“Valluvan film will be another gentleman”; ‘Gentleman-2’ hero !
“Who will punish those who keep the law in their hands if they make a mistake?”; Valluvan film director is furious
“He looks like a little Mohanlal when he laughs”; Director R.V. Udayakumar praises Valluvan film hero
“They blackmail in cinema to get a salary increase”; Director R.K. Selvamani at Valluvan film festival
“A pornographic film is much better than a film that corrupts culture”; Director Perarasu is furious
“Equal to 100 empires”; Perarasu praises Valluvan film director
“He wrote the screenplay for Thirukkural”; Director Radha Bharathi praises the director of Valluvan
The film ‘Valluvan’ is produced by Shailkumar under Aarupadai Productions. It is directed by Shankar Sarathi. Chethan Seenu, who has acted in films including Gentleman-2 and is a young leading actor in Telugu, will play the lead role in this film, while Aasna Saveri, who played the heroine in Vallavanukku Pullum Ayudham and Inime Aivaththi, will play the heroine in this film.
Manobala, Sai Deena, Deepa, Ramachandran (Rams) Karate Raja, Rajasimman, Meesai Rajendran, Silmisham Siva and others will play important roles.
Aswath will compose the music and Suresh Bala will handle the cinematography, while Shaan Lokesh will oversee the editing.
As the film is gearing up for release soon, the music and trailer launch of the film was held at the Saligramam Prasad label in Chennai.
Director and Pepsi Chairman R.K. Selvamani, directors R.V. Udayakumar, Perarasu, producer K. Rajan, actress Komal Sharma, actor Vijay Vishwa and many others attended the event as special guests and graced the occasion.
Speaking at the event,
Director Shankar Sarathi said,
“I have made this as a commercial crime thriller film focusing on this Thirukkural, ‘Kolayiit Kodiyarai Venthoruthal Baingoozh’,
Kaalukat Tathanodhu Ner’.
Ambedkar enacted laws so that the innocent should not be punished. But today, they are looking for ways to escape by using the loopholes in the laws, leaving aside the good things in them. The people who were entrusted with these laws to protect the people are the ones who are ruining the country today.
Who will punish those who are holding the law in their hands if they make mistakes? I have made Valluvan the film about the pain and anguish of a person who has been affected by this. In fact, I have converted the pain experienced by many in our family into a script.
“This story was created for actor Bharat. I went to him and told him. Although I liked the story, I could not get a date because he was acting in other films at the time.
I think it is an act of God that he is now sitting on the stage to appreciate this film,” he said.
As co-producer Balachander spoke,
When we started this film, we thought, is this possible? But looking at the crowd gathered here now, I think we have won half the battle. With this enthusiasm, we will make films one after another. We have come to keep Tamil cinema alive. Initially, we thought of making a film in Kannada. But here in Tamil, we made the film here because we wanted to do something for the Pepsi workers in front of legends like Selvamani sir,” he said.
Music composer Aswath said,
“I got the opportunity to compose music for this film through the hero of the film, Chethan Seenu. The producers encouraged me to give a chance to many talented new faces. In this way, I was able to introduce many new people like singers and poets in this film,” he said.
Actor Vijay Vishwa said,
“Director Shankar Sarathi made this film despite many difficulties. Today, when I watch this trailer, it seems like all the difficulties he faced have been resolved. The heroine can be said to be our Tamil Nadu Aishwarya Rai. As far as the producers are concerned, they keep telling them to make the film however they want.. Don’t let anyone complain about the food. They kept paying the salary on time. I missed the opportunity to work in this film. I am interested in working in their next films,” he said.
Producer K. Rajan said,
“Director Shankar Sarathi has titled this film Valluvan and made the film based on his poem. On the other hand, he has made the film Kolikaaran based on the name of Valluvan, who wrote, “Do good to those who do evil.” In the last two years, almost 75 percent of the films have English titles. This is a question of Tamil Nadu. At this time, I appreciate director Shankar Sarathi for having a title like Valluvan. If you have money, you can buy justice now. Many judges
Now they have become half-hearted,” he said today.
Director R.V. Udayakumar spoke,
Director Shankar Sarathi has taken Valluvar as an example to express the idea that those who made mistakes should be condemned and corrected. That is why he escaped the censor. In that way, someone from our directors’ association has bravely made a film with the title Valluvan, giving him a knife instead of a pen. The technique he directed in this film was good. When the protagonist smiles, he looks like a little Mohanlal. He should come well,” he said.
Actor Meesai Rajendran spoke,
“When Director Sarathi called me to act in this film, I initially refused to come. He called me exactly on October 25, 2023. That day was the captain’s birthday. Since he insisted on calling me again, I went to the captain, got permission, got his blessings and went to the shooting after noon. In that way, I will never forget this film in my life. No. My presence in cinema is a gift from God. The current directors take a short film and come and get a cinema opportunity and change the cinema culture. Tamil cinema has a value. Please do not change that culture,” he said.
