Kavya unsuccessful marriage life

Kavya Madhavan's marrigae life gone to be a big failure. Few months after her marriage, she filed divorce petition in court to get rid of her husband, Nishal Chandra. This disappoints her huge fans. But she came to movies again which makes the fans more happier.

She return to movies through Dileep's 'Pappi Appacha' which is not a big hit in theater. She was also playing a major role in Mohanlal's 'Christian Brothers'. Kavya said that she was feeling security and love in film industry but don't know how long it lasts.

Madharasapattinam going to be a big hit

The latest tamil movies 'Madharasapattinam' is running in full house in theatres. The movie hasn't released in Kerala yet. But the reviews in Tamil Nadu is very good.

There is a variety in the story and the script writer shows his talent. The story goes before the the independence era. The climax of the movie is so fantastic.

Not only the directors skill, we can see the the total team work in this movie. At last all came success when the movie is released. thanks for the whole cast and crew members of Madharasapattinam for giving such a wonderful film to us. Don't miss it, you should go and watch in theaters itself.

Language:Tamil
Director: Vijay A L
Producer: Kalpathi S Aghoram
Music Director: G V Prakash Kumar
Staring: Arya, Amy Jackson, Nassar

Movie Rating: 4.5/5

Kavya and Nishal blames each other

Kavya and Nishal are blaming each others for their divorce. Kavya told that she suffers a lot from her husbands family. They are torchering her for more money and gold. Kavya also told that she loved her family a lot but they want money.

But Nishal refuses this and said that she wanted to continue acting in films. Before marriage she agreed to stop acting after completing 'Pattanathil Bhootham' shoot. But after that she wanted to act more films, which leads to more clash.

Infact no one knows what is the real reason before her divorce. Now Kavya is committing more movies and she said that she just want o forget all those bad moments.

Kavya divorce news shocked her fans

Endhiran song release

Endhiran huge audio release

Endhiran audio release function in Malaysia

Endhiran audio release

Endhiran songs scores only average

Endhiran (ROBOT) is a Tamil Science fiction film Directed by S. Shankar. The film stars Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai in the lead roles. The film is made on the highest ever film budget in Indian Cinema. The music of Endhiran has been released all over the world last day in Malaysia and A.R. Rahman has come up with some of the best music with unusual style but it cannot create an in impact in Endhiran fans.

Music Review: Endhiran
Banner: Sun Pictures
Direction: Shankar
Production: Kalanidhi Maaran
Stars: Rajnikanth, Aishwarya Rai Bacchan, Danny Denzongpa and others
Music: A.R. Rahman

Puthiya Manitha
Singers: Singers: S. P. Balasubramaniam, A. R. Rahman, Khatija Rahman
Lyrics: Vairamuthu

Kadal Anukkal
Singers: Vijay Prakash & Shreya Ghosal
Lyrics: Vairamuthu

Irumbile Oru Idhayam
Vocals: A.R. Rahman & Kash ‘n’ Krissy
Lyrics: Madhan Karky
English lyrics: Kash’n’Krissy

Chitti Dance Showcase
Vocal: Pradeep Vijay, Praveen Mani and Yogi B
Additional Arrangements and Programming: Praveen Mani

Arima Arima
Singers: Hariharan & Sadhna Sargam
Lyrics: Vairamuthu
Additional Singers: Benny Dayal, Naresh Iyer

Kilimanjaro
Singers: Javed Ali and Chinmayee
Lyrics: Vairamuthu
Additional Vocal Arrangements: Clinton Cerejo

Boom Boom Robo Da
Singers: Yogi B, Keerthi Sagathia, Swetha Mohan, Tanvi Shah
Lyrics: Madhan Karky

Endhiran - visual treat for Aish fans

Endhiran is no doubt a visual treat for Aish fans. Aishwarya says that she had a variety role in this movie. She took different look in this film. Aishwarya said that she was very happy to act with Rajinikanth.

The audio release of Endhiran was held in Malaysia and meanwhile it was heard that the Endhiran bosses demand 30 cr for Telugu version. All the film lovers and Rajini's and Aish fans are waiting for the movie.

