Like father, like son

Shanthanoo, son of actor - director K Bhagyaraj, is a great admirer of his dad.

The young man who is making his debut on the silver screen with 'Sakkarakatti', is eager to wield the megaphone like his father in the coming days.

'I am a great lover of my father's films. I would love to remake some of my father's blockbusters like 'Indru Poi Nalai Vaa' and 'Thavani Kanavugal'.

'Sakkarakatti', directed by Kala Prabhu, son of Kalipuli S Thanu has musical score by A R Rahman. The song 'Taxi…Taxi' has already become a rage among the youth.

After Sakkarakatti Shanthanu would be acting in a film to be directed by his father.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

'Sakkarakatti' is a refreshing movie – Santhanoo

'Sakkarakatti' is a young and fresh movie, says Santhanoo Bhagyaraj, son of veteran director-actor Bhagyaraj, who is making his foray into tinsel town.

The movie is produced by Kalaipuli S Thanu and is directed by his son Kalaprabhu. Says Santhanoo, "It is a romantic comedy and I have a chocolate-boy role. The movie has come out really good. Ishitha and Vedika play my heroines".


On A R Rahman's musical score for the movie, he says, "It is just fantastic. The songs are already topping the charts. It's a dream come true experience for me to be part of a movie that has score by Rahman".

On the delay of 'Sakkarakatti's' release, he says, "We are in no hurry. The post-production work are almost over and we are waiting for the appropriate moment to hit the screens".

"Kalaprabhu is an intelligent director. He knows the knack of making commercial movies. His story is really awesome", adds the debutante.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

Sakkarakatti's highway song

While Rahman's chartbusting music for the Shantanu starrer Sakkarakatti is already catching attention, the crew is busy shooting a few songs for a final wrap of the film. Rahman has scored 6 songs for the movie of which the Taxi Taxi song is now being filmed in and around Chennai. The song is said to be shot entirely in

highways, predominantly the scenic Chennai – Pondy ECR road. State-of-the-art cameras are also rumored to be employed for the song to make the picturization and angles look stylish. Cast and crew of Sakkarakatti are recently spotted on the ECR, off Chennai, while filming the song.

Courtesy: behindwoods.com

'Sakkarakatti' to storm theaters soon

Debutant director Kalaprabhu is busy with the post-production works for ‘Sakkarakatti’, a movie which marks the debut of director-actor Bhagyaraj's son Shanthanoo on the silver screen as hero.

Kalaprabhu, son of producer Kalaipuli S Thanu, says, “It is a stylish film”.

'Romance plays a major part of the film involving three prominent characters – Shanthanoo, Ishitha and Vedika. It would be a different film in Tamil cinema'.

On his experience working with A R Rahman for the film, Kalaprbahu says, 'I narrated the story to him for over an hour. He listened to it patiently and finally agreed to do the film. Rahman is a soft natured human being, but then he becomes tough when it comes to work. He agrees for a tune only after several attempts.'

'Shanthanoo is good friend of mine. He has performed with ease and so have my lead heroines. Post-production would be completed soon and the movie would be released as soon as possible', he adds.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

Sakkarakatti -Trailer

Courtesy: behindwoods.com

As sweet as Sakkarakatti

When debutant director Kalaa Prabhu approached music composer AR Rahman to compose music for Sakkarakatti, the latter was sceptical.

“I’m busy with other projects,” he said and added, “I’m not sure if I’ll be able to do full justice to it.” Kalaa Prabhu handed him a note with six Hindi songs and just asked Rahman to “Tamilise” them.

“That would be cheating my listeners,” said Rahman, and after listening to the script thoroughly, gave Kalaa some beautiful tunes.

The high-profile audio release of Sakkarakatti, held recently at a city multiplex, was well-attended by celebrities of the film fraternity.

Veteran directors like K Balachander and SP Muthuraman wished the debutant director, who is producer Kalaipuli Thanu’s son, the best of luck for the film. Sakkarakati also also marks the debut of Shanthnoo Bhagyaraj, son of renowned film personality Bhagyaraj.

Director Bharathiraja had the audience in splits when he said that he would make Rahman act in his next film. Realising that some members of the audience were laughing, he said, “It’s difficult to get tunes from him, but I will surely make him act in a movie soon!”

