Vijay to interact with US fans

Vijay, always keen to show his commitment to his fans, immediately decided to take a break from his holiday and attend the show to meet his fans.

Vijay is currently spending his summer holidays in the US with his family. Meanwhile, Jayavel Murugan, US distributor of Vijay's recent release Kuruvi, has arranged a special show of the movie in San Jose. Vijay, always keen to show his commitment to his fans, immediately decided to take a break from his holiday and attend the show to meet his fans.

Jayavel Murugan has also decided to hold and interactive section with Vijay, much to the delight of his fans. The event will be on Friday, May 23 and the venue is Century Berryessa 10, 1171 North Capitol Avenue, San Jose, CA 95312. The event is from 7.45 to 8 p.m. and will be followed by a screening of Kuruvi.

Ilayathalapthy Vijay has a large fan base and the Kuruvi's release has generated a lot of enthusiasm. For most of his fans, meeting Vijay in person is like a dream coming true. This interaction with Vijay is his first in the US.

By Moviebuzz | Thursday, 22 May , 2008, 14:18

Ilayathalapathy Vijay who is holidaying in California, is a man deeply committed to his fans.

So he has decided to take a break from his holiday and attend a special show of his Kuruvi arranged by Jayavel Murugan the US distributor of the film and his fans.

Which other star in Kollywood while holidaying with family will come out on work?

Jayavel Murugan of Narmadha Travels will also be holding an interactive session with Ilayathalapathy after the special show. It will take place on Friday, May 23, at Century Berryessa 10 ,1171 North Capitol Avenue, San Jose, CA 95132 from 7.45 to 8.30 in the night, followed by a screening of the film.

Says Jayavel Murugan: "The audiences here are going crazy over Ilayathalpathy's arrival in US. He has agreed to attend to have an interactive session with the fans and also be present during the special screening of Kuruvin California. From distribution side we will do everything possible to help fans to meet him. This kind of interaction with a Kollywood star is happening for the first time in US".

Contact for tickets for the special event USA distributor Jayavel Murugan of Narmadha Travels (510)-494-9149

Watch Kuruvi with Vijay this Friday!

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
May 22, 2008

Ilayathalapathi Vijay, chilling out in Bay Area will take few hours break from his vacation and meet and greet his hard core fans in US on Friday, May 23rd night.

Jayavel Murugan of Narmadha Travels, distributor of KURUVI in US will also be holding an interactive session with Ilayathalapathy after the special show. It will take place on Friday, May 23, at Century Berryessa 10 ,1171 North Capitol Avenue, San Jose, CA 95132 from 7.45 to 8.30 in the night, followed by a screening of the film.

To utilize this once a while opportunity, reserve your tickets - contact special event USA distributor Jayavel Murugan of Narmadha Travels (510)-494-9149.

Vijay who will be catching the flight back to Chennai on Saturday took up this initiative himself.

Vijay on holiday in California

Vijay, whose Kuruvi was released recently has flown to California to spent summer holidays there.

Vijay has also taken his family members along with him. And he is expected to return to India on June 6th.

Since he is away Vijay who is the star Brand ambassador of Chennai super kings will not be able to attend the two matches happening on Wednesday and Saturday.

On his return, he would commence shooting for his next movie to be directed by Prabhudeva.

Vijay & family in California!
By Moviebuzz | Tuesday, 20 May , 2008, 09:01

Our Ilayathalapathy, Vijay after continuous and strenuous shooting schedules for the last six months, has taken a well deserved break. He is holidaying in California with wife Sangeeta and kids Sanjay and Sasha.

Vijay is staying with his cousins in Bay area of San Francisco, and generally just chilling out. He has no particular plans other than just laze around, play with kids and do some small shopping. As per plans he will be in US for the next two weeks, a welcome relief from Chennai’s Katri heat wave conditions.

Vijay will be back in Chennai on June 6, for the pooja and launch of his new untitled film for Ayngaran, to be directed by Prabhu Deva. Nayanthara is the heroine and others in the cast are Vadivel, Nepolean, Prakash Raj and Biju Menon. The film has music by Devi Sri Prasad and camera by Ravi Varman.

Vijay on vacation to US
IndiaGlitz [Wednesday, May 21, 2008]

Actor Vijay is off to California along with his family members. Vijay, whose ‘Kuruvi’ released recently, is off to spend his summer vacation in the United States. He is expected to return to Chennai on 6 June.

