31 October, 2009

Mammootty endorses Volleyball!


Megastar Mammootty is going all out to endorse Volleyball in Kerala.

The star, a former Volleyball player is going to be the brand ambassador of the Kerala Volleyball League (KVL), to be held in Kozhikode from February 20-28, 2010.

KVL is on the same lines as IPL is to cricket. Franchise teams along with foreign Volleyball players will be part of the tournament. The Mumbai based sports management company, SportzConsult, will run the tournament.

KVL will have six franchised district teams participating in a round robin format, while the two top teams will play the finals. Bidding for the franchisee teams will take place in November in Kochi.

Mammootty says: “I was once a volleyball player during my college days. Volleyball is extremely popular, visually appealing and attracts crowds. Moreover, Indian volleyball standards are quite high. Sports and entertainment always go hand in hand and KVL will definitely become the next big blockbuster of Kerala”

30 October, 2009

CM watches Pazhassi Raja!


Producer Gokulam Gopalan arranged a special screening of his mega blockbuster Pazhassi Raja at Four Frames preview theatre for Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.Karunanidhi.

The Tamil version of the film was screened and the CM was said to have loved the film.

The film directed by veteran Hariharan features Mammootty, Sarath Kumar, Manoj K Jayan, Suman, Kaniha and Padmapriya.

Sarath Kumar who was present on the occasion gifted a shawl to the CM. In fact Kalingar was all praise for the way the film was conceptualized by Hariharan and for the outstanding performance of Mammootty and Sarath.

Gokulam Praveen the executive producer of the film confirmed that Pazhassi Raja will release in Tamil Nadu on November 6.

29 October, 2009

Kerala Cafe confirmed on October 29



Ace director Renjith’s Kerala CafĂ© has been confirmed for release on Thursday October 29.

The film produced by Renjit’s Capital Theatre is distributed by a new company Backwater Media and Entertainments.

The film is Malayalam’s first anthology film, was premiered at the Middle East International Film Festival in Abu Dhabi last week, where it received critical acclaim.

The film has 10 short films directed by 10 different directors with a binding concept of a Railway station cafeteria, which is thematically woven into the plot of all the 10 short stories. Renjit is the narrator for all ten episodes. The ten short films and their director’s are:

1. Nostalgia
Director- M Padmakumar
Cast- Dilip, Navya Nair, Babu Namboodiri

2. Island Express

Director- Shankar Ramakrishnan
Cast- Prithviraj, Jayasurya, Rahman, Kani

3. Lalitham Hiranmayum

Director- Shaji Kailas
Cast- Suresh Gopi. Jyothirmayi

4. Mrithunjayam

Director- Uday Ananthan
Cast- Fahad Fazil, Thilakan, Reema Kalungal

5. Bridge

Director- Anwar Rashid
Cast- Salim Kumar, Kalpana, Santhadevi

6. Aviramam

Director-B.Unnikrishnan
Cast- Siddique Shwetha Menon

7. Off Season

Director- Shyama Prasad
Cast- Sooraj Venjaranmoodu, Vindhyan

8. Makal

Director –Revathy
Cast- Srinath, Sona Nair, Archana

9. Happy Journey

Director- Anjali Menon
Cast- Jagathy Sreekumar, Nitya Menon

10.Puram Kazchakal

Director- Lal Jose
Cast- Mammootty, Sreenivasan

22 October, 2009

Mammootty confirms to star in Kannada movie


After the movie Pazhassi Raja, Malayalam Superstar Mammootty is ready to enter Kannada film industry. The actor has recently confirmed to star in director Abhaya Simha's Kannada movie Shikari. The director, who has got a degree from Pune Film Institute, has penned story and screenplay for the film.

Abhaya Simha has earlier directed the movie Gubbachchigalu and got rave reviews for his work. A year ago, he had contacted Mammootty with the story of Shikari that deals with the pre- and post-independence condition in India. But the movie was held up because producer NR Shetty suffered financial set back and the director could not get the actor's call sheet.

Director Abhaya Simha met Mammootty in Pollachi last Monday and got his confirmation to star in his next movie Shikari. The actor is now enjoying the big opening of his recently released film Pazhassi Raja in Kerala. Presently, he is busy with the shooting of Shaffi directed Malayalam movie. He might starting shooting Shikari at the end of this year.

However, Kannada movie Shikari is now produced by K Manju. Anmol Bhave will score the music, while Shrivatsa cranks the camera for the movie. The shooting of the movie will be done in Bangalore Karnataka. "We'll soon come out with all the details of casts, budget, date of shooting and other things," says producer K Manju.

21 October, 2009

Pazhassi Raja Tamil on Nov 6


Gokulam Gopalan’s Mammootty- Sarath Kumar epic in Malayalam Pazhassi Raja, directed by veteran Hariharan has turned out to be a mega hit in Malayalam.

