Dhaam Dhoom
Encyclopedia
Dhaam Dhoom is a 2008
Tamil
romantic
thriller film. Directed and co-written by Jeeva
shortly before his death and produced by Sunanda Murali Manohar
, its stars Jayam Ravi
, Kangna Ranaut
and Lakshmi Rai
in the lead roles. Jayaram
and Srinath
, prominent actors from the south Indian film industry, played other pivotal roles in the film.
The film revolves around a Tamil
Indian doctor who, two weeks prior to his wedding, goes to Russia for a conference pertaining to his occupation, that of a doctor
. There he struggles to cope with the language because of the Russian reluctance to speak English, and eventually, due to the gruesome murder of a local woman, finds himself in jail. How the doctor manages to get himself out of jail in order to get married to his sweetheart in India, with the help of an Indian female lawyer, forms the crux of the story.
The film opened to worldwide audiences, after several delays, on 29 August 2008. Dhaam Dhoom was the last film that director Jeeva undertook before his death which occurred half way through the project's production. The film, released as a tribute to Jeeva, was completed by his assistant, Manikandan
, and his wife Anees, and was overseen by veteran cinematographer P. C. Sriram
. The movie is loosely based on the 1997 Hollywood thriller Red Corner
.
) is a well educated, handsome son of an Indian family. Since his father (Nizhagal Ravi) and mother are doctors, Gautham aims to become a doctor and achieves it. Gautham gets a golden opportunity from the government to go to Russia to represent India in a week long medical conference, along with five other young doctors. Gautham is delighted to receive this offer and packs his bags to fly to Russia. Meanwhile, Gautham’s beloved is introduced on the frame which happens to be Shenba (Kangna Ranaut
). Shenba happens to be the same village girl in which his sister Sarasu, (Anu Haasan
) resides with her husband (Chetan) and so they two meet and fall in love. Despite initial frictions between her father and uncle (Mahadevan and Bose Venkat) with Gautham, they eventually agree to get the pair married. Gautham’s parents agree to the marriage and as a happy man Gautham is ready to marry Shenba after his return to India from his Russia trip.
Finally, the journey to Russia happens and Gautham reaches Moscow
and completes his immigration procedures. Incidentally, Gautham meets Anna (Maria Kojernikova) and unknowingly the sexy lady drops her jacket at the hero. In a quick situation the hero has no time to return the jacket and exits from the Moscow airport accompanied by his medical team. Gautham is flabbergasted by the roads and buildings of the city and is surprised to see the city of Moscow from his hotel view. Gautham learns that the only hiccup with Russians is that the people are ignorant about the English language
and the whole conversation with them must be made in Russian national language.
Soon after, Gautham discovers Anna and takes the prospect to return her coat. The two get together well and part the ways. Meanwhile, Gautham medical conference takes place successfully and in order to celebrate its success the whole team head to a club. Gautham bumps into Anna in the night club and they two have an enjoyable time in the club. Anna, due to heavy consumption of Liquor, intoxicates and Gautham has no other choice than to accompany her to her room. When the two reach Anna’s apartment in they settle down and sleep. Gautham is brutally dragged onto the floor by a Russian police officer the next day morning and the reason is that Anna is murdered on her sofa.
Consequently, Gautham's situation changes; he gets abused, accused and is imprisoned by the Russian police. The language, people and the surroundings are totally new and confusing to the hero. Aarthi Chinnappa (Lakshmi Rai
) is appointed as a defendant lawyer to the culprit Gautham. The Indian consulate sends Raghavan Nambiar (Jayaram
) to Gautham's rescue. When Gautham tries to run away from the Russian Police he gets drowned in a lake and Aarthi finds him at the shore. Aarthi kisses Gautham to rescue him and she releases that Aarthi has fallen in love with Gautham, but suppresses her feelings when she learns about Shenba. Gautham escapes from the police and is running around St. Petersburg with Aarthi, trying to figure out who murdered Anna and why he was caught up in the scandal. Whilst, fleeing from the police, Gautham gets shot by the mafia
and manages to escape narrowly. After taking care of his wounds, Aarthi and Gautham decide to seek down those who misled them. With the eventual villainous figure being revealed as Raghavan.
