Rajini + Kamal – Will the magic be recreated?In the corporate world, this happens quite often. Acquisitions and mergers that leverage the advantages of both the participants usually create a market leader. And, a behemoth of a corporation that results is a mighty advantage. The advantage is, the business strong points of the participants are both put together. The same logic, one would expect, will apply the film world.
The PrecedentsSometimes, in other parts of the world, the above phenomenon does happen. Robert De Niro and Al Pacino in The Heat; Tom Hanks and Matt Damon in Saving Private Ryan; Brad Pitt and George Clooney in Ocean’s 11 and Ocean’s 12 – the list is very long indeed. Some of these projects have gone on to become blockbusters. Closer home, Sharukh Khan and Amitabh Bachhan have starred in the latest sensation of Bollywood – Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna. The business that this movie is expected to make, is supposedly a new record.
Tamil IndustryThe Tamil movie industry, quite unlike the others, has shied away from such unions. In spite of having fantastic talent all around, the coming together of such talents is almost impossibility in Tamil. People might argue that budget is the biggest obstacle. The salaries of stars such as Amitabh Bachhan and Sharukh Khan, put together, is several times over the total budget of most Tamil movies.
However, one wonders, if that is the case, what about the actors who are not yet superstars? Even an actor who is one movie old wants to be ‘the’ hero. He gets offended even if the heroine of the movie is given importance. Srikanth apparently got upset when Sangeetha was prominently featured in Uyir promos. The issue got even more ugly when there were reports that many of the top heroes in Tamil threatened to not act with Trisha since she had ‘undermined’ their value by making an extravagant launch in ‘Something Something Unakkum Enakkum’.
Such silly issues often dominate the personality driven Tamil movie industry. It makes one wonder if there should be a mandatory course on business strategies to all actors. Maybe that will make them outgrow their ego and see the value proposition.
The PossibilitiesA movie that features Rajini and Kamal, though a distant and impossible dream, directed by Manirathnam, will certainly make the world take notice. While that may involve budgetary issues, the smaller stars can certainly do this. Dhanush and Simbu for example, can act in a roller coaster commercial thriller directed by Dharani. Simbu and Dhanush, as the typical Madras pasangal, will make waves if they come together. The same can also be said about a romantic Ajith and an action packed Vijay being directed by the ever-commercial Shankar.
This would again set the box office on fire. Not just these – a realistic possibility would be the union of say, Kamal Hassan and Vijay or Rajinikanth and Vikram. The scope of the story is so wide – for example, gangster flicks like Goodfellas and Mythological flicks like Karnan could be remade with such union of Mega stars.
The recent success of Imsai Arasan should be a good sign to directors who want to deal with the subject. The story of Karnan is always heart-warming and offers ample scope for two mega stars. A Karnan in Kamal Hassan and an Arjunan in Vikram or Vijay will not just make waves in Tamil, it would make the global audiences take note.
When a director with of the quality of Kamal himself directs other stars, say, Surya and Dhanush in a story like Godfather or Goodfellas, we straight away have a movie that is world class. The same union could also be said of the actresses. Hopefully, Trisha and Asin, in meaty roles, could pair up to provide an adventure like Thelma & Louise. Let’s hope – because that is all that we can do.
Courtesy: Behindwoods
For a long time, Sathyaraj has been plagued by who will produce and who will direct the film that will give Sibi a turning point in his career.
Long live the blessed couple!!!
