Quick recap of Pongal releases

Pongal, the Tamil harvest festival, is always an occasion for celebration with new films. This time, seven films are releasing from Jan. 12 to 15. Here is a quick recap of these films.

GURU

Cast: Abhishek Bhachchan, Aishwarya Rai, Mithun, Madhavan, