki.

Speaking on the occasion, he said: “The fact that Kalki’s writings have been enjoyed across generations is a testament to the appeal of his sytle! After the success of ‘Ps-1’ and getting ready for the release of ‘Ps-2’, I am very happy to release...

Indian actor Aditya Roy Kapur plays the titular lead in the Disney+ Hotstar Indian adaptation of “The Night Manager.”

Based on the 1993 espionage novel by British writer John le Carré, the series follows the night manager of a hotel who is recruited to infiltrate an arms dealer’s inner circle. It was previously adapted in 2016 by David Farr as a BBC/AMC series, with Tom Hiddleston playing the titular night manager and, as revealed by Variety, Anil Kapoor (“Jug Jugg Jeeyo”) as the arms dealer antagonist.

The Ink Factory, which was behind the 2016 adaptation, is also producing the Hindi-language Indian version alongside Banijay Asia. The creator of the Indian version is Sandeep Modi (“Aarya”). When Kapur was approached for the show, he was aware of the earlier production but had not watched it, something he rectified immediately.

“Tom Hiddleston’s performance is wonderful, everyone in the cast did a great...

It was a closely fought weekend at the U.K. and Ireland box office between “Avatar: The Way of Water” and “Pathaan,” with the former edging the top slot.

Disney’s “Avatar: The Way of Water” topped the charts for the seventh weekend in a row with £2.1 million (2.6 million) for a total of £70.6 million, per numbers from Comscore.

Yash Raj Films’ Bollywood film “Pathaan” debuted close behind in second place with £1.9 million. Directed by Siddharth Anand and starring Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and John Abraham, the film released midweek on Jan. 25 across 223 locations. The film collected £1.4 million for the weekend (Friday-Sunday) and £1.9 million in total including Wednesday and Thursday.

On Jan. 25, “Pathaan” had the highest opening day ever for an Indian title in the U.K. with £319,000. No film had ever crossed the £300,000 mark on a single day prior to this. This was also the highest single day collection...

IMAX Corporation and Lyca Productions today announced their plans to bring the eagerly awaited South Indian film “Ponniyin Selvan: II” to IMAX screens this April. “Ponniyin Selvan: II” is the sequel to the biggest Tamil film of 2022, “Ponniyin Selvan: I”, and will launch in IMAX theaters across India and select markets on April 28, 2023.

“Ponniyin Selvan: II” continues the story of the great Chola emperor Raja Raja Chola, the most powerful King in South at his time chiefly remembered for reinstating the Chola power and ensuring its supremacy in Southeast Asia and the Indian Ocean.

“Ponniyin Selvan: II” is directed by Mani Ratnam, produced and distributed by Subaskaran’s Lyca Productions. Lyca Productions is one of the most prolific Indian film studios and has been responsible for some of the largest Tamil films ever released in India, including “Ponniyin Selvan: I” and “Robot 2.0”.

Immerse yourself into the world of #Ps once...

There were rumours aswirl since Wednesday that the noted Malayalam actress Aishwarya Lekshmi, who has become popular across Indiu after appearing in ‘Ponniyin Selvan-1’ is in a relationship with Tamil star Arjun Das.

The rumour mills worked overnight after Aiswarya shared a photo of hers with Arjun along with a love emoji. The photo of the actors became viral, with fans of both Aiswarya and Arjun going gaga over it.

Aishwarya, however, came out with a post on Instagram stating that they are just friends and not in love and that the picture was shared on social media not to make a relationship announcement.

“I didn’t think my last post would get so much attention,” wrote Aishwarya. “We happened to meet, took a photo, and posted it. There is nothing else going on here. We are friends.”

She added: “To Arjun fans who have been messaging me since yesterday,...

Four massive stars from the southern Indian film industry will vie for audience eyeballs during one of the most crowded Indian festival release frames.

This upcoming week is celebrated as the Pongal and Sankranti harvest festivals in many parts of India.

Vijay stars in Vamshi Paidipally’s Tamil-language action family drama “Varisu,” due a Jan. 11 release. Its Telugu-language dubbed version “Varasudu” will release Jan. 14 in India. The heavyweight cast also includes Rashmika Mandanna, R. Sarathkumar, Prabhu and Prakash Raj.

Also due a Jan. 11 release is H. Vinoth’s Tamil-language action heist film “Thunivu,” starring Ajith Kumar, which will also release in its Telugu-dubbed version “Thegimpu” on the same day. Manju Warrier and Samuthirakani are also in the cast.

