Netru, Indru, Naalai
Encyclopedia
Conceptualized first in 2000, the original show was supposed to be a one off event in order to help The Banyan
raise funds for its building corpus fund. The very first Netru, Indru, Naalai had the likes of Revathi Menon and Aamir Khan
, then dubbing for Lagaan
in Chennai
, engaging the audiences to a reverting show - that was held at the Indian Airlines stadium in Chennai.
The next Netru, Indru, Naalai was held at Indian Institute of Technology Chennai
in December 2002. It had an approximate audience of about 10,000 spectators- the format was similar to the first NIN, with songs and dances through the ages. The exclusive TV rights were given the Star Vijay
, a subsidiary of Star TV
.
In February 2006, the third installment Netru, Indru, Naalai, a Broadway
musical
style tribute to the Tamil filmdom premiered at the Jeppiar Engineering College, in Chennai
, Tamil Nadu
. Directed by Mani Ratnam
, the three hour song, dance, and drama extravaganza brings to life definitive celluloid moments from Tamil cinema
, across its different eras (Netru (yesterday), Indru (today), and Naalai (tomorrow)), to the stage. The show features 100 dancers, as well as actors and actresses from across the country. Acclaimed film and theatre composer A. R. Rahman
has composed a special song for the show, and other notable technicians involved in the production include art director Sabu Cyril
, and award winning director/cinematographer Rajiv Menon
.
The stage musical marks the first theatre
production directed by Mani Ratnam, who, along with director Vasanth
, and numerous other well known artistes, conceived the show in aid of The Banyan
, a charity that aids mentally challenged and destitute women.
Actors involved in the production include Kamal Haasan
, Joseph Vijay
, R. Madhavan
, Vikram
, Mohanlal
, Prakash Raj
, Bharath, Shriya Saran
, Asin Thottumkal
, Kiran Rathod
, Pooja, Sadha
, Malavika
, Rohini
, Vivek
, Genelia D'Souza
, Sridevi, Vineeth
, Abbas
, Shaam
, Vivek Oberoi
, Abhishek Bachchan
, Simbu
, Laila, Revathi Menon, Simran Bagga, Srikanth, Shobana, Arya
, Bhanupriya
, Sandhya
, Reema Sen
, and Shilpa Shetty
. Singers involved in the production include Harini
.
Choreography for the show was provided by Kala and Brinda. It had an equally large number of spectators- with unconfirmed reports of close to 12,000 coming to watch this musical extravaganza.
The Banyan
The Banyan is an organization that cares for and rehabilitates homeless women with mental illness found in the streets of Chennai, India. The organization provides women a safe shelter, care, medical attention, and a supportive environment to enable them to recover and to take responsibility for...
raise funds for its building corpus fund. The very first Netru, Indru, Naalai had the likes of Revathi Menon and Aamir Khan
Aamir Khan
Aamir Hussain Khan is an Indian film actor, director and producer who has established himself as one of the leading actors of Hindi cinema....
, then dubbing for Lagaan
Lagaan
Lagaan is a 2001 Bollywood sports film written and directed by Ashutosh Gowariker. Aamir Khan, who was also the producer for the film, stars with Gracy Singh in the lead roles; British actors Rachel Shelley and Paul Blackthorne play the supporting roles...
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...
, engaging the audiences to a reverting show - that was held at the Indian Airlines stadium in Chennai.
The next Netru, Indru, Naalai was held at Indian Institute of Technology Chennai
Indian Institute of Technology Madras
The Indian Institute of Technology Madras is an engineering and technology school in Chennai in southern India. It is recognized as an Institute of National Importance by the Government of India...
in December 2002. It had an approximate audience of about 10,000 spectators- the format was similar to the first NIN, with songs and dances through the ages. The exclusive TV rights were given the Star Vijay
STAR Vijay
STAR Vijay is a popular Indian entertainment channel broadcasting in Tamil. The channel is also available in several other nations as well. The channel is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation...
, a subsidiary of Star TV
STAR TV (Asia)
Satellite Television Asian Region is an Asian TV service owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation.In 2009, News Corporation restructured STAR Asia into four units – STAR India, STAR Greater China, STAR Select and Fox International Channels....
.
In February 2006, the third installment Netru, Indru, Naalai, a Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
musical
Musical theatre
Musical theatre is a form of theatre combining songs, spoken dialogue, acting, and dance. The emotional content of the piece – humor, pathos, love, anger – as well as the story itself, is communicated through the words, music, movement and technical aspects of the entertainment as an...
style tribute to the Tamil filmdom premiered at the Jeppiar Engineering College, 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...
, Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
. Directed by Mani Ratnam
Mani Ratnam
Mani Ratnam is an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter and producer. He made his directorial debut with the Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi starring Anil Kapoor in 1983...
, the three hour song, dance, and drama extravaganza brings to life definitive celluloid moments from Tamil cinema
Kollywood
Kollywood is a word referring two different movie industries in India and Nepal, derived from the word Hollywood and their local movie centers.* Tamil cinema, the Tamil language film industry based on Kodambakkam, Chennai, Tamil Nadu,...
, across its different eras (Netru (yesterday), Indru (today), and Naalai (tomorrow)), to the stage. The show features 100 dancers, as well as actors and actresses from across the country. Acclaimed film and theatre composer A. R. Rahman
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman is an Indian composer, singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and philanthropist. Described as the world's most prominent and prolific film composer by Time, his works are notable for integrating eastern classical music with electronic music sounds, world music genres and...
has composed a special song for the show, and other notable technicians involved in the production include art director Sabu Cyril
Sabu Cyril
Sabu Cyril is an Indian film art director. He has won National Film Award for Best Art Direction four times and Filmfare Best Art Direction Award twice. His latest work Enthiran, in which he also played an important role, has won him international recognitions.-Early life and education:Sabu Cyril...
, and award winning director/cinematographer Rajiv Menon
Rajiv Menon
Rajiv Menon is an Indian cinematographer and film maker. He is known for directing critically acclaimed Tamil films like Minsaara Kanavu and Kandukondain Kandukondain.-Early Life:...
.
The stage musical marks the first theatre
Theatre
Theatre is a collaborative form of fine art that uses live performers to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place. The performers may communicate this experience to the audience through combinations of gesture, speech, song, music or dance...
production directed by Mani Ratnam, who, along with director Vasanth
Vasanth
Vasanth is an Indian film director and screenwriter, working in the Tamil film industry. Following a stint as journalist and after assisting K. Balachander, he made his directorial debut with Keladi Kanmani in 1990, which along with the trendsetting Aasai and Rhythm , are considered his finest...
, and numerous other well known artistes, conceived the show in aid of The Banyan
The Banyan
The Banyan is an organization that cares for and rehabilitates homeless women with mental illness found in the streets of Chennai, India. The organization provides women a safe shelter, care, medical attention, and a supportive environment to enable them to recover and to take responsibility for...
, a charity that aids mentally challenged and destitute women.
Actors involved in the production include Kamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan
Kamal Haasan is an Indian film actor, screenwriter and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting...
, Joseph Vijay
Joseph Vijay
Vijay is an Indian film actor and playback singer, who is based in the cinema of Tamil Nadu. He is the son of film producer and director S. A. Chandrasekhar. After performing uncredited roles as a child actor in films produced by his father, he made his debut in a lead role in the 1992 film...
, R. Madhavan
R. Madhavan
R. Madhavan is an Indian actor, writer, film producer and television host. Madhavan has received a Filmfare Award, an award from the Tamil Nadu State Film Awards alongside recognition and nominations from other organisations...
, Vikram
Vikram (actor)
Vikram is an Indian film actor who has predominantly appeared in Tamil language films. During his years in the Indian film industry, he has won five Filmfare Awards as well as one National Film Award and Tamil Nadu State Film Award amongst other recognitions and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate...
, Mohanlal
Mohanlal
Mohanlal Vishwanathan Nair , known mononymously as Mohanlal , is a National Award-winning Indian actor, producer, singer and writer who is well known for his versatile and natural acting in Indian cinema & hence widely known as the Universal Star...
, Prakash Raj
Prakash Raj
Prakash Raj , better known by his stage name Prakash Raj, is a National Award winning actor, director and producer who has worked in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Malayalam films. Though he was born in a Tulu family he achieved fame through Kannada, Tamil and Telugu films. He got introduced to...
, Bharath, Shriya Saran
Shriya Saran
Shriya Saran , also known by the mononym Shriya, is an Indian film actress and model. She has worked in several of the regional industries of Indian cinema, having acted in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi language films, as well as a few films in English, Malayalam and Kannada...
, Asin Thottumkal
Asin Thottumkal
Asin Thottumkal , known mononymously as Asin, is an Indian film actress, model and stage performer who acts primarily in Bollywood and Kollywood....