Actor Bharath spoke,
“My presence in cinema is a big blessing. Those who come like that know very well how difficult it is to hold on to and move forward in such cinema without any background. A strong political idea starts from the very beginning of the title of this film. Even though the director told me the story, at that time I could not act in this film due to some other commitments. Actor Chethan Seenu alternates between acting in both languages, Telugu and Tamil. This will be a big break for him in Tamil. The cinematographer of this film is Suresh Bala, who has worked with me in three films, Kalidas, Kalidas 2 and Miral,” he said.
Actor Karate Raja speaking,
“Director Shankar Sarathi has given me a big role in this Valluvan film. I have played the role of a lawyer in it. When I go to cinema halls in many villages and small towns to watch the morning and afternoon screenings on Mondays and Tuesdays, I get shocked when I see only five or ten people. In many places, they have taken away cinema halls and started building halls and malls. I recently went on a trip to Munnar.. such a big tourist spot.. but there is not even a single theatre in such a big town. Similarly, when I talked to the public about why they do not go to cinema halls, I could see that many people asked that we should be allowed to bring snacks from outside. Let alone selling snacks at high prices in cinema halls. But let those who bring such things from outside be allowed. If we see what the problem is and try to solve it, those people will also go to cinema halls and watch our film. If snacks are not allowed, then we should make a way to sell the items sold in theaters at MRP prices. I will be happy if we do either of these two,” he said.
Actor Rajasimman speaking,
When the shooting of this film started, it was amidst many difficulties. The producers and the director, even actors like us, had some difficulties on their own sides. This film has been made amidst such difficulties. I am in awe when I see the trailer and songs of this film. To be honest, I never expected this film to reach this level. The producers did not mean it in a wrong way when they said that we have come to keep Tamil cinema alive. They only expressed their interest in making good films in Tamil. No one should take it the wrong way. Some people here said that the actors are all doing well. Not everyone is like that. During the Corona period, I was washing dishes at the hotel I was running in Koyambedu Market. Some people would criticize me for it because I was deaf. So, don’t say that all the actors are good in general. They also have their own problems. I have a problem even providing food to those who are not here. I am facing that too and doing it,” he said.
Actor Premkumar said,
“When the director of the film came to tell me this story, he said that this film is a crime thriller.. I have titled this film as Valluvan, so I said okay to act in it. There is a strong message in this film. There will be an impact after watching the film. It talks about how those in power make mistakes, how to confront them and the solutions to them. “It’s been a long time coming,” he said.
Heroine Aasna Saveri said,
“I am very happy to have acted in this film. Valluvan has everything – emotion, friendship, suspense, thriller, lots of twists. This film will definitely be worth the time and money you spend,” he said.
Director and Pepsi Chairman R.K. Selvamani said,
“When I was invited to the film and saw the invitation, I thought it was like a documentary. But when I saw the trailer, I felt like I was watching a huge action film. Didn’t I have doubts about this film in the beginning? So when we talk about this film in media promotions, we should clearly convey to the fans what kind of film it is. Only then will that segment of the fans come to watch this film. Today, it is the new producers who are keeping Tamil cinema alive.
In the last 10 years, almost 2500 films have come out. Of these, 2100 are new filmmakers. They are the ones who are giving us a hard time. But in all these years, 2000 people who made their first film have left. Only 400 people are coming back to make films again.
If you plant a tree, it will bear fruit in many ways.. Even if it is nothing, it will at least provide shade. Even for music composers, royalty money will be coming to their families after their death.. But the situation of producers is not like that.. If a system is introduced where heroes who earn well should give five or ten percent of their salary to the producers who made them, the producers will at least be better.
In today’s environment, as Valluvar said, those who want to harm others without shame and dignity cannot do good to those who do harm to others. They can only do good to them in return. When they go to many other countries, they treat all the common people like kings. They treat criminals as criminals. But here, even ordinary people are treated like criminals. But when a criminal comes, they treat him like a king. That’s how our system is.
When I went to a prison for a film and met the prisoners, I asked a murderer if he had planned a murder. He said that if he had planned a murder, they would be outside, but the ones who kill with passion are inside. That is what they have taken as a beautiful theme in this film.
Recently, there has been a trend of portraying actresses in a very vulgar way through AI. What is this government going to do to control this? My daughter is currently studying AI in the US. She told me that they are teaching us something that is against humanity. At some point, if the victims do not get justice, everyone will have a knife in their hand. The country will be pushed to a situation where everyone will seek justice for themselves. That is what they say in this film. Here, no one gets paid for their work. “The situation here is that when you become a little famous, you blackmail and get a high salary,” he said.