It is said that the star brand ambassador of the Chennai Super Kings cricket team will not be attending the matches to be played by the team in Chennai on Wednesday and Saturday.

On his return, he would commence shooting for his next movie to be directed by Prabhudeva.

Chennai Box Office (May 16-18, 2008)

Tuesday, 20 May , 2008, 11:31

Thanks to Ilayathalapathy Vijay’s star power at the box-office, more number of prints, bigger screens and no major opposition, Kuruvi holds on in its third weekend to the number one slot, by a whisker thin margin over the summer hit Santosh Subramaniyan. At number three is Narnia-2 in English and Tamil which opened in a dozen screens. Arasangam which took an impressive opening holds on in the fourth position. And in the fifth position is Yaaradi Nee Mohini. cbo a

Note : Ratings are based on the box office collections and the cost of the film

Kuruvi

Cast: Vijay, Trisha, Suman, Vivek, Manivannan
Director : Dharani

Vijay, first half

No story, Dharani's listless presentation

BO verdict : Average

Kuruvi's tashan kills Bollywood's Tashan

Tashan means style or flair. But looks like the Bollywood movie, Tashan, has not lived up to its name. It had a very bad response in India and even outside India, where usually every Indian film is watched avidly.

In a box office survey in UK, it was seen that Kuruvi amassed more than Tashan. In a Top-20-films survey, Tashan was at No. 15 (and was only one week old) before Kuruvi made its debut in the UK. After release, Kuruvi took Tashan's spot in the Top 20 list andTashan dropped down to 18. This rating is based on boxoffice collections. Kuruvi collected $152,431 in four days, whereas Tashan managed to collect only about $110,607 in its entire second week.

Kuruvi's record is not ordinary. Taking into consideration that it was screened only on 13 screens, its per-screen-average collection is $11,725 which is second only to Iron Man. This is a very good reason for Vijay and the makers of Kuruvi to party.

Vijay goes the Ajit way?

By Moviebuzz | Saturday, 17 May , 2008, 10:22

The grapevine is abuzz that Vijay's next Prabhu Deva directed untitledfilm for Ayngaran is going to be a remake of a Bollywood film. Has our`Ilayathalapathy' changed tracks? Normally the source material for hisfilms is Telugu mass masalas.

Industry sources say that Dharani had brought the remake rights of the Telugu Prabhas film Chatrapati , and made it the second half of Kuruvi. Now that it has backfired Vijay for the time being is going north.

Remember that arch-rival Ajit's Billa, may be a remake of Rajinikanth's 1980 Billa, which itself is a remake of Amitabh Bachchan's 1978 Don. And Ajit's under production Aegan directed by Raju Sundaram is said to be the Tamil version of Shah Rukh Khan's Main Hoon Naa. The original was produced by Eros Entertainment, who has a tie-up with Ayngaran, the Tamil producers.

The latest we hear is that Prabhu Deva's new film with Vijay is said tobe sourced from Abbas Mastan directed Bobby Deol- Preity Zinta actionsuper hit Soldier(1998). It is an all out action film that was shot in Australia and NewZealand, and tells the story of a son's mission to seek revenge on hisfather an army officer killed by enemy forces and traitors.

Soldier remake is ideal subject for Vijay as it has action,sentiments, steamy romance with peppy songs. The new Vijay film isgoing to have music by Devi Sri Prasad, Dasavatharam cameramanRavi Varman will be the cinematographer and it is likely to be shot inAustria, Italy and Switzerland. Nayanthara will play the role done byPreity Zinta and Biju Menon will be the main villain.

Vijay’s date with Nayanthara in New Zealand!

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
May 17, 2008

Vijay's fans were reported to be keenly expecting the official announcement of their star's next project Singam. However, director Hari has once again played spoilsport where the title of the film is concerned by announcing that he has registered the name Singam and Surya would star in it. It is worth mentioning here that prior to this

Vijay was keen on the title Seval, but Hari refused to part with it. With the title issue finally being put to rest, Vijay's project with Prabhu Deva is all set to commence during the first week of June. This film, as per unconfirmed reports, will be a remake of the Bollywood blockbuster Soldier. It is said that the first half of the film will be shot in New Zealand and the team, including the lead pair Vijay and Nayanthara, are expected to leave the country sometime in June.

