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 By Rinku Gupta Motta Rajendran aka Naan Kadavul Rajendran, who usually plays a menacing villain, turns into a lead character with his upcoming film, Robinhood. Directed by Karthik Palaniappan, and produced by Lumieres Studios, the film stars RNR Manohar, Sangli Murugan, Ammu Abhirami ( of Asuran fame), Sathish and others.  A village based flick, Robinhood has Rajendran playing a thief, in this comedy caper with an emotional connect. The first look motion poster was released by Vijay Sethupathi, a few months ago,before the lockdown threw releases out of gear.

By Rinku Gupta Living out of a suitcase is nothing new for the Indian 2 actor Rakul Preet Singh. However, given the rise in cases, travelling during the covid pandemic despite  full precautions, can be quite stressful to say the least.   But the actor seems to have undertaken this challenging journey, in order to visit her parents, after several months in Lockdown at her Mumbai apartment. Along with her brother Amanpreet, (who is entering the Telugu industry) Rakul was spotted at Mumbai airport. Rakul was leaving for her home town New Delhi, where her parents live, as she admittedly had missed them a lot during the lockdown.                            Rakul Preet Singh  The actor who is often spotted in casual but chic airport looks, shuttling between Mumbai, Chennai and Hyderabad,  was seen in a totally different avatar this time. The bro-sis duo were covered in PPE gear comple...

By Rinku Gupta The lockdown has brought about many changes in the lives of people. For Shanthnu Bhagyaraj and wife Kiki Vijay , the period has led to the formation of their own You Tube channel called 'With Love Shanthnu Kiki'. What's more, the duo made  their first short film and  uploaded it, called Konjam Corona, Naraya Kadhal, aka  KoCoNaKa,  which went on to become a huge hit. The film marks  Shanthnu's debut as a director. It  may be recalled that  Kiki is a well known TV anchor and runs her own dance studio. Now the short film marks her debut as an actor. With over 1.6 million views and counting,  the film,  shot entirely at home due to the lockdown,  has garnered huge appreciation from peers and fans alike. The  chemistry of the couple, it would seem, had already caught the eye of advertisers as well. Shanthnu ( who is awaiting the release of Vijay starrer Master, his next film) and wife Kiki had signed up last ye...

By Rinku Gupta Produced by Jyotika & Suriya Productions, Ponmagal Vandhal is a coutroom drama  dealing with the topical issue of child abuse,  rampant in society. Currently streaming on Amazon Prime Video, it's the first Tamil film to release directly, (sans a theatrical release) on OTT, during the lockdown. Jyotika plays Venba, a lawyer, who along with her mentor Pethuraj( K Bhagyaraj, aptly cast) fights for the rights of  Jyothi, wrongly accused and branded a child lifter and killed  for crimes she did not commit. Venba, who is fighting her first case,  is up against a powerful politico ( Thiagarajan, who nails it) and his lawyer ( Parthiepan in a convincing performance). Moreover, more than 15 years has passed since the crime, making evidence difficult to procure   Venba has to overcome all these obstacles to prove the innocence of Jothi. Does she succeed? More importantly, why is this case so important for her personally? ...

By Rinku Gupta Director Gautham Menon's recent short film Karthik Dial Seytha Yenn featuring STR and Trisha has been garnering eyeballs, on his Ondraga You Tube channel. The team made the film online during the lockdown.  Apparently,  Gautham has been spending his lockdown time doing  a lot of writing and this short film is part of a sequence planned for his Vinnaithandi Varuvaya ( VTV) sequel. Now, in an online live chat with the Cinema Express portal today, Gautham replied to a fans' question about the possibility of working with Ajith Kumar again.     Gautham Menon with Ajith Kumar          Ajith as Satyadeva and Arun Vijay as                            Viktor in Yennai Arindhaal Gautham revealed that during the covid lockdown he has written a dialogue between the  Satyadeva and Viktor characters of his film Yennai Arindhaal. What's more...

By Rinku Gupta While post-production work with lockdown precautions in place is taking  place in Kollywood, and director Gautham Menon has even directed a short film completely online, (Karthik Dial Seytha Yenn with STR , Trisha), in Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar was spotted shooting outdoors on a set at the Kamalistan studio in Mumbai. Social media went into a tizzy as photos appeared online.  It was revealed that the filming was for an important social cause,  with necessary permissions in place and with strict protocols.       Akshay Kumar at the shooting spot                Director Balki with the crew Produced by Anil Naidu, the film is touted to be a public awareness ad film  created for the Health Ministry, directed by Padman and Mission Mangal fame Balki.  The awareness film, focuses on the public's  responsibilities in the post lockdown period and the continued precautions to t...

By Rinku Gupta Even as ace Bollywood producer Karan Johar celebrated his 48th birthday today at home with his family,  he also shared news about a covid scare in his household amidst the lockdown. Apparently,  two of his staff members at home tested positive for the covid 19 virus. Johar lives in Mumbai with his mom Hiroo Johar and twin kids, Yash and Roohi. Yash and Roohi celebrating dad Karan Johar's birthday Johar put out a clarification on social media for concerned fans and reassured them that the necessary quarantine measures have been taken and the family members andrestof the staff  are safe: I'd like to inform you that 2 members of our household staff have t ested positive for Covid-1 9. As soon as the symptoms were detected,  they were put under quarantine in a section of our building.The BMC  was informed immediately, and the building has been fumigated and  sterilised by them as per the norms.  Th...

By Rinku Gupta Hero Shanthnu Bhagyaraj discovered his directorial flair during the covid lockdown by making a short film at home and acting in it as well, with wife Kiki Vijay as heroine. The film has been lauded for its content, presentation and message, with appreciation pouring in on social media. Shanthnu and wife Kiki Vijay                      Shanthnu Bhagyaraj Shanthnu shows the film to his father, ace director K Bhagyaraj A grateful Shanthnu wrote a letter of thanks to the media and fans for the overwhelming support for the film #KoCoNaKa. " Dear Friends from the Press, fellow industry members, fans and well wishers,  Kindly treat this presser as an extension of our thanks towards the wonderful support received for our first short film "Konjam Corona Naraiyya Kadhal" during these strange circumstances. Thanks to your support, the short film has garnered over 7.5 lakh views on o...

By Rinku Gupta The covid pandemic lockdown situation led to theatrical releases becoming impossible.  Films which were ready for release being directly hit at the time,  some chose to take the OTT route. In Kollywood Suriya announced his Ponmagal Vandhal would release on Amazon Prime on May 29 while Karthik Subbaraj's production Penguin, with Keerthy Suresh, will release on June 19. In Bollywood too, Amitabh Bachchan's Gulabo Sitabo will release on June 20 apart from several films in Kannada and Malayalam.        Kollywood producer SR Prabhu  Seven films to release on Amazon Prime in various languages.                Jyotika in Ponmagal Vandhal All this has led to a war between producers and theatre owners, with chains like Inox and PVR not taking kindly to such a shift to the OTT platform by producers. With OTT subscriptions on the rise and the platform now moving from the haunt of millenia...