The film which released on October 16 has grossed an amazing Rs 2.72 crore from 125 screens in Kerala during the Diwali weekend (Oct 16 to 18), a new box-office record.

It is also the highest ever three day opening collection for any film in Kerala.

Says Gokulam Praveen, the co-producer of the film: “It is truly amazing the way the film has opened and is being received by the public in Kerala. Everybody seems to like the film and the word of mouth is so good that it may turn out to be a mega blockbuster.”

The bi-lingual Tamil version of Pazhassi Raja will release on November 6 all over Tamil Nadu.

19 October, 2009

Pazhassiraja - Review


Hariharan, MT Vasudevan Nair and Mammootty’s exhilarating epic Pazhassi Raja is a monumental film, one that will be treasured for years to come. It is a gutsy and outstanding film from the masters, a movie that goes beyond the message.

Kerala Varma Pazhassi Raja narrates a truly fascinating epoch in India's history. It's a film that inspires us to be grateful for all those who gave their lives to make our country free. One that instils a sense of pride in viewers minds, for being born in this blessed land! The sincerity that has gone into the making of the film is evident in every frame of this 3 hours 20 minutes classic. No two ways about it; let's salute all those who have put in their efforts to make it happen.

Director Hariharan and writer M T Vasudevan Nair says about an important episode, which is Pazhassi Raja's war against the British that happened more than 50 years before the first war of Independence in 1857. Well, it is already known that the history books in general have not been too kind to the Raja by not mentioning much about his patriotism, valour or his role in India's freedom struggle.

The film begins during the time when the British had ordered to levy heavy taxes from the various kingdoms and Pazhassi Raja (Mammootty), who belonged to the Kottayam Royal family in Thalassery of Malabar region in Kerala, opposed this. After being forced to flee with his Queen Kaitheri Makkom(Kaniha), Lieutenant Edachena Kunkan (Sarathkumar) and Kaitheri Ambu (Suresh Krishna) to the forests, Pazhassi Raja started guerilla warfare against the British from the forests in Wayanad. He had the support of the tribal warriors like Thalackal Chanthu (Manoj K Jayan) and Neeli(Padmapriya).

After some initial successes, Pazhassi's army soon started facing setbacks as they found the going tough against the guns and modern machinery of the English soldiers. The brave Raja and his faithful gang of warriors were defeated by the army led by the young British sub-collector Thomas Baber, with the help of some traitors like Pazhayamveedan Chanthu(Suman).

Mammootty is grace personified and the perhaps the best thing about him as the mighty Pazhassi Raja is that it is virtually impossible to imagine anyone else in his place. Shorn of any artifice or nervous energy he is real. 20 years after Oru Vadakkan Veeragadha, he still looks majestic and handsome. Without doubt, this is one of the best roles in his illustrious career.

The surprise packet is Sarath Kumar, who looks perfectly fit, heroic and absolutely invincible as Edachena Kunkan. Kaniha looks beautiful even without any make-up or jewellery and has the royal look that is required for her role as Kaitheri Makkom.

As the fierce tribal girl who fights like a cheetah, Padmapriya excels in her role as Neeli. Manoj K Jayan, Suresh Krishna and Suman have all done their job quite convincingly. The rest of the cast, which include the English actors like Linda Arsenio, also delivers an inspiring performance.

Hariharan and MT Vasudevan Nair have proved their brilliance when they team up several times before and once again, they underline their eminence, with a genuine effort. The technical aspects like Ramanath Shetty's cinematography, Ravi Dewan's action, Resul Pookkutty's sound and Sreekar Prasad's editing have also succeeded in taking to a different level.

Yes, there are aspects which one feels could have been better,like Ilayaraja’s music but the film as a whole is good enough that makes us forget those flaws. Critics might say that the film has taken some cinematic liberties and in fact it does but on the whole it is engaging and entertaining.

18 October, 2009

Pazhassi Raja has grossed an amazing record Rs 1.53 crore


Hariharan- MT Vasudevan Nair classic Pazhassi Raja produced by Gokulam Gopalan with Megastar Mammootty playing the title role has taken Kerala by storm.

The film has grossed an amazing record Rs 1.53 crore from 125 screens in Kerala on its opening day (October 16).

This is the highest ever opening day collection for any film in Kerala breaking the record of Twenty:20.

Says Gokulam Praveen, the Executive producer of the film: “We are very happy with the film and its gargantuan opening, which also justified our faith in the team.”

Early reports say that the film’s word-of-mouth is so good that it has potential to become a mega blockbuster.