Before a shoot off, Raghavan reveals that Anna was a drug trafficker from Chennai to Russia, and by dropping her coat, consisting of drugs, off at the airport manages to evade being caught. Soon after Anna had changed her ways and was ready to tell the police about Raghavan's drug dealing, but before that happened Raghavan along with the mafia had her killed off. In the final scene, Raghavan is killed by the police, and Gautham is set free to reunite with Shenba for their wedding.
paired opposite Genelia D'Souza
, however she opted out of the project due to fully booked dates for her Telugu
film, Dhee
. After Genelia's removal from the project other leading actresses such as Asin
and Mamta Mohandas
were approached for a key role in the film, but they also rejected the offer, citing commitments to other projects.
Reema Sen
was then roped in for a significant role in the film; however, 14 days after her confirmation, she pulled out of the project, citing differences with the director, Jeeva
. The role offered to Reema Sen, that of a lawyer, had no songs and was the second heroine role. Reema Sen confirmed later to Kumudham magazine that she did not want to play second lead in the film, and opted out of the project.
On 19 February 2007, the producers confirmed they had roped in Lakshmi Rai
to essay the role dropped by Reema Sen. Kangna Ranaut
made her debut in the Tamil film industry with the film. Ranaut's payment of 75 lakh Indian rupee
for the project, an all Indian record for a regional newcomer actress. The project was also Lakshmi Rai
's biggest film of her career til then, despite being the second female lead in the project. Jayaram
was later selected to portray the villain in the film, appearing in a such a role for the first time in his career.
As per Jeeva's previous films, Jeeva himself took charge of the cinematography, though, after his death, P. C. Sriram
took charge. Although Jeeva had been reworking his final draft during filming, S. Ramakrishnan
was brought in after his death to find a way to connect the climax with the previous draft to the final one; the two would not come together properly, otherwise.
, consisting of Jayam Ravi
surrounded by duplicate snow. The first schedule was shot in February 2007, in and around Pollachi
, featuring the countryside backdrop, with scenes involving actors Jayam Ravi and Kangana Ranaut, among others. The film's crew originally had problems maintaining a visa to film in St. Petersburg, Russia, and decided to relocate the scenes to Prague
in the Czech Republic
; however, they eventually obtained visas to shoot in Russia. While shooting their schedule in Russia, on 26 June 2007, director Jeeva died after suffering nujtf arrest. The film was suspended indefinitely following the director's demise.
In early July 2007, it was announced that M. Raja
, elder sibling of Jayam Ravi
, would complete the project, but subsequently, veteran director P. C. Sriram
signed to complete the project with Jeeva's widow Anees. Finally, Anees Murugaraj announced that the film would be completed by her and Jeeva's assistant Manikandan
, whilst Sriram would overlook their efforts. Eventually, the team returned to Russia and canned the remaining scenes within 40 days.
. The film became Jayam Ravi
's largest release til date with over 200 prints being published worldwide.
The film opened in Chennai strongly, with advance bookings full for the opening weekend at Inox and Sathyam Cinemas, while at Mayajaal, there were 22 shows daily of the film, leading to a successful opening of 92% full attendance. Rs
. 49,29,778 was grossed on the first weekend in Chennai
multiplexes, which had a total of 166 shows over three days. After the first week the film, maintained its place at top spot, despite the entry of Saroja, gaining Rs. 37,31,124, with a total attendance percentage in Chennai of 70%.
Overseas, in the United Kingdom box office, the film opened at number 22, earning £21,634 during the first weekend, after opening across four Cineworld
screens. After the second week the cumulative gross increased to £37,050, retaining the amount of screens, but slipping to 34th in the weekly rankings.
with the lyrics primarily penned by Na. Muthukumar
and Pa. Vijay. The audio of the film released worldwide on 19 March 2008, five months prior to the release. The soundtrack was successfully received with praise, with Indiaglitz.com labelling the album as "delightful" .