Santhosh Sivan the new actor on the block

Santhosh Sivan has been a wonderful cinematographer and also a director. His camera work in 'Raavan' is excellent. He is now moving on to act in films. He will be seen in Makaramanju as Raja Ravi Varma. The film will also have Karthika, the daughter of veteran actress Radha, debuting. The period film will be directed by Rajendran.

Mamta Mohandas acting with Prithviraj

Actress Mamta Mohandas has been cast in Amal Neerad’s film, ‘Anwar’, opposite Prithviraj.

Amal and Prithviraj are working together for the first time with this film. The director is well-known for his visually elegant films.

Mamta too will be working with Prithviraj for the first time. The two have had many opportunities to work together but somehow, one problem or the other always cropped up. Hopefully, they will be able to do this film together.

This is the Mamta’s first film after , ‘Passenger’, last year.

Rajinikanth appreciates Mani Rathnam's Raavan

An avid film buff by nature, Rajnikanth makes sure that he doesn’t miss any of the films. Indeed, he happened to be one of those audiences curiously awaiting the release of Manirathnam’s ‘Raavanan’. Released with around 2200 prints, the film has witnessed a grand opening in spite of mixed reviews.

Superstar Rajnikanth watched the film on Thursday evening at Devi Sridevi Preview theatre in T Nagar by avoiding all his urgents. Nothing could stop him from giving a standing ovation soon after the final credits. Apart from singing the praises of Manirathnam and Vikram, Rajnikanth appreciated Santhosh Sivan’s cinematography too. He recollected his previous experience with Santhosh as they had worked together in Manirathnam’s yesteryear blockbuster ‘Thalapathy’, which happens to be a modernized adaptation of the epic ‘Mahabharatha’.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Rajanikanth performed together in his upcoming movie, ‘Endhiran – The Robot’.

Genelia-Prithviraj in Santhosh Sivan Film

Santhosh Sivan is ready to debut as a film director according to sources. he proved his excellance as a camera man in many movies and Ravan was the latest one. This talented cinematographer had also worked on Tahaan: The Boy With A Grenade, featuring the duo Rahul Khanna and Rahul Bose.

He casred Genelia D’Souza and Prithviraj to play the lead pair in his new film. As sources reveal, the cinematographer-director is really excited as to know about the assailant of Vasco De Gama. Prithviraj, who is a big name in the South Indian film industry, would be playing the central character. Sivan also said that he is going to start Who Killed Vasco De Gama real soon. He plans to release it in trilingual versions of Hindi, English and Malayalam. He also has expressed his wish to have the same cast of stars in all three versions of the film. Prithviraj is now with handful of movies.

Sreenivasan comedy

Malayalam Cinema Comedy

Surya and Jothika Wedding Special

Pennu kaanal

Sandesham innocent

Bala Amrutha Suresh Engagement

Surya Jyothika first meeting

Idea Star Singer 2008 Jayaram

Bala and Amrutha suresh

Jayaram interview

Mahanlal and family

Christian Brothers Pooja

Christian Brothers Location Video

Pappy Appacha song shoot

Kavya back to cinema

Pappi Appacha video song

Pappy Appacha Review

The fervor anticipated in theatres when Dileep and Innocent arrives as Pappy and Appachan have not worked out very well.

Innocent and his son (Dileep) are living in Ithirikandam village just like friends. People considered them immensely rich even while they are going through tough times. They were looked upon with envy by Sasankan (beautifully played by Asokan) and many others. The story then goes into a Panchayath election and all that fuss which was not at all needed for the film. How ever that sequence brought some comedies. Later Pappy and Appachan breaks. How they unite forms the crux of the story.

The titling of the film was extremely promising. There are good comedies. But the film dawdles after the first half hour or so. The actor who played the character Kuttappy has done extremely well. Kavya Madhavan marks her return as Dileep's heroine through this film.

The camera is disappointing with a brownish tone which doesn't match with the story's humor feel. Editing could have been made better. The fights are over inflated. The final portion of the film is handled in a naive manner. The climax showcases poor creativity and unfolds in the usual way. The final explanation of mysteries in the movie is drawn out.