15 October, 2009

Pazhassi Raja-Bumper advance booking

Gokulam Gopalan’s big budget Mammootty epic Pazhassi Raja, written by MT Vasudevan Nair and directed by Hariharan releasing on Friday (Oct 16) in 125 screens across Kerala is creating a good buzz.

The film for which advance booking has started in many stations is very encouraging.

In places like Thiruvananthapuram, Ernakulam and Kozhikode tickets in most screens have been sold out for the opening day, and fast filling up for Saturday and Sunday.

At Palakkad Priyadarshini, the Mammootty fans association has put up a 550 feet hoarding and they are planning to have Palabhisekam, Annadanam and Payasam supply on the opening day.

It is not just the fans but the family audiences who are queuing up at the advance booking windows. In most centers the fans association have snapped up tickets for the first two shows. The first show of the film will start all over Kerala at 9.09 AM.

The news is that Pazhassi Raja’s running time is 3 hours 20 minutes, making it the longest running Malayalam film in modern times. A special screening of the film was held at Thiruvananthapuram for select politicians, bureaucrats and a few intellectuals.

13 October, 2009

No ticket rise for Pazhassi Raja


The fans of the megastar will have a big sigh of relief as Gokulam films, the producers of magnum opus ‘Pazhassi Raja’ have decided not to pursue the demand for a ticket hike. The movie will now release on 16th as per the recent intimations. The fans associations of the star have been making all the grand arrangements to receive the biggest of Mammootty's movies. The movie is expected to open in 120 centres in the state of Kerala, for this Diwali.

The producers are going for saturation release, as every five kilometers there will be a screen in Kerala showing the mammoth epic picture. In Thiruvananthapuram the film is releasing in four screens (New, Sreekumar, Kripa and Dhanya) with a total capacity of nearly 4000!

In Ernakulam, it is releasing in three screens (Sarita, Savitha and Sangeetha), while in Kozhikode it is opening in three huge screens (Apsara, Kairali and Radha).

The idea seems to be to gross the maximum revenue in the first week. The buzz created around the film is huge, so it will take a gigantic opening. The MT Vasudevan Nair- Hariharan-Mammootty trio who last came together in the super hit Vadakkan Veeragatha, nearly two decades ago is back with another potential winner.

Mammootty, speaking on the sidelines of the FEFSI conference in Chennai told reporters: “ Pazhassi Raja will be a landmark movie that is sure going to create history. I’m very happy the way the film has shaped out.”

Pazhassi Raja will make it to 120 screens across Kerala from Friday October 16.

07 October, 2009

First Look: Mammootty in Paleri Manikyam

Mammootty dons a double role in director Ranjith's Malayalam movie Paleri Manikyam: Oru Pathira Kolapathakathinte Kadha.

The mopvie is based on writer T P Rajeevan's novel. Shooting for the film has been completed in Kozhikode.

The storyline goes like this: Haridas, a private detective, is investigating the murder of a young woman, Manikyam, which happened over 50 years back.

Manikyam was killed a few days after her marriage. Haridas is assisted by Sarayu Sharma, a criminologist, in the investigation. The investigation into the killing was stopped at that time, due to the lack of convincing evidences.

Mammootty plays Haridas while Gowri Munjal (earlier seen in the Telugu film Bunny with Allu Arjun) is Sarayu Sharma and debutante Mythili is doing the character, Manikyam.

The other role that Mammootty is playing in the film is that of Ahmad Haji, a rich landlord.

Produced by Varnachitra and AVA Productions, Paleri Manikyam: Oru Pathira Kolapathakathinte Kadha will have a host of fresh faces in the cast, who have been trained by experts after some rehearsal sessions.

Ranjith had gone for fresh actors as he felt that the viewers would accept them without any set images. Also in the cast are Sreenivasan, Siddique, T Damodaran and Shwetha Menon.

Manoj Pillai is the cinematographer and Sharreth the music composer.

Ranjith has scripted Devasuram, Aram Thampuran and Peruvannapurathe Visheshangal before he put on the mantle as the director as well and made films like Nandanam, Mizhi Randilum, Ravana Prabhu, Kaiyoppu and Thirakkadha among others.

Right now, he is also busy as the producer of Kerala Cafe, which has ten short films by ten directors.

03 October, 2009

Shah Rukh does it free for Mammootty!

When the director of Pazhassi Raja, T Hariharan met Shah Rukh Khan to request him to do the prologue of the film, he was in for a pleasant surprise. The King Khan not only agreed to it immediately but also made it clear that he would not accept a dime for it! Shah Rukh was impressed by Pazhassi Raja’s story as he is considered to be one of the frontrunners that sought freedom from the British even before the Sepoy Mutiny in 1857.

Interestingly, Mohanlal will do the prologue in the Malayalam version and Kamal Haasan will do it for the Tamil version.