2008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
Tamil
Tamil cinema
Tamil cinema is the film industry based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, dedicated to the production of films in the Tamil language. It is based in Chennai's Kodambakkam district, where several South Indian film production companies are headquartered...
romantic
Romance film
Romance films are love stories that focus on passion, emotion, and the affectionate involvement of the main characters and the journey that their love takes through courtship or marriage. Romance films make the love story or the search for love the main plot focus...
thriller film. Directed and co-written by Jeeva
Jeeva (director)
Jeeva was a popular cinematographer and film director in Tamil cinema.-Career:The four completed films he directed, namely 12B, Run , Ullam Ketkumae and Unnale Unnale, have become blockbusters. He died after suffering acute cardiac arrest in Russia on 25 June at the age of 43...
shortly before his death and produced by Sunanda Murali Manohar
Sunanda Murali Manohar
Dr Sunanda Murali Manohar is a noted Tamil film producer. Films she has produced include Jeans and Thambi, both of which were blockbusters.-External links:1. Backwaters ... aka Kama Sutra 3: Love Potion...
, its stars Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M...
, Kangna Ranaut
Kangna Ranaut
Kangna Ranaut is an Indian actress who appears mostly in Hindi films. She made her acting debut in 2006 with a leading role in Gangster. She won both a Filmfare and a National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as a troubled model in Fashion .-Early life:Ranaut was born to...
and Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai is an Indian film actress and model from Belgaum, Karnataka, predominantly appearing in Malayalam and Tamil films. While most of her Tamil releases performed poorly at the box office, she rose to fame with the popular Malayalam-language films Annan Thambi , 2 Harihar Nagar ,...
in the lead roles. Jayaram
Jayaram
Jayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
and Srinath
Srinath (actor)
For Malayali actor see SreenathSrinath is an Indian actor and director. He starting in drama troupes, and has transitioned to the film industry. After appearing in various television serials such as Kadhalikka Neramillai, he started to play supporting roles in films such as Ullam Ketkumae and...
, prominent actors from the south Indian film industry, played other pivotal roles in the film.
The film revolves around a Tamil
Tamil people
Tamil people , also called Tamils or Tamilians, are an ethnic group native to Tamil Nadu, India and the north-eastern region of Sri Lanka. Historic and post 15th century emigrant communities are also found across the world, notably Malaysia, Singapore, Mauritius, South Africa, Australia, Canada,...
Indian doctor who, two weeks prior to his wedding, goes to Russia for a conference pertaining to his occupation, that of a doctor
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
. There he struggles to cope with the language because of the Russian reluctance to speak English, and eventually, due to the gruesome murder of a local woman, finds himself in jail. How the doctor manages to get himself out of jail in order to get married to his sweetheart in India, with the help of an Indian female lawyer, forms the crux of the story.
The film opened to worldwide audiences, after several delays, on 29 August 2008. Dhaam Dhoom was the last film that director Jeeva undertook before his death which occurred half way through the project's production. The film, released as a tribute to Jeeva, was completed by his assistant, Manikandan
V. Manikandan
V. Manikandan is a leading cinematographer hailing from Tamil Nadu. He has worked as the cinematographer for a number of major box office hits in Hindi and Tamil. He is an acclaimed ad film cinematographer with more than 3,000 ad films to his credit. He won the Best Cinematographer award...
, and his wife Anees, and was overseen by veteran cinematographer P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sreeram is a cinematographer and film director, educated at the Film and Television Institute of Tamil nadu . P.C. Sreeram is fondly called as PC sir. P.C. Sreeram won appreciations for his various cinematographic works and his directorial venture Kurruthipunal was selected as India's...