Courtesy: indiatimes.com

Sakkarakatti - Music review

Starring Shantanu Bhagyaraj, Ishita Sharma and Vedika, this is a youth-based story: of a rich girl falling for a middle-class boy. The movie and the album are both eagerly awaited by fans, because we have two giants (Rahman and Dhanu) coming together! Rahman has always been known for his bold experimentation and technical virtuosity. He has set tunes for 6 songs here. How has this album fared? Let’s have a look at what he has to offer, shall we?

Taxi, Taxi… Vocals: Benny Dayal, Blaaze, Viviane, Javed Ali, Lyrics: Na.Muthukumar The song itself has very strong rhythms and the bell-type tinkling sounds that make up the rhythms are truly new to the ears! Appears to follow Natabhairavi scale with notes like ‘saa-ri-ga-ma-ga-ri-saa’ tripping along. Plenty of extra sounds have been tucked in. You have to strain a little to catch the lyrics. Sings in praise of a’ simple uncomplicated’ friend. More of a ‘ rappy’ number. Even the interludes are heavy into rhythms. No particular mood is projected.

Marudaani… Vocals: Madhushree, A.R.Rahman, Henry, Lyrics: Vaali Very nice opening bars we have here, that flit gently around our ears but the rhythms follow soon enough. Rahman seems to employ some kind of booming hollow rhythms that simply rattle your ribcage when you listen to them for sometime! Vaali’s lyrics seem to speak about true love but they don’t seem to rise above Rahman’s musical score! One is vaguely reminded of Maand raga. The last line is evocatively stretched and falls pleasantly on the ears.

I Miss You da… Vocals: Chinmayee, Indai Haza, Lyrics: Na. Muthukumar This is a well conceived song with a strong accent on melody, in spite of the rhythm accompaniment. The yearning and longing felt by the lady who is missing her lover are so effectively conveyed by Chinmayee singing in a husky soft voice. The chord’ saa dha, saa pa’ occur throughout the song which adds to the melodic appeal. Sindhubhairavi seems to have been used here. Listeners could warm to this song soon. According to Rahman’s website, this song seems to have been picturised in an expensively erected, futuristic setting! Chinnamma… Vocals: Benny Dayal, Chinmayee, Lyrics: P.Vijay Lovely flute bars and a delightful folksy ‘mettu’ enliven this song

right away.Different tonal articulation by Chinmayee and Benny Dayal keeps pace! A tantalizing mix of Harikambodhi and Sankarabharanam seen in the song. Well assembled swaras like’ga ma gaa ri sa rii ga’on the flute add the right touch of folksy feel. The refrain’ Chinnamma, silakamma…’ the flute solos and the song itself, they all blend beautifully together. Thankfully the rhythm is subdued, for once. Will climb the charts soon. Eley… Vocals: Krish, Naresh Iyer, Lyrics: Na. Muthukumar This piece has a western feel to it—more like a pop number. A song which typifies youthful feelings and enthusiasm for life. Well integrated guitar and violin sounds keep the song light and easy on the ears. Plenty of English words too! Nice complex rhythms. Again the Natabhairavi scale seems to have been used. Naan Epoudhu… Vocals: Reena Bharadwaj, Lyrics: P.Vijay A woman’s wonder at the inner transformation within herself. Sung softly by Reena. The sweet sounding interludes trip along with the girl’s heart! Like song no.4 this also shows traces of the same two ragas. Has an easy rhythm. Verdict: Rahman has this unique knack of grouping very different sounding instruments and blending them well to express his own musical idiom and mood. Here we have an adequate demonstration of it .Each song has a different feel to it. The D and F scale appear to have been very thoughtfully used. But one thing does seem to leave us feeling uneasy---frequent change of chords and relentless rhythms somehow rob the richness of the musical nuances that he wants to convey. We are sure Rahman is equally aware of this, too. Recently he announced that he wants to concentrate on melodies more. Let us wish this technical wizard all the very best in this ‘track’!

Courtesy: behindwoods.com

Sakkarakkati audio release on July 11

Leading producer Kalaipuli S. Thanu, is launching Bhagyaraj's son Shanthanoo as a hero with Sakkarakkati which is long in the making. The film is also Thanu’s son Kalaa Prabhu's directorial debut.

The highlight of Sakkarakkati is the music by A.R Rahman. The audio of the film is being launched on Friday evening at Sathyam Cinemas, in the presence of industry bigwigs.

