Section: Movies

Dennis Joseph, Veteran Malayalam Screenwriter, Dies of Cardiac Arrest

BY Chandhini R On

Dennis Joseph, the veteran Malayalam screenwriter, died of a cardiac arrest on Monday at a private hospital in Kottayam in Kerala.

He was 63.

Dennis collapsed following a cardiac arrest at his residence in Ettumanoor and was rushed to the hospital.

Dennis, who had written over 45 Malayalam films, was born on October 20, 1957, in Ettumanoor. He held a degree in chemistry from Devamatha College in Kurivilangadu.

He initially worked as a journalist in a Malayalam magazine. He made his debut as a story writer in Eeran Sandhya and screenwriter in Nirakkoottu in 1985. Both the films starred Mammootty in the lead role.

After the success of Nirakkoottu, Dennis wrote many more super hit films such as Rajavinte Makan starring Mohanlal, New Delhi starring Mammootty, Bhoomiyile Rajakkanmaar, Vazhiyorakkazhchakal, Indrajalam, Nair Saab, No. 20 Madras Mail, and Kottayam Kunjachan.

Dennis had collaborated with directors Joshiy and TS Suresh Babu several times and had also written many hit films for Mammootty and Mohanlal.

He had also directed films such as Manu Uncle, Adharvam, Appu, Thudar Katha and Agrajan. Dennis’s directorial Manu Uncle won the National Award and Kerala State Award for the best children’s film category. 

Dennis last penned the script for Geethanjali (2013), which was directed by Priyadarshan. In 2020, Dennis had planned to make a comeback with Power Star, directed by Omar Lulu starring Antony Babu.

Dennis is survived by his wife, Leena, and children Elizabeth, Rossy and Jose.

Mohanlal took to social media to share his memories of Dennis. Calling him the “king of scriptwriting”, Mohanlal said that he was fortunate to portray some of the characters written by Dennis.

“I can never say enough about my bond with Dennis. I stop midway, with shivering hands… Adieu, Dennis,” he wrote.

In a social media post, Mammootty said, “The untimely demise of Dennis Joseph makes me so sad. The brother-like friend who was with me through growth and exhaustion is no more, he will be remembered through all the films written and directed. Wishing you eternal peace.”

Actors Prithviraj Sukumaran, Joju George, Omar Lulu and others mourned the loss of the veteran screenwriter.

 

Thummala Narsimha Reddy, Telugu Actor and Journalist, Dies of Covid-19

BY Anusha Sundar On

Thummala Narsimha Reddy, the Telugu film journalist, host, and actor, died of Covid-19 related complications at a private hospital in Hyderabad on Monday.

He was 45.

Reddy, popularly known as TNR, had tested positive for the virus about a week ago after he showed mild symptoms. He was advised to isolate at home. After his pulse rate dropped, he was admitted to a private hospital in Malkajgiri in Hyderabad. However, he developed breathing difficulties due to his low oxygen level. Subsequently, he succumbed to the virus on Monday.

As an actor, Reddy appeared in various Telugu films, including the recent hit film Jathi Ratnalu, Uma Maheswara Ugra Roopasya, and Falaknuma Das. He was also part of the upcoming Telugu film F3, starring Venkatesh Daggubati under Anil Ravipudi’s directorial. However, Reddy made his mark in Telugu cinema as a celebrity interviewer in his show titled Frankly Speaking with TNR for the YouTube channel iDream. He interviewed celebrities like Gautami, Vijay Deverakonda, Ram Gopal Verma, Nag Ashwin.


Recalling his experience working with Reddy at iDreams channel, Telugu film critic and journalist, Hemanth Kumar CR, told Silverscreen India, “I have known him more than just as an anchor. He joined the channel in 2015 where I was also working and that is how I got to know him. He has been in the industry for quite some time and his show Frankly with TNR sort of set the benchmark for everyone to interview celebrities. I have seen him prepare for each interview as if he is going to take an exam. He does only one interview per week and he would do it wholeheartedly. The kind of dedication and commitment he brought to work is phenomenal.”

“I remember each interview of his. What we watch online would be only couple of hours long but in reality, he would make celebrities sit with him for half a day. There was one interview with LB Sriram that went on for seven-and-a-half hours. I still remember when the interview went online, the team was searching on the Guinness Book of World Records to see if they had a chance for the longest interview record. But they were disappointed when there was something even longer,” he said.

Hemanth said that Reddy wanted to meet his deadline “at any cost”.

“I was also doing interviews, shorter ones, for the same company. While it took editors faster to complete our work, the work that went on his interviews would take about two days. Lots of work would go and he [Reddy] would tell what he wanted precisely in his interviews while they were being edited. That is why he became famous,” Hemanth said.

Filmmaker Pavan Sadineni, who directed the Telugu romantic comedy web series Commit Mental (2020) starring Reddy, told Silverscreen India, “I remember talking to him some 10 days back, about the possibilities for collaborating for my future project. His demise comes like a shock to me.”

Sadineni said that Reddy wanted to be a filmmaker and would observe the nuances of filming on sets.

“He was also a great interviewer. He was a healthy person and was conscious of what he was eating. He was very fit. I have seen his interviews and didn’t know him as an actor until I saw him in Uma Maheswara Ugra Roopasya (2020). I loved his part and immediately congratulated him. I told him that it is time for him to be an actor and stretch his wings,” Sadineni said.

Remembering their times from shooting Commit Mental, Sadineni said, “He is a very well-prepared person and had asked for his lines the day before the shoot so that he can rehearse. By the time he had memorised his parts, I had an idea to portray his character by not speaking a single line and rely on expressions. So, in the whole series, he did not have any dialogues. However, he was fully prepared to say his dialogues, but he was surprised when I said to him to just emote. But he got into the character and performed extremely well. People loved him for the role.”

Venkatesh Maha, director of C/o Kancharapalem and Uma Maheswara Ugra Roopasya, said he shared a “very good relationship” with Reddy.

“His demise is very painful. When I made my first film, C/o Kancharapalem, TNR gaaru went to Kancharapalem village to interview everyone involved in the film. All the actors from the film were from that village and he had spent 3-4 days and met everyone who took part in the film and interviewed them. The story of the making the film came through him only. He liked the film when he saw it and had a doubt about how I made a good film with local people. Later, he interviewed me and my producer Praveena Paruchuri which ran for 4-5 hours long. Until then people were talking about the film, but no one knew how we looked like. Through the interview, people got to know us,” said Venkatesh.

He said that for his second directorial, Uma Maheswara Ugra Roopasya, he had cast Reddy.

“In real, Reddy had Telangana accent but his character required a northern Andhra accent. It is very tough but I had asked him to learn. TNR gaaru then spoke with people from the local village to catch that accent. He was having fun learning it too. I can’t digest he is not anymore with us,” he said.

He said that Reddy was a “reactive and emotional person” and “loved challenges”. “He is known for his posts on Facebook. If he gets to know anything new in filmmaking, he writes at least 20-line posts about it. When he got to know about the sync sound technique that I used in my film, he wrote about it,” said Reddy.

“I had remembered, he had to grow a beard for the film and he grew it randomly. I had groomed, trimmed his beard, and did the make-up for his character, and he even wrote an article about it on social media. Great memories with him,” he said.

Venkatesh said that even as a journalist, Reddy’s questions on filmmaking were “sensible and thought-provoking”.

Members of the Telugu film fraternity condoled his death on social media.

Reddy is survived by his wife and two children.

His last rites were held on Monday evening in Hyderabad as per Covid-19 protocols.