Megastar Chiranjeevi headlines K.S. Ravindra’s Telugu-language action comedy “Waltair Veerayya” that also boasts a heavyweight cast including Ravi Teja, Shruti Haasan, Rajendra Prasad and Catherine Tresa. The film and its Hindi-language dub is due a Jan.

Countering the notion gaining ground that people are no longer showing up at cinema theatres, Sanjeev Kumar Bijli, Joint Managing Director, PVR Limited, says the business has regained 75-80 per cent of the pre-pandemic footfalls.

Bijli was speaking on the occasion of PVR Cinemas reaching the milestone of 900 screens in 78 cities in a corporate journey that spans 25 years. He admitted that “the last three quarters have been a bit confusing for Bollywood films”, but the overall picture has “not been dismal at all”.

Compared to the two pandemic-hit years when cinemas were shut and exhibitors feared people wouldn’t ever return for the big-screen experience, Bijli said, “getting people out of the house and into the cinemas was no small achievement”.

Looking ahead, he said people would come back in greater numbers because they have shopped, socialised and travelled enough, and made up for the time and opportunities they lost during the pandemic.

Malayalam superstar Mohanlal will be seen in a cameo in ‘Jailer’, the upcoming movie of the South Indian mega star, Rajinikanth. This is the first time that Mohanlal and Rajinikanth are sharing screen space in their more than three-decade-long, almost parallel movie careers. The movie is slated for a global release on April 14.

Mohanlal, according to sources in team ‘Jailer’, have already signed up for the movie and will shoot for two days. The star is likely to be on the sets of ‘Jailer’ on January 8 and 9.

Mohanlal is likely to play an underworld don in the movie. Rajinikanth essays the title role and most of the movie has been shot inside a prison.

Directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, who has helmed some of Rajinikanth’s best-known hits, ‘Jailer’ has been produced by Kalanidhi Maran of Sun Films.

Kannada superstar Shiva Rajkumar is making his Tamil debut with ‘Jailer’. Yogi Babu...

Hamaguchi Ryusuke’s ‘Drive My Car’ secures eight nods.

Park Chan-wook’s Decision To Leave leads the nominations for this year’s Asian Film Awards (Afa) with 10 nods including best film and best director.

Korean films have secured nominations in every category for the 16th edition of the awards, which will return to Hong Kong for the first time in three years, having been hosted in Busan for two years and not held in 2022.

Scroll down for full list of nominations

Korean romantic noir Decision To Leave premiered in Competition at Cannes last May, where Park won best director. As...

Park Chan-wook’s romantic thriller Decision to Leave emerged as the clear favorite when the 2023 Asian Film Awards nominations were unveiled Friday. The Korean maestro’s acclaimed feature, which won best director at the 2022 Cannes Film Festival and is shortlisted for an Oscar in the best international film category, scored 10 nominations, including best film, best director, best screenplay, and many of the major acting and craft categories.

Decision to Leave will face off in the best film category against Japanese auteur Ryusuke Hamaguchi’s 2022 Oscar winner Drive My Car, Kazakhstan film Poet by Darezhan Omirbayev, India’s Ponniyin Selvan: I from Mani Ratnam, and the Philippines’ When the Waves Are Gone from Lav Diaz.

The Asian Films Awards (AFAs) were inaugurated in 2007 and are organized by an academy established by the Hong Kong International Film Festival, the Busan festival and the Tokyo festival. Their remit is to honor the greatest...

Park Chan-wook’s noirish romance “Decision to Leave” makes the running in the Asian Film Awards by collecting ten nominations, including best film and best director.

Hamaguchi Ryusuke’s “Drive My Car,” another awards season favorite which also debuted at Cannes, albeit a year earlier, has eight nominations.

Zhang Yimou, the acclaimed mainland Chinese director of “One Second,” “Hero” and “Raise the Red Lantern,” will head a seven-person jury that sorts through the nominated films and decides the winners.

Organizers said that a total of 30 films from 22 countries or territories received 81 nominations in 16 categories.

The final awards will be presented at a ceremony that relocates to Hong Kong, after being held for two years in Busan and was omitted entirely in 2022. The event will take place at the new Hong Kong Palace Museum on March 12, the evening before film and TV rights market FilMart makes its in-person return for the...

