Prabhu Deva’s ‘Kalavadiya Pozhudugal’ in August

The choreographer turned actor turned director is upbeat about his characterization in the upcoming off beat flick ‘Kalavadiya Pozhudugal.’ Prabhu Deva who has been busy with his directorial ventures so far will be seen in this film in a full length role. Directed by Thangar Bachchan, the film centres around a romantic subject.

Bhoomika will appear in Tamil cinema after a hiatus; she will be seen opposite Prabhu Deva. Prabhu Deva apart from his directorial ventures has also been acting in unique projects like ‘Urumi,’ a period drama, apart from appearing in cameos in his directorial ventures.

Thangar Bachchan, the director of ‘Kalavadiya Pozhudugal,’ is quite positive about his film. The director opines that this film be a milestone in Prabhu Deva’s career; the actor in him has shone through the entire project. The director also feels that this film will be a trend setter in Tamil cinema.

‘Kalavadiya Pozhudugal’ will also see supporting roles from Sathyaraj who will play the role of E.V. Ramaswamy. Prakash Raj, Manivannan and Ganja Karuppu too will be seen portraying various characters in this film.

Vikram’s Raja Pattai commencement details

It is already in the news that Vikram’s Vendhan has been renamed as Raja Pattai. This film is being directed by Suseendran who has churned out three successful films in a row – Vennila Kabbadi Kuzhu, Naan Mahaan Alla and Azhagar Saamiyin Kudhirai.

Raja Pattai will commence on June 8^th 2011 at Senthil Studios, which was earlier functioning under the name Mohan Studios, in Chennai. The film’s lead stars Vikram and Deeksha Seth along with the other cast and crew will be present during the pooja and later when the shooting will commence.

Ko sets a Record!

Ko, directed by KV Anand, has created a record at the box office! It has completed 50 days and has surpassed the collections of Ayan, which was also directed by KV Anand. The film was produced by RS Infotainment and distributed by Red Giant Movies.

Ko had some great music by Harris Jayaraj and starred Jiiva, Ajmal, Pia Bajpai and Karthika in the lead roles.

A press note states, “The movie opened in a big way with 350 prints and garnered huge collections in Tamilnadu, Kerala, Karnataka and overseas. Ko was dubbed in Telugu as Rangam and was released in over 150 prints.”

Kudos to the entire team for making such a wonderful film!

Sona celebrates birthday with Vijay's fans!

Glam doll Sona celebrated her birthday with Vijay's fans in Chennai. The actress-turned-entrepreneur distributed note books and school bags to the children of Vijay's fans. Sona has been involved in various welfare and social activities recently and celebrating her birthday with the underprivileged is certainly her way of showing that she cares for them.

Sona is also a producer and runs a fashion jewelry boutique chain in Chennai which she is likely to expand soon.

58th Idea Filmfare Award South Press Meet Stills

Nomination for 58th Filfare Awards Announced

The Idea Filmfare Awards South is back! During a press conference the much-awaited
nominees for the best in South Indian cinema 2010 were announced. Filmfare has always
honoured the spirit of excellence in cinema and over the years the award ceremony has
transcended to a star-studded musical extravaganza.

This year, that is to say the 58th Idea Filmfare Awards 2010 (South) will be held on July
2 at Hyderabad International Convention Centre and promises all the above and more.

The nominees from Kollywood are mentioned below:

Best film category
Aayirathil Oruvan
Angadi theru
Enthiran
Madrasapatinam
Mynaa
Vinnaithandi Varuvaya

Best Director
Gautham Menon for Vinnaithandi Varuvaya
Prabhu Solomon for Mynaa
Selvaraghavan for Aayirathil oruvan
Shankar for Enthiran
Vasanthabalan for Angadi Theru
Vijay for Madrasapatinam

Best Actor (Male)
Arya for Madrasapatinam
Karthi for Paiya / Aayirathil oruvan
Rajinikanth for Enthiran
Simbu for Vinnaithandi Varuvaya
Suriya for Singam
Vikram for Ravanan