. The movie is loosely based on the 1997 Hollywood thriller Red Corner
Red Corner
Red Corner is a drama film produced in 1997, directed by Jon Avnet and written by Robert King.- Plot :It tells the story of a wealthy American businessman named Jack Moore working in China and attempting to put together a satellite communications deal as part of a joint venture with the Chinese...
.
Plot
Gautham Subramaniam (Jayam RaviJayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M...
) is a well educated, handsome son of an Indian family. Since his father (Nizhagal Ravi) and mother are doctors, Gautham aims to become a doctor and achieves it. Gautham gets a golden opportunity from the government to go to Russia to represent India in a week long medical conference, along with five other young doctors. Gautham is delighted to receive this offer and packs his bags to fly to Russia. Meanwhile, Gautham’s beloved is introduced on the frame which happens to be Shenba (Kangna Ranaut
Kangna Ranaut
Kangna Ranaut is an Indian actress who appears mostly in Hindi films. She made her acting debut in 2006 with a leading role in Gangster. She won both a Filmfare and a National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as a troubled model in Fashion .-Early life:Ranaut was born to...
). Shenba happens to be the same village girl in which his sister Sarasu, (Anu Haasan
Anu Haasan
Anu Hasan is a Tamil actress and TV anchor. She made her film debut in the critically acclaimed film Indira and has since appeared in a few Tamil films, playing supporting roles. She currently hosts the celebrity talk show Koffee with Anu on the Tamil channel Vijay...
) resides with her husband (Chetan) and so they two meet and fall in love. Despite initial frictions between her father and uncle (Mahadevan and Bose Venkat) with Gautham, they eventually agree to get the pair married. Gautham’s parents agree to the marriage and as a happy man Gautham is ready to marry Shenba after his return to India from his Russia trip.
Finally, the journey to Russia happens and Gautham reaches Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
and completes his immigration procedures. Incidentally, Gautham meets Anna (Maria Kojernikova) and unknowingly the sexy lady drops her jacket at the hero. In a quick situation the hero has no time to return the jacket and exits from the Moscow airport accompanied by his medical team. Gautham is flabbergasted by the roads and buildings of the city and is surprised to see the city of Moscow from his hotel view. Gautham learns that the only hiccup with Russians is that the people are ignorant about the English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and the whole conversation with them must be made in Russian national language.
Soon after, Gautham discovers Anna and takes the prospect to return her coat. The two get together well and part the ways. Meanwhile, Gautham medical conference takes place successfully and in order to celebrate its success the whole team head to a club. Gautham bumps into Anna in the night club and they two have an enjoyable time in the club. Anna, due to heavy consumption of Liquor, intoxicates and Gautham has no other choice than to accompany her to her room. When the two reach Anna’s apartment in they settle down and sleep. Gautham is brutally dragged onto the floor by a Russian police officer the next day morning and the reason is that Anna is murdered on her sofa.
Consequently, Gautham's situation changes; he gets abused, accused and is imprisoned by the Russian police. The language, people and the surroundings are totally new and confusing to the hero. Aarthi Chinnappa (Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai is an Indian film actress and model from Belgaum, Karnataka, predominantly appearing in Malayalam and Tamil films. While most of her Tamil releases performed poorly at the box office, she rose to fame with the popular Malayalam-language films Annan Thambi , 2 Harihar Nagar ,...
) is appointed as a defendant lawyer to the culprit Gautham. The Indian consulate sends Raghavan Nambiar (Jayaram
Jayaram
Jayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
) to Gautham's rescue. When Gautham tries to run away from the Russian Police he gets drowned in a lake and Aarthi finds him at the shore. Aarthi kisses Gautham to rescue him and she releases that Aarthi has fallen in love with Gautham, but suppresses her feelings when she learns about Shenba. Gautham escapes from the police and is running around St. Petersburg with Aarthi, trying to figure out who murdered Anna and why he was caught up in the scandal. Whilst, fleeing from the police, Gautham gets shot by the mafia
Mafia
The Mafia is a criminal syndicate that emerged in the mid-nineteenth century in Sicily, Italy. It is a loose association of criminal groups that share a common organizational structure and code of conduct, and whose common enterprise is protection racketeering...
and manages to escape narrowly. After taking care of his wounds, Aarthi and Gautham decide to seek down those who misled them. With the eventual villainous figure being revealed as Raghavan.