Pappy Appacha couldn't guarantee what CID Moosa has done for Johny Antony. A sleeper hit.

The posters of the movie promised to be a light hearted tale on the friendship between an illiterate father son duo. But sadly the movie ends up as a B Grade flick with cheap/stale jokes( that seldom rises above the standard of silly ‘tintumon’ kind of sms jokes), loud action scenes, fake melodrama and a predictable climactic twist(which is a routine these days, thanks to Lal) that might have worked in the techni colour era.The audio CD of this movie had a couple of melodious numbers tuned by Vidyasaagar like ‘Manjin Velli’ and ‘Thammil Thammil’. For some strange reasons the makers haven’t included these two songs in the movie and there are two other noisy ones instead which can potentially gift you a migraine.

Coming to the performances, Dileep repeats his usual antics and one liners for the nth time with limited success. Innocent is wasted and he has had a better role in Satyan Anthikkad’s Manasinakkare with Jayaram. K.P.A.C. Lalitha yells at the top of her voice whenever dileep feels sad and so does the girl who plays Dileep’s sister. Kavya Madhavan looks plumb and totally unfit for the role. Cinematography was adequate which Sanjeev Shanker aptly did vizualising the beauty of Melukavu-Thodupuzha on screen. Had the editor been sincere to his work ,the movie wouldn’t have been this much painfully long and for the same reason I dare to accuse the editor for complacency. One of the plus points of the movie(and may be the only one) was the genuinely funny title cards.

You leave theatre with lot of unanswered questions like, why Innocent tells others that his son is responsible for sword cutting him and how does he realizes the truth in the end. Who was trying to hurt Kavya in front of church?

Length of the movie is 2 hours 45 minutes which surpasses all standards. If the script was modified enough to bring out the movie at 2 hours it would have worked. The film had the potential to become a hit. The story, script, dialogue and direction were all done by Mammas. When the same person is doing all this no one could guide and he won't know where the script is overwritten until the film's release. With more maturity the director can bring enjoyable films. Heavy reliability on commercial elements wonâ??t make a film good or successful. Lately Dileep's selection of movies are not working.

Genres: Comedy, Drama, Family, Romance
Language: Malayalam
Duration: 2.3 Hours
Director: Mamas Chandran
Distributor: Grand Release
Staring: Dileep , Kavya Madhavan

Movie Rating: 2.5/5

Gopika becomes a mother!

The Malayalee heroine Gopika who made an impact in Tamil cinema with films like Autograph had two years back bid farewell to her film career to get married.

She married Dr.Ajilesh an NRI who works in a hospital in Ireland. A few days back the couple were blessed with a baby girl at a hospital in Ireland.

Meanwhile Gopika’s parents will be joining her as soon as they get a Visa. Both the mother and her newborn daughter are doing well.

Santhosh Jogi Found Dead

Santhosh Jogi Acted in malayalam films Mayavi, Big B, Chotta Mumbai, July4, Nasrani, Malabar Wedding, Pulijanmam, Khaki, Rashtram, Alibhai, Mulla. One of his memorable roles was in Keerthichakra.

Rima Kallingal - Santosh Palee... Eni Ente Number

I never thought I'd win Miss Kerala title: Archana

Rima Kallingal - " Achtung Baby !!! "

I felt Kollywood alien at the beginning: Meera Nandan

Vishnu, Meera Nandan on their love affairs!

Vodaphone Thakadhimi Rima Kallingal

The making of song Sajda from My Name is Khan

My Name is Khan Trailer

Tere Naina Full Video Song - My Name Is Khan

My Name Is Khan Songs - Sajda

My Name is Khan's collections drop drastically

Shahrukh Khan's My Name is Khan witnessed a wonderful opening, thanks to the publicity given by the Shiv Sena. It earned Rs.90.2 crore in the opening week but its collections have dropped drastically this week.

Amit Awasthi, Manager of Spice Cinemas, said that the ticket sales of My Name is Khan has fallen from 30 percent on Wednesday to 20 percent on Thursday. He added that lack of entertainment elements must be the cause of the fall in its demand.