Wanted ‘Nizhal’ to Break Traditional Template of Malayalam Thrillers, Says Director Appu N Bhattathiri

BY Chandhini R On

Director Appu N Bhattathiri’s vision behind his debut Malayalam film Nizhal was to set a new standard for making thrillers in Malayalam, inspired by David Fincher and foreign language thrillers. 

“The thriller films that I have seen in Malayalam had a particular tone and a set template. I wanted to break out of it and try the things that I wished to see on screen and that’s what I have done in Nizhal,” Appu told Silverscreen India. 

Nizhal, a mystery thriller starring Kunchacko Boban, Nayanthara in lead roles, released in theatres on April 9. It had a short run at theatres as cinema halls closed down due to the surging Covid-19 cases in Kerala. The film released on Amazon Prime Video on Monday. 

The film’s plot reads, “John Baby, who is recouping from a traumatic accident, meets Nitin, a young boy who interests him with murder stories. When Baby explores the possibility of Nitin’s stories by mapping the events, it matches with the real-time incidents.”

In conversation with Silverscreen India, Appu talked about the slow-burn filmmaking style he used in Nizhal, how he visualised and portrayed Kochi like the fictional Gotham city from DC’s Batman comics and his transition from an editor to a director .

Slow burn approach

Appu said that Nizhal’s narrative demanded a slow burn approach as the protagonist, played by Boban, suffers from post traumatic stress disorder which has taken a toll on his mental state.

“So to show such a phase of life I don’t think I could have adapted to a fast pace technique and hence the choice was natural. It is difficult for a debutant to try something new but I feel there is a need for low burn thrillers in Malayalam so that other filmmakers who want to explore this niche genre could derive ideas from it and communicate easier with the audience using this approach,” he said

Making the film

Appu and his writer Sanjeev had begun writing the story two-and-a-half years ago but the project took off only during the Covid-19 induced lockdown in 2020. 

“Sanjeev and I have been working together for almost six years and have written a few stories as well. But nothing materialised. And that’s when Nizhal seemed to be easy to make it during the pandemic. We pitched the story to one of the producers named Fellini and he suggested that we reach out to Boban to play the lead role. And when Boban liked the script, he suggested to rope in Nayanthara for the project. Everything fell in place and the film went on floors on October 19, 2020,” he said.

According to the makers, the film was shot mostly in and around Kochi and some parts in Hogenakkal in a 45-day schedule and another five days for patchwork with limited crew members abiding by the Covid-19 safety protocols.

Kunchacko Boban’s mask and visuals of Kochi inspired by Batman

In some scenes in the film’s trailer, Boban is seen wearing a black mask. 

Asked about the mask, Appu said that the character demanded two looks and instead of showing disfiguration they chose a mask that is used for a specific medical condition. “Also the mask is inspired from Batman’s nightwing,” he said. 

Some shots in the film had vantage points that showed Kochi like New York City. Appu said that he and his team of visual effect artists had referenced Batman’s Gotham City and wanted to bring that feel while depicting Kochi. 

Research and experts’ perspectives shaped the script

Since the film deals with the characters’ psychological issues, Appu said that there was an immense amount of research during the scripting process.

“Discussing with psychiatrists we understood how conditions such as post traumatic stress disorder  affect a person and to what extent we could add fictional elements to the idea when it is depicted visually. We also bounced off the film’s ideas to professionals from different fields to find their take on it. These opinions and perspectives helped in shaping the script,” Appu said.

Working on visual effects 

According to the director, they made complex creative decisions for the film. “There are many rain shots in the film and we have blended real sequences with some creative visual effects,” he said. 

Being a graduate in visual effects, he said that his knowledge in the field helped him understand the need and usage for visual effects better. 

Transition from editor to director

“I believe every director is an editor themselves. Usually when I edit other directors’ films I don’t show them the edit version until I’m ready but here I have that privilege to see my material as I edit. And having experience in editing, unlike other directors I don’t see myself attached to my film when it comes to cutting off some unwanted scenes,” he said.

Nizhal had a spot edit on the location. “Being a first time director it helped me a lot but as an editor I don’t prefer much,” he added.  

Cast and crew

The film is produced by Anto Joseph, Abhijith M Pillai, Badusha, Fellini TP and Ginesh Jose. The film’s technical crew includes S Sanjeev as the screenwriter, Deepak D Menon as cinematographer, Sooraj S Kurup as the music composer, Arunlal and Appu as editors. The film also features Izin Hash, Rony David, Saiju Kurup, Divya Prabha and Lal in the supporting roles. 

Appu included a novel statement in the end credit which read, “Behind this film there is more than 53,000 hours of effort by over 1,200 people and thousands of friends.” 

Appu won Kerala State Awards for Best Editor for Ottamurivelicham and Veeram in 2017. He began his career as an assistant director in Dulquer Salmaan’s debut film Second Show (2012). He debuted as an editor with Sanal K Sasidharan’s Oraalpokkam. His editing works include Anugraheethan Antony, Maniyarayile Ashokan, Theevandi and Lily. 

Asked about upcoming projects, Appu said that he was focusing on editing some of the films that he had committed. 

‘The Great Indian Kitchen’ to be Screened at UK Asian Film Festival

BY Shrija Ganguly On

The Great Indian Kitchen, the critically-acclaimed Malayalam film, will be screened at the UK Asian Film Festival. The film, directed by Jeo Baby, was earlier selected for the Shanghai International Film Festival.

Calling it a “happy and proud moment” for himself and his team, Jeo told Silverscreen India that the festival stands out as “we are getting different kinds of audience from different countries”.

It is not yet known in which category the film will be competing in at the UK Asian Film Festival. However, as per the lineup of events, it will be screened on June 1 and tickets are available on the website.

The film is written by Baby and stars Nimisha Sajayan, Ajitha VM, and Suraj Venjaramoodu in the lead roles. It revolves around an unnamed housewife (played by Nimisha), who finds herself trapped in a vicious cycle of thankless, mundane domestic chores and is subjected to archaic prejudices and taboos in her marital home. Venjaramoodu plays her husband.

(Read Silverscreen India’s review of The Great Indian Kitchen here)

The film has an IMDb rating of 8.3 and released digitally on streaming platform Nee Stream and later on Amazon Prime Video, with the latter acquiring the streaming rights. In an interview with Firstpost, Jeo had said major streaming platforms, including Amazon Prime Video and Netflix, had initially rejected his film stating that it “does not meet their criteria”.

The film is shot by Salu K Thomas and produced by Dijo Augustine, Jomon Jacob, Vishnu Rajan, and Sajin S Raj.

The 23rd UK Asian Film Festival will be held from May 26 to June 6. The festival’s primary theme is “Ray of Hope” and will be screening films that have inspiring stories of hope which can include films made during the pandemic. It will also be celebrating legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s birth centenary.

The festival usually travels from London to other cities in the UK, including Leicester, Manchester, Edinburgh, and Glasgow. This year, the festival will introduce a hybrid model and will screen films both in cinemas as well as online.

Raahgir, the Hindi film starring Adil Hussain, Tillotama Shome, and Neeraj Kabi and directed by Goutam Ghose, will be the opening film of the festival.

Filmmaker Joss Whedon “Threatened My Career” While Filming ‘Justice League’, Says Actor Gal Gadot

BY Shrija Ganguly On

Gal Gadot, the actor who was last seen in Wonder Woman 1984, said in an interview with Israel’s N 12 News that writer-director Joss Whedon “threatened her career” on the sets of Justice League when the actor and Whedon had differences regarding Gadot’s character in the film.

