Kamal and Murugadoss together!

This sounds like one combination that can’t fail. Arguably India’s finest actor is ready to join hands with the most promising of young directors, AR Murugadoss.

This doesn’t seem to be the dream of the film buffs alone. Director Murugadoss, who is yet to begin his next project after ‘Ghajini’, also shares this dream to work with the Universal Hero.

He announced this at an event held recently which was attended by Kamal Haasan himself. The director went on to publicly state that he was a big fan of Kamal, who’s experimentation with roles has fascinated him a lot. He also went on to state that he would like to do a project with Kamal as the hero.

AR Murugadoss has earlier directed ‘Dheena’, ‘Ramana’ and the Suriya-starrer ‘Ghajini’ that went on to be made in Bollywood with Aamir Khan reprising Suriya’s role. Murugadoss has been holding talks with Shah Rukh for his next film, even while he will be teaming up with Suriya for another film soon.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

Aamir stands tall

Trust Aamir Khan to be innovative at everything he does. Be it acting, producing or even marketing.

For his latest, Ghajini , which is already created an enthusiastic buzz within the industry as well his Aamir fans, the actor is reaching out to his viewers in a rather interesting fashion.

As you make your way into Fame multiplex lobby at Inorbit Mall, Malad in suburban Mumbai, you'll be welcomed by a nicely done figure of the actor, sporting his much-tattooed bare-torso look from the film.  This is not a first, though. Earlier too, when Shrek 3 came out, the celebrated ogre made his presence felt with its giant statue catching everyone's attention.

Said to be loosely inspired by Christoper Nolan's acclaimed Memento,Ghajini, directed by A R Murugadoss, is a remake of a Tamil hit of the same name. Co-starring Asin and Jiah Khan , the intense action caper hits the screens on Christmas Day.

Courtesy: rediff.com

Aamir & Surya in Murugadoss’s next!

The Aamir - Asin starrer Ghajini is finally wrapped up. With the remaining couple of songs having been shot recently, Murugadoss is busy with the post-production work. The director is said to be busy in the editing studios of Mumbai burning the midnight oil to get the movie ready for a Deepavali release. Inside sources assert that Ghajini would be ready to release in October.

Meanwhile, it is learnt that Murugadoss has planned his next Tamil venture with Surya. We also got wind of the news that Aamir’s dates are requested for a cameo role in the movie. Although it is not known whether Aamir has nodded consent, given the fact that Aamir and Murugadoss get along famously well, that sounds like a possibility indeed.


Courtesy: behindwoods.com

Surya & Nayanthara paired for first time!

Udayanidhi Stalin’s home banner Red Giant Movies has a casting coup- Surya and Nayanthara coming together for the first time in an untitled film to be directed by K.S Ravi Kumar.

It is going to be Udayanidhi Stalin's second venture after Kuruvi. The shoot will start some time in December, after Surya completes Ayan and Nayanthara finishes her current assignments, Aegan and Villu.

Nayanthara had done a brief appearance in Surya’s Ghajani in which Asin was the heroine. K.S Ravi Kumar was trying to bring them together, and now it has become a reality.

Ravi Kumar will complete Jaggu Bhai, by October end, and then start work on the new film, which is likely to have music by A.R Rahman. The other things are being worked out as the film is likely to be a summer 2009 release.

Courtesy: sify.com

‘Ghajini’ team ready to team up again

Director A R Murugadoss and Suriya teamed up to render a hit in ‘Ghajini’. The movie sky-rocketed both Suriya and Murugadoss to stardom.

Murugadoss has almost completed the Hindi version of ‘Ghajini’. It features Aamir Khan and Asin in the lead roles.

Moving ahead, he says, “Plans are on to commence my next venture soon. It would be a big venture - produced by myself. I am planning to team up with Suriya for it is a tri-lingual, to be made simultaneously in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi”.

“Suriya would act in a never before role and it would be a straight contrast to ‘Ghajini’”, he said.

“The Hindi version of ‘Ghajini’ has shaped up well. I should thank Aamir Khan for co-operation”, he added. He denied reports appeared in few sections of the press that he would be doing a movie with Vishal.

“I will commence the trilingual production venture after the Aamir Khan starrer ‘Ghajini’ gets released.”

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

‘Varanam Aayiram is a conservative film’

AFTER your comments about hating Bheema, you seem to be getting notorious for your frank opinions.