Remakes for Ilayathalapathy
Smitha Mathew [May 17, 2008, 3:47:53 PM]

Rumour are circulating that Vijay’s new film directed by Prabhu Deva is going to be a remake of the Hindi film Soldier. Vijay usually does the remake of Telugu hits; so has he changed language this time?

Ajit’s Billa, a remake of the 80's hit Billa with Rajinikanth in the lead was a copy of the SRK starrer Don, which was again a remake the 80's hit with Amitabh Bachan as the hero. It says that Ajit’s new film Aegan is a remake of the SRK starrer Mein Hoon Na.

Now Vijay, by appearing in the remake of Soldier, seems to be following the same path as Ajith; Soldier was released in 1998 with Bobby Deol and Preity Zinta in the lead roles. Vijay will have Nayantara as his lady love and shooting will take place at exotic locales of Austria, Italy and Switzerland. Biju Menon will be the villain.

Mani joins Vijay & Surya

By Behindwoods News Bureau. May 15, 2008

What?! A movie involving Mani Ratnam, Vijay, Harris Jayaraj, Jyothika, K.V. Anand, Madhavan and Surya? Is that possible? It's not only possible – the film is even ready to be released! Also involved are Kamal Hassan, Aamir Khan, Simran, and Prakash Raj. It's called Hero Va Zero Va, and it's a documentary produced by the Agaram Foundation which is managed by Sivakumar, Surya and Jyothika.

The film looks at the issue of child labour and children dropping out of school. Based on a report/document researched and prepared by the Agaram Foundation (with CM Karunanidhi and Education Minister Thangam Thenarasu motivating them), the film shows Surya, Madhavan, Jyothika and Vijay each taking a child to school. Each of these children had to overcome various hurdles (ignorance of parents, lack of motivation, the prejudice of educating the girl child, etc) and they do so with these four stars motivating them to get an education.

In a function today, Surya screened the film and spoke a little more about it. A promotional video for the documentary that had been shot earlier involved Kamal, Aamir, Simran, Vijay and Prakash Raj speaking. The day Aamir was to do his bit in the video, he had that accident and the production team was messaging him to say they would shoot it later, but Aamir was already messaging them to say he had already shot himself speaking for the promo video and was sending it on Beta to them.
Surya thanked Vijay profusely for giving his time. Vijay as a rule, noted Surya, never goes out on Sundays, especially after 4 pm. Surya had asked him for one Sunday morning, but the shoot involved two Sundays, and it went beyond six p.m. But, said Surya, Vijay never made a fuss. All the other celebrities, added Surya, had been generous with their time also.

The film is directed by V. Priya, photographed by K.V. Anand, with music by Harris Jayaraj. Mani Ratnam helped Roshini and Thomas with the story. Director Priya said she was thrilled to be working with so many film luminaries, and directing four stars at the same time!

Vikram, Vijay, and Ajith in Q for Soundarya

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
May 14, 2008

Soundarya Rajinikanth's association with the Hollywood production giant Warner Bros is bearing fruit. After rumors about a possible Billa II with Ajith, sources reveal that Soundarya is now busy jotting down plans also for Vijay and Vikram. Billa II, however, is still in the air with no official announcement from either side.

However, it is learnt that Vishal has been roped in recently for a project by the joint venture production company. An official announcement in this regard will be out soon. Besides, plans for Ajith, Vijay, and Vikram are in the making and will be officially announced in the near future.

Kuruvi caught in the net

By Behindwoods News Bureau.
May 14, 2008

Pirated CDs have always been the bane of the film industry. Though the higher authorities are trying hard to curb this problem, the issue seems to rear its ugly head now and then. With new films hitting the screens, the problem is just getting bigger.

On a tip off, recently, the police conducted a raid in a theatre in Chennai and arrested Abdul Raja for capturing the film Kuruvi in his video camera. A habitual offender, Abdul Raja had already been arrested twice.

On a search conducted in his home, it was fou nd that he had about 400 copies of Kuruvi CD and other new films. It is expected that Abdul may be booked under the Goondas Act.

