The man who taught the world to dance

The death of Michael Jackson, The King of Pop has sent waves of disbelief and dismay across the Indian film industry. Reactions are flowing in thick and fast from everywhere. Everyone who loves dance has been inspired or delighted by Micheal Jackson at some point of time or the other. Michael Jackson was nothing short of a star of stars, the one whose charisma is unmatched. World music will never be the same again.

The ‘Indian Micheal Jackson’ Prabhu Deva said that he was shocked when he heard the news. He recalled the time when he had Michael Jackson in person when he had come to Mumbai, a meeting that was considered the confluence of two of the world’s best dancers ever.

In the last few years of his life, Michael Jackson had been dogged by controversies and issues. That is perhaps why Jackie Shroff said that his son had felt that ‘it was right that he breathed his last’. The death of Michael Jackson at this time is even more painful because it robbed him of the opportunity to have one last hurrah on stage in front of billions of his fans waiting eagerly to see him perform. He was set to go on a series of concerts later this year to mark a comeback after quite a few years out of the limelight. But that was never to be.

Micheal Jackson will always be remembered as one of the world’s greatest musical legends, perhaps the first truly global musical superstar. He was the man who taught the world to dance. May he rest in peace.

Courtesy: behindwoods.com

Rajini and Vijay – at the same time!

Production house Ayngaran International is gearing up to start one of the most expected projects of the year – Robot – on May 10th, 2008. This film will have Rajinikanth playing the lead role. Meanwhile, the Superstar is busy with a short-term project Kuselan, which is shaping up well under director P. Vasu.

Fans are exuberant about Robot because of the success that Rajini’s previous film, Sivaji, reaped. Added to the excitement of this are the big names involved in the project. With the beautiful Aishwarya Rai Bachchan bagging the female lead and sharing the screen space with the Superstar for the first time, it is no surprise that this film has managed to generate enough curiosity even before it hits the floors. The Ash factor apart, director Shankar and music director A. R. Rahman’s association with Robot is another reason for all the buzz.

Ayngaran International has another project on hand that could also take off around the same time Robot commences. This film has Vijay in the lead and will be directed by Prabhu Deva. The duo already has a big hit to their credit with Pokkiri. Will the magic rub off this time too?

Courtesy: behindwoods.com

The boss that ruled the year

When you look back at 2007 in terms of cinema, you can’t miss Sivaji – the boss of 2007. No film in the history of Tamil cinema has evoked such expectations before and after release.

A report in Financial Express (25.12.07) reveals that, according to Google, Sivaji - The Boss was the second most searched film among the top searches in India for 2007, only after Spiderman. This clearly shows the unbelievable expectations and excitement the film by the superstar has evoked.

This is probably the first time in the long history of Indian cinema that a South Indian film attracted national and international attention. The film with an unprecedented budget made into the headlines of almost all national television channels.

The dream combination did work. The reputed production house AVM, the most sought after director Shankar, the musical wizard of India A.R. Rahman, and the undisputed king of box office, superstar Rajinikanth – when you have these names in a single venture, it is ought to be a great sensational and it turned out to be exactly the same.

The Swashbuckling release of the film happened on June 15. Sivaji was released in 2 languages, Tamil as well as the dubbed version in Telugu. It opened in 2,900 theatres in 27 countries across the globe. 700 prints were released against 450 prints of Rajani’s earlier movie ‘Chandramukhi’.

Many films were withdrawn from the fray after the unprecedented opening of Sivaji - The Boss. The film even had a good run in north India. Mind you, there was no dubbing and no sub titles. Finally it went on to become a blockbuster.

In UK, the movie entered the box-office earned about £14 thousand per screen and the first South Indian movie to enter UK Top 10, a real big recognition for Tamil movies in international market. In USA, Sivaji was released in 24 theaters with 19 more added subsequently for the Tamil version and 21 theaters ran the Telugu version.

What made Sivaji so special? The above mentioned combination was ably supported by write Sujatha’s sharp dialogues and amazing stunt choreography of Peter Heinz. To add colour to the fare Shankar has roped in the likes of Prabhudeva, Raju Sundaram, Lawrence, and Brinda to make the song sequences as unique experience. Thota Tharani’s sets for the songs were breathtaking. Vivek provided sensible support by his comical sense. And you had sensual Shriya to put the screen on fire.

The way Shankar presented Sivaji is undoubtedly one of the highpoints of Sivaji. We are not mentioning about the 'fair' Rajini alone. The way he looked in the entire movie was something special. Shankar has also portrayed him as a modern day educated youth and worked out his style and dialogues accordingly. The ‘cool’ way of talking and the ease with which he handled modern gadgets added colour to the character.

As a result of all such ingredients, Sivaji triumphed like anything and emerged as a front runner in all aspects. Rajini proved his mettle even after 30 years of his entry into filmdom.

So, Rajini emerges winner of 2007 with his inimitable style.

Courtesy: IndiaGlitz.com