The film has a new heroine Ishita Sharma along with Vedhika. All the others like Amith, Lokesh, Harish are newcomers. "Sakkarakkati is a musical love story against a peppy and happening youth background. It is a light hearted entertainer which I'm sure the generation next would lap up", says its young director Kalaa Prabhu.

The audio of the film has been snapped up by Sony BMG and a lot is riding on it for A.R Rahman.

Courtesy: sify.com

Huge guest list for 'Sakkarakatti' audio launch

A. R. Rahman's magnificent tunes for the film 'Sakkarakatti' that stars Santanu, son of K. Bhagyaraj will be released at a glittering function on July 11. The list of guests who will be attending the event is huge and impressive.

Big time directors in the form of K.Balachander, Bharatiraja, Mahendran, Balu Mahendra, SP Muthuraman, SA Chandrasekhar, R Sundarajan, P Vasu, Bala, Dharani, Vikraman, Murugadoss, Cheran, Radha Mohan and of course K. Bhagyaraj would be present.

The film also marks the debut of producer Kalaipuli Dhanu's son Kalaprabhu as the director. The songs in the film are expected to be huge and the picturization part has loads of Computer Generated Imagery.

Ishita and Vedhika play the leading ladies and the film is produced by Kalaipuli Dhanu.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

20 directors + A.R. Rahman in grand event!

The much-awaited Sakkarakatti audio is scheduled to be released on July 11, 2008, 7.00 p.m. at Satyam Theatre in Chennai.

For starters, Sakkarakatti is tuned by A R Rahman and has debutant Shanthanu, Bhagyaraj's son, in the lead role. Rahman fans have been waiting with bated breath for the album release ever since the media, quoting news sources, pronounced the songs to be excellent.

The event will be attended by the glitterati of Kollywood including twenty top veteran directors of Tamil Cinema for the first time ever. The list includes veterans such as K. Balachander, Bharathraja, Mahendran, Balu Mahendra, S P Muthuraman, S A Chandrasekar, R. Sunderarajan, P Vasu, Maniratnam, Shankar, Bala, Dharani, Vikraman, K S Ravikumar, Murugadoss, Susi Ganesan, Prabudeva, S J Surya, Perarasu, and Radha Mohan.

The invitation is designed to replicate a keyboard with Rahman on the cover page. Sakkarakatti is produced by Kalaipuli Dhanu and directed by his son Kalaprabhu.

Courtesy: tamilstar.com

'Sakkarakatti' audio release on July 11

The much awaited audio release of the movie 'Sakkarakatti' with music by one of India's finest talents A. R. Rahman is slated to take place on the 11th of July.

The Tamil film industry is abuzz with excitement with the fact that extensive graphics are being created for the movie's song sequences, which is literally running close to a year.

Reports also suggest that a crore of rupees have been spent for picturizing just one song. The intensity and effectiveness of the songs composed by A. R. Rahman is said to be the reason behind the filmmakers' going through such an effort.

Another interesting piece of information is that A. R. Rahman has hummed for a song titled 'Maruthanni' which has been rendered by Madhushree. It can be recalled that all the songs that have the musician's humming have gone on to be huge chart toppers like 'Chinna Chinna Aasai' in 'Roja' and 'Sanda Kozhi' in 'Aayutha Ezhuthu'.

'Sakkarakatti' has Santhanu, son of writer, director, actor K. Bhagyaraj as hero and yet another film personality's (Kalaipuli Dhanu) son Kalaprabhu as the director.

Ishita and Vedhika play the leading ladies and the film is produced by Kalaipuli Dhanu.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

Good news for A.R. Rahman's fans

Great news for A.R. Rahman's fans! While the maestro is gearing up for the audio release of his next venture Chakkara Katti, which is slated for release on July 11th, good news for the film's unit comes in the form of Sony BMG. For, the audio major has lapped up the audio rights of Chakkara Katti. The film will be the

launch pad of Shantanu, son of actor-director Bhagyaraj. Incidentally, Chakara Katti is directed by Kala Prabhu, son of legendary producer Kalai Puli Thanu.

Courtesy: behindwoods.com

Extreme graphics in 'Sakkarakatti'

Santhanu, the son of master screenwriter and director K. Bhagyaraj is starring in a film titled ‘Sakkarakatti’. Another famous son Prabhu (son of producer Kalaipuli Dhanu) debuts as director with this film.

The movie has extensive Computer Generated Imagery for the song sequences. A. R. Rahman has composed the songs. A song titled Chinnamma has been with graphic designers and animators for the past 13 months. Such is the magnitude of the CGI part of the song that is being planned with detailed storyboarding and precision.