Pirated Kuruvi DVDs seized

The city police have arrested four persons for selling pirated DVDs and VCDs of the Tamil film Kuruvi, produced by Udayanidhi Stalin, grand son of the chief minister M Karunanidhi, and starring Vijay and Trisha. The police conducted an intensive raid across the city on Wednesday reports TNN.

The police swung into action following instructions from the political bosses to curb selling the pirated versions of the film. The police formed special teams to conduct raids simultaneously in many places across the city targeting Burma Bazaar, T Nagar, Mogappair and Saidapet.

Police arrested Raja (25), Periya Balaji alias Padmanabhan (44), Suresh (27) and Arunachalam (35) for selling the pirated CDs. They recovered 3,690 DVDs and VCDs, including porn and other language films, worth Rs 26.21 lakh.

A police officer admitted that they have seized only 25 pirated versions of the film Kuruvi. The arrested were produced before the magistrate court in Egmore and remanded in judicial custody.

Chennai Box-Office (May 09-11)

By Moviebuzz
Tuesday, 13 May , 2008, 12:30

The box-office is jittery as highly hyped films are taking lukewarm openings and the star pull is decreasing. Vijay's Kuruvi is tottering at the box –office, but due to lack of strong opposition, the film continues to be at the number one slot. At number two is Santosh Subramaniyam, which is the hot favourite of the family audiences. In the third position is Vijaykanth's Arasangam, which surprised the trade by taking a very good opening (82 per cent) in seven Chennai screens. In the fourth position is NTR's Kantri, which is a hit and in the fifth position is Yaaradi Nee Mohini

Note : Ratings are based on the box office collections and the cost of the film

Kuruvi

Cast: Vijay, Trisha, Suman, Vivek, Manivannan
Director : Dharani

Vijay, first half

No story, Dharani's listless presentation. Kuruvi looks more like a Telugu film

BO verdict : Average

Kuruvi - Magazine Reviews

கொஞ்சம் காரம். நிறை வீரம். கதைக்குத் தகுந்த மாதிரி குடும்ப பாரம். இந்த மூன்றும் கலந்து வந்திருக்கிறது. குருவி. கில்லியில் சொல்லி அடித்த விஜய் - தரணி கூட்டணி இப்போது குருவியை களத்தில் இறக்கியிருக்கிறது.. இந்த முறை விஜய் ஆந்திர வில்லன்களுடன் மோதுகிறார். பொலிவான முகமும் முறுக்கேறிய உடலுமாய் படம் முழுக்க வலம் வரும் விஜய்யிடம் சூப்பர்கிங் உற்சாகம். எடையைக் குறைச்சுட்டா ச்சும்மா சுறுசுறுன்னு குருவி மாதிரி ஆயிரலாம்னு விஜய்க்குத் தெரிஞ்சிருக்கும் போல.
படம் முழுக்க ஸ்லிம் அண்ட் ஸ்லீக்காக வருகிறார். வீட்டில் சாவு விழுந்தால் கூட தயங்காமல் டூயட்டைத் தொடர்கிற வழக்கமான ஹீரோயினாக த்ரிஷா. அடுத்தடுத்து வெட்டும் குத்தும் நடந்து கொண்டிருக்கும் வேளைகளிலும் என்னை லவ் பண்றியா? என்று விஜயை அவர் துரத்தும் காட்சிகளில் நமக்கு எரிச்சல்தான் ஏற்படுகிறது. அடிக்கடி விஜய்யின் கையை பிடித்தக் கொண்டு ஒடி கில்லி எ ஃபெக்ட்டைத் தர மட்டுமே பயன்பட்டிருக்கிறார் த்ரிஷா.

ஹீரோ, ஹீரோயின் இப்படியிருக்க கதை மலேசியாவை நோக்கிப் போகிறது. விஜய்யின் அப்பா மணிவண்ணன் கடன் சுமை தாங்காமல் வீட்டை விட்டு ஓடிப்போக குடும்பத்திற்கென்று மீதியான ஒரே சொத்து வீடு. அதையும் அப்பா கொடுத்த செக் பவுண்ஸ் ஆன கடனுக்காக பிடுங்கப்பட இருக்க கெடு வாங்கிக் கொண்டு செக் கொடுத்த மலேசிய கம்பெனிக்கு அப்பாவின் கடனை வசூல் செய்ய குருவியாக பறக்கிறார்கள் விஜய்யும் நண்பர் விவேக்கும். கதை அங்கே சூடு பிடித்திருக்க வேண்டும். ஆனால் குருவிதானே அதிக உயரம் பறக்க இயலவில்லை. ஏகப்பட்ட பில்டப்புகளுடன் வில்லன்கள் வந்தாலும், படத்தில் விறுவிறுப்பு மிஸ்ஸிங்.