Gadot told Yuna Leibzon, “No. What I had with Joss basically is that he kind of threatened my career and said if I did something he would make my career miserable. I handled it on the spot,” when the journalist questioned her about reports of Whedon’s behaviour and if she was “going to let him get away with it”.

Whedon co-wrote the script for the DC Extended Universe superhero film Justice League (2017) and directed the re-shoots, filling in for director Zack Snyder.

The Hollywood Reporter reported in April about Gadot’s Justice League co-star Ray Fisher addressing Whedon’s alleged abusive behaviour on sets and revising and shortening of Fisher’s character Cyborg’s role in the final cut of the film.

The events followed after Snyder was replaced by Whedon by Warner Bros. although the former retained the final credits.

Fisher’s Cyborg was the first ever Black superhero, even before Black Panther, whose character arc was changed after Whedon came on board. As per Fisher, he was non-receptive of any changes or suggestions from the cast and the crew, including the likes of Gadot and Jason Momoa aka Aquaman.

The same report extended on Gadot’s statement when a source said that Gadot had multiple concerns with the revised version of the film, including “issues about her character being more aggressive than her character in Wonder Woman. She wanted to make the character flow from one movie to the next.”

Whedon pushed Gadot to record lines she didn’t like, threatened to harm Gadot’s career and disparaged Wonder Woman director Patty Jenkins, the report stated, quoting a source who spoke to the investigators, “Joss was bragging that he’s had it out with Gal. He told her he’s the writer and she’s going to shut up and say the lines and he can make her look incredibly stupid in this movie.”

Prior to this, others like Charisma Carpenter, Michelle Trachtenberg, and Amber Benson have complained about Whedon mistreating his actors on set.

‘Photo Prem’ is an Amalgamation of Our Personal Experiences and Memories, Say Writer-Director Duo Aditya Rathi and Gayatri Patil

BY Anusha Sundar On

Photo Prem, the Marathi film starring Neena Kulkarni in the lead role and written and directed by debutant filmmakers Aditya Rathi and Gayatri Patil, released on Amazon Prime Video on May 7.

The 90-minute-long feature film follows Sunanda (Kulkarni), a woman in her 50s who is looking to get a good picture of herself taken that can be used after her demise. After she observes a bereaved family’s struggle to find a good photograph of the deceased during a funeral, she goes on her mission to get a good photograph of herself.

Talking about the film, Patil and Rathi told Silverscreen India that the film was an amalgamation of the Patil’s encounter with an elderly woman who wanted to take good photographs of herself despite her old age, and memories of Rathi’s late father whose pictures were able to depict his character.

Patil said that she had come across a middle-aged woman who had made a portfolio of photographs of herself for her personal satisfaction.

“She was in full makeup and had taken a series of photographs and was showing it around. Astonished why a person of that age is doing this, when I asked her why she said she never had good pictures and that she was going to be operated on her face soon. Hence, she needed nice pictures of herself. That is where the seed of the story started to evolve,” said Patil.

Rathi said that his late father’s photographs added to the premise. Although his father had died a few years ago before they wrote the film, his pictures depicted the kind of person he was, Rathi said.

“My father was an extrovert and when anyone sees his picture, they would know he was an outgoing person. His photos represented and conveyed the identity of the man he was. Those reflections of the memories were always there,” said Rathi.

The thought of what a photograph could convey and represent lingered in his mind since then, he said.

(Left) Gayatri Patil (Right) Aditya Rathi

“We would have seen our grandparents or forefathers only in pictures and we imagine what kind of personality, voices, they would have had, from the way they are seen in the frames. Similarly, the central character here also thinks what kind of photographs she would have and how she would be remembered by,” Rathi and Patil said.

Asked about the idea of their maiden venture, they said, “We needed a protagonist who comes with experience and realise that there is something lacking in their lives. Or someone who looks at themselves as lost in service of other people. It is something that happens to Indian housewives at that age. So, we organically arrived at the character of a housewife. We had a fear that we may not be able to pitch the story to youngsters, but realised that the kind of cinema we wanted to do is where the story is the hero and thought of going with what we had in our minds.”

To prevent the male gaze in the film, Rathi said that she took over scripting the lead role’s character arc.

“For the most part of lead’s character arc, while Aditya handled the technical side, I worked on Sunanda’s character, mainly to have a female gaze to her character, and how she would think,” said Patil.

Asked why the protagonist, who is camera-shy for most part of the film, becomes desperate to get herself clicked in a short span of time, Patil said, “The conflict that comes in the storyline is that her character is ageing and that she thinks that her time to die is inching closer. That paves the way for her character to grow into accepting that she and her memories will be preserved through her photograph and what she will be remembered by. However, it so ends up that, at the climax of the film, even her own family members are unable to recognise her. We wanted to show this aspect of identity and that paved way for her character arc and behaviour.”

Still from Photo Prem. Credit: Amazon Prime Video

For most parts of the film, Sunanda, though surrounded by family and friends, is often caught expressing herself through monologues. The filmmakers said that Photo Prem was not meant to pass a commentary on the place of women in society, but the photo culture present in current times.

“While a few would mistake it to be that way, we tried to show the way we click pictures and how we perceive ourselves. In this era of social media, which is fast-paced, where most of the time the photographs were taken are not for us, but to please others. In our story too, Sunanda wants a picture taken by which others remember her. In her travel, what happens to her identity and if she manages to retain it, are what we wanted to tell,” said Rathi.

Talking about their future ventures, the filmmaker duo said that they have been working on a Marathi film which deals with menstruation and how it is perceived in rural areas.

Photo Prem, whose scripting started in 2017 and went on floors in 2018, was screened in several film festivals. The film premiered at Mumbai International Film Festival in October 2018, Indian International Film Festival in 2019, and Pune International Film Festival in 2020.

The film is executive produced by Mehul Shah and music has been composed by Kaushal Inamdar.

N4 Trailer Starring Michael Thangadurai, Anupama Kumar, Vadivukkarasi

Presenting the Official Trailer of ‘N4’

N4 is an upcoming Tamil-language crime-thriller film produced by Dharmraj Films & Beyond The Limit Creations. The movie has won award for “Best Background Score” in 11th Dada Saheb Phalke Film Festival 2021. Stay Tuned to Divo for more updates.

Written & Directed by: Lokesh Kumar

Cast: Michael Thangadurai, Gabriella Sellus, Afsal Hameed, Vinusha Devi, Akshay Kamal, Pragya Nagra, Abishek Shankar, Anupama Kumar, Azhagu, Vadivukkarasi, Vada Chennai Anbu, Chennila, Karthi Keyan, Subhalaxmi, Sagar, Thamizh, Tharun, Akash, Prem, Ashik, Haseeb, Vignesh, Amal, Suhail, Anish, Barath, Prabhakaran, Venki, Vikram, Senthil, Naren, Chandru, Antony, Sudha, Ravi, Thulasi

Producers: Naveen Sharma, Yogesh Sharma, Lokesh Kumar
Executive Producer: Rafael Rajashekar
Co-Producers: Shilpa Raj, Sagar JayaRam, Harini Daddala
Associate Producers: Anil Saxena, Kumar Vasa, Cyril D’Souza, Dani Charles
Audio Label: DIVO

Cinematography: Divyank S
Editing: Dani Charles
Music: Balasubramanian G
Stunt: V Koti
Costumes: Nandha Amirtha, Lokesh
PRO: Sathish (AIM)
Additional Cinematography Dilipan Prabaker U
Makeup & Hair: Lokesh, Mageshwari, Ashok, Prasad
DI Colorist: Prateek Srivastava
Sound Design: Gokul Dev
5.1 Mixing: Naveen Shankar
Publicity Designs: Barani Raja
VFX: Venky
Lyrics: Lokesh Kumar, Niranjan Bharathi, Thoufeeq
Singers: Velmurugan, Anthony Daasan, Chinmayi Sripada, Abhay Jodhpurkar, Gana Achu, Abby V, Monica
Poster Stills: Lokeshwaran
Dance Choreography: Harish Karthick
Stills & Making: Pari Tamilselvan, Suresh Sundaram
Co-Director: Cyril
Production Team: Deepan, Deepak Ashwin, Sai Shruthi, Nelson Dilip, Sameer
Associate Directors: Rahul Gopalakrishnan, Pushpendar Arumugam, Santhosh Pandi
Direction Team: Mukesh Mahendran, Gowtham, S Anil Prakash, A Sarveshwari, M Nirmal Kumar, Pari Tamilselvan, Kamalesh

Malayalam Films to Premiere on Streaming Platforms, TV After Short Run at Theatres

BY Chandhini R On

Some of the Malayalam films that released in the theatres at the onset of the second wave of Covid-19 will stream on OTT platforms and satellite channels. 

