Manikya Kallu Preview

A lot of films has told the stories of teachers, who singularly converted their schools and the students to the best of the region. Now in 'Manickayakkallu', director M Mohanan of 'Katha parayumpol' fame is into his version of the turnarounds of a failing school. The movie which will get into theatres soon, will also have Prithviraj donning the stole of a school teacher, for the first time in his career. The movie is also of particular interest as it is the second movie from Mohanan, who debuted with a big hit which was later remade in every languages of the South and also in Hindi.

' Manikya Kallu' will tell the story of Vannanmala school,which was one of the most famous school in the district. This government school had a glorious past but is now on the verge of being shut down, with the least number of students  who are currently enrolled there. The school presently holds s single division for three classes with around 50 students. The teachers who have lost all hope about reviving the school has resorted to many side business and is busy with their personal activities. Add to this, the current batch also shows no promise as their results of the final examinations were pathetic. The principal of the school Kurup mash(Nedumudi venu) has done all to make it function well, but seeing its recent stature, he has lost hope and is using some area of the school as a godown of a fertiliser factory.

Everyone, especially the staff of the school, was astonished to see when one  young teacher named Vinayachandran (Prithviraj) has requested a transfer to the school, even after knowing the present status of the school. Not bothered by the situation, Vinayachandran, a clam and confident man has some clear intentions in mind, when he arrived into the school. Prithviraj has sported  a different look  dressed in a shirt and dhoti and wears a beard and glasses to suit the character of young teacher. Samvritha' Sunil is the heroine of the movie, who comes up as the Physical education teacher of the same school with the name Chandni.Her character  has no real commitment to educate children, but comes to school to make money by selling eggs and other farm products to her colleagues and students. Jagadeesh, Anil Murali, Kottayam Nazeer, Suresh Krishana,  Anoop Chandran, K.P.A.C. Lalitha, Bindhu Panikkar, Janet, Aiswarya and Muthumani are also part of the cast.

'Manikyakallu' is scripted by the director M Mohanan. Lyrics by Anil Panachooran have been composed by M. Jayachandran. P Sukumar is the cinematographer while Renjan Abraham does the editing.

‘Manikyakkallu' is being produced by A S Gireeshlal under the banner of Gouri Meenakshi Movies.

hree Kings Preview

After achieving admirable success with his first commercial hit 'Gulumal-the escape', director V K  Prakash is in the making of a laugh riot in the movie titled as ‘3 Kings.' Featuring his lucky heroes Kunchacko Boban and Jayasuriya together with Indrajith, the movie is currently in its post production.

'Three Kings' is about three cousins who belong to a family that is struggling to make ends meet. But all of them who are of the same age group, born at the same time to three brothers of the family who once inherited palaces, can't stand each other. They are all set to make fast money by resorting to very different ways. But in this race for making it big, each one will also makes it sure that the other two will not make a fortune by themselves.

Indrajith, who plays Bhasi, also known as Bhaskaranunniraja, a youngster who is trying to make a mark on the cricket field. Jayasuriya's character is a tele-screen actor called Sankar, whose original name is Sankaranunniraja. He sports a tiny ponytail for the role.

Kunchacko Boban plays Ramanunniraja also known as ram in ‘Three Kings' who is trying to make a fast buck by participating in various reality shows on television. Though their initial attempts fails big time, suddenly their appear a big ploy that may bring them back to riches. Will their plans of working together for a common good turn successful? '3 Kings', goes on to tell how these three brothers get themselves into the world of riches through simple   Kathal' Sandhya plays Bhasi's girl friend Manju, while Ann Augustine comes up as Ranju, who has a crush on Ram. Samvrutha Sunil plays Anju who is the love of Sankar.

Jagathy, Ashokan, Suraj, Salimkumar, Sreejith Ravi, Sasikalinga, Kunchan, Balachandran Chullikkad and Omana Ouseph are also part of the cast.

3 kings' is scripted as a complete family entertainer by Y V Rajesh, who had earlier been with V K P for Gulumaal. Rajesh had been an associate to Shafi and Bobby -Sanjay in many of their films.