A source from PVR cinemas said that the occupancy has fallen from 90 percent to 50 percent on Monday. Delhi-based distributor Joginder Mahajan also said that there has been a drastic fall in the ticket sales of MNIK after Monday due to lack of entertainment elements and mass appeal, which today's youngsters want. He added that it is a repeat of Kurbaan.

However, Yogesh Raizada, corporate head of Wave Cinemas, thinks that the film is doing decent business and would pick up again in the weekend.

My Name is Khan got rave reviews from the critics. It is a love story set against the backdrop of racial discrimination post 9/11. Karan Johar brings the incredible reel coup.

My Name Is Khan Review

If you were looking for something in the league of ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ (love story), ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham’ (family drama) or even ‘Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna’ (another love story, but with a twist), ‘My Name Is Khan’ is sure to bring across a surprise for you. Though you would find a love angle herein as well, it does not form the focus of the story. Rather, the flick grapples with one of the main issues that are facing the human society today - the typecasting of all Muslims as terrorists and the humiliation and ridicule that the innocent of them have to face, because of being classified thus.

With the backdrop of 9/11, ‘My Name Is Khan’ tries to bring forth the plight of the Muslim community as a whole. It seeks to send across a message that “most of the global terrorists may be Muslims, but all the Muslims in the world are certainly not terrorists’. And the person who tries to communicate all this is Rizwan Khan (played by none other than Shahrukh), a devoted believer who suffers from Aperger’s Syndrome. How he manages to do this is what forms the crust of ‘My Name Is Khan’. And the best thing about the movie is ‘Rizwan’, in the other words, Shahrukh Khan.

‘My Name Is Khan’ is one of the few movies where you get to see King Khan as a character, not a brand! He completely loses himself in the role and gives a splendid performance. Though he does not exactly manage a ‘Forrest Gump’, he is not far behind either. Another aspect that works in the favor of the flick is the excellent screenplay, compelling enough to make you sit back and take notice. The cinematography is simple superb and even the editing is crisp. However, ‘My Name Is Khan’ is not without its fair share of loopholes. For instance, the love track between Shahrukh and Kajol is too mushy.

The creative liberties taken in the second half are a tad difficult to digest. In fact, the second half seems to have packed in too much, with too little time at hand. So, the effect is a somewhat chaotic. Coming down to performances, as already mentioned, Shahrukh Khan takes the center stage. He is restrained, endearing and touches your heart. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Kajol, mainly due to her thin, sketchy character. One more name that is worth mentioning is Zarina Wahab, who plays Rizwan’s mother and gives a lovely performance. All in all, ‘My Name Is Khan’ is not exceptional, but not easy to dismiss either.

Genre: Drama, Romance, Social
Director: Karan Johar
Producer: Gauri Khan, Hiroo Johar
Banner: Dharma Productions
Music Director: Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani, Loy Mendonsa
Lyricist: Niranjan Iyengar
Star Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Jimmy Shergill, Zarina Wahab, Parveen Dabbas, Arif Zakaria, Navneet Nishan, Sheetal Menon, Tanay Cheda, Arjun Mathur, Sonya Jehan
Release Date: February 12, 2010

Movie Rating: 4.5/5

My Name Is Khan Pre-release Review

Directed by Karan Johar, ‘My Name is Khan’ finally breaks the ‘K’ series unlike his previous hits like Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna, Kal Ho Na Ho and Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. The most awaited movie of recent days, this movie has been co-produced by Johar (Dharma Productions) and Shah Rukh Khan (Red Chillies Entertainment) and is being distributed by Fox Star Studios. The movie focuses on the relationship between the Western world and Islam and how it has changed over the past few years. The movie is set to release on 12 February 2010.

Rizwan Khan (Tanay Cheda) is a Muslim child who lives with his mother (Zarina Wahab) in the Borivali section of Mumbai. He suffers from Asperger syndrome, a form of high functioning autism complicating socialization. On growing up, he (Shah Rukh Khan) moves on to San Francisco to live with his brother and sister-in-law. He meets a Hindu single mother, Mandira (Kajol), falls in love with her. They get married despite protests from his family and start a small business. Happily settled, September 11, 2001 strikes their relationship where Muslims undergo a sea-change. Rizwan and Mandira face a number of difficulties following which they split. Rizwan is upset about his love leaving him and embarks on a touching and inspiring journey across America.