அதிரடியாய் அறிமுகமாகும் சீனியர் வில்லனான சுமன் பாதிப் படத்திலேயே விஜய் அடித்து வீல் சேரில் உட்கார வைத்து விடுகிறார். எம்.எல்.ஏ. வாக வரும் ஆசிஷ் வித்யார்த்தி அடிமைத் தொழிலாளர்களை வைத்திருப்பதும் நினைத்த மாத்திரத்தில் அவர்களை சுட்டுக் கொல்வதும் போலீஸ் கைத்தடிகள் போல நடத்துவதும் சினிமாவில் மட்டுமே சாத்தியமான காட்சிகள். ஏதோ தெலுங்கு படம் மாதிரி போய்ட்டிருக்கே? என்ற நம் சந்தேகத்தை வில்லனகள் அனைவரும் ஆரம்பம் முதல் கடைசி வரை தெலுங்கில் பேசி உறுதிப்படுத்திவிடுகிறார்கள். குவாரியிலிருந்து குழந்தைகளைக் காப்பாற்ற முயலும் இளவரசு ஒரு நல்ல குணச்சித்திர நடிகராக மனதில் இடம் பிடிக்கிறார்.

சரண்யா, மணிவண்ணன், நாசர் (சிறப்பு தோற்றம்) போன்றோருக்கு நடிக்க வாய்ப்பே இல்லை.

விஜய்-விவேக் கூட்டணியில் வரும் காமெடி காட்சிகள் கோடை வெயிலில் தர்பூசணி சாப்பிடுவது போல் இருக்கின்றன. மேற்கத்திய இசையும் நாட்டுப்புறப்பாட்டும் கலந்து ஒலிக்கும் ஹேப்பி நியூ இயர் பாடல் இசையமைப்பாளர் வித்யாசாகரை தரணிக்கு சூப்பர் ஜோடி என சொல்ல வைக்கிறது. ஆனால் விஜய்யின் அறிமுகப் பாட்டு... விஜய்க்கான குத்து மிஸ்ஸிங்...

கொத்தடிமைத் தொழிலாளர்களை மையமாகக் கொண்டிருந்தாலும் அவர்களின் பிரச்னையை நச்சென்று காட்டுவது போல ஒரு காட்சி கூட இல்லாதது திரைக்கதையில் மிகப் பெரிய பலவீனம். முதல் பாதியில் காமெடி கலக்கலாகப் போகும் கதை பின்பாதியில் ரத்த மயமாகிறது. கில்லியின் வேகத்தை தொட்டுவிடவேண்டுமென்று தரணி முயன்றிருக்கிறார். ஆனால் அது தொட இயலாத அசுர வேகம்.

- குமுதம் விமர்சனக் குழு
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வில்லன்களால் சிறை வைக்கப்பட்ட தந்தையை காக்கும் மகனின் கதை. ஆம்பளையா இருந்தா உன் அப்பனை காப்பாத்துடா என்று சுமன் சவால் விட விறு விறு வேகமெடுக்கும் திரைக்கதையின் முன் பாதி, ஜாலி எக்ஸ்பிரஸ். ஆனால் பின்பாதி சீரியஸ் ஷதாப்தி. காட்சிக்கு காட்சி விஜய்யின் விஸ்வரூப ஆக்ஷன் அட போட வைப்பது இந்தப் படத்தின் ஸ்பெஷாலிட்டி. பணம் தர மறுக்கும் மலேசிய வில்லனை அடித்து துவைப்பது முதல் அவர்களின் சமூக விரோதத்தை வெளிச்சம் போட்டுக் காட்டுவது வரை அதிரடி இடி....
விஜய்யின் அலப்பறையில் அதிர்கிறது தியேட்டர். மின்வெட்டு நடனம், பன்ஞ் டயலாக்... என இளமை திரையில் தளும்பி தியேட்டருக்குள் தெறிக்கிறது. த்ரிஷாவை விஜய் சந்திப்பது கலகல கவிதை. விஜய்யைத் தேடி திருவல்லிக்கேணி வரும் த்ரிஷாவின் பையில் வைரத்தை வைக்க, பின்னர் நடக்கும் சம்பவங்கள் சந்தோஷ களேபரங்கள்... விவேக் வரும் காமெடி காட்சிகள் சிரிப்புக் களஞ்சியம். தோற்றத்திலும் குரலிலும் கரடு முரடு சேர்த்துக் கலக்கியிருக்கிறார் சுமன். ஆஷிஸ் வித்யார்த்தியின் சவுண்டான நடிப்பில் ரசிகர்களைக் கட்டிப்போடுகிறார். என்ன தான் கணவன் கெட்டவன் என்றாலும், அவன் அடி வாங்கும் காட்சியில் சரண்யா மகிழ்வது டூ மச். த்ரிஷாவும் அவ்வப்போது நடிக்கிறார்! குதிக்கிறார்.

