Annadurai, starring Vijay Antony and Diana Champika, has a throwaway reference to the Goods and Services Tax (GST). As the lyrics of the song go:
GST maari nee enna vechi seyyure
Sollama kollama vandhu ennennavo pannura
According to reports, the censor board objected to the term, and hence, it has been replaced by ‘EMI’ in the film. The audio version still retains the GST reference, however, which led Udhayanidhi Stalin, a guest at the event, to joke that he knew of at least two people who’d drum up free publicity for the film by causing issues during its release.
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KE Gnanavel Raja, meanwhile, slammed a ‘top’ actor and comedian for their unprofessional behaviour. “Vijay Antony is such a gem of a person. He is a total professional and has introduced several new directors through his firm. On the other hand, we have an actor who caused a loss of Rs 18 crores to a leading producer. The actor attended only 29 days of film shoot, and perhaps shot for about five hours of the film. When issues cropped up for the film around the time of its release, the star did not even have the basic courtesy to come down and discuss with us about it. We are planning a strong action against him.”
Raja also spoke of an acclaimed comedian who was now indulging in unprofessional behaviour.
Radhika Sarathkumar spoke about Vijay Antony’s calm persona. “Both Vijays in the industry are calm and serene. I sincerely wish and hope that Vijay Antony’s Annadurai gets the success it deserves.”