Another song titled 'I miss you da….' also has tremendous graphics portions and graphic designers are working on it for 7 months and are still at it.

This kind of planning and execution is creating a lot of expectations for the film.

Certain illegal music portals have been carrying a song called 'Good Morning Tamilnadu' and claim it is from the movie ‘Sakkaraikatti’. However, the filmmakers have told Indiaglitz exclusively that this is not true and are denying it vehemently.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

Rahman's Sakkarakatti to be released in June

AR Rahman is back with a brand new score. The musical genius, who has composed some fantastic tunes for Sakkarakatti, will release the audio in June.

The film has six songs which is a mix of classical and hip-hop numbers.The movie marks the debut of Bhagyaraj's son Santhanu and has been produced by Kalaipuli S Thanu. His son Prabhu is directing the movie.

The filmmakers have finished shooting the talkie portion of the movie and all that is left is one song. Rahman has come up with a catchy musical score. The song Taxi Taxi is sure to be a superhit.

Santhanu’s father previously launched his sister Sharanya amid much fanfare in the film Paarijatham, but the actress has not delivered a hit after that. Let’s hope that things turn out to be different for Santhanu at least.

Courtesy: timesofindia.com

A.R.Rahman adds more sweetness to the 'Sugar Cube'

There is no need to dig up the history and try to explain how the songs composed by A.R.Rahman in a lot of movies have went on to become youth anthems and how the expectations about a film increase and also add pages to its publicity when the news break out loose that the Mozart of Asia is composing the music for the songs in it.

The unit of the new film 'Sakkarakatti' can be assured of peppy, spicy, groovy and addictive music to do service to the ears of the audience as Rahman's compositions have done several times before being a big support factor to the success of the movie.

Getting A.R.Rahman to use his skills in a film is a very difficult task given his busy schedule and if the music maestro selects a movie then definitely he must have found something fascinating in the story of the film.

So the Job of building an aura around the potential of 'Sakkarakatti' a movie targeted at the youth has already been half done.

And when Rahman goes for something, he makes it the best.

A Singer Veena Bharatwaj was flown specially from London to record a song in this new film.

Other singers are Naresh Iyer, now a Rahman regular, Madhu sree, and Benny among others.

The audio tracks of a perfect blend of classical and hip hop music boasts of a song titled "I Miss U Da" which has been given sounds and tones that has never been heard before in Indian Films.

The director of the film himself admitted to have got hooked up with a youthful and inspiring ambiance in A.R.Rahman's studio when the songs were recorded.

The director of this youth oriented and colourful movie Prabhu who also happens to be the son of the famous producer Kalaipuli.S.Dhanu has taken a bold step in directing a movie just with the film making Knowledge that he has gained from his father and not by being an assistant to other directors.

The boldness to take the plunge just on their self belief shown by certain young directors in Kollywood has certainly triggered off a trend among the younger lot of aspiring directors to follow their dreams with oozing self confidence.

Director Prabhu follows the marks left back by the success story of another filmmaker who also happens to have "Prabhu" in his name.

The first time lucky director of 'Chennai 600028', Venkat Prabhu is already wrapping up his second project after hitting the Jack pot in his first attempt itself, that too without any prior experience to back up.

A.R.R's music comes as bonus in the true sense for any soon to be released movie.

Same in the case of this film too, but still it has a heavy luggage of making careers of two.

Other than a new director the film also marks the entry of Santhanu, son of the acclaimed actor/director Bhagyaraj into the film world as the leading man.

The audio C.D of the film comprising of 6 tracks will hit the music stores on June.

The countdown has started as all the scenes except the video of a song have been canned.

Wait and watch to see how the new Prabhu has tried to hit the bull's eye with his directorial debut.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com

'Sakkarakatti' audio from June

The much awaited of 'Sakkarakatti', set to tunes by A R Rahman will be released this June.

The movie starring Bhakiyaraj's son Santhanu in the lead role is produced by Kalaipuli S Thanu. His son Prabhu is directing the movie. Interestingly the movie's audio track has six songs which is a mix of classical and hip-hop numbers.

We have completed canning the talkie portion. Only one song has to be shot. It will be completed soon. Rahman has come up with a catchy musical score and is sure the USP of this youthful enntertainer, says Prabhu.

Courtesy: indiaglitz.com