, Kiran Rathod
Kiran Rathod
Kiran Rathod is an Indian film actress. She has appeared in Hindi and Tamil films.-Early life:Rathod was born on 11 January 1981 in Azamgarh, Uttar Pradesh into a Rajput family. She is a graduate of Mithibai College in Mumbai...
, Pooja, Sadha
Sadha
Sadhaf Mohammed Syed , better known as Sadha, is an Indian actress who mainly appears in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada films. Her most notable films include Jayam, Anniyan and Unnale Unnale.-Personal:...
, Malavika
Malavika
Malavika is the stage name of Shweta Konnur , in Bangalore, an Indian actress. She started out as a model for Fair and Lovely and became an actress in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films....
, Rohini
Rohini (actress)
Rohini is an actress in south Indian, notably Malayalam and Tamil, films. She started her career in 1976 as a child artist. She was married to actor late Raghuvaran from 1996 to 2003. She is also the most popular dubbing artist in Tamil industry. She lent her voice to actresses like Jyothika ,...
, Vivek
Vivek (actor)
Vivekananthan is an Indian film actor and comedian. He has won four Filmfare Best Comedian Awards for his performances in Run, Saamy, Perazhagan and Sivaji, respectively. In April 2009, Vivek received the Padma Shri award by the Government of India for his contribution to the arts. He was...
, 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...
, Sridevi, Vineeth
Vineeth
Vineeth is an Indian film actor and classical dancer who has acted in several well received films in his native Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films. He studied in Good Shepherd Public School, Ooty, and at St. Joseph's Boys' High School, Thalassery.Vineeth is nephew of the famous Travancore...
, Abbas
Abbas (actor)
Mirza Abbas Ali , known as Abbas, is an Indian film actor and model. He has appeared in Kollywood Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi and Kannada films.Born in Calcutta and educated in Mumbai, he was discovered modeling in Bangalore...
, Shaam
Shaam
Shamshuddin Ibrahim, known professionally as Shaam , is a Tamil film actor and model. Starting his career as a professional model, he soon made his acting debut in the film Khushi , appearing in a cameo role. He further appeared in lead roles in critically and commercially successful films such as...
, Vivek Oberoi
Vivek Oberoi
Vivek Oberoi is an Indian actor. He is the son of Bollywood actor Suresh Oberoi and Yashodhara Oberoi.- Early life :Vivek attended Mayo college in Ajmer. At an actors' workshop in London he was spotted by the director of New York University who took Vivek off to New York, where he completed his...
, Abhishek Bachchan
Abhishek Bachchan
Abhishek Bachchan is an Indian actor and producer. He is the son of Indian actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and is married to actress and former Miss World Aishwarya Rai....
, Simbu
Simbu
Simbu can refer to* the Simbu Province of Papua New Guinea* Kuman language , also known as Simbu or Chimbu* Chimbu River* Silambarasan Rajendar, a Tamil actor....
, Laila, Revathi Menon, Simran Bagga, Srikanth, Shobana, Arya
Arya (actor)
Arya is an Indian film actor who mainly appears in Tamil films. He is best known for his roles in the films Pattiyal , Naan Kadavul , Madrasapattinam , and Boss Engira Bhaskaran.-Personal life:...
, Bhanupriya
Bhanupriya
Bhanu Priya is an Indian actress. She was a former leading actress of the Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam film industries from 1980 to 1993...
, Sandhya
Sandhya (actress)
Revathi , known by her stage name Sandhya, is an Indian film actress who acts primarily in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu and Kannada films. She made her debut as an actress in the 2004 Tamil film Kaadhal , her performance in which earned her a Filmfare Award and Tamil Nadu State Film Award...
, 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:...
, and Shilpa Shetty
Shilpa Shetty
Shilpa Shetty is an Indian film actress and model. Since making her debut in the film Baazigar , she has appeared in nearly 40 Bollywood, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada films, her first leading role being in the 1994 Aag. Although she has been through years of decline during her career, Shetty has been...
. Singers involved in the production include Harini
Harini
Harini is an Indian film playback singer and classical singer, who sings mainly in Tamil films. She has also sung in Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam language films, whilst working with many leading film composers. She is married to another playback singer, Tippu.-Career:Harini learnt Carnatic...
.
Choreography for the show was provided by Kala and Brinda. It had an equally large number of spectators- with unconfirmed reports of close to 12,000 coming to watch this musical extravaganza.