Before a shoot off, Raghavan reveals that Anna was a drug trafficker from Chennai to Russia, and by dropping her coat, consisting of drugs, off at the airport manages to evade being caught. Soon after Anna had changed her ways and was ready to tell the police about Raghavan's drug dealing, but before that happened Raghavan along with the mafia had her killed off. In the final scene, Raghavan is killed by the police, and Gautham is set free to reunite with Shenba for their wedding.
Cast
- Jayam RaviJayam RaviJayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M...
as Gautham Subramaniam. Gautham is a successful doctor, preparing to leave for Russia on a five-day conference. He's happy, carefree, backed up by a loving family and is depressed at leaving behind his fiancee, whom he will wed in a few days. However, his emotions change when he reaches Russia. - Kangna RanautKangna RanautKangna Ranaut is an Indian actress who appears mostly in Hindi films. She made her acting debut in 2006 with a leading role in Gangster. She won both a Filmfare and a National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as a troubled model in Fashion .-Early life:Ranaut was born to...
as Shenba. Shenba is Gautham's fiance back in PollachiPollachiPollachi is a taluk of Coimbatore Rural district of the Tamil Nadu state of India. It lies in the southern part of the Coimbatore city around 40 kilometres from downtown Coimbatore. This is the second largest town in the District after Corporation of Coimbatore. Owing to the proximity to the...
, the pair are deeply upset about their parting for his conference to Russia. - Lakshmi RaiLakshmi RaiLakshmi Rai is an Indian film actress and model from Belgaum, Karnataka, predominantly appearing in Malayalam and Tamil films. While most of her Tamil releases performed poorly at the box office, she rose to fame with the popular Malayalam-language films Annan Thambi , 2 Harihar Nagar ,...
as Aarthi Chinappa. Aarthi, who acts as Gautham's interpreter, and is his lawyer. Together, the two run from one point to another, trying desperately to search for a few clues. She has initial love feelings towards Gautham and also kisses him on lips (to give him air after he was drowned in the water). But she opts to stop it after finding out about Shenba - Maria Kojernikova as Anna. Anna is a Russian model, who befriends Gautham at Moscow AirportSheremetyevo International AirportSheremetyevo International Airport , is an international airport located in the Moscow Oblast, Russia, north-west of central Moscow. It is a hub for the passenger operations of the Russian international airline Aeroflot, and one of the three major airports serving Moscow along with Domodedovo...
. They meet again afterwards with the pair becoming good friends, only to be ended by her mysterious murder. The murder of her, forms the crux of the story. - JayaramJayaramJayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
as Raghavan Nambiar is the Indian embassy's representative for Russia, who promises to help Gautham free from the police. However, he turns out to be the villain of the film, bring Gautham in to protect his own identity. - Anu Hasan as Sarasu. Her character portrays Gautham's sister who is married in the village where Shenba lives.
- SrinathSrinath (actor)For Malayali actor see SreenathSrinath is an Indian actor and director. He starting in drama troupes, and has transitioned to the film industry. After appearing in various television serials such as Kadhalikka Neramillai, he started to play supporting roles in films such as Ullam Ketkumae and...
as Chinnavar. Chinnavar is a servant in Sarasu's household, Chinnavar provides comic relief in the film.
Casting
The film was launched initially with Jayam RaviJayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M...
paired opposite Genelia D'Souza
Genelia D'Souza
Genelia D'Souza is an Indian actress, model, and host. She has appeared in Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, and Malayalam language films. After gaining wide attention in a Parker Pen commercial with Amitabh Bachchan, D'Souza began her acting career with Tujhe Meri Kasam in 2003...
