Next gen of Thamizh cinema

Quite a few podcasts and variety shows are targeting Gen-Next of Thamizh Cinema.

First off was the news item on 'Sultan' the animated movie starring Rajinikanth possibly as the titular character. A teaser trailer was available along with his last blockbuster 'Sivaji'. This thrilled me at many levels. A big fan of animated movies it was heartening scene to see the genre finally entering the shores of Madras. Just last year, post 'Chandramukhi', the guys were discussing plot points for a new Rajini movie. Yep, this is what we do when we get together and we are proud of it. Anywise, the consensus was that the movie should take the 'thalaivar' appeal to the next generation of kids. Yours truly had suggested that the best possible route would be to do an animated action movie and add merchandising a la Hollywood. Since we are aping the movie making style anyway why not adopt the marketing route. This seems to have had some credibility although it was said in jest at that time. Now, we have Soundarya Rajinikanth, launching her father in a brand new avatar. Can't wait to see that one.

South Side Episode #10 featured an interview with Shruthi Hassan. I had heard her single 'Covers' a while back on an earlier episode. One of my friends in the music business had suggested that the song had more attitude than material. Irrespective, Shruthi came across as a fun-loving grounded girl with one witty quip after another ready in hand. Listening to her, I got the feeling that star kids in India adjust to stardom better than their Hollywood counterparts. Shruthi Hassan does seem to be eager to do her own thing rather than pressure herself with the growing expectations.

Another podcast in the South Side space is Radio NRI beamed out of Madras. Radio NRI features RJ Cary and his engaging interviews with 'it' people from Kodambakkam. One does feel that a pure Thamizh interview will be a lot more engaging given the subject matter discussed - Thamizh cinema. The two interviews I sampled were the ones with actors Sibiraj and Jeeva. It was a study in contrasts. Sibiraj's interview revealed his focus - his ambition to become the next big action hero in Thamizh cinema. That interview was very much like a talk with a Chennai College student drunk on local cinema. Jeeva, on the other hand has lofty ambitions. He did make a poignant observation - International cinema is really hardcore regional cinema. Only the movies that have a native flavor find an international audience. We cannot ape Hollywood to widen the audience beyond the shores of India. Looking forward to movies from this guy.