Vijay’s kindness

IndiaGlitz
[Monday, January 14, 2008]

No other star has ever done such a noble thing. Ilaya Thalapathy Vijay has allotted a house located in Saligramam exclusively for his employees like driver and make up man. They live in the house for free of cost without paying any rent.

This is the house where Vijay used to meet his fans earlier. Now he is meeting his fans in his two marriage halls, which are located in the same area. After shifting the meeting spot, he renovated the house and divided it as separate houses and allotted them to his employees.

A driver, who is no more an employee of Vijay, is still staying in the same building. Vijay hasn’t asked him to vacate the place after he left his job.

Hats off to Vijay for his kind gesture towards his workers.

Stars and the New Year

IndiaGlitz
[Wednesday, January 02, 2008]

New Year is an occasion which is celebrated by everyone with enthusiasm and hope. Most our beloved stars celebrated this New Year in abroad. Vijay and Trisha, for example, had the New Year bash in Malaysia, where they are staying for the shooting of 'Kuruvi'.

The newly wed Srikanth also celebrated it with his wife Vandana in Malaysia. Another new couple Jeeva with his wife had the celebrations in Australia

Nayanthara went to Bangkok for the purpose of celebrating New Year while Madhavan with his family welcomed the New Year in USA.

Among those who were in India, Asin, Shreya and Malavika had the celebrations in Mumbai, while Bhavana and Gopika had it in Trisoor and Kochi respectively.

It is said that Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan had a calm celebrations in Chennai.

Five most challenging movies to remake in 2008

Ajith and Vijay in Agni Nakshatram

This is a big one. One that will make everyone jump out of their seats!

Eighteen years back, Prabhu as Gautham and Karthik as Ashok set the screen on fire with their histrionics. Die hard Tamil Cinema fans and lunatic thinkers that we are at Behindwoods, we would give our left hands if the sparks can be rekindled again with two of the biggest Superstars of recent times, Ajith and Vijay.

Ajith as Gautham and Vijay as Ashok would set the cash registers ringing, only if the original is remade by the Master, Mani Ratnam himself. Music has to be A.R.Rahman. Did someone else cross your mind?

Vijay and Maddy in Naan Sigappu Manidan

Naan Sigappu Manidan directed by S.A. Chandrasekhar with superstar Rajini in the lead, rewrote box office history for its fast paced screenplay and the ensemble star cast. If you might recollect, Bhagyaraj graced the movie with a cameo role.

We concur that Vijay would fit into Rajini's part perfectly.

We confer Bhagyaraj's role on Madhavan and suggest the role to be a bit serious sans the comic element the original one had. Director's cap? We give it to Murugadoss.

To view the complete article click here

Star graph of 2007

The stars that make the Kollywood shine have always been in a healthy competition to be on top. 2007 witnessed intense fight among the top stars that made the entire year an exciting one. Here is a look at the fluctuations of the stars' position during the year.

Since the leading lights of Kollywood – Superstar Rajini and Ulaganayagan Kamal – are in a different league, it would be unfair to compare them with the other stars. So let us straightaway move to the younger lot.

Vijay

Ilaya Thalapathy Vijay, the undisputed king of box office has given a huge hit in Pokkiri but failed to recreate the magic in Azhagiya Tamil Magan. But his stardom and the amazing opening remain the same and any news on him invariably makes headlines in filmy pages.

So, the verdict on Vijay is that he is still the Numero Uno of the younger lot.

Complete Article

Vijay's daredevil stunts in Malaysia!

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
December 29, 2007

Vijay was in Malaysia for his next venture, Kuruvi, directed by Dharani. The shooting for this film is on at a fast pace and Vijay is all pumped up the way it is progressing. Actor Suman, last seen playing the baddie in Rajinikanth’s Sivaji released earlier this year, is donning a similar role in this film as well.

A profligate bar-cum-discotheque set resembling one in Malaysia has been erected for this purpose in AVM studios. The sequence to be shot there is that of Vijay dancing on the floor of the discotheque when a bevy of thugs, barge in to beat him up on Suman’s command.