, however she opted out of the project due to fully booked dates for her Telugu
Telugu language
Telugu is a Central Dravidian language primarily spoken in the state of Andhra Pradesh, India, where it is an official language. It is also spoken in the neighbouring states of Chattisgarh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Orissa and Tamil Nadu...
film, Dhee
Dhee
Dhee is a Telugu movie starring Vishnu Vardhan Babu and Genelia D'Souza. It was directed and produced by Srinu Vytla. The film released on 13 April 2007 and turned out to be a super hit.The Hindi remake starring Sanjay Dutt is in production.- Plot :...
. After Genelia's removal from the project other leading actresses such as Asin
Asín
Asín is a municipality located in the Cinco Villas comarca of the province of Zaragoza, Aragon, Spain, located a few kilometers west of Orés. According to the 2004 census , the municipality has a population of 106 inhabitants....
and Mamta Mohandas
Mamta Mohandas
Mamta Mohandas is an Indian film actress and playback singer. She has mainly acted in Malayalam films, besides few Telugu and Tamil productions and one Kannada film...
were approached for a key role in the film, but they also rejected the offer, citing commitments to other projects.
Reema Sen
Reema Sen
Reema Sen is an Indian actress and model.-Early life:Reema Sen was born in Kolkata, into a middle class Kayastha family in 1981. She completed high school from Calcutta, after which her family moved to Mumbai.-Film career:...
was then roped in for a significant role in the film; however, 14 days after her confirmation, she pulled out of the project, citing differences with the director, Jeeva
Jeeva (director)
Jeeva was a popular cinematographer and film director in Tamil cinema.-Career:The four completed films he directed, namely 12B, Run , Ullam Ketkumae and Unnale Unnale, have become blockbusters. He died after suffering acute cardiac arrest in Russia on 25 June at the age of 43...
. The role offered to Reema Sen, that of a lawyer, had no songs and was the second heroine role. Reema Sen confirmed later to Kumudham magazine that she did not want to play second lead in the film, and opted out of the project.
On 19 February 2007, the producers confirmed they had roped in Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai is an Indian film actress and model from Belgaum, Karnataka, predominantly appearing in Malayalam and Tamil films. While most of her Tamil releases performed poorly at the box office, she rose to fame with the popular Malayalam-language films Annan Thambi , 2 Harihar Nagar ,...
to essay the role dropped by Reema Sen. Kangna Ranaut
Kangna Ranaut
Kangna Ranaut is an Indian actress who appears mostly in Hindi films. She made her acting debut in 2006 with a leading role in Gangster. She won both a Filmfare and a National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as a troubled model in Fashion .-Early life:Ranaut was born to...
made her debut in the Tamil film industry with the film. Ranaut's payment of 75 lakh Indian rupee
Rupee
The rupee is the common name for the monetary unit of account in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives, and formerly in Burma, and Afghanistan. Historically, the first currency called "rupee" was introduced in the 16th century...
for the project, an all Indian record for a regional newcomer actress. The project was also Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai
Lakshmi Rai is an Indian film actress and model from Belgaum, Karnataka, predominantly appearing in Malayalam and Tamil films. While most of her Tamil releases performed poorly at the box office, she rose to fame with the popular Malayalam-language films Annan Thambi , 2 Harihar Nagar ,...
's biggest film of her career til then, despite being the second female lead in the project. Jayaram
Jayaram
Jayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
was later selected to portray the villain in the film, appearing in a such a role for the first time in his career.
As per Jeeva's previous films, Jeeva himself took charge of the cinematography, though, after his death, P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sreeram is a cinematographer and film director, educated at the Film and Television Institute of Tamil nadu . P.C. Sreeram is fondly called as PC sir. P.C. Sreeram won appreciations for his various cinematographic works and his directorial venture Kurruthipunal was selected as India's...
took charge. Although Jeeva had been reworking his final draft during filming, S. Ramakrishnan
S. Ramakrishnan
S. Ramakrishnan is a noted Tamil author and Tamil film dialogue writer. He was born in Mallankinaru, Virudhunagar district, Tamil Nadu. Ramakrishnan is noted for his column Thunai Ezhuthu in the magazine Ananda Vikatan. His short stories have been translated in German, French, Kannada, Hindi and...
was brought in after his death to find a way to connect the climax with the previous draft to the final one; the two would not come together properly, otherwise.