Best Actor (Female)
Amala Paul for Mynaa
Anjali for Angadi Theru
Nayantara for Boss Engira Baskaran
Reema Sen for Aayirathil oruvan
Tamannah for Paiya
Trisha for Vinnaithandi Varuvaya

Best Actor Supporting Role (Male)
Madhavan for Manmadan Ambu
Parthiban for Aayirathil Oruvan
Prakash Raj for Singam
Prithviraj for Ravanan
Santhanam for Boss Engira Baskaran
Thambi Ramaiah for Mynaa

Best Actor Supporting Role (Female)
Andrea for Aayirathil Oruvan
Carole Palmer for Madrasapatinam
Manorama for Singam
Sangeetha for Manmadan Ambu
Saranya for Thenmerku Paruvakatru

Best Music Director
A R Rahman for Enthiran
A R Rahman for Vinnaithandi Varuvaya
GV Prakash for Aayirathil oruvan
GV Prakash for Madrasapatinam
Yuvan Shankar Raja for Paiya
Yuvan Shankar Raja for Naan Mahan Alla

Best Lyricist
Na Muthukumar for Angaditheru - Aval Apadi
Na Muthukumar for Madrasapatinam – Vamma Duraiyamma
Thamarai for Vinnaithandi Varuvaya – Manipaya
Vairamuthu for Enthiran – Kadhal Anukal
Vairamuthu for Ravanan – Usure Poguthey

Best Playback Singer (Male)
Dhanush for Aayirathil Oruvan – Un Mela Aasadhan
Karthik for Ravanan – Usere Poguthey
Rahul Nambiar for Paiya – Adada Mazhada
Vijay Prakash for Vinnaithandi Varuvaya – Hosana
Yuvan Shankar Raja for Naan Mahan Alla – Iragai Pole

Best Playback Singer (Female)
Andrea and Aishwarya Dhanush for Aayirathil oruvan – Un Mela
Chinmaye for Enthiran – Kilimanjaro
Saindhavi for Paiyaa – Adada Mazhada
Shreya Goshal for Angadi Theru – Un perai solum
Suchitra for Singam – En Idhyam

Deal with the ‘Viswaroopam’ girl

Sonakshi Sinha of Bollywood flick ‘Dabangg’ fame is making her debut in Tamil opposite Kamal Hassan in the latter’s directorial venture, ‘Viswaroopam.’ Look at the wearable fashion trends that this damsel sets through her Provogue campaigns.

Living up to the statement, ‘Women are from Earth. Deal with it,’ the actress has made her point even before her Tamil debut, what do you movie-buffs have to say? Post in your comments…

Selvaragavan Dropped: Kamal Hassan to Direct Himself for Viswaroopam

Kamal turned director for his yet to be launched magnum opus Viswaroopam. Initially the film has to be directed by Selvaragavan. But due to some differences, the producer sacked Selvan and rquested Kamal to direct the Rs 150 cr budget film. Now Kamal will be directing the film in addition to handling the story, screenplay, dialogue and lyrics.

Aranya Kandam to Release with 52 Cuts and A rating

The rivising committee of Indian censor board allowed Aranya Kandom film with 52 cuts and A certificate. Also the board members condemned the crew for making such a film with worst ever scenes and dialogues.

Two babes for Karthi?

All the heroines in tinsel town are dying to work with the hot and happening Karthi, and they were all considered for the female lead in Saguni. But Shriya Saran is the lucky lady who has landed the part. She is pleased to be sharing screen space with a livewire like Karthi. Kannada babe Praneetha, who will be seen in Arulnidhi’s Udayan is also being considered for a part in Saguni. Apparently, Saguni is a two-heroine project.

Being directed by newcomer Shankar Dayal, and produced by Dream Warrior Projects with music by GV Prakash Kumar, Saguni is touted to be a racy political drama with twists and turns designed to keep the audience guessing. Radhika Sarathkumar will be seen on the big screen in a meaty role after a long time.