Due to the surging Covid-19 cases in Kerala and subsequent restrictions, films that released in theatres in the first two weeks of April had a shorter run, following which some of the filmmakers had announced the film’s digital premiere. 

Nayattu, the survival thriller film starring Kunchacko Boban, Joju George and Nimisha Sajayan which released in theatres on April 8, will stream on Netflix from Sunday, the actors announced on social media. Nayattu will also stream on Simply South.

 

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Kho Kho, the sports drama film starring Rajisha Vijayan which was withdrawn from theatres on April 20, will soon have its television premiere on Asianet, the film’s director Rahul Riji Nair announced on a social media post on Thursday. The release date is yet to be announced.

 

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Nizhal, the mystery thriller film starring Kunchacko Boban and Nayanthara which released on April 9, will stream on the Simply South for viewers living outside India, the streaming platform announced on a social media post. According to a source, the film is expected to stream on Amazon Prime Video. 

After running successfully for 75 days in theatres, the survival thriller film Operation Java will release on streaming platform Zee5 and television channel Zee Keralam on May 15. Directed by Tharun Moorthy, the film stars Balu Varghese, Lukman, Vinayakan, Shine Tom Chacko, Irshad, Alexander Prasanth and Binu Pappu. In a recent interview with Silverscreen India, Tharun had said that the film’s  Hindi remake rights have been sold recently and cast and crew have not been decided yet.

 

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Chathur Mukham, the Malayalam film starring Manju Warrier, was withdrawn from theatres on April 22. Thanking the audience, Warrier said in a social media post that the family audiences’ reception towards the film was beyond their expectations. She said that the film had been running to packed theatres but there was a need to strengthen vigilance against Covid-19 in the state.

“Chathur Mukham will be brought back to you when the spread of the disease is under control and public places are safe. Follow the protocols set by the government and stay safe,” she said.

 

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While these films were initially released in the theatres, there was a slew of Malayalam films that opted for OTT and TV releases. Fahadh Faasil- starter Irul and Joji were released on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video respectively while Wolf, starring Arjun Ashokan, Samyuktha Menon and Shine Tom Chacko, released on Zee Keralam and Zee5.

Won’t Begin Shooting Hindi Remake of ‘Drishyam 2’ Till Copyright Issue is Resolved, Panorama Studios Tells Bombay HC

BY Anindita Banerjee On

Panorama Studios International, the production company which had acquired the Hindi remake rights of the Malayalam film Drishyam 2, told the Bombay High Court on Wednesday that it would not begin shooting the Hindi remake till the copyright suit filed against them was solved.

This comes after production house Viacom 18 Media Pvt Ltd approached the high court last week seeking a restraining order over Panorama Studios International from producing a the film. On Tuesday, producers Kumar Mangat Pathak and Abhishek Pathak’s Panorama Studios International announced that their production house had acquired the Hindi remake rights of the Mohanlal-starrer Malayalam thriller. 

However, according to Bar and Bench, Viacom 18 alleged that Wide Angle Creations and Raj Kumar Theatres Pvt Ltd had given “exclusive, absolute, irrevocable and perpetual copyright to produce new films by adapting the Malayalam film Drishyam to Viacom 18″.

According to the report, the court said, “The statement is that the defendants (Panorama) will not themselves or through any other person with whom they may have a contract or arrangement, begin shooting of the film in question ie a sequel to the film Drishyam.”

It was also agreed upon by the production house that if they do any preparatory work such as script, screenplay, dialogue, it would be at their own risk and they cannot claim any equities based on that in the future.

In their complaint, Viacom 18 mentioned that in 2017, Panorama Studios had approached them with a desire to produce the prequel or sequel of Drishyam in Hindi. While at the time Viacom 18 wanted to co-produce the film, Panorama Studios did not respond to their “right of first refusal” terms.

The matter will next be heard on June 18.

In 2015, the Malayalam film Drishyam was remade in Hindi starring Ajay Devgn, Tabu, and Shriya Saran in the lead. The film was helmed by the late Nishikant Kamat.

VA Shrikumar Menon, ‘Odiyan’ Director, Released in Cheating Case

BY Chandhini R On

VA Shrikumar Menon, the Malayalam filmmaker who was arrested in a cheating case by the Alappuzha South Police on Thursday, was released after the case was settled in court on Friday. 

The complaint filed by MK Rajendran Pilla of Sreevalsam Business Group alleged that Menon had failed to repay Rs 7 crore that he had borrowed from the firm in 2016 to produce a film. Menon was arrested from his residence in Palakkad after the court rejected his anticipatory bail plea. He was booked under Sections 420 and 406 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property and criminal breach of trust) of the Indian Penal Code. 

According to a report by The New Indian Express, “The company invested money to produce a film on Shrikumar’s assurance that the money will be returned in two years. He also pledged documents for the money but could not keep his word as his debut film Odiyan failed to generate the expected revenue,” S Sanal, circle inspector, said.

After his release, Menon posted a video on his social media page stating that the news about his arrest and subsequent judicial custody are false. He said that like many other businesses his advertisement and branding firm also runs on deposits and loans taken from banks, institutions and individuals and that the advertisement and branding is one of the worst affected businesses by Covid-19.  “The pace at which my business grew has fallen significantly and suddenly one of my lenders wanted me to repay the money before the stipulated time which I was unable to do under the current circumstances. This has resulted in a legal battle between me and him,” he said adding that he couldn’t appear in front of the court when the case was taken up earlier and following which a warrant was issued against him.

Menon also said that he appeared before the Alleppy inspector and had an agreement with his lender. Menon said that the lender had restructured his loan and withdrew the case in front of the Alleppy district court’s Chief Judicial of Magistrate after understanding his situation. “The case was formally dismissed. As part of the settlement, I was set completely free. I returned home the same day evening,” he said adding that the news about his arrest that is being spread in the national media is baseless and false.

 

Menon, who has worked on almost 400 commercials, made his directorial debut with Odiyan (2018) starring Mohanlal, Manju Warrier and Prakash Raj in pivotal roles. He rose to fame after directing advertisements for Manappuram Finance and Kalyan Jewellers. He created advertisements with Amitabh Bachchan, Mohanlal, Mammootty, and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. 

Odiyan, a mega-budget period drama did not fare well at the box office. Menon had alleged that a gang was behind the online attacks against him and the box-office debacle of the film. He had said that he was being targeted for standing by Manju.