There was such build-up for Bheema! Director Lingusamy, Vikram and I keep running into one another. And Harris Jayraj, who did the music, kept saying, ‘It’s such a brilliant film.’ But when I went and watched it, I was so disappointed that I just had to say something about it.
But doesn’t this rub people the wrong way?


Yeah. I think Vikram hates me now and Vijay had a problem with what I said (about his giving me DVDs of his films so that I could incorporate elements from them into a script for him). But I don’t care. They can talk about my film too. That’s the way it should be. If Vikram and Vijay are not going to work with me because of this, I think it’s their loss.

So you don’t think you’re cutting off avenues?

I don’t think so. I’m making a film with newcomers - four boys. I don’t know how well the film will do, but at least I’m enjoying myself. These boys give me everything. Even Surya worked for me like that in Varanam Aayiram. I said, ‘At 17, I need you to look like this, at 21, like this and at 31, you’re a tough guy; so can we have a six-pack?’ It’s only for one scene. And for four months, he went off everything! He’d eat only boiled vegetables and chicken with no salt. And he was going through all that just for a film. I can always do a film with Surya, Karthi and with so many youngsters. But I’m hoping others will come around.

Tell us about Varanam Aayiram.

It’s the story of a young man on the verge of life. The film traces his life from the time he is born up to a point where he realises he’s made it in life. We see his first love, whether he gets to marry the girl he fell in love with and the equation he had with his father - an inspiration at every point in his life. It traces parts of my life and the lives of everybody I know.
So is it a sort of biopic of Gautam Menon?

It’s a very personal story. But what I’m hoping is that the guy next to you in the theatre will say, ‘Hey this has happened to me!’ Of course, there’s a little bit of fantasy.
Let’s shift gears to Chennayil Oru Mazhaikaalam.

Varanam Aayiram is a very conservative film in terms of what Surya thinks about women; but this is a very in-your-face sort of film with four boys and three girls. We wanted to cast only newcomers. Then the co-producer said, ‘We need somebody in this film other than Gautam and AR Rahman.’ So we pitched the idea to Trisha. She was looking forward to working with us.

There’s been a lot of talk about the switch from your regular - Harris Jayaraj.

I am doing a film with Harris in December which stars Ajit. I always wanted to work with Rahman right from when Minnale happened. Harris knows that too. Even Rahman was saying ‘You have a great record with Harris. They’ll think I’ve done something to that!’

With Ajit, will you attempt to tread a middle path between an Ajit film and a Gautam Menon film?

The only time that happened was with Vijay. I narrated bits of Varanam Aayiram to him. He said he loved it but then he said, ‘Can you bring some of my elements into the film?’ I said it wouldn’t work in a film like this. I don’t want to do that kind of compromise. I did that with Pachaikili Muthucharam. That was a mistake; and I don’t want to do that again.

Ever thought of doing films in Bollywood?

I don’t want to make the mistake I made with Rehnaa Hai Tere Dil Mein. Nobody knows me there; so I want to go with a big actor that the crowd will come for. I am pitching something with Abhishek (Bachchan) right now. I’m also thinking of a remake of Vettaiyaadu Vilayaadu with Amitabh, taking out the love angle.

Courtesy: newindpress.com

Age in action

Hollywood has finally acknowledged that action heroes who sell are like good wine, they get better with age.

That ageing action heroes still rule the roost has been proved by the critical acclaim Harrison Ford and his Indiana Jones and The Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull received at Cannes, where it premiered last Sunday, and is expected to be this year's biggest summer blockbuster.

The film - which sees the 65-year-old Harrison Ford return to the role of Indiana Jones after a 19-year gap was praised by the world media, reportedly garnering a three-and-a-half minute standing ovation by the select few who were invited to watch it, according to a Hollywood trade publication.

Before the screening, huge crowds gathered to catch a glimpse of the movie's super hero Harrison Ford, who is quoted as saying, “I expect to have the whip turned on me. I'm not really worried about it. I work for the people who pay to get in. They are my customers and my focus is on providing the best experience I can for those people.” According to Hollywood websites, the film and its hero have received a resounding thumbs-up from critics known to pan popular entertainers. Noted critic Derek Malcom in his review has surprisingly given three out of five for this film. The film's director, the legendary Steven Spielberg (62) has hinted that he and producer, the iconic George Lucas (63) may take a fifth installment of the world's most popular action adventure Indiana Jones with Harrison Ford!