He later meets Radha (Sheetal Menon), a therapist who helps him in dealing with his situation and his affliction. On his journey to clear his name, he meets President Barack Obama (Christopher B. Duncan). ‘My Name is Khan’ describes the journey of a family and how it changes post 9/11. Will the unconventional hero overcome the obstacles to regain the love of his life? Will Shah Rukh and Kajol be able to deliver yet another hit as they did in the past? Wait till 12 February, 2010 for the answers.

Bodyguard Review

Dileep and Nayantara have done their roles quite well but their combination doesn't give any screen presence. There are good counters every then that increases the mood. Siddique is not up to his mark as he used to be. Script lacks something in total. Ouseppachan has scored good music for the film and also visuals by S Kumar is excellent.

The songs of bodyguard are very good. But the choreography made by Prabhudeva is not thet much good. He didn't kept his level in this movie. There are rumors that Prabhudeva came to work in this film because of Nayans.

The movie is a family entertainer but Siddique should have done more to keep his name. The climax lights to one in Kuch kuch Hota Hai. Thyagarajan, Mithra Kurian, Janardhanan Harisree Ashokan and others are in the cast. Not an extra ordinary one but is worth watchable just once.

Movie: Bodyguard
Genre: Action - Thriller
Language: Malayalam
Release Date: 23 Jan 2010
Cast: Dileep, Nayantara, Thyagarajan, Mitra Kurien
Director: Siddique
Music: Ouseppachan
Certification: U

Movie Rating: 2.5/5

The story of Bodyguard

The movie Bodyguard, directed by Siddique is an entertaining one. The movie had a good start and hopes a good move. This is the ninth flick by director Siddique and is a good one with a humorous background.

Dileep( Jayakrishnan) is very much fond of goondas right from his childhood. He loved to take risks and to be brave always. After college days he starts learning to become a brave goonda by becoming a bodyguard for famous anti socials. Sometime later, he decides to become the bodyguard of a wealthy and powerful man named Ashokan (Thyagarajan). He achieves his luck after saving Ashokan from a danger.

Jayakrishnan thus becomes the bodyguard of Ashokan's only daughter Ammu(Nayantara). Jayakrishnan follows Ammu to her college asd her Bodyguard. Ammu and her friend Sethulakshmi (Mithra Kurien) gets irritated with him following them all day.

The two girls started making fake calls to Jayakrishnan;s number, trying to get rid off him. Ammu is the girl who calls him telling she is very much in love with him and all those stuffs. At first things goes smooth but later on it gets into serious issues. What happens next deals with the climax.

I ignore rumours: Kavya

My real name is Dhanya: Navya Nair

My man should love my profession too: Navya

Julia Roberts is my favourite: Navya

I like all actors who act well: Mohanlal

SRK kisses and makes up with Ash?

I am Gods favourite child: Asin

I dont bother about rumours: Asin

I am a foodie: Asin

I count my blessings: Kavya Madhavan

Kavya Madhavan wedding reception!

I prefer love marriage: Samvritha

Bhavana, Kavya are my best friends: Karthika

I like different genres of films: Navya

Marriage at young age is not advisable: Bhama

Manjari sings 'Madhuramo nombaramo...'

I've two wifes:Thilakan

Singer Manjari on how she fell in love with Vivek!

We can learn a lot from Thilakan: Jagathy

Thilakan (Malayalam actor) speaks out against Mammootty, AMMA and FEFKA

Thilakan on Indiavision Live against Mammooty??

Thilakan About Mammootty and Mohanlal

Cochin Haneefa passed away - India vision

Cochin Haneefa passed away - TV reports

Cochin Haneefa

Cochin Haneefa passed away

Cochin Haneefa comedy video

Talented Cochin Haneefa died on Feb 2nd

Salim Ahmed Ghoush better known by his stage name Cochin Haneefa (1951-2010) is an Indian film actor, director, and screenwriter. He started his career in the 1970's as a villaincomedians of Malayalam film industry. He has done more than 300 films in Malayalam, Tamil and Hindi films. As a filmmaker he is known for the melodrama Valtsalyam (1993).