In 2019, Manju had filed a complaint against Menon for defamation and threat. In her complaint, she alleged that Menon and former journalist Samuel were behind the online attacks against her after the release of Odiyan. She mentioned in her complaint that the duo was threatening and defaming her, and misusing signed blank cheques of her charity foundation.

Sundeep Kishan and VI Anand To Collaborate for Telugu Supernatural Fantasy

BY Anusha Sundar On

Sundeep Kishan, the actor who was last seen in Telugu sports drama A1 Express, will star in filmmaker VI Anand’s upcoming Telugu film, the makers announced on social media on the occasion of the actor’s birthday on Friday.

The film will be Sundeep’s 28th film. While it will be written and directed by Anand, it will mark the duo’s second collaboration after the Telugu romantic action-drama Tiger (2015).

Tentatively titled SK28, the film is expected to be a supernatural fantasy drama. It will be produced by Rajesh Danda under the banner Hasya Movies. Balaji Gutta will serve as co-producer.

“The makers have already started with the pre-production of the film and the script has been finalised. Once the other commitments of Sundeep get over, he will start working on this film,” the film’s publicity manager Vamsi Shekar told Silverscreen India,

While the poster of the film says “shoot begins when safe”, Vamsi said that owing to the “present situation”, the team is waiting until the situation is safe to start shooting.

“The first schedule will start in Hyderabad and a big set will be constructed. Other locations are not yet decided since there are visa and travel restrictions to go to other countries due to lockdown,” he added.

The film’s makers said that the rest of the cast and technical crew members of the film will be announced at the later stages of production.

“It is a big-budget film and known faces will come on board,” Vamsi said. Anand will also handle the screenplay and dialogues of the film, he mentioned.

While several Telugu films like Tuck Jagadish and Love Story, deferred their releases, due to the second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, shooting for films like F3 have been stopped.

Rosaline: Kaitlyn Dever to Star in Retelling of ‘Romeo and Juliet’

BY Ananya Shankar On

Kaitlyn Dever, the American actor, will play the titular role in the upcoming film Rosaline. Based on Rebecca Serle’s book When You Were Mine, the story is a revisionist and comedic take on William Shakespeare’s popular tragic play Romeo and Juliet.

The rights for the film have been acquired by 20th Century Fox. Earlier, MGM had picked up the project but after it was acquired by 20th Century Fox, the rights for the film went to them.

According to a report by Deadline, the story is a modern twist on Romeo and Juliet and will be told from Rosaline’s perspective. Rosaline, who is Juliet’s cousin and Romeo’s former love interest, attempts to sabotage their relationship and win Romeo back in the beginning. However, she soon embarks on a journey of self-discovery and tries to get Romeo and Juliet back together.

Rosaline will be directed by Karen Maine, who previously directed the indie film Yes God, Yes starring Stranger Things actor Natalia Dyer. The script for the movie has been penned by Scott Neustadter and Michael H Weber, who worked on the 2009 romantic comedy 500 Days of Summer and the 2014 film The Fault in Our Stars.

Shawn Levy will be producing the project along with Dan Cohen under his production banner 21 Laps Entertainment.

Meanwhile, Dever will be seen alongside George Clooney and Julia Roberts in Ticket to Paradise. She will also be seen in 20th Century Fox’s other project No One Will Save You, directed by Brian Duffield.

She is also starring alongside Micheal Keaton in the Hulu original series Dopesick. A Deadline report said that the series was reportedly a look into America’s struggle with opioid addiction.

Dever is a Golden Globe-nominated actress who has starred in Olivia Wilde’s directorial venture Booksmart and Unbelievable, a limited series on Netflix.

Photo Prem Review: Neena Kulkarni Is A Delight As A Camera-Shy Housewife In A Sparse Comedy

BY Aswathy Gopalakrishnan On

A new fear descends on Sunanda (Neena Kulkarni), a middle-aged housewife in Pune, at the funeral ceremony of an acquaintance, a woman of her age who died of a heart attack. Since the kin of the deceased is unable to find a decent photograph of hers, she loses her only opportunity to be on the newspaper, on the obituary page. Having been camera-shy all her life, Sunanda realises that there is no decent photograph of hers to remind people of her after she passes away. She wonders how would she be remembered after she dies, and embarks on a secret mission to get a good portrait photo taken.

Photo Prem, a Marathi-language drama directed by Aditya Rathi and Gayatri Patil, is centred on a woman’s quest for identity after having spent a lifetime catering to the needs of others. Unlike recent films such as Thappad or English Vinglish that discussed a similar theme, the film uses a medium of humour to narrate the tale of Sunanda conquering her fears. Her camera-shyness dilutes the melancholia around the subject of death.

The narrative proceeds through scenes from Sunanda’s uneventful everyday life. She moves between the kitchen and the living room of her modest urban house where she lives with her husband. The film uses her inner voice as a running monologue, expressing her growing anxiety about death and being forgotten.

Notwithstanding the immediate charm the subject might evoke in a spectator, the film is let down by limited writing. Filmmaker Kislay’s 2019 drama Just Like That/Aise Hi had splendidly portrayed the life of a recently-widowed middle-aged woman in a north Indian city. Aise Hi looked at a traditional family mired in patriarchy from multiple angles to find its female members caught in islands of loneliness.

Sunanda is lonely too. She is an oddball in the world of food processors and Instagram. She is a mute listener at every dinner table conversation, and she cannot open up to even her closest ally. But the film, thanks to an aspiration to be a comedy of the mundane, refuses to discuss the callousness of Sunanda’s family members. Much like her husband whose interactions with Sunanda are coated with indifference, the film does not make an effort to look at her closely. One of the many ‘agents of warmth’ the film employs is the friendship between Sunanda and her domestic help (a fantastic Chaitrali Rode). But the film takes for granted the inequalities in their relationship. When they are chatting, the latter always sits at Sunanda’s feet.

Rather than moving on to a deeper conversation about death, the place of women in a patriarchal family setup, and perhaps the question of social classes, the film goes in circles around the quirky high-concept. It treats the audience repeatedly and needlessly to scenes of Sunanda’s dire aversion to getting photographed and her new obsession with obituary columns of the newspapers and ignores the roots of her anxiety. Despite having been an indispensable element in the household for decades, why does she fear being forgotten?

Neena Kulkarni delivers an immensely poignant performance as Sunanda. Look at her turn nervously on her seat when everyone else is posing for a selfie or bearing “a storm” in her eyes in the tail end. She helps the audience recognise Sunanda’s inner conflicts and fill the gaps in the film’s writing. Even if Photo Prem ends up being forgotten quickly for its inability to rise above the trifle, the quiet force of Kulkarni’s performance elevates the film to the important league of women-centric films in recent mainstream Indian cinema.

Highway is Title of Anand Deverakonda’s Next Telugu Film

BY Anusha Sundar On

Highway is the title of the upcoming Telugu film directed by KV Guhan and starring actor Anand Deverakonda in the lead role. The film was officially launched at an event held in Hyderabad, on Thursday.

The chief guests of the ceremony were Gadari Kishore Kumar, MLA of Thungathurthi constituency, Telangana, and Telugu filmmaker M Veerabhadram.

The film, a crime thriller, is produced by Venkat Talari under the Sree Iswarya Lakshmi Movies banner. Highway is the banner’s second production venture after the Telugu romantic drama Chuttalabbai (2016).

Speaking at the launch of the film, Talari said that details about other cast members will soon be announced. The producer said that the film’s music will be composed by Simon K King, who has composed for films such as Kabadadaari (2021), and Raja Bheema (2019). Talking about the film, Talari added, “This is going to be a crime thriller featuring a psycho and is set against the backdrop of a highway.”