This is followed by an extensive stunt sequence shot very realistically and Vijay is said to have followed the instructions of the stunt choreographer to the T, in order to get the scene as realistic as possible. He is usually one person who performs stunts in a style of his own and in this film he has gone with the script and remained true to it. Hope this gives his fans another Gilli time.

Superstars dominate

The Hindu
SREEDHAR PILLAI

Round-up The year was good for films catering for Chennai’s multiplex audiences and those made on a shoe-string budget, with fresh subjects and faces.

The year 2007 was a landmark for Tamil cinema. A record 105 films were released, with at least a dozen of them turning out profitable for their makers.

The superstars continue to dominate, with Rajnikanth’s ‘Sivaji’ turning out to be the year’s top grosser.

The year was also good for films catering for Chennai’s multiplex audiences and those made on a shoe-string budget, featuring newcomers and dealing with fresh subjects.

Film making and marketing also underwent a sea change as corporates such as Pyramid Saimira brought in a certain degree of professionalism into the industry.

Top five grossers

Here is the list of five top grossers in Tamil, based on their box-office collection worldwide and production cost, as per trade sources.

Sivaji: It couldn’t get bigger than this. The Rajnikant-Shriya starrer, directed by Shankar, is said to be the costliest Tamil film ever made and was sold at a record price to distributors. The film actually opened huge with a record number of screens and highest gross collection of all time.

‘Sivaji’ once again ascertained the fact that Rajnikant is a one-man entertainment troupe who still holds sway over Tamil audiences and new cross-over audiences from the Hindi heartland.

Box-office verdict: Super Hit

Pokkiri: The film, released for Pongal 2007, turned out to be Vijay’s biggest hit. Remake of a Telugu film, director Prabhu Deva packaged it in such a way that it suited the taste of Tamil audiences who danced to the hit tunes of Mani Sharma.

The on-screen chemistry between Vijay and Asin was great and the film turned out to be the highest grossing Tamil film in Kerala.

It did extraordinary business across A, B and C stations in Tamil Nadu and also overseas. It established Vijay as the most saleable star after Rajnikant. The trade says it’s the most profitable movie of the year.

Box-office verdict: Blockbuster

Complete Article

The star power

IndiaGlitz
[Friday, December 28, 2007]

In our effort to look at the successful movies of 2007, here comes another set of movies that had an unmistakable stamp of difference. These efforts were hailed for their uniqueness and fresh ideas. Here goes the brief analysis of those films:

ATM

This was a double Dhamaka special treat for all Vijay fans this Deepavali! Living up to the title Vijay is indeed Azhagiya Tamil Magan in his first film with dual roles! His stylish and comical mannerism stole the show and scored well for him. The flat climax is a dampener, for which you can’t blame the hero. ATM may not be palatable to everyone, but for those who suck up this brand of hilarity with a straw, it’s plenty tickling.

Over all, though the film had many blemishes in its script, Vijay neutralizes all of these with his outstanding performance and smart looks! The excellent opening, however, could not be sustained for a long.

Complete Article

Ileana, Vijay’s next heroine

Galatta.com
December 28, 2007, 1:32:16 PM

Illeana, the petite Goan beauty and the queen of Tollywood, is back in Kollywood. It is confirmed she will be the female lead opposite 'Ilayathalapathy' Vijay for his next film.

Ileana had earlier debuted in Tamil in KD opposite Ravikrishna and Kollywood’s current hot property Tamanna.

Vijay is currently shooting for Dharani’s Kuruvi with Trisha. After this, he will star opposite Ileana in a film to be directed by Prabhu Deva. The Prabhu Deva-Vijay team has given the blockbuster Pokkiri earlier this year.

Vijay pairs with Ileana

Vijay will be pairing with Ileana in the upcomming movie to be directed by Prabu Deva. The combination of Vijay and Prabudeva created Pokkiri who went on to become a superhit movie.

Vijay is currently acting with Trisha in Kuruvi, under the direction of Dharani. The Pokkiri success combination of Vijay and Prabudeva will be comming together again in Prabudeva’s next direction which will start rolling after Kuruvi.

In this movie Vijay will be paired with Telugu actress Ileana. The actress was earlier seen in Tamil in the movie KD(Kedi) opposite Ravi Krishna. Ileana D’Cruz hails from Mumbai. Buzz has it that Prabudeva has approched her for the next movie and the actress has accepted. The call sheet and other details are yet to be decided.