Filming
The film started in January 2007 in India, with the initial shoot taking place in ChennaiChennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
, consisting of Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M...
surrounded by duplicate snow. The first schedule was shot in February 2007, in and around Pollachi
Pollachi
Pollachi is a taluk of Coimbatore Rural district of the Tamil Nadu state of India. It lies in the southern part of the Coimbatore city around 40 kilometres from downtown Coimbatore. This is the second largest town in the District after Corporation of Coimbatore. Owing to the proximity to the...
, featuring the countryside backdrop, with scenes involving actors Jayam Ravi and Kangana Ranaut, among others. The film's crew originally had problems maintaining a visa to film in St. Petersburg, Russia, and decided to relocate the scenes to Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
in the Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
; however, they eventually obtained visas to shoot in Russia. While shooting their schedule in Russia, on 26 June 2007, director Jeeva died after suffering nujtf arrest. The film was suspended indefinitely following the director's demise.
In early July 2007, it was announced that M. Raja
M. Raja
Raja Mohan is an Indian film director, primarily working in the Tamil film industry. As of 2011, he has directed seven films, all of them being a remake even velayutham. Notably all his five directorials in Tamil starred his brother Jayam Ravi and were produced by his father, editor Mohan under his...
, elder sibling of Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M...
, would complete the project, but subsequently, veteran director P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sriram
P. C. Sreeram is a cinematographer and film director, educated at the Film and Television Institute of Tamil nadu . P.C. Sreeram is fondly called as PC sir. P.C. Sreeram won appreciations for his various cinematographic works and his directorial venture Kurruthipunal was selected as India's...
signed to complete the project with Jeeva's widow Anees. Finally, Anees Murugaraj announced that the film would be completed by her and Jeeva's assistant Manikandan
V. Manikandan
V. Manikandan is a leading cinematographer hailing from Tamil Nadu. He has worked as the cinematographer for a number of major box office hits in Hindi and Tamil. He is an acclaimed ad film cinematographer with more than 3,000 ad films to his credit. He won the Best Cinematographer award...
, whilst Sriram would overlook their efforts. Eventually, the team returned to Russia and canned the remaining scenes within 40 days.
Reception
The film opened to worldwide audiences on 29 August 2008 alongside JayamkondaanJayamkondaan
Jayam Kondaan is a 2008 Tamil action and romantic film. Directed and co-written by Kannan and produced by T. G. Thiyagarajan it stars Vinay Rai, Bhavana Balachandran and Lekha Washington in the lead roles. Vivek and Kishore also appeared....
. The film became Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi
Jayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M...
's largest release til date with over 200 prints being published worldwide.
The film opened in Chennai strongly, with advance bookings full for the opening weekend at Inox and Sathyam Cinemas, while at Mayajaal, there were 22 shows daily of the film, leading to a successful opening of 92% full attendance. Rs
Rupee
The rupee is the common name for the monetary unit of account in India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, Mauritius, Seychelles, Maldives, and formerly in Burma, and Afghanistan. Historically, the first currency called "rupee" was introduced in the 16th century...
. 49,29,778 was grossed on the first weekend in Chennai
Chennai
Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India...
multiplexes, which had a total of 166 shows over three days. After the first week the film, maintained its place at top spot, despite the entry of Saroja, gaining Rs. 37,31,124, with a total attendance percentage in Chennai of 70%.