The wait is over for Avan Ivan

Fans of Bala, Arya, and Vishal are in for a treat, as Avan Ivan will be released on June 10^th. Expectations are soaring for this film as it has been said that Bala wants to prove definitively that he can handle comedy as well as the tragedies and emotionally heavy content he is famous for.

Word on the grapevine is that Vishal and Arya have turned in award – winning performances. Arthur Wilson has done the cinematography, Sreekar Prasad, the editing, and Yuvan has composed some fabulous tracks for this film. Wishing the Avan Ivan team the very best for the success of their film.

Ganja Karuppu turns Solo hero in Mannar Valaikuda Stills

Comedians turning heroes isn’t a new concept in Tamil films. We have had Chandrababu and Nagesh, yesteryear’s towering comedians, playing lead roles in many significant films. Then it was the turn of Goundamani, who ruled the roost as the leading comedian for more than two decades, to try his hand out at playing the lead role.

Vadivelu too attempted to play the hero in some films but except for ‘Imsai Arasan…’, all other films bit the dust at the box-office. Vivek’s ‘Solli Adippaen’, in which he has played the hero opposite Chhaya Singh, is yet to release. Comedian Karunas gave two super-hits Dindukal Sarathi and Ambasamuthiram Ambani as a hero. Santhanam and ‘Ganja’ Karuppu jointly played the lead roles in ‘Arai Enn 502-l Kadavul’. It appears that now the time has come for Karuppu, who recently became a proud father, to turn a solo hero!

‘Ganja’ Karuppu has been signed up to play the lead role in an upcoming film titled ‘Mannar Valaiguda‘ in which he plays a fisherman. The film would be directed by Dhanasekaran, an erstwhile assistant of director Maadesh.

Dhanasekaran is confident that his film would do well and says that the film deals with a commoner’s tale and traces his reaction when he is exploited to the hilt by the society. “Karuppu has fitted the role perfectly; it would be a very different ‘Karuppu’ that one would get to watch in the film. At the same time, his trademark comic sequences would also be there,” assures the director.

Last heard, Karuppu would have not one but three (?!) heroines opposite him. All the three would be newcomers, it is learnt. The film was launched yesterday at a function attended by directors Sasikumar, Samuthirakani, Vetrimaran and many others

The problem with comedians turning heroes is that the audience seldom takes them seriously enough, as they have always been seen in rib-tickling roles. We have to wait and watch to see Karuppu’s luck..

Arya and Vijay to work together

Director Vijay has put the finishing touches on his Deiva Thirumagal and is ready to move on. His next as yet untitled venture is with Arya, which is all set to begin sometime in October. The duo worked together in Madrasapattinam, which got both of them rave reviews and proved to be a bonanza in the box office as well.

The entire crew of Deiva Thirumagal will rejoin for this project as the director is very comfortable with this team and they all share an excellent rapport. GV Prakash will do the music, Nirav Shah, is in charge of the cinematography, and Antony will be the editor. Only the heroine needs to be finalized.

Vijayakanth, Sarath take charge

It was first day first show. Newly elected MLAs of the 14th Tamil Nadu Assembly, including DMDK president Vijayakanth, Nadigar Sangam chief Sarath Kumar and actor Arunpandian, were on Monday sworn in as members of the House by Pro-tem Speaker C K Tamizharasan.

Vijayakanth, who is all set to become the Opposition Leader of the House, was accompanied to the Assembly on its first day by more than two dozen legislators of his party, as the DMDK bagged 29 seats in the April 13 Assembly elections.

While Sarath Kumar’s All India Samathuva Makkal Katchi won in all the two seats it contested, Arunpandian, another popular actor, was elected to the Assembly from Peravurani on a DMDK seat.

Meanwhile, office-bearers of the South Indian Film Artistes Association and Tamil Film Producers Council have conveyed wishes to their counterparts who were elected as MLAs.

Final Confirmation: Asin With Shah Rukh Khan

For the past 5 months there have been lots of buzzes rounding upon Shah Rukh Khan’s ‘2 States’. One of the reasons is mainly because of author Chetan Bhagat as blockbuster movie ‘3 Idiots’ was based on his novel ‘Five Point Someone’. Soon after the novel ’2 States’ was considered for adaption, it was revealed by producer Sajid Nandiadwala that Priyanka Chopra has been considered for the female lead role opposite Shah Rukh Khan and later Deepika Padukone replaced her.

