SHOWBITZ

Cinemimi [Saturday, February 11, 2012]

A new role

Prakash Raj is thrilled about his directorial debut “Dhoni” that released this week. “When I watched the original by Mahesh Manjrekar in Marathi, I wanted to do it in Tamil. And, ‘Dhoni' has a few changes. I did not want to play the lead, but finally had to as we could not get anyone to play it,” says the actor-producer-director. So, when is his next directorial venture? “I have two stories in mind; I want to make sensible films that audience can enjoy as a family. Having said that, I must tell you acting is my priority, and I will continue to act.”

Wielding the megaphone

After donning the grease paint for 33 films, Lakshmi Ramakrishna now wields the megaphone. She says the film “Aarohanam” handles a serious subject in a lighter vein. “The film is based on an incident I witnessed. I was planning to produce it myself, but, Medimix took over the production half-way,” she says. The cast includes Viresh, Jai Guheni, Sampath, Jayaprakash, Viji Chandrasekar, Uma Padmanaban, Rajee, Abinai and Vijayasarathy. K has composed the music. Anup has produced the movie for AVA Production, in association with Monkey Creative Lab. Does she have a role in the film? “Yes, I'm following Alfred Hitchcock,” she grins. Hitchcock does a cameo in his movies!

Historic shot

One of the highlights of the film “Ishtam” is that it has been shot at the birth place of Charlie Chaplin. Director Prem Nissar says: “It was a satisfying experience for the crew.”

The film has Vimal and Nisha Agarwal in the lead. The film's music is scored by Thaman S.