As far as Kollywood is concerned, film releases and festivals go hand in hand. Over the past several years, it’s become commonplace for atleast four to five Tamil films of A-list stars to hit the silver screen on April 14 — Tamil New Year’s Day — which is auspicious for Tamilians to commence anything new. Surprisingly enough, this year, only a single big movie — Vijay’s Theri is releasing. Apart from this, a small budget film Yogiyan Varan Sombai Thooki Ulle Vai and a few other dubbed films like Nagarjuna’s Rowdy Maaplai are slated for a festive release.
Watching movies during a festival is usually a way of celebrating in Tamil Nadu. However, now the Tamil film industry seems to be lying low with hardly any of the buzz or enthusiasm that is normally associated with the festival. Several TV channels offer brand new films of biggies on April 14, to lure the viewers. Plus the heat is on in Chennai. So people would rather sit on the couch and watch TV in the comfort of their air-conditioned homes, than step out! Adding to the flavour of the season is the IPL (though without Chennai Super Kings) and elections also playing spoilsport.
Fans of Vijay are doubly happy and it could be an ‘advantage Vijay’ situation as Theri produced by Thaanu, will hit in maximum number of screens in TN. Reportedly, the film is going as a solo release in the neighbouring state of Kerala, thanks to the star’s huge popularity. “K’town audiences have their own share of undivided loyalists for each big star, namely Rajini, Kamal, Vijay, Ajith, Suriya, Dhanush among others. Maybe Vijay’s hardcore fans will throng the theaters, but ardent fans of other actors would prefer to spend the holiday in a better fashion, than going to cinema halls and that too with the temperature soaring,” says Karthik, a IT professional. He adds, “We, as a gang, want to spend the extended holiday weekend at a beach resort over good food and ideally watch television programmes and cricket matches.”
Though fans of Vijay will rejoice over the release of his much-awaited movie Theri, it’s surprising that only one big movie is hitting the screens this Puthandu. In fact, this particular day is considered one of the biggest days for Kollywood, as normally a cluster of movies releases around this this — OK Kanmani, Kanchana 2 and Oru Kal Oru Kannadi are the prominent movies to have done good businesses releasing around April 14, over the last few years.
When queried producer Dhananjayan G if Theri being the only big movie to release is good for Tamil cinema, he says, “You can see the expectation level among people through advanced booking and social media posts regarding the movie. The movie being a mammoth release worldwide, will generate good revenue, which is good for the industry.” He also states that the lack of other biggies is just a coincidence – “It’s just because of the fact that other films are not ready! There’s no hidden reason.”
For model Upasana Iyer, the Tamil New Year is all about celebration — feasting and watching movies. “Since New Year falls before the weekend, all my relatives and friends will come over to my place. Since I am shooting in the city, I’ll not be going out to celebrate the extended weekend. We, at home, celebrate Puthandu in a traditional way. My mother and grandmom makes traditional food items. We will be following the usual rituals — early morning oil bath followed by puja and a grand feast in the afternoon. My friends and I have planned to watch the First Day ‘First Show of Theri’ at Sathyam Cinemas.” She is one among many Chennaiites who hasn’t got the IPL fever this time — “No more IPL until CSK is back in action.” (With inputs from Merin and Balajee)