All this is great news for Kollywood's ageing action heroes who are still in their mid 50s - the likes of Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Sarath Kumar and Arjun (44). These heroes have been around for more than 20 years, and are still the best in business. It reiterates the fact that like Hollywood's dad army - Harrison Ford, Sylvester Stallone (62) and Bruce Willis (53), our ageing stars have audiences' faith in them. “The Tamil audiences have grown up on Rajini sir and Kamal sir and they are still the poster boys for today's youth in the 16 to 25 age group as they have reached iconic status,” says director K S Ravikumar, who has worked with both the stars.

Just as older action heroes in Hollywood are facing stiff competition from younger and fit action heroes like Tom Cruise, Orlando Bloom and Jason Statham, in Kollywood too, stars like Vijay, Ajit and Surya in their mid 30s are giving the bigger superstars a run for their money. However, the bottom line is that younger action heroes worldwide are not in the same league or as charismatic and hot as the older guys who are all mega-brands with audiences of all ages.

Hollywood's ageing super heroes have the best of make-up men, stunts and fitness personnel monitoring round the clock their sagging skin, creaking bones, thinning hair, paunches, and back problems. The grapevine says that Ford was given air-brushing, his looks were digitally enhanced. This is afterall the world of make believe and our ageing stars too have been given digital make-overs for that youthful, debonair look and make their death-defying action scenes look natural and real on screen. The Kollywood buzz is that Shankar is going to give a totally new look to Rajinikanth in his forthcoming Robot. The director has already teamed with hair designer Bhanu and bought the latest expensive wigs from US for the star. Unlike in earlier days, technology can help a star hide his age and look smarter and more dashing on screen.

Though Rajinikanth's public appearances show his age, it never shows on screen. The trade attributes the success of Sivaji to Rajinikanth's young and charming looks in the film.

Shankar has spent a lot of time and energy to see that he could play the character he plays in the film. The buzz is that the actor keeps to a strict diet, consisting mainly of vegetarian food. Kamal, on the other hand, regularly works out and is very particular on how he looks on screen. Sarath Kumar also works out daily and is an actor who performs action scenes with a lot of conviction. So, while it might seem that size does matter, age definitely doesn't!

Courtesy: timesofindia.com

Hindi Ghajini in October

Aamir Khan, who was injured during the shooting of his current project – the remake of Tamil film Ghajini – is recovering fast and will soon resume shooting.

Director Mr. Murugadoss, now in Chennai, stated that the film will be completed in three months and shall be released in October. He added that this will be a feast to Aamir Khan’s fan following, which has increased after Tare Zameen Par, not only in North, but also in Tamil Nadu. In Tare Zameen Par, Aamir played the role of an empathic and lovable teacher. In Ghajini, he plays the role of a man who has short-term memory loss. In Tamil, actor Suriya played this role and it won him a lot of accolades.

Asin is the female lead in the Hindi version too; she has spoken immaculate Hindi in her own voice. Music is by A.R. Rahman. All these factors are making the filmgoers of Tamil Nadu eagerly await this movie's release. Now at least they know their wait will end in October.

Southern beautyAsin, the female lead, has been in the news ever since she was signed for this movie. She swept everyone off their feet when she featured in “Close up” and “Mirinda” ads alongside Saif Ali Khan and Zayed Khan respectively.

Courtesy: galatta.com

Aamir gifts himself a shave.

Today, the 14th of March is Aamir Khan’s birthday, and making it special is the gift that Aamir will be giving himself. Folks we are referring to him going bald. If you remember some time back Aamir had said that for his forth coming film Ghajini he will be getting into the character he plays and hence will shave his head. Well today is the D day when Aamir will be using the scissors to snip off his hair.

Apart from this it is also rumoured that the film Taare Zameen Par by far the best film that proved Aamir Khan’s prowess in directing films will be remade in Tamil and will be under Aamir’s own production banner. However he will not be directing the film, instead this part has fallen to the award winning actor-director Cheran.

If that’s not all, the second change will be who’s playing Aamir’s role in the film. The grapevine tells us that Aamir is keen on having either one of the Tollywood superstars Vikram or Surya play his role. While the part that Darsheel plays hasn’t yet been decided or finalized yet.

Let’s hope that the Tamil version is as good as the real one, as most remakes falling flat these days. However we tried to get in- touch with Aamir at his office and residence but he was not available for comments, while his co-workers say that they will have to ask the star before commenting on it.

Courtesy: Indiatimes.com