Director Radha Bharathi spoke,
“I have seen this film. When you see these actors who have played these characters in this film, you will be very proud. Especially you will be afraid of the heroine. Director Shankar Sarathi is my disciple. What no one knows is that he is interested in spirituality. He can sing Thevaram, Thiruppugazh, Thiruppa clearly. My father calls him Azhwar. He is so pious. At the same time, he always talks to me about social reform ideas. Parimelazhgar, Kalaignar etc. wrote a commentary on Thirukkural.
Director Shankar Sarathi has written the screenplay for Thirukkural.”
Actress Komal Sharma spoke,
“2000 years ago, when the world was surrounded by darkness, Valluvar gave light through 1330 Kurals. If our children read at least 10 Kurals a month, they will not only become better human beings but also great leaders. Thirukkural is not just literature. It also teaches us how to live life. A Thirukkural can also be included during daily prayer time in schools. Thirukkural has always been a guide for the world. I fully believe in that. If the youth carry Thirukkural in their minds, greed or bad thoughts will not come to their minds. They can change the very fabric of society,” he said.
Hero Chethan Seenu spoke,
“I have been fighting for an important place in the film industry for the last 15 years. This platform is an important platform for me. In the film Karungali directed by director M. Kalanjiyam 10 years ago
He introduced me as the hero. It was at this very place that many celebrities like directors Balu Mahendra, Ameer, and hero Jayam Ravi participated and the hall was full. After that, we celebrated the Red Man Success Meet here. I am currently acting in K.D. Kunjumon’s Gentleman-2. Its shooting is going on. After finishing acting in Karungali, I have been to all the companies from Vijay Anna’s house to Thala Ajith’s house. But you are white. When you said that you will not be a set for Tamil, I was scared. But revolutionary leader MGR, Kamal Haasan, Ajith are all white. Color is not a problem here. Only talent should be looked at.
Shankar Sarathi told me the story of this film before I agreed to act in Gentleman 2. As soon as I heard the story, I said that just as the film Gentleman became a brand name for Shankar, similarly this film Valluvan will become a brand for this Shankar Sarathi. It was only after that that I signed on for the film Gentleman 2. In that sense, I must say that the universe is watching over us. Some would say that we acted with our lives. That is almost how I acted in this film. They made me sit in a tram that I could not enter and even put smoke inside it. I almost thought that my life was gone. When we went beyond Chikmagalur into a dense forest for a song, heroine Asna Saveri and I got stuck without knowing the way. It was only later that we came to know that it was a place where tigers roam a lot. Even then, we escaped alive. They started it as a small film and gave it a big film.. It will definitely not disappoint you,” he said.
Producer P.L. Thenappan spoke,
“I was invited as a special guest for the film Pizza when I became the Producers’ Council Secretary. Everyone who acted in that film, including Vijay Sethupathi, has become great people. Similarly, I wish everyone who acted in this Valluvan film to get the same name and fame,” he said.
Producer of the film Valluvan, Shail Kumar spoke,
“It was my mother and father who supported me in making this film. Similarly, even though I was abroad, my friend Bhaskaran took care of the film’s work from here without any interruption. I thank them,” he said.
Director Perarasu spoke,
“Director Shankar Sarathi, who has titled this film Valluvan, is a spiritualist. That is why he has been able to give such a bold title. Valluvar has taken the pen from his hand and given him a knife. If Thiruvalluvar was there in the current situation, he would have taken a gun, not a knife. You should be commended for giving the title ‘Injustice, Crime.. Murder, Rape.. Valluvan’ to this extent. Because now you have made a film with a Tamil title without spewing something for the youth or for the trend.
Every time the government changes, whether there is any other change or not, the bus colors are immediately changed. The names of the towns named after the previous leaders are shortened. They left only Valluvar. When one government came, the first thing they did was to remove the band on his forehead. When another government came, they made him wear a saffron colored dhoti. Politics did not spare Thiruvalluvar either. If Thiruvalluvar comes now, the director does not need to give him a knife. He himself will put away the gun. That is how the country is. I have a position, I have money, I have legal skills, if we both join together we can buy the law.. Why can we buy the judge? It takes a lot of courage to say this line in this era. If you criticize a judge, they throw him away and keep him inside. What kind of judge is God? The king makes mistakes.. The Lord makes mistakes..
When I made the film Sivakasi, many courts in Tamil Nadu filed cases against me for mocking lawyers. They even filed cases against Vijay and the producer for acting in it. If they filed cases against the three of us for showing such a lawyer in a bad light, now if director Shankar is saying that a lawyer can buy the judge in this film, then he is truly equal to 100 empires. A director should have concern for the people and patriotism.. You can make any film be it action, comedy, family, caste, thriller. But the intention should be good. You should convey a good message. Pornographic films are much better than those who make films that corrupt culture. There are so many other businesses to make money. In that sense, I admire director Shankar Sarathi a lot.