Top films of 2007: Choice aplenty!

IndiaGlitz
[Wednesday, December 26, 2007]

After Sivaji, the stylish and cool Boss, there are many other films that vie for the top slot in terms of collection and critical acclaim. Here is a peep into those films that made a mark in some way or the other:

Pokkiri

Loaded with allure, the highlights of 'Pokkiri' embrace a racy script, solid performance by Vijay with ease propped up by the sparkling performance of Asin. While Vijay's breakout performance sends our pulses racing, the love scenes were done with flair.

Opened to 100% collections all across the state, and emerged as the clear winner of the Pongal race winning rave reviews. 'Pokkiri' created a record in Kollywood by completing 50 days in 147 stations (direct run) in Tamil Nadu and was declared a blockbuster.

To sum up, the movie is an action-packed entertainer with loads of amusements, bliss, and fun. Dance master turned Prabhu Deva has proved his mettle as a commercial director with this film.

Complete Article

Vijay and Ajith - diametrically opposite

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
December 26, 2007

The two stars vying for the superstar status are Vijay and Ajith. Both Vijay and Ajith have carved a niche for themselves with a loyal fan following that they managed to garner over the years. While Ajith is commonly referred to as Thala by his fans, Vijay is called Ilaya Thalapathi.

Here’s an analysis of how the year 2007 has been for these two stars. This year seems to have been a mixed baggage for both these actors. To put things in the right perspective, let us analyze their films from the beginning of the year. It began with Vijay’s Pokkiri pitted against Ajith’s Aalwar. While Pokkiri went on become one of Vijay’s biggest hits, Aalwar bit the dust, as it was just another run-on-the-mill Ajith movie offering nothing new for his fans. This phase was followed by a long absence of both these stars.

Then Ajith returned in an all-new avatar in Kreedom, which was critically acclaimed and was lauded for his restrained performance. Unfortunately, the movie didn’t go down well with his fans, as it didn’t have all the elements that were usually expected in Thala’s film. The director even tried to change the climax of the movie a few days after it was released but it was a little too late as by then it was rejected by his fans as being too serious and not masala enough.

Come deepavali and it was time again for a clash between the two actors. Vijay’s Azhagiya Tamil Magan had Rahman’s music and a dual role for him. To match this, Ajith’s Billa a remake of the 1980 Rajinikanth hit was getting ready with a stellar cast and dashing promos. Call it fate or destiny, ATM made it alone to the theatres but wasn’t able to capitalize on it; blame it on the bad script or poor direction.

The industry was pinning its hopes on Billa, which after many obstacles finally made it to the theatres on December 14, 2007. It couldn’t have given the box office a better reason to smile and end the year on a high. Billa finally did to Ajith, at the end of the year, what Pokkiri did to Vijay at the beginning. Good fortunes and luck couldn’t have struck them at diametrically opposite times of the year.

Vijay and Velankanni Temple

IndiaGlitz
[Monday, December 24, 2007]

Ilaya Thalapathy Vijay is so pious that he visits Punitha Anthoniar Temple located in Chennai Parry’s Corner on every first Tuesday of each month. He also makes it a point to go to Velankanni after the release of each of his films.

You might wonder how the popular star could go to such a place where thousands of people gather without getting noticed. His security personals reveal that he visits there during mid night with the cooperation of the temple authorities.

It’s Prabhu Deva vs. Perarasu for Vijay

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
December 23, 2007

Kuruvi is sticking to its schedule. Barring a few unfortunate turn of events, this movie will be completed on time. So, now, it's time for new scripts to contend strongly for Vijay's dates.

Though there had been reports earlier that it was all but confirmed that Vijay will be working with Prabhu Deva after Kuruvi, the question to be answered is when will this project take off. Will it be just after Kuruvi or will it even be after another movie.

It is reported that Perarasu had narrated a plot to Vijay even before Kuruvi had begun and Vijay had suggested a few changes to the script. Now Perarasu is getting ready with the script.