Venu is the cinematographer while Mahesh Narayanan does the editing. The highlight of the movie includes a spoof of the hit YouTube album ‘Silsila hai silsila…,' which is remixed in the presence of its makers, by Ouseppachan. The movie will also have few more songs written by Shibu Chakravarthy.

‘Three Kings' is being produced by Abdul Nazar under the banner of KNM Films.

Nenu Naa Rakshasi Preview

It has been an year since his 'Leader' released and turned out to be a decent hit. Despite no release for over an year, Rana Daggubati has managed to hold the aura around him. A Hindi film in hand and talks with Tamil film industry, Rana has remained in news constantly. Like his debut film 'Leader', he chose his second Telugu film 'Nenu Naa Rakshasi' which is unconventional and devoid of stero type image, fights and no larger than life charecter.

Rana who played Chief Minister in his first film is seen as sharp shooter in this picture. Ileana who is his leading lady plays the role of a girl in distress who wants to commit suicide. The story is on how both these fall in love.

'Suicide is permanent solution to temperory problem' is one of the tag lines of the film. Ileana looks stunning in the movie and has supposedly acted well in this movie for a change.

She herself declared at the audio launch that the camera is focused on her face and not on her butt this time.

Rana informed that NNR is a genre film and when he heard the story first, he didn't find reference to it as such a film was never made in Telugu cinema.

"When I heard the story for the first time, I wrote it down and thought about it. I couldn't think of anyother movie I watched like this before. I said yes to it because very rarely such films are made. Puri Jagannadh is a mass commercial director with huge hits. Him making such unconventional movie is welcome sign. It balances commercial elements,"Rana says.

The music by Vishwa and Rahman evoked lukewarm response. The album invited criticism from music lovers for copying tunes from Micheal Jackson to compose tune for the track 'Padithinammo...'. Music director Vishwa however defended it saying it was only 'inspired' and not completely copied.

Mumait Khan who has almost quit Tollywood will be seen again in this movie playing some comic role with Ali. Abhimanyu Singh whose intense action as villain in Rakthacharitra-I is also roped in in the flick.

Puri Jagannadh who did Neninthe, Golimaar in the last few films is eagerly waiting for a hit again. Though the buzz about Nenu Naa Rakshasi is not great, it might do well at 'A' centres. We will get to know how the film does at box office as the movie releases on April 29th.

F.A.L.T.U - Entertainment with soul

Just before you think that F.A.L.T.U. is yet another college romcom in the offering, hold on for a second. That's because the film is not a romcom, it is indeed a 'dramcom' where drama and comedy run parallel to each other.

F.A.L.T.U. starts in a manner that one expected it to be. Three youngsters (Jackky Bhagnani, Puja Gupta, Angad Bedi) just want to have their quota of fun. They are pretty much carefree about their career ahead and resultantly fail to get admission in any college. They try to take help of their fourth friend's (Chandan Roy Sanyal) influential father (Akbar Khan) but are ridiculed there as well.

However life takes a turn for them when together, they end up setting a fake university by default. Soon there are hundreds of students who throng the university and now the quartet has a task cut out for them to create a roadmap for everyone's career ahead. In this endeavour of theirs, they are supported by Arshad Warsi (who is a man for all seasons) and Riteish Deshmukh (who is a motivational help).

Let's face it, the film's basic premise is as truly unbelievable as it is impossible to imagine everything around the university, its hostel, it's maintenance cost, other bills etc. to be funded without any financial backing. However once audience gets it in his/her mind that it is a movie which is being watched rather than a serious docudrama, F.A.L.T.U. turns into an enjoyable watch.

The initial scenes where these friends are is struggling to get admission into a college, the sequence when they take help from Arshad and Riteish, the twist in the tale when hundreds of students land up at the university - all of this keeps the fun element on during the first half of the film.

Second half stays on to be enjoyable as well though there is more drama than comedy in this part of the film. Jackky's conversation with his dad (Darshan Zariwala) where the latter explains to him the meaning of something waste turning useful after all, his idea of making things far more productive at the college, the extended sequence at a graveyard where all students come together to select a choice of their subject - there are quite a few highlight sequences that ensure that F.A.L.T.U. doesn't dip.

There are portions towards the latter part of the film which could entice mixed reactions from the audience though. Celebrities talking to camera about what goes behind excelling in their respective fields may be either grabbed with both hands or could see indifference coming their way. However from the message perspective, these scenes are bang on.