Guhan said that the pre-production works of the film are nearing completion. Highway is renowned cinematographer Guhan’s fourth directorial venture after Tamil romantic drama Inidhu Inidhu (2010), Telugu action film 118 (2019), and upcoming Tamil-Telugu bilingual film WWW. 

Guhan who has written the story and screenplay of Highway is the cinematographer for the film as well.

Anand, who was last seen in Middle Class Melodies (2020), said, “This is my first time working with an experienced director and he is a superb cameraman. It will be a chance for me to try and learn new things.”

The makers added that shooting for the film is scheduled to begin in the first week of June.

Karnan: Dhanush-Starrer to Release on Amazon Prime Video Soon, Says Director Mari Selvaraj

BY Chandhini R On

Karnan, the Tamil period drama film starring Dhanush which released in theatres on April 9 will have its digital premiere on Amazon Prime Video soon, film’s director Mari Selvaraj told Silverscreen India on Friday.

While there are reports that state the film will begin streaming on the platform from May 14, Selvaraj told Silverscreen India that the date of the film’s OTT release has not yet been confirmed. He added that an official announcement will be made post confirmation.

Karnan is loosely based on the 1995 Kodiyankulam caste violence. The film written and directed by Mari Selvaraj opened to positive reviews. The film’s star cast includes Malayalam actor Rajisha Vijayan in her Tamil debut, Lakshmi Priya Chandramouli, Gouri G Kishan, Natarajan Subramaniam, Lal, and Yogi Babu. Karnan was produced by Kalaippuli S Thanu with music by Santhosh Narayanan.

In an earlier interview with Silverscreen India, director Selvaraj, while speaking about shooting for Karnan said that Dhanush was “a comfortable actor to work with”.

While Karnan is the first collaboration between Selvaraj and Dhanush,  the director-actor duo will be reuniting for another Tamil film after the success of Karnan.  Dhanush took to social media to announce that his second film with Selvaraj is in the pre-production stage and that the shoot will begin in 2022. However, there is no information yet on other cast members.

It was recently announced that Bellamkonda Sreenivas, the Telugu actor who was last seen in the action-comedy film Alludu Adhurs (2021), will be reprising Dhanush’s role in the official Telugu remake of Karnan. Details about the director, cast, crew and production house of the Telugu remake are yet to be announced.

Dhanush is currently awaiting the release of action thriller Jagame Thandhiram directed by Karthik Subburaj, on Netflix on June 18. That apart, the actor has a slew of projects lined up including Selvaraghavan’s Naane Varuven, Hindi romantic drama Antrangi Re and Netflix original The Gray Man for which Dhanush is currently shooting in The US.

Director Selvaraj, meanwhile, will soon be directing Dhruv Vikram in an untitled film backed by Pa Ranjith’s Neelam Productions.

(With inputs from Anusha Sundar)

Goa Government Cancels Permission for Film, Television Serial Shootings Due to Rising Covid-19 Cases

BY Anindita Banerjee On

The Entertainment Society of Goa (ESG) on Thursday cancelled all permissions that were granted for film and television serial shootings in the state due to the rising number of Covid-19 cases.

The decision to cancel all previously given permissions for shooting came in the wake of the Goa government enforcing stricter measures to curb the spread of the novel coronavirus. On Friday, the government announced a 15-day curfew in the state starting from May 9.

According to a PTI report, ESG’s Vice Chairman Subhash Faldesai said that several production companies had shifted their shooting to Goa from Mumbai and Chennai due to the restrictions and surge in COVID-19 cases in their respective states. “We will not allow any shooting of films or television serials in public or private properties,” he said. The ESG is the state government’s nodal agency which is empowered to grant permission for commercial shootings in the state.

The Goa government has also imposed Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which bans assembly of five or more people at one place, due to which shootings cannot be permitted, Faldesai said.

He added that those currently shooting in Goa have been asked to wrap up and commercial shootings will not be allowed until the number of Covid-19 cases in the state reduces.

On Wednesday, Goa Forward Party MLA Vijay Sardesai tweeted that he had visited the set of singing reality show Sur Nava Dhyas Nava and asked for the shooting to be stalled. He alleged that the crew members were not following Covid-19 protocols and were not practicing social distancing. The show was being shot at Ravindra Bhavan in Madgaon.

Several other TV serials namely Aapki Nazron Ne Samjha, Kumkum Bhagya, Kundali Bhagya, Yeh Hai Chahatein, Shaurya Aur Anokhi Ki Kahani, Qurbaan Hua, and some Marathi TV shows had recently shifted to Goa to continue their shoots.

Goa, on Thursday, reported its highest daily tally of 3,869 COVID-19 cases and 58 deaths.

November Story Trailer Starring Tamannaah

Cast – Tamannaah, Pasupathi, GM Kumar, Vivek Prasanna, Arul Doss, Nandhini,

Producer – Ananda Vikatan Productions
Written and Directed by – Indhra Subramanian
Cinematography – Vidhu Ayyanna
Editing – Sharan Govindsamy
Music – Saran Raghavan
Sound Design – Kewyn Frederick
Costume – Keerthivasan A
Art Director – A Rajesh

Actor Abhilasha Patil Dies of Covid-19

BY Namrata Ganguly On

Abhilasha Patil, the Hindi and Marathi actor, died due to Covid-19 related complications in Mumbai on Wednesday.

While confirming the news of the actor’s death to The Indian Express, Patil’s co-star in the daily soap  Baap Manus that aired on Zee Yuva, said, “Last evening around six, I got a call from Jyoti Patil, who worked with us in Baap Manus, about Abhilasha’s poor health. I learnt she had gone to Benaras where she got fever and on her return to Mumbai, she tested positive for Coronavirus. I tried reaching out to her, but both of her numbers were switched off. Then around 8.30 pm, actor Anand Prabhu, who played our son on the same show, informed me about her demise. This has been so shocking because she had so much to achieve in life. She had plans. Abhilasha was kind-hearted and such a hardworking artiste. It’s a huge loss to the industry.”

Patil, who was in her early 40s, had worked in several Hindi films and daily soaps including the Chhichhore (2019) starring late actor Sushant Singh Rajput and Shraddha Kapoor, Badrinath Ki Dulhania, Good Newwz and Malaal. The Marathi films and daily soaps that she had worked in include Tujha Majha Arrange Marriage (2021), Prawaas (2020), Bayko Deta Ka Bayko (2020), Tu Tithe Asave (2018), Pipsi (2018), and Te Aath Diwas (2015), among others.

Several actors, filmmakers, producers, casting directors from both the Hindi and Marathi industries have paid tribute to Patil through social media and offered condolences on her demise.

Actor Kshitiiz Pawar, who played the role of Patil’s on-screen brother-in-law, remembered and paid tribute to her on Facebook.

Other actors including Annapurna Vitthal, Tushar Dhakite, Shashank S Udapurker, Pallavi Ajay, casting director Paresh Patel, producer Manndar Milind Deshpande, cinematographer Sameer Kadam, among others paid tribute to the late actor on various social media platforms.

Actor Tahir Raj Bhasin said to Mid Day: “To hear of the demise of a co-actor who contributed and worked on the same film is unnerving. Deeply saddened to hear of Abhilasha Patil’s passing. Strength to her family and friends at this time.”

Patil is survived by her husband and a son.

As India is battling with the second wave of Covid-19, several celebrities across the country have died due to the complications related to the virus including legendary Bengali actor Soumitra Chatterjee, Hindi actors Divya Bhatnagar, Bikramjeet Kanwarpal, Hindi film editor Ajay Sharma, music composer Shravan Rathod, Tamil actor Pandu, Tamil filmmaker Thamira, Bengali director Debidas Bhattacharya, among several others.

