Gautham Menon sings for 'Uppu Karuvadu'

Gautham Vasudev Menon is a singer now, as he has lent his voice for a peppy number in director Radha Mohan's upcoming movie 'Uppu Karuvadu'

The film's music composer Steeve Vatz is a close friend of Gautham and he is said to be instrumental in making the 'Yennai Arindhaal' director to sing the song.

"I am happy that Gautham came forward to sing the song. It is about celebrating a break in life. Madhan Karky came out with vibrant lyrics and Gautham and Steeve added life into it with their voice and music, respectively," Radha Mohan says.

Shreya returns to Hindi

Shreya Saran will play the female lead in the remake of Malayalam thriller' 'Drishyam'. She will essay the role played by Meena in the original while Ajay Devgan will play the lead role.

This movie has been remade in all the southern languages with Kamal Hassan currently starring along side Gauthami in the Tamil remake under the title 'Papanasam'. The Tamil version is being directed by Jeethu Joseph who also directed the Malayalam original.

Nishikant Kama, who directed 'Force' will be directing the film in Hindi. Tabu plays the role of the police officer. The makers are in the process of deciding the other cast & crew.

Nayantara Turns Down Vijay 59?

Recently there were reports doing rounds that Nayantara had been roped in to play the leading leading opposite Ilayathalapathy Vijay in his 59th film. But now, looks like the pretty actress has turned down the offer citing her busy schedule.

Vijay 59 will be directed by Atlee who had earlier worked with Nayantara in his first movie, Raja Rani. Since Atlee shared a good rapport with the Arrambam actress, it was speculated that Nayantara had given her nod to work in Vijay 59.

Nayantara who is currently busy with three other projects may not feature in Vijay 59, according to sources close to the actress. The movie will go on floors once Vijay finishes his current project Puli, an action-fantasy being directed by Chimbu Deven.

Vijay 59 is being bankrolled by Kalaipuli S Thanu and has music composed by GV Prakash. The Mayakkam Enna music director recently revealed that the album will have two romantic songs. Vijay's 59th film also happens to be GV Prakash's 50th film as a composer.

Meanwhile, reports suggests that Puli's shooting is being carried out at a tremendous pace and that the team is focused on wrapping up the current schedule as soon as possible. The climax portion of Puli  will be allegedly shot in some never before seen locations in the interior parts of Punjab and Chennai.

Tharai Thappattai: Varalaxmi's Performance Has Left Director Bala In Tears!

Director Bala who has dished out heart-rending movies like Sethu, Nandha, Pithamagan and Paradesi  is known for extracting National Award winning performances from his actors and actresses. For an actor/actress, it is not easy to impress a director like Bala but actress Varalaxmi has managed to do much more than that.

Varalaxmi of Poda Podi  fame is currently working on Bala's Tharai Thappattai  which also marks Isaignani Ilayaraja's 1000th film. On the sets of the film, Varalaxmi has done so much so that Bala was said to be in tears and has also gifted his heroine a watch with a golden chain which is worth more than 1.5 lakhs.

While filming an important sequence in which Varalaxmi had to be subjected to gruesome assaults by the baddies, the heroine had dislocated her collar bone. In spite of excruciating pain, she has carried on with the shoot and also never spoke about her discomfort citing that it may interrupt the shooting.

When the same scene had to be shot the next day, Varalaxmi has reportedly given her best despite being in great affliction. After the shot when Bala was finally informed about her condition, the maverick filmmaker couldn't hold back his emotions.

After gifting Varalaxmi his expensive watch, Bala has gone on to say that Varalaxmi will definitely walk away with the National Award for her outstanding performances in Tharai Thappattai. The film which also has Sasikumar is about folk dance and various other traditional art forms of Tamil Nadu.

Dhanush: 'Shamitabh' is the role of my lifetime

Shamitabh' - the short form of Dhanush and Amitabh is the year’s most awaited release. The movie that combines the south god in the making - Dhanush with India’s most recognized face Amitabh Bachchan in R Balki’s next direction after the incredible ‘Paa’ is soaring new heights in curiosity. Dhanush who is very busy in the movie’s promotion managed a quickie with indiaglitz and shared some ‘Shamitabh’ moments.. Excerpts

From a phenomenal B-town debut with "Raanjhanaa" to sharing screen with the phenomenon Mr Bachchan

It's a dream come true working with a stalwart like Mr.Bachchan .My very first shot in Hindi films was against a poster of Mr.Bachchan and now I get to be pitted against him in Shamitabh -It doesn't get any better than this.

People say you a south’s god in the making and you also have an unprecedented fan following up in north

The fact that people loved the character I played in Raanjhanaa and follow my other films down south is something I'm yet to come to terms with - It feels surreal and for an actor and its always a compliment to know that your character is remembered by people and not just your public image.

Why you opt for unconventional roles in Bollywood

Down south my fans are used to seeing me in a particular role and hence I'm restricted as an actor ! In Bollywood I have nothing to lose, so I try to experiment and mix it up as much as possible and thanks to R.Balki I bagged the role of a lifetime.

So what character does Dhanush plays in the role of his lifetime

I play an ordinary guy with dreams of being a star - The film is about clash of egos, about people competing for credit as filmmaking is a collaborative effort. ‘Shamitabh’ explores that collision between Mr.Bachchan and me.

R.Balki has called you an "Original actor" what you have to say

Balki sees things very differently and yet with so much clarity - It was a very enriching experience working on this film. Balki brings out the best in his actors

You are called the dark horse at the B/O

Its overwhelming ...And I hope to continue surprising them with performances that stay with them much after the film releases.

Gautham Menon Talks About Vijay's Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru And His Plans To Revive The Project!

In a recent interview to a popular Malayalam daily, Gautham Menon, who is awaiting the release of Ajith's Yennai Arindhaal  has opened up about Ilayathalapathy Vijay's Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru. He has also revealed why the project was shelved and his plans to revive it.

When asked why the project was stalled in the first place Gautham has said Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru is a film that has London as its backdrop. Since the story takes place in London, I had initially written a lot of dialogues in English. But Vijay backed out of the project saying that this film wouldn't appeal to his fans.

Talking about reviving the project, Gautham has said the project has not been shelved and that he will soon start working on the film once he makes some adjustments in his script. Whether or not Vijay will be a part of the film is not clear as of now.

Earlier there were reports that Vijay backed out of Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru as Gautham Menon was reluctant in sharing the entire story to Vijay. When Vijay lost his cool he requested Gautham to get back to him whenever he is ready with the full script.

Now we all know that Gautham is a director who refuses to divulge everything about the script even when he is working with top actors. Whether Vijay will adapt himself to Gautham's style of filmmaking or whether Gautham will opt for a different actor when he re-starts his work on Yohan: Adhyayam Ondru remains to be the question of the year.

Akshara treading on Shruti's glamour path

'Ulaganayagan' Kamal Haasan's second daughter Akshara Haasan's debut flick 'Shamitabh' is due for release tomorrow and she's already the talk of the town. The young actress is already making plans in advance for the growth of her career.

When asked the kind of films she'd be interested to do, Akshara responded by saying she wasn't interested in doing art or award-winning films, but has more craving for doing commercial flicks. She also said she'd not be hesitant to sport bikinis in movies if the script demands her to do so. It must be noted here that her sister Shruti surprised everyone by wearing a bikini in her debut flick.

With 'Shamitabh' releasing tomorrow, Akshara is waiting with bated breath for a positive result to her debut performance. based on how the movie performs, Akshara will carve a path for her career from then on, say sources close to the young upcoming actress.