Tamil iconic writer Kalki’s historical fiction Ponniyin Selvan serialised in the Tamil magazine Kalki for three-and-half years in 1950s still retains its appeal for countless readers in Tamil Nadu. Drawing heavily on historical accounts of the Chola regime from the middle of the 9th to the 13th...
Viduthalai part 1 directed by Vetrimaran speaks about the common people’s political understanding. The question of whether it is worth understanding by everyone spurs us on to the theatres where the film is being screened. The storyline of Viduthalai goes as follows: (Spoiler Alert) A railway...
How to measure a film actor’s popularity? The parameters used for the purpose are how the following questions are answered: Does he dish out back-to-back hits? Does he act in diverse roles? Is he feted by fans, the media and colleagues alike? What image does he create for himself and how does...
When OTT (over the top) platforms such as Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+ Hotstar brought films to homes when theatres were shut during Covid lockdowns, it was hailed as a good alternative to theatres. People still patronise OTTs, spared as they are the pain of going all the way to...
After Rajinikanth re-released his 2002 film Baba in 2022, which unfortunately became a damp squib again, like 20 years ago, his peer Kamal Haasan is set to come back with a digitally toned-up version of his 2001 film ‘Aalavandhan’, also a box-office dud back in the day. The film’s producer...
This story was published in 2018 'Mahanati' Savitri continues to be in the news, perhaps for the reason that she was the greatest female actress of an era in which the 'superstar' tags were alien, or perhaps for the ugly fight between siblings taking pot-shots at each other to keep their...
The acronym MGR still inspires awe even after 35 years since the demise of the Tamil cultural icon Maruthur Gopalamenon Ramachandran (1917-1987). MGR lives on in Tamil cinema and politics. His stellar 42-year-long film career from 1936 to 1977 went hand in hand with his enormous political...
The other day rummaging through my attic for something, I caught sight of a trunk that aroused my curiosity. For a moment, I held myself back, fearing it might be a Pandora’s box. Yet, undaunted, I went on to open the box to find a book bathed in dust. Dusting off the book, I noticed that it...
Kamal Haasan, 68, the multi-faceted Tamil film actor, much revered for his seamless contributions to the film industry for the past 62 years, is not yet ready to call it a day though he is equally active in politics with his own party Makkal Neethi Maiyam. His latest blockbuster Vikram,...
Beneath its glossy artistic and commercial exterior, cinema has an underbelly teeming with guile, deceit, behind-the-scenes intrigue and lack of scruples. Everyone associated with the world of glamour and glitz has his/her own tale of disappointments, failures, betrayals and so on — tales which...