Both Perarasu and Prabhu Deva have good track records with Vijay. Perarasu has done two movies with the star out of which one was a super hit – 'Thirupachi' – and the other was a good grosser – 'Sivakasi', and Prabhu Deva is no lesser by any means with his only movie with Vijay 'Pokkiri' turning out to be the one of the highest grossers of 2007.

We do not have clear news about Prabhu Deva's level of preparedness for his project. So, will it be a Thirupachi or a Pokkiri that we see next, we shall tell you soon.

Kuruvi flies to Malaysia; Vijay takes on smugglers; Ghilli and more

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
December 22, 2007

Kuruvi is flying high! This film’s shooting is progressing at a rapid pace and the latest report is that Dharani, Vijay, Trisha and the rest of the Kuruvi team have taken off to Malaysia to can a song sequence. The song will supposedly be a high point of the movie. Looks like Tamil Nadu is not the only place that has people excited about Kuruvi, for the Malaysian government has also extended near unconditional support to the Kuruvi team for shooting.

Sources say that the team has access to areas that had been considered out of bounds for shootings and other such activities. Malaysia is certainly doing everything to promote itself as a friendly destination for the film industry to capture some scenic locations. They had earlier given similar support to the 2006 Hindi blockbuster Krish.

Moving on to other news about Kuruvi, reliable sources have given a brief but exciting insight into the plot of Kuruvi and from what we have heard it is going to be a thrill-a-minute ride for all of us. Here is what we got to know about the Kuruvi story.

Vijay plays a courier delivery guy in Kuruvi. The courier is being used as a safe transit route for many illegal substances like narcotics by a smuggling gang and Vijay and the rest of the courier firm is unaware of this. Fate lands Vijay, carrying one such parcel with smuggled goods, in jail. How he extricates himself from this mess and manages to bring the gang, headed by a respected name in the society, to the fore is being told in this thrill-a-minute chase story.

Suman, who epitomized the ‘all white’ clad villain in Sivaji is back doing the familiar role yet again, flashing the ‘Close Up’ smile and running an empire of crime. The story is said to be full of adventurous escapades of Vijay from the police, engaging chases and a race against time to prove his innocence and capturing the gang red-handed. A plot that is reminiscent of the breakneck chase sequence that was the highlight of his earlier film Ghilli.

The Ghilli team looks good enough to create a repeat of 2004 when Tamil New Year became a great celebration for all Ilaya Thalapathi fans. Hope they can pull it off this time too.

Stars fly to Malaysia

Cinesouth.com
- 19.12.2007

Despite the dissatisfaction of the Malaysian Tamils, the star nite is going on as planned on Dec 21 at Kuala Lumpur.

All arrangements for this are being made by Radhika's Radaan. Headed by dance master Kala, about 40 dancers are headed to Malaysia.

Vijay and Trisha have already left for Malaysia. After the star nite on 21 and 23, the pair will stay back in Malaysia for `Kuruvi' shoot.

Some of the stars participating in the event have already left day before night for Malaysia. Yesterday, Radhika and Sripriya left. Most of the other participants are leaving tonight for Malaysia.

Radharavi, Sarath Kumar, Sathyaraj, Prabhu, Vijay, Vikram, Surya, Abbas, Trisha, Nayantara, Sandhya, Reema Sen are some of the top stars who are participating. Asin has escaped. Even though the Hindi `Ghajini' shooting has stopped temporarily, Asin who is right now stationed in Mumbai, says she is very busy!

Vijay watches 'Billa' with Ajith

Cinesouth.com
- 18.12.2007

After watching 'Billa' with his family, Vijay was all praise for Ajith.

The hostility between Vijay and Ajith is a thing of the past. The two are now on very cordial terms, dining with each other, and praising each other that their friendship is winning the admiration of Kollywood.

'Billa' has won a name for the way it has been made and a host of stars including Jeeva and Ramesh turned up for the premiere at Chennai's Inox theatre.

Ajith arranged a special show of 'Billa' at Four Frames preview theater for his close friends. Vijay and his wife Sangeetha, Surya and Karthi attended the show.

After the film, Vijay hugged and complimented Ajith as well as lavished praise on director Vishnuvardhan.

After the screening, Ajith hosted a dinner at a prominent 5 star hotel. Ajith's approachability to stars and fans of late has been much appreciated and well received.