Cochin Haneefa passed away

Top comedian and character actor, writer, director Cochin Haneefa (59) died today afternoon at Sri Ramachandra Medical College in Chennai.

Haneefa was suffering from kidney and liver related ailments for the last couple of months. Finally he succumbed to multiple organ failure.

Saleem Ahmed Ghoush became Cochin Haneefa after his stage name. He started his career in the late 70's as a villain and turned to be one of the popular comedians of Malayalam film industry.

He has done more than 300 films in Malayalam and nearly 80 Tamil and a few Hindi films. Haneefa has also directed seven films in Malayalam and six in Tamil. He was also known for his brilliant scripts.

In Malayalam his last release was Siddique’s Bodyguard and in Tamil it was Vijay’s Vettaikaran. He has also done Madrasapattinam which will be his last release in Tamil.

The body will be kept at his Saligramam residence in Chennai till tomorrow afternoon. He will be buried at his home town in Cochin on Wednesday.

‘Avatar’ has a racist message?

Near the end of the film Avatar, the villain snarls at the hero, “How does it feel to betray your own race?” Both men are white — although the hero is portrayed as a blue-skinned, 9-foot tall, long-tailed alien.

Strange as it may seem for a film that pits greedy, immoral humans against noble denizens of a faraway moon, Avatar is being criticised by a small but vocal group of people who allege it contains racist themes — of a white hero once again saving primitive natives.

Since the film opened to widespread critical acclaim three weeks ago, hundreds of blog posts, newspaper articles, tweets and YouTube videos have made claims such as that the film is “a fantasy about race told from the point of view of white people” and reinforces “the white Messiah fable.”

The film’s writer and director, James Cameron, says the real theme is about respecting others’ differences.

In the film (Warning: spoilers ahead) a white, paralysed Marine, Jake Sully, is mentally linked to an alien’s body and set loose on the planet Pandora. His mission: persuade the mystic, nature-loving Na’vis to make way for humans to mine their land for unobtanium — a mineral worth $20 million per kilo back home.

Like Kevin Costner in Dances with Wolves and Tom Cruise in The Last Samurai or as far back as Jimmy Stewart in the 1950 Western Broken Arrow, the hero (Sully) switches sides. He falls in love with the Na’vi princess and leads the bird-riding, bow-and-arrow-shooting aliens to victory over the white men’s spaceships and mega-robots.

Adding to the racial dynamic is that the main Na’vi characters are played by actors of color, led by a Dominican, Zoe Saldana, as the princess. The film also is an obvious metaphor for how European settlers in America wiped out the Indians.

Robinne Lee, an actress in such recent films as Seven Pounds and Hotel for Dogs, said that Avatar was “beautiful” and that she understood the economic logic of casting a white lead if most of the audience is white.

But she said the film, which remained No. 1 at the box office domestically for the fourth straight weekend with $48.5 million and is second among all-time top-grossing films worldwide, still reminded her of Hollywood’s “Pocahontas” story — “the Indian woman leads the white man into the wilderness, and he learns the way of the people and becomes the savior.”

“It’s really upsetting in many ways,” said Lee, who is black with Jamaican and Chinese ancestry. “It would be nice if we could save ourselves.”

Annalee Newitz, editor-in-chief of the sci-fi Website io9.com, likened Avatar to the recent film District 9, in which a white man accidentally becomes an alien and then helps save the aliens, and Dune (1984) in which a white man becomes an alien Messiah.

“Main white characters realise that they are complicit in a system which is destroying aliens, aka people of color ... (then) go beyond assimilation and become leaders of the people they once oppressed,” wrote Newitz, who is white. “When will whites stop making these movies and start thinking about race in a new way?”

Black film professor and author Donald Bogle said he can understand why people would be troubled by Avatar although he praised it as a “stunning” work.

“A segment of the audience is carrying in the back of its head some sense of movie history,” said Bogle, author of Toms, Coons, Mulattoes, Mammies & Bucks: An Interpretive History of Blacks in American Films.