What’s New This Week: 8 Films and Series Releasing on OTT Platforms This Week

BY Anindita Banerjee On

The country is currently grappling with rising Covid-19 cases and deaths every day. On Wednesday India set a grim record in its daily Covid numbers with 4.12 lakh infections. Due to this, theatres across the country have also shut down till further notice. While few films like Master, Roohi, Saina, Kaadan released in theatres, several others like Sasikumar’s MGR Magan, and the Telugu film Ishq, Chehre, Tuck Jagadish, Thalaivi, and Love Story postponed their release dates due to the current circumstances.

State governments of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Maharastra and Kerala have imposed lockdowns. To make living indoors a bit easier, OTT platforms are offering a wide range of films and series to binge on. Here are few upcoming titles on OTT platforms that you can enjoy watching this week:

1. Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai (May 14) – ZeePlex

Starring Salman Khan, Radhe, as promised by Khan, will release on May 14 on the occasion of Eid. The film will release simultaneously in theatres and on streaming with a pay-per-view model. This action film, directed by Prabhu Deva, is a remake of the 2017 Korean film The Outlaws. It also stars Disha Patani, Randeep Hooda, and Jackie Shroff.

2. Milestone (May 7) – Netflix

Directed by Ivan Ayr, Milestone is an intense drama film about a bereaved, middle-aged truck driver, Ghalib, who is dealing with personal loss while setting out to make a 5,00,000 kilometers record on the road and making sure he still has his job at the end of the journey he is currently on. The film stars Punjabi actor Suvinder Vicky. Milestone won the Best Film Award at the closing event of the 31st Singapore International Film Festival.

3. Time To Dance (May 7) – Netflix

Starring Isabelle Kaif and Sooraj Pancholi, Time To Dance revolves around a ballroom and Latin dance championship. The dance film has been directed by Stanley D’Costa and produced by Lizelle D’Souza, wife of choreographer and director Remo D’Souza. This will be Kaif’s Hindi film debut.

4. The Last Hour (May 14) – Amazon Prime Video

The Last Hour, set in a small Himalayan town, follows a shaman who joins hands with a cop to track down a mysterious killer. According to Amazon Prime Video, The Last Hour is a “supernatural crime thriller”. Directed by Amit Kumar, the series features Sanjay Kapoor, Shahana Goswami, Karma Takapa, and Raima Sen.

5. The Boy from Medellin (May 7) – Amazon Prime Video

Emmy-winning filmmaker Matthew Heineman’s documentary follows Colombian singer and international music sensation J Balvin on a trip back to his hometown Medellín in Colombia. It shows his preparation for the 2019 homecoming concert amid intense political turmoil.

6. Girl from Nowhere Season 2 (May 7) – Netflix 

This Thai teen drama follows a mysterious girl named Nanno, who upon transferring to a new school exposes the lies and wrongdoings of the students and faculty at every turn.

7. Jupiter’s Legacy (May 7) – Netflix

This sci-fi action series will follow a group of the world’s first generation of superheroes who must now look to their children to continue the legacy.  It is based on Jupiter’s Legacy by Mark Millar and Frank Quitely and the series stars Josh Duhamel, Matt Lanter, Ben Daniels among others.

8. Alma Matters: Inside the IIT Dream (May 14) – Netflix

Alma Matters: Inside the IIT Dream is a three-part web series and it will explore all the internal matters of one of India’s prime educational institutes: IIT. The series is directed by Pratik Patra and Prashant Raj.

Vakeel Saab: Complaint Filed Against Makers After Film Flashes Individual’s Phone Number Without Consent

BY Anusha Sundar On

Vakeel Saab, the recently-released Telugu remake of Hindi film Pink, ran into trouble after an individual complained that his phone number was displayed without his permission in a scene of the film. The complainant, Sudhakar, a resident of Hyderabad, filed a complaint against the makers at the Panjagutta Police Station in Hyderabad, Telangana.

He was referring to the scene from the film that shows a few miscreants morphing a photo of a girl and leaking her phone number on the internet. While the film shows the girl getting obscene calls from strangers, Sudhakar alleged that he has also been getting the same calls.

When contacted, Niranjan Reddy, the station house officer of the Panjagutta Police Station told Silverscreen India: “He [Sudhakar] has filed a petition that the filmmakers have displayed his number in a scene from the film. He has complained that he has been getting unnecessary and frequent calls, day and night, from strangers across Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. He says he is scared.”

“We have suggested him to file a defamation case against the makers of the film. We are also discussing with the legal authorities and if there are possibilities of booking a criminal case, then we will do so. As of now, an FIR has not been filed. Only after getting the legal opinion from the public prosecutor, we will proceed with the complaint,” Reddy said.

Reddy said that if needed a defamation case will be filed by the complainant in the civil court against the makers of the film. “As of now, his number is switched off. However, we have verified that it is his number,” Reddy said.

Vakeel Saab, written and directed by Venu Sriram, is produced by Sri Venkateswara Creations and Bay View Projects. This is not the first time Sri Venkateswara Creations has been embroiled with controversy over the privacy of individuals.

In March, actor Sakshi Malik filed a case against the producers, who also backed Telugu film V starring Nani. Malik had accused that the film used her portfolio picture without her permission in a scene, referring to it as the picture of a female escort or a commercial sex worker. While Malik had filed a defamation suit seeking a permanent injunction, the court granted an ad-interim order restraining the streaming platform (Amazon Prime Video) and the makers from releasing or telecasting it on any platform until the deletion of the said scene.

Vakeel Saab, which features actor Pawan Kalyan reprising the role of Amitabh Bachchan from the original film, is currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video. The film also features Nivetha Thomas, Anjali, and Ananya Nagalla in prominent roles, alongside Shruti Haasan and Prakash Raj. It released in theatres on April 9.

Vasantabalan, Tamil Director, Hospitalised After Testing Positive For Covid-19

BY Chandhini R On

Vasantabalan, the National Award-winning Tamil director, was admitted to a private hospital in Chennai on Tuesday after he tested positive for Covid-19.

Vasantabalan who is known for directing Veyil (2006), Angadi Theru (2010) and Kaaviya Thalaivan (2014), announced that he had contracted the disease on social media.

In the post, he wrote, “Dear friends, I have been affected by Covid-19 and admitted to a hospital. And I am unable to attend many of your phone calls. I am surrounded by friends, doctors, relatives who love me and they are the strength of a thousand elephants. I will once again raise again like a 12-legged horse.”

The director started his career as an editing assistant and later became an assistant director to Shankar. Vasantabalan assisted Shankar in Gentleman (1993), Kaadhalan (1994), Indian (1996) and Jeans (1998).

Vasantabalan’s Veyil- starring Pasupathi, Bharathi, Bhavana, Priyanka Nair and Sriya Reddy- was screened in Cannes Film Festival in 2007. The film won the National Award, Tamil Nadu State Award under the best film category and Filmfare Award for best director.

His film Angaadi Theru, starring Anjali and Mahesh, won the Tamil Nadu State Award Special Prize for best film and best actor female lead.  

In an earlier interview with Silverscreen India, Vasantabalan noted that years after Angadi Theru, the Kerala government amended the Kerala Shops and Commercial Establishments Act to provide seating facilities for employees. “When the decision was made, some people referred to my movie too, and it felt like a vindication of sorts. In Raman Raghav, Anurag Kashyap inserted a reference to Angadi Theru. So, it is possible to use films as a weapon for change. I believe films should be meaningful; the medium is that powerful,” he had said.