அனைவரது கைத்தட்டலையும் பெறும் ஒளிப்பதிவாளர் கோபிநாத்., இயக்குநருக்கு இணையாக உழைத்திருக்கிறார். அதிரடி இசையில் அசத்தியிருக்கிறார் வித்யாசாகர். "மொழமொன்னு', "பல்லானது' பாடல்கள் இனி மியூசிக் சேனல்களின் செல்லப்பிள்ளை.

- கல்கி விமர்சன குழு
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தில், தூள், கில்லி' என்று ட்ரிபிள் ஷாட் அடித்த தரணியின் குருவி

வீடு ஏலத்தில் மூழ்காமல் இருக்க காணாமல் போன அப்பாவுக்கு வர வேண்டிய கடனை வசூலிக்க, "குருவி'யாக மலேசியா செல்கிறார் விஜய். கடனை வசூலிக்க முடியாமல், வில்லன் சுமனிடமிருந்து காஸ்ட்லி வைரத்தை லபக்கிக் கொண்டு சென்னை வருகிறார். வைரக் கள்வனிடம் மனதைப் பறிகொடுக்கும் சுமனின் தங்கை த்ரிஷாவும் பின்னாலேயே சென்னை வருகிறார். வைரத்தையும் தங்கையையும் தேடி சுமனும் சென்னைக்கு!
விஜய்யைப் போட்டுப் புரட்டியெடுத்துவிட்டு, அவருடைய அப்பா மணிவண்ணன் தன்னிடம் கொத்தடிமையாக இருக்கும் ஃப்ளாஷ்பேக்கைச் சொல்கிறார் சுமன். பிறகென்ன... அப்பாவை மீட்பதும் த்ரிஷாவைக் கைபிடிப்பதுமான திசை நோக்கிப் பறக்கிறது குருவி!

விஜய், தரணி, த்ரிஷா கூட்டணி; மதுரைக்குப் பதில் மலேசியா; கபடிக்குப் பதில் கார் ரேஸ் எனப் பழைய பாதைதான்! கொத்தடிமைகள் மீட்பும் வில்லன்களும் மட்டும் புதுசு!

விஜய்க்கு ஆதர்சமான ஆக்ஷன் அவதாரம் பொளேர் பொளேரெனப் பொளக்கிறார். டமால் டுமீலென வெடிக்கிறார். ஆகாயத்தில் பறக்கிறார். தண்ணீருக்குள் தடதடக்கிறார் என ஆக்ஷன் பேக்கேஜ்! கிடைத்த கேப்களில் காமெடி. சென்டிமென்ட் வகையறாக்களுக்கும் மரியாதை செய்கிறார். ஆனாலும்...?

கொஞ்சம் வெளிறி மெலிந்திருக்கிற த்ரிஷா, தமிழ் சினிமாவின் டிபிக்கலான சமய சந்தர்ப்பம் தெரியாமல் ராவடி பண்ணுகிற ஹீரோயின்! விஜய்யின் மரணச் செய்தியின் போதுகூட அம்மணியின் கண்கள் துடிக்கத் தவறுகிறதே?