KollywoodThe second part of the film, ‘Ponniyin Selvan-ii’, will release in theatres in April this year.Tnm StaffLyca ProductionsThe first part of filmmaker Mani Ratnam’s historical drama Ponniyin Selvan will have its television premiere on January 8. The film will air on Tamil channel Sun TV at 6:30 pm on Sunday, January 8. The television channel has released several promo videos on social media ahead of the television premiere. The film is based on the eponymous novel by Kalki Krishnamoorthy. It was hugely successful in its theatrical run, and is also streaming on over-the-top (Ott) platform Amazon Prime Video. Trisha appears in the Ponniyin Selvan films as Chola princess Kundavai Pirattiyar, the sister of Arulmozhi Varman (Jayam Ravi) and Aditha Karikalan (Vikram), while Aishwarya Rai plays the role of Nandini, and Karthi is seen as Vallavaraiyan Vanthiyathevan. Featuring an ensemble cast of actors including Sobhita Dhulipala, Sarath Kumar, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Prabhu,...

The top stars of the Tamil film industry – Rajanikanth, Kamal Haasan, Vijay, Ajith, Vikram, Jeyam Ravi and Dhanush – are competing for the attention of the audience in 2023.

The movie ‘Jailer’ by Nelson Dilipkumar will have Rajanikanth in the title role and is expected to open internationally on April 14. The sequel to ‘Indian 1’, with Kamal Haasan in the lead and directed by S. Shankar, ‘Indian 2’ will be released in October.

The two major superstars of the Tamil industry, Vijay and Ajith Kumar, are also in the fray for the vote of the box office.

‘Vaarisu’, the Vijay-starrer, is scheduled to be released in the Pongal week – at the same time as ‘Thunivu’ with Ajith in the lead role.

The producers of ‘Vaarisu’ had to face the ire of the administrators of the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai after fans damaged the seats during the release of the movie’s soundtrack on...

KollywoodHere are 10 interesting Tamil films that caught the attention of fans and critics alike this year. Tnm Staff2022 was an important year for Tamil cinema, for it marked the industry’s return to normalcy after the pandemic lull. Not only did films like Vikram and Ponniyin Selvan have a stupendous run at the box office having broken several previously held records, but films like Natchathiram Nagargiradhu and Witness also pushed boundaries in terms of representation on screen. We bring to you a list of ten interesting films that caught the attention of fans and critics alike this year. Vikram Starring Kamal Haasan, Fahadh Faasil, and Vijay Sethupathi in the lead, and Suriya in a cameo along with an ensemble cast of many other actors, the star-studded action drama Vikram was helmed by filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj. In addition to garnering praise for keeping audiences on the edge of their seats, the...

Bilal Lashari’s “The Legend of Maula Jatt,” starring Pakistani superstars Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan (no relation), is now officially the highest grossing Pakistani film of all time.

Produced by Ammara Hikmat’s Encyclomedia and Lashari Films, the film released on Oct. 13, 2022 and has had worldwide collections of 10 million, including 4.2 million in Pakistan. It has far surpassed the 3.2 million grossed globally by previous record holder “Jawani Phir Nahi Ani 2” in 2018.

After Pakistan, the most successful territory for the film has been the U.K., where it is distributed by Pranab Kapadia of Moviegoers Entertainment. It has collected £1.43 million (1.7 million) in the territory, going past 2018’s “Sanju” that took 1.6 million, making it the highest grossing South Asian film there since “Padmaavat,” which grossed 2.5 million, also in 2018. The next highest 2022 grosser from South Asia in the U.K. is “Ponniyin Selvan-1” with 1.5 million.

The Punjabi-language “The Legend of Maula Jatt...

KollywoodThe much-awaited announcement regarding the release date of Mani Ratnam’s ‘Ponniyin Selvan- II’ was made along with a new teaser on Wednesday, December 28. Tnm StaffScreengrab/ YouTube- Lyca ProductionsFollowing the massive success of Mani Ratnam’s magnum opus Ponniyin Selvan, the much-awaited announcement regarding its second instalment, Ponniyin Selvan- II, was made on Wednesday, December 28. The makers released a new teaser video and announced that Ponniyin Selvan- II will be released on April 28, 2023. The teaser video features shots of actor Karthi as Vallavaraiyan Vanthiyathevan in a forest, Aditha Karikalan (Vikram) striking an intense look and Nandhini (Aishwarya Rai) looking into a mirror, holding a sword in her hand. The video also featured the phrase "Cholas Are Back", which is being used by the film's team to promote Ps-ii. The story of the second instalment will continue from the point where Arunmozhi Varman (Jayam Ravi) is shown to be drowning.