Vasantabalan is awaiting the release of the upcoming film Jail, starring GV Prakash, Abarnathi, Robo Shankar, Radhika Sarathkumar and Yogi Babu in pivotal roles.

The director and his team launched a yet-to-be-titled film starring Arjun Das in the lead role on February 18. Dushara has been cast opposite Das. The film is produced by the director with his school friends under the banner Urban Boyz Studios. GV Prakash Kumar will be composing music for the film.

Actor Pandu Dies of Covid-19 in Chennai

BY Anusha Sundar On

Pandu, the comic actor who was last seen in the Tamil thriller film Indha Nilai Maarum, died of Covid-19 related complications at a private hospital in Chennai on Thursday.

He was 74.

After testing positive for the virus, Pandu and his wife Kumudha had been undergoing treatment at the hospital. Kumudha is still undergoing treatment at the ICU.

The veteran comedian, who had acted in over 150 Tamil films, was born on February 19, 1947, and attended the Government College of Arts and Crafts. He made his acting debut in the 1971 film Maanavan helmed by MA Thirumugam. He went on to act with leading actors like Ajith, Sarath Kumar, Karthik, Prabhu, Dhanush.

The late comedian had designed the flag of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, the former ruling government of Tamil Nadu.

Besides acting, Pandu had been running the company, Capital Letters, which designed name plates for film personalities’ residences and offices.

Actor-producer Thiagarajan, who has produced Mannava (1997), and Jai (2004), starring his son, Prashanth, and Pandu, told Silverscreen India, “He had acted about seven films with Prashanth, like Good Luck, Jodi, Poomagal Oorvalam and he was a very good friend. He used to design name boards for our company too. His life was infused with humour and he had an infectious smile. When I produced Jai, I involved him in the project and roped him in for a good character role. His demise is a great loss for the industry. The fact that it his death comes after the death of Vivekh, another comedian, is a double blow. Pandu was a nice man.”

Reminiscing his days with Pandu, actor-filmmaker Gaurav Narayanan, told Silverscreen India, “He was a family friend and was very dear to me. He appeared in the first shot/frame of my directorial debut, Thoonga Nagaram, and hence marked my initiation into the world of cinema. He had even gifted me a name plate, carved in golden lettering, and designed by him, during my housewarming ceremony.”

Pandu collaborated with Gaurav in all three of his directorial ventures- Thoonga Nagaram (2011), Sigaram Thodu (2014), and Ippadai Vellum (2017).

Gaurav said that he was introduced to Pandu when he was assisting filmmaker KS Ravikumar. “I got to know him when was working with KS Ravikumar sir since Pandu sir was also close to him [Ravikumar]. But soon, we grew close and he became like a brother to me. It is a great loss to the film industry and personally as well. I had even talked with him about our next collaboration enthusiastically. It seems like a grim time for the Tamil industry after the recent demises of many actors like Vivekh anna, KV [Anand] sir, and now Pandu sir. These people have led us forward with their experiences.”

Members of the film fraternity mourned the demise of the actor, on social media.

Pandu’s final rites will be held in the Besant Nagar Crematorium on Thursday.

He is survived by his wife and three sons, Prabhu, Panchu, and Pintu.

Ajay Sharma, Hindi Film Editor, Dies of Covid-19 in Delhi

BY Anusha Sundar On

Ajay Sharma, the Hindi film editor who worked on Ludo (2020) and Jagga Jasoos (2017), died of Covid-19 related complications at a hospital in New Delhi on Tuesday.

He was in his late 30s.

Sharma was last working on the upcoming Hindi sports drama Rashmi Rocket, starring Taapsee Pannu in the lead role.

About 10-15 days ago, Sharma had visited New Delhi, where he tested positive for the virus and had been facing difficulty in finding a bed in a hospital. On April 25, Hindi filmmaker Ashoke Pandit wrote on Twitter requesting an oxygen bed for Sharma. As per the filmmaker’s tweet, Sharma’s oxygen levels had dropped to 83. However, with the help Rashmi Rocket team, Sharma was able to secure a bed.

Sharma worked as an editor in Indoo Ki Jawani (2020), Pyaar Ka Punchanama 2 (2015), 22 Yards and High Jack in 2018. He has also edited Amazon Prime’s romantic drama web series Bandish Bandits.

Sharma has worked as an assistant editor in over 10 Hindi films like Barfi (2012), Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013), Life in A Metro (2007), The Dirty Picture (2011), Agneepath (2012), and Kai Po Che (2013).

He also directed a short film Jolly 1995 (2020) that is streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.

Mourning the loss of Sharma, editor Sreekar Prasad told Silverscreen India: “It is a very unfortunate death. He was an upcoming editor who was doing very good work. He had been working on good projects and I have seen two of his films, Ludo and Karwaan. They were very well edited films. Ludo had a non-linear edit and he had done a good job.”

He said that editors should try working from their homes to prevent being infected with the virus. “As a community, we are trying to advise editors to work from home and not go out. Even during the first lockdown, we have been trying to tell all the editors to work from home, because it is more of a work that can be done from where we live and it will be safer for us. I hope the filmmakers take sufficient care during these times,” Prasad said.

Speaking to Silverscreen India, editor KL Praveen said, “I didn’t know him personally but I have been reading about him and he seems to be a hard-working person. His recent films are quite extraordinary work and he seems quite young. It is very tragic that this has to happen. I have watched Ludo and it is very well edited.”

Condolences poured in as the film fraternity mourned over the demise of Sharma.

The late editor is survived by his wife and a four-year-old child.

Actor Deepika Padukone Tests Positive for Covid-19 Along With Her Family Members

BY Anindita Banerjee On

Actor Deepika Padukone tested positive for Covid-19, the International Indian Film Academy Awards informed in a Twitter post on Tuesday.

Reports were doing the rounds that the Padmaavat actor, who is currently in her hometown Bengaluru with her family, tested positive after her family contracted the disease a few days ago.

On Tuesday, celebrity photographer Viral Bhayani wrote on Instagram that veteran badminton player and the actor’s father Prakash Padukone was hospitalised after testing positive for Covid-19. He wrote that her mother Ujjala Padukone and her sister Anisha Padukone had tested positive as well.

The Times of India had earlier reported that Padukone along with her husband Ranveer Singh had been spending time with her parents in Bengaluru. According to the report, Vimal Kumar, a friend of the family, told PTI, “Around 10 days back, Prakash [Padukone], his wife and second daughter, they developed symptoms and got themselves tested and the results came out to be positive. He [Prakash Padukone] is okay now. All his parameters are fine, his wife and daughter are at home and he too will be hopefully discharged in two to three days.”

There has been no official confirmation from either the actor’s side or her family.

On the work front, Padukone will be next seen in the sports drama 83, which also stars Singh. While Singh will be seen as former cricketer Kapil Dev, Padukone will be seen as his wife in the film. The film also stars Pankaj Tripathi, Boman Irani, Saqib Saleem, Harrdy Sandhu, Tahir Raj Bhasin, Jatin Sarna, and others. The film is expected to release in theatres on June 4.

She will also be seen alongside Amitabh Bachchan in the Hindi adaptation of The Intern, the 2005 American comedy-drama. The adaptation will be directed by Amit Sharma, who has earlier helmed Badhaai Ho (2018). The screenplay and dialogues will be written by Akshat Ghildial and Mitesh Shah. While Padukone will produce the film along with Sunir Kheterpal, the film will be co-produced by Aleya Sen, Hemant Bhandari, Gaurav Bose, and Sharma. The film is expected to release in 2022.