Overseas, in the United Kingdom box office, the film opened at number 22, earning £21,634 during the first weekend, after opening across four Cineworld
Cineworld
Cineworld Group plc is a cinema chain operating in the United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Jersey. The chain consists of 78 cinemas; 76 of which are located in the UK and one each in Ireland and Jersey. It is the second-largest cinema operator in the UK with 801 screens, and the owner of...
screens. After the second week the cumulative gross increased to £37,050, retaining the amount of screens, but slipping to 34th in the weekly rankings.
Soundtrack
The film has six songs composed by Harris JayarajHarris Jayaraj
Harris Jayaraj is an Indian film composer. He has written scores and soundtracks for Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films.- Early life :Harris Jayaraj hails from a pious Christian Nadar family and was born and brought up in Chennai. Harris studied at Krishnaswamy Matric School, Nungambakam. His father,...
with the lyrics primarily penned by Na. Muthukumar
Na. Muthukumar
Na. Muthukumar is a Tamil poet and lyricist, who writes lyrics for Tamil film songs.-Career:Muthukumar began his career wanting to be a director and worked under Balu Mahendra for four years. But then he became a lyricist, beginning with the lyrics for the songs of the Tamil film Veera Nadai,...
and Pa. Vijay. The audio of the film released worldwide on 19 March 2008, five months prior to the release. The soundtrack was successfully received with praise, with Indiaglitz.com labelling the album as "delightful" .
| Song title | Singers | Length (m:ss) | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thikku Thikku | Benny Dayal Benny Dayal Benny Dayal is an Indian singer. He is a member of the band S5 launched by the channel SS Music. Originally from Kerala, he has worked as a playback singer with many noted composers to produce successful soundtracks.-Biography:Benny Dayal's parents hail from Kollam district, Kerala... and Sayanora Philip |
5:25 | A song picturized in the nightclubs of St. Petersburg with Russian bar dancers. |
| Sakiyae | Bombay Jayashree and Krish Krish (singer) Vijay Balakrishnan popularly known by his stage name, Krish, is a Tamil playback singer. Other than working with reputable Indian film composers, including Harris Jayaraj, A. R... |
5:09 | A montage featuring Jayam Ravi Jayam Ravi Jayam Ravi is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M... , Kangana Ranaut and Lakshmi Rai Lakshmi Rai Lakshmi Rai is an Indian film actress and model from Belgaum, Karnataka, predominantly appearing in Malayalam and Tamil films. While most of her Tamil releases performed poorly at the box office, she rose to fame with the popular Malayalam-language films Annan Thambi , 2 Harihar Nagar ,... 's struggles to be with their loved ones. |
| Anbe En Anbe | Harish Raghavendra Harish Raghavendra Harish Raghavendra is an Indian vocalist and actor from Chennai, India. His real name is Harish Ram Srinivas & son to a photographer P.V Raghavendran... |
4:49 | A romantic interlude featuring Kangana Ranaut and Jayam Ravi. Picturized in Coorg. |
| Pudhu Pudhu | Benny Dayal Benny Dayal Benny Dayal is an Indian singer. He is a member of the band S5 launched by the channel SS Music. Originally from Kerala, he has worked as a playback singer with many noted composers to produce successful soundtracks.-Biography:Benny Dayal's parents hail from Kollam district, Kerala... , Suchitra Suchitra Suchitra Karthik Kumar is an Indian Tamil Radio Jockey and Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu playback singer. Born and brought up in Kerala, she had her school education in Bhavans Vidya Mandir Giri Nagar, Kochi. She is a graduate from the Kerala University... and Guna |
4:22 | Introduction song for Jayam Ravi. Shot in Chennai Chennai Chennai , formerly known as Madras or Madarasapatinam , is the capital city of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, located on the Coromandel Coast off the Bay of Bengal. Chennai is the fourth most populous metropolitan area and the sixth most populous city in India... . |
| Uyyaalalo Uyyaalalo | Kailash Kher and Sujatha | 4:42 | Only a part of the soundtrack. |
| Azhiyilae | Haricharan | 2:39 | A romantic interlude picturized in a car. |