But finally, it is Asin making her way into the project as Sajid was very much impressed with her performance in his upcoming production ‘Houseful 2’. Asin will be playing the role of a Tamil Brahmin girl, who falls in love with a North Indian guy. How they convince their families with different cultures and lifestyle forms crux of the story and is narrated in a hilarious way.

Thackeray's Daughter-in-low making film on Babri Demolition

Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray's daughter-in-law, Smita Thackeray is making a film on the Babri demolition controversy. The announcement of the film, titled 'Babri', comes two months after the Supreme Court asked the Sena supremo to spell out his stand on a CBI plea for the restoration of charges of hatching a criminal conspiracy to demolish the Babri Masjid in 1992 against him.

Sarath Kumar’s ‘Kaval Thurai’

Looks like we will be watching yet another anthology film this season through Sarath Kumar’s ‘Kaval Thurai.’

Simbu’s ‘Vanam’ that was released recently was quite a hit at the box-office and was one big anthology flick this year with five stories intertwined together through the concept of money and five characters coming together for a climax. Similarly, ‘Kaval Thurai’ will have three plots intertwined together.

The movie is originally a Malayalam flick titled ‘The Metro’ which was released early this year and was an average hit. After Sarath’s political win, the dubbing of this movie as ‘Kaval Thurai’ for Kollywood movie buffs, is sure another treat for the Nadigar Sangam President’s fans.

The movie sees Sarath Kumar as a strict police officer and has two other stories, one with actress Bhavana and one with various new faces intertwined with his role.

Sunaina says that some people are trying to spoil my image

Sunaina who is acting in Thiruthani said," I am donning homely roles in Tamil and have earned a good name. I have not acted in glamour roles. That does not mean that I will not act in glamour roles.

I am of the opinion that there should be beauty in glamour. Before acting in a Tamil film, I have acted in a Telugu film before acting in a Tamil film.

I did homely role in this film. But the people who have released this film in Chennai have shown my pictures in the posters glamorously.

When I heard this I was a bit upset. I think they are trying to spoil my image. For the first time I have donned a comedy role in Thiruthani. The film Kadhirvel in which I have donned the female lead role is going to be released soon. I will retain the good name that I have earned in Tamil cinema."

‘Fashion’: Trisha in or out?

Even as there are strong claims that Trisha would play the lead role in the Tamil remake of Hindi hit ‘Fashion’, there are some media reports which quote the actress saying that she was not doing the film.

“I am not doing the remake of Fashion,” Trisha reportedly said, adding that she also had no plans to act in Hindi movies. Remember she made her Bollywood debut with Priyadarshan’s ‘Katha Meetha’ recently.

Currently, Trisha is busy with ‘Mankatha’, Thala Ajith’s 50th movie and ‘Theen Maar’, a Telugu film opposite Pawan Kalyan. “Both are exciting projects and I am happy about being part of them,” she says.

Explaining as to why she isn’t not so keen on signing new projects, Trisha says, “Taking it a bit slow because I want to be excited with the project. I will sure announce my next film, when I sign it.”

Kamal Haasan Turns James Bond

The next time you see a James Bond-style car on a Chennai road, Kamal Haasan could be sitting inside, for the Ulaga Nayagan has purchased a latest model car with state-of-the-art features.

It was Audi A8 L, which was introduced by the German car maker in India only recently and the actor was one of the early birds to buy it. The car is Audi’s flagship model with innovative features.

White in colour, Kamal’s new car is loaded with James Bondesque features, including a latest inbuilt security system which can protect the car from an attack or accident. “It is no doubt a future vehicle,” say sources.

On the acting front, Kamal is gearing up for his next movie, which is to be directed by Selvaraghavan. With Sonakshi being roped in recently as the heroine, other things will get final shape soon, sources add.