Cinema, Karam, Kapi

I saw Kaala feat. Superstar Rajinikanth the third time yesterday (Thursday 21 June) on its 14 th day after release. Was happy to book online and reached KG Cinemas, Coimbatore ahead of schedule time. To my surprise, rather the lack of it, the screen was near empty. One of the oldest and largest Cinema Screens in India with over 800 seats, we were just 50 of us spread across the seating areas. Each of us had an agenda, perhaps. For me, it was noticing a few nuances and the undertones of dialogues, sequences and inner-meaning of the screenplay. Will reserve that for another column since I found a number of interesting perspectives. Kaala will be pulled off screens from today since Tik Tik Tik, a Space Odyssey feat. Jayam Ravi is finally releasing today and a dozen films are lined up for the next 3 months including big ticket releases featuring Ajith, Vijay, Surya and Karthi to name a few. Of course the much awaited Vishwaroopam 2 feat. actor turned politician (sic) Kamal Hassan

It seems like yesterday and Ajith Kumar has already completed 25 years in Tamil Cinema which is a remarkable feat, given that he never had/continues to have a blood relation who produces movies. He has almost come up on his own strength all through and he dissolved all his fan clubs many years back. He continues to maintain a dignified silence in most public issues and is neither active on social media either. So when Vivegam was announced, his fans rejoiced for it was a defining year in his career. the film opened to a thunderous box office opening although the reviews were mixed, with critics rating the film high for its finesse and sharp editing cum direction. The film did well in the theatres and continue to run a few shows sparingly. So when I noticed last week that the film was up for viewing on SunNxt app, I was quite surprised. It's abnormal that a top-hit film of one of India's highly rated Actors shows up on an OTT platform on the 50th day of its the

So, I got the opportunity to see the First day First show yet again for another film, this time at Abirami Cinemas, Chennai. It was a full house as expected. Most of the fans who were cheering and whistling when Mani Ratnam, AR Rahman, Karthi and Aditi’s names appeared on the screen must have been in liquid form when Alaipayuthe was released. I compare Kaatru Veliyidai to Alaipayuthe because in a way, this film is a sequel, if I may say. Mani once again delves on his most favourite subject Marriage & Relationship, which I had written in a previous article which you can read here . Having seen Alaipayuthe during my college days, I could relate to this movie and see why the Millenials cheered all through the movie especially during certain scenes and dialogues. The film is shot in and around Srinagar in bits and a majority are sets recreated and the backdrop of the film is another Mani Ratnam favourite – War. This time it is the one India fought & won at Kargil. The who

It's by now a known fact to a large section of the world how much of a Rajni fan I am, thanks to an article that appeared in the front page of The Economic Times Newspaper on Saturday, 16 July 2016. Read the online link here . I knew one day my name will appear in The ET but to be featured along with a news about my two favourite passions Rajni and Retail (my startup Oyethere.com is a Hyperlocal Ecommerce Marketplace) was a double whammy. Here is the background - I tried procuring 4 tickets for myself for the opening weekend of Sivaji the movie in 2007 at Bangalore. However, I couldn't. That's when I felt how many people like me would be finding it difficult to watch a Rajnikanth magnum opus in the first week of its release. So, I reached out to INOX multiplex, one of India's largest Cinema Chains and asked them to give me a full Auditorium. Initially, they hesitated for want of any unwanted issues during the screening. I assured them that it would be a fully family s

After a week of release, finally found time to watch 24 The Movie. I had consciously avoided reading reviews about the movie or talking about it to friends so I could save the suspense factor to myself. It was a Saturday morning show on the 9 th day of release at Inox Citi Centre. Sadly, there were not more than 40 people out of the 100 seater screen. That made me think, if the film was a blockbuster or not, contrary to what the producer and the film crew have been advertising on social media. Actor Surya, during the music release function told his fans outright to reject the film if it was not good, or rather good enough. He was honest when he said that though with much conviction - I watched the program which was telecast on Tv a week later after the function was held. So I went with limited hope. And thankfully, I was not at all disappointed. The movie is a class apart. On screenplay and direction, I would give a thumbs-up and a 8 rating on 10. The casting could have be