ஆக்ஷன் டெம்போவை எகிறவைக்கிறது வித்யாசாகரின் இசை. பலானது பாடலின் பீட்டும் டான்ஸும் அதிரடி! சரசர சுறுசுறுவென அடுத்தடுத்து ஆங்கில் மாறி அசரடிக்கும் கோபிநாத்தின் ஒளிப்பதிவும் துல்லியம்.

மலேசியாவுக்கு பொருட்களைக் கை மாற்றும் குருவி வைரக் கடத்தல் என்று சின்ன சுவாரஸ்யம் உண்டாக்கியவர்கள், பின்பாதி பழிவாங்கும் ட்ரீட்மென்ட்டில் புதுசாக ஏதுமில்லாமல் கோட்டைவிட்டதில்... ஆவ்வ்வ்!'

நின்றால் ஆக்ஷன், நடந்தால் ஆக்ஷனோ ஆக்ஷன் என்ற திகட்டல் முயற்சிக்கு தியேட்டரில் நெகட்டிவ் ரியாக்ஷன்! சுமன், ஆசிஷ் வித்யார்த்தி, பவன், ஜீவி (கடப்பா ராஜா) என்று படம் நெடுக வில்லன்மேளா

விஜய்க்குத் தோழராக விவேக் உண்டு. கொஞ்சம் கலகலப்போடு சேர்த்து, நேரடியாக அதிரவைக்கிற கெட்ட வார்த்தை காமெடியும் உண்டு!

ஏர்போர்ட் கஸ்டம்ஸ் அதிகாரிகளுக்கே ஜஸ்ட் லைக் தட் டேக்கா கொடுத்து வைரம் கடத்தும் விஜய், அதை த்ரிஷாவின் கைப்பைக்குள் இருந்து எடுப்பதற்கு அத்தனையா சிரமப்படுவார்!

அப்பா மணிவண்ணனின் ரத்தம் படிந்த அதே கல்லால் வில்லனை அடிப்பது கம்ப்யூட்டர் பாஸ்வேர்டு தெரிந்த வில்லன் நினைவிழப்பது, க்ளைமாக்ஸில் நல்ல போலீஸ் என்ட்ரி கொடுப்பது, விஜய்யின் சேவையைப் பாராட்டி அவரது கொலைக் குற்றங்களை ஸ்பாட்டிலேயே போலீஸ் அதிகாரி மன்னிப்பது எல்லாம் தமிழ் சினிமா காலம் காலமாகக் கிழித்தெடுத்த கிளிஷேக்கள்!

- விகடன் விமர்சன குழு

There’s Vijay, what else? - Kuruvi Hindu's Review

When a filmmaker gives a blockbuster that stands out for neat narration, thrilling action and admirable technique, he sets a benchmark that even he could find tough to match again.

Director Dharani did just that with Ghilli — which is still fresh in the viewer’s mind. When the same team returns after a hiatus, there’s bound to be comparison. Kuruvi (U/A) tries its best to fly high; only the effort isn’t enough because the eagle (Ghilli) had soared much higher. Of course, Dharani keeps up the momentum and things move fast until the midway point.

This Red Giant Movies’ production is one of a kind — a film with a storyline that doesn’t even feign an attempt to be logical! Without doubt, fans like fantasy, but even they expect some rationale in the plot. Probably, Dharani felt that the Vijay magic would override everything else.

Vetrivel (Vijay) is superhuman. He has his quota of fun, and adding to the levity is his friend (Vivek). Matters take a serious turn when he understands that his father and a lot of his workers are enslaved in a quarry in Cuddapah.

Vijay’s footwork in the dances is absolutely amazing! But, before flexing his muscles, he could have worked on his brawn. It would have made his stunts believable. For the first time, Trisha’s screen presence isn’t a sizzler.

By the way, your timing and modulation are getting too repetitive, Vivek.

You can’t but be awed by the lip sync that Ashish Vidyarthi manages in every film. At no point is it apparent that it’s another person speaking for him! And, the actor lends life to even the most clichéd of roles. Manivannan is in the bad men’s custody but keeps threatening them constantly. You wonder how he gets away with it! Anyway, Kuruvi doesn’t care much for reason, and this is just one example.

Another letdown is Vidyasagar’s music. But Kalyan, Shobi and Prem Rakshit (dance choreographers) score. A definite value-addition is Gopinath’s camera.