Bogle stopped short, however, of calling the movie racist.

‘We should respect other races — humans or otherwise’

Writer/director Cameron, who is white, said in an email to The Associated Press that his film “asks us to open our eyes and truly see others, respecting them even though they are different, in the hope that we may find a way to prevent conflict and live more harmoniously on this world. I hardly think that is a racist message.”

There are many ways to interpret the art that is Avatar.

What does it mean that in the final, sequel-begging scene, Sully abandons his human body and transforms into one of the Na’vi? Is Saldana’s Na’vi character the real heroine because she, not Sully, kills the arch-villain? Does it matter that many conservatives are riled by what they call liberal, environmental and antimilitary messages?

Is Cameron actually exposing the historical evils of white colonisers? Does the existence of an alien species expose the reality that all humans are actually one race?

Although the Avatar debate springs from Hollywood’s historical difficulties with race, Will Smith recently saved the planet in I Am Legend and Denzel Washington appears ready to do the same in the forthcoming Book of Eli.

Bogle, the film historian, said that he was glad Cameron made the film and that it made people think about race.

“Maybe there is something he does want to say and put across” about race, Bogle said. “Maybe if he had a black hero in there, that point would have been even stronger.”

Salman and I had differences over 'Veer': Director

Director Anil Sharma admits he had creative differences with Salman Khan over the making of “Veer”, penned by the actor himself, but everything was finally sorted out.

Anil Sharma, who earlier made “Gadar : Ek Prem Katha”, told IANS: “Salman was not just the main actor in ‘Veer’, he was also the writer. We had a lot of differences of opinion. The way he narrated the story and the way I perceived it as a director were different.

“Moreover I brought in other writers Shailesh Verma, Shaktimaan (who wrote my ‘Gadar’) and Krishna Raghav. Raghav did all the research. So Salman’s story has been interpreted in the way I thought right.”

He said Salman insisted that Anil watch his source of inspiration, the Yul Brynner-Tony Curtis 1962 film “Taras Bulba”. “But we couldn’t get a single print of the film. So I had to make do with the images that I had in my mind from childhood.

“They made the film in Russia last year. I saw that version. ‘Taras Bulba’ was the story of the father Yul Brynner, played by Mithun Chakraborty in my film. ‘Veer’ is not the father’s story. It’s the son Salman’s story. And we had to relocate the entire story from 16th century Russia to colonial India,” Anil said.

While Salman Khan has become the face of “Veer”, the director has taken a backseat so far.

Speaking up finally he says, “For three years now all kinds of things have been said and written about ‘Veer’ and my relationship with the project and actors. The truth is we were making a very difficult film. And there were bound to be creative differences. But we sorted them out.”

Anil admits he never wanted Salman’s favourite composers Sajid-Wajid to do the music of “Veer”. “I had heard their tunes in his earlier films and I was sure Sajid-Wajid weren’t the right ones for a period drama like ‘Veer’ I met them reluctantly and was surprised by their understanding of Hindustani music. We worked really well together. And the fact that I could convince Gulzar saab to work with Sajid-Wajid was a stroke of luck.”

He also brushes off talk of “Veer” being an epic like “Gadar”.

“Please don’t expect ‘Gadar’ in ‘Veer’ ‘Gadar’ was far more dramatic and emotional. ‘Veer’ is targeted more at today’s younger audiences,” he said.

Talk is that Salman Khan had apparently first gone to his friend Sanjay Leela Bhansali to direct “Veer”. When Bhansali declined, Salman vowed to make the same story with another director. Anil Sharma was chosen because of “Gadar”.

Avatar highest grossing film

James Cameron’s 3D epic Avatar has become the second highest grossing film of all time by raking in USD 1.14 billion at the global box office.

Cameron’s next challenge is to beat the records set by his previous film, 1997 disaster romance ‘Titanic’, which continues to rule the No 1 spot with USD 1.8 billion.

Avatar’s domestic earning was USD 374.4 million through Wednesday and the foreign haul collected USD 760.9 million to beat the USD 1.1 billion scored by The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King, the Variety reported online.