What takes the film to a different high altogether though is the song 'Awaaz' which forms the climax of the film. A stage dance performed by all the 'faltus', it boasts of some brilliant choreography that belongs to never seen before variety.

Amongst performances, Jackky leads from the front and shows a maturity in approaching his character as he transforms from a beer guzzling youngster to someone who tries to find a meaning in not just his life but also that of his college-mates. He dances brilliantly as well, especially in the song 'Fully faltus'. From this point on, he should be finding a good standing for himself in the industry.

Puja not just looks pretty but also acts confidently with an uninhibited approach. She is supposed to be casual in the film but never goes overboard. Chandan gets a lengthy role for himself post 'Kaminey' and impresses in practically every scene that he appears. As for Angad, one can see a good actor behind a tough physique.

Amongst the 'veterans' in the cast, Arshad and Riteish prove to be the anchors in the scenes where they appear. Cast in meaningful roles which are not mere guest appearances, they leave a mark. Amongst other actors, Darshan Zariwala leaves maximum impact, especially in the two scenes where he explains the meaning of 'kabaad' to his son.

At the end of it all, director Remo D'Souza ensures that F.A.L.T.U. stays on to be an entertainer with soul. You expect a cool campus entertainer from F.A.L.T.U. After all songs like 'Chaar Baj Gaye', 'Fully Faltu.', 'Bhoot Aaya' and especially 'Le Ja' (all composed by Sachin-Jigar) have already become quite popular over the weeks gone by which means that campus crowds have already been enticed enough to check out the fun quotient that the film brings on. But then the film's purpose is not just to entertain but also educate. And it does that successfully in it's own sweet manner.

Shor In The City - If you can’t hear it, you’re obviously dead!

Combining the direction skills of Raj Nidimoru and Krishna DK, ‘Shor In The City’ presents the dark side of Mumbai in lighter manner. The tagline - ‘If you can’t hear it, you’re obviously dead!’ – conveys the underlying thought that runs through the season’s most keenly awaited comedy, which revolves around three interconnected stories in the midst of the noise and grime of Mumbai.

The Story

Abhay (Sendhil Ramamurthy – Heroes, Covert Affairs), an NRI, is forced to come to terms with being alone in an unwelcoming city, which he thought was home. Living in a comfortable shell, he soon discovers that he might not be different from the thousands that mill around the bustling city.

He seeks refuge in the winsome Sharmili (Preeti Desai – former Miss England). Tilak (Tusshar Kapoor), a bootlegger with a conscience, pulls petty scams with his bold and carefree buddies, Ramesh (Nikhil Dwivedi) and Mandook (Pitobash Tripathi). One day they chance upon a rare loot on a local train, which opens up new and dangerously exciting avenues for them. Tilak, incidentally, is also shouldering the responsibility of his new bride, Sapna (Radhika Apte) while taking off on his latest thrill ride to have a ‘blast’.

Young Sawan (Sundeep Kishan) dreams of making it to the Junior Cricket team. In a city where corruption is a way of life, his dream comes at a price.

In the overcrowded urban landscape, lines dividing the right from the wrong are blurred, as the need to survive and succeed takes precedence.

The serio-comic take on the chaos of the city makes one realize that like its inhabitants, every city runs on its own ad-hoc rules.

From the producer of ‘Love Sex Aur Dhokha’, comes an edgy, trippy, and unabashedly entertaining film, which received a rousing response in New York, Pusan, and Dubai. Not-to-be-missed!

The Arrival

Bannered under ALT Entertainment and Balaji Motion Pictures, ‘Shor In The City’ is releasing on 28th April, 2011.

Sathyan movie in Palakkad

Sathyan Anthikkad will have Palakkad as his major location for his new Mohanlal film. The director is planning to kick off the shoot for this yet to be titled  movie by the first week of June. Padmapriya, Sheela, Nedumudi Venu, Innocent and K P A C Lalitha are the other lead actors in this movie which is produced by Antony Perumbavoor in the banner of Aashirwaad films. As usual Isaijnani Ilayaraja will tunes the songs for the flick, whose music composing will start in a week.

Chappa Kurisha Stills