Director Hari’s assistant Shiva Shanmugham made a film (Thagappansami) with the same theme — bonded labour. Released in December 2006, it had fine performances from Prashanth and Pooja, and was poignant and sensitively treated. Sadly, it sank without a trace. Dharani has picked up a similar line and made a pot-boiler, but one that is wanting.

Kuruvi
Genre: Action
Director: Dharani
Cast: Vijay, Trisha, Suman
Storyline: When the son realises that his father and the workers in his firm have been carted away and forced into bonded labour, hell breaks loose.
Bottomline: There’s Vijay, but what else?

By: MALATHI RANGARAJAN

Kuruvi call - The Hindu

Will Dharani’s box-office draw continue with Kuruvi? Sudhish Kamath talks to the director

Kuruvi is a personal film but with a larger social theme

Chased by baddies, the hero has to rush home to save his family. He runs across rooftops and spots a train 200 metres away. He looks at the eagle soar, takes a cue and jumps! He flies. He doesn’t land on top of the train though. Having crossed 200 metres, he still falls one metre short but manages to grip the edge of a bridge, climbs over, sprints along and dives into the train.

Superstar would’ve landed straight on top of the train. On his feet, standing. “That’s because he’s Rajnikant. This is Vijay,” laughs director Dharani.

But this scene that appears in the interval block of Kuruvi is definitive of Dharani’s school of filmmaking. He likes to suspend your disbelief but within that realm of exaggeration, wants to have a streak of realism running through it. “You will see that in all my films. Going to Malaysia is no big deal for the people watching the film. But not for the hero. He has to find ways to get to Malaysia and he goes as a Kuruvi.”

The backdrop is real, only the events are exaggerated. It wasn’t so when he made Dhil, we ask.

“Dhil was a story of an ordinary man becoming a hero. But in Dhool or Ghilli or Kuruvi, the guys are heroes right from the start. So it has to be made differently.”

So it depends on the stardom of the leading man playing the role?

“Yes, everything starts from a star. From Hollywood to Chennai. James Bond films for example. You can’t make Schindler’s List with James Bond. He needs to be Bond. Imagine a Bond film where he does not say ‘shaken not stirred,’ will you like it? You want those one-liners.”

Dharani says he writes his scripts with those ingredients. “Actors may come and go but Bond remains. I write scripts for the hero.” So what is the formula? If there was one, every film with five songs and five fights would be a hit. “That will not work. Five songs, five fights don’t make up the formula. Dhool had only two fights. I wish I knew the formula. I look within me and go by what I believe in. All my scripts address different issues.” The hero is usually a representative of the common man who becomes their messiah right from his angry young man days. Who is the hero today?

“As times keep changing, problems keep changing. Today, people spend their lives in a cubicle. What people keep fighting for every day differs... like life in a call centre. They are so much inside their own world that the problem is becoming personal… That’s why Kuruvi’s motivation is personal though it has larger social consequences. When do you come out of your cubicle? Only when you have a problem that affects your life.”

Despite the contemporary hero prototype, Kuruvi has a distinct late seventies-eighties classic landscape feel.

“I wanted that feel. I love Sholay. Ramesh Sippy once said he wished he hadn’t made Sholay because he could never make another film bigger than that again. I wanted a remix of that feel for this generation. Otherwise, it is difficult to relate to guys running around with guns.”

The first half of the film is set in Malaysia and the second in a quarry in Cuddapah (shot in Salem). “Again, I wanted a clear-cut demarcation. People who enjoy life stay there (Malaysia). People who suffer stay here. I wanted the hero to be in the middle ground so that he can see both worlds.”

Vijay opts for remake again?

IndiaGlitz
[Friday, May 09, 2008]

Vijay had always tasted success with remakes. A majority of his movies were remade from Telugu.

Buzz is that Vijay's next ‘Singam’ is reportedly a remake of Bollywood blockbuster ‘Soldier’, which had Bobby Deol and Preity Zinta in lead roles.

Prabhu Deva, who is currently directing Salman Khan for ‘Pokkiri’ Hindi remake had watched ‘Soldier’ recently, following which he reportedly recommended Vijay to redo it in Tamil.

And Vijay, who felt comfortable to work with Prabhu Deva has asked the choreographer turned director to wield the megaphone for the Tamil version, hoping for another blockbuster on the lines of ‘Pokkiri’.