The film, which released worldwide on December 18, is expected to continue to make money as it enters into the fourth week.

‘Kutty Srank' sails through

It has been smooth sailing for Shaji N. Karun's ‘Kutty Srank' (Sailor of Hearts), right from its world premiere in Montreal and its Pusan outing. The only Malayalam feature film that was selected for the ongoing Indian Panorama at the International Film Festival of India at Goa, ‘ Kutty Srank' will have its Indian premiere today (November 27) and then go to the Dubai Film Festival.

Ace cinematographer-turned-director Shaji says ‘Kutty Srank,' enacted by Mammootty, is the story of a traveler who was at home in the waters of Kerala. Set in the mid-Fifties, the film unfolds through the eyes of three women – Revamma, Pemenna and Kali – whose memories resurrect the life and times of this man.

Superb portrayal

“Mammootty has come up with a superb portrayal of this enigmatic, multifaceted man who seems to go beyond religion and region. He even speaks in the three distinct dialects of Onatakkara, Kochi and Northern Kerala. Even his name ( ‘Kutty') does not give us a clue to his religion. ‘Srank' goes back to the days when Arabian traders visited the shores of Kerala for black gold – pepper; the ‘Sranks' used to pilot the ships into the ports,” explains Shaji.

As the three women's memories weave a picture of the man, the film also touches upon the trade links of the emerald State and its ties with countries and people, far and near. Colonial and post-colonial repercussions, its impact on society, economy, faith and culture are reflected in the film. It touches upon the ripple effect of Ambedkar's decision to embrace Buddhism.

“It was a period of great idealism. Revamma, played by Padmapriya, is one such youngster from North Kerala, who becomes a Buddhist nun to atone for, what she perceives, her father's sins. While Revamma meets him in Northern Kerala, Pemenna, enacted by Kamalini Mukherjee, meets him in Kochi where he is a member of a Chavittunatakam troupe and Kali, essayed by Sri Lankan actor Meena Kumari, encounters him in Travancore. The film progresses through the narratives of the three women, blurring fact and imagination,” says Shaji.

He points out that he was keen on having Anjuli Shukla as the cinematographer as he wanted a woman's perspective to bring alive the women's memories of Kutty Srank. P.F. Mathews and Harikishan have written the script of the story conceptualised by the director himself.

Shaji's directorial ventures include ‘Piravi,' ‘Swaham,' ‘Shyam's Vision,' ‘ Vanasprastham' and ‘AKG.' After his stint as jury chief for the international short film competition in Goa, Shaji plans to begin work on his next film, ‘Gadha,' starring Mohanlal in the lead.

“It is about a playback singer and her possessive husband who fails to understand his wife. Eventually, her dairy helps him understand her better,” narrates Shaji. He plans to make it as a musical, a first for the director.

Admitting that his work with Aravindan played a great role in shaping his outlook towards cinema and filmmaking, he rues that those halcyon days of Malayalam cinema seems to be taking a beating because of hackneyed and thoughtless attempts to imitate films from other languages.

“Fortunately for us, all our top actors have always supported good cinema but we need bold directors and script writers who will experiment and go beyond the beaten track. Most importantly, we need bold producers who will back those directors. In the Seventies, we had a producer like Ravindran Nair who had the courage of conviction to back directors like P. Bhaskaran, Adoor and Aravindan,” explains Shaji. A little wistfully he points out: “Till now, I regret, none of my films were produced by someone from Kerala. I had to find others to bankroll my projects. My next film will also receive some funding from French agencies.”

Shaji believes Malayalam cinema has to find its mooring to go places in world cinema.

Shaji N. Karun is jury chief for the international short film competition in Goa. He was one of the members of the five-member international jury of the 11th Mumbai International Festival, which included the likes of Paul Schrader, Jafar Panahi and Philippine filmmaker Brillante Mendoza. Shaji had honoured Theo Angelopoulos, renowned Greek filmmaker, for lifetime achievement in cinema, at a function in Mumbai. According to Shaji, festivals inspire him to aspire to make world-class films in Malayalam. “It shows me how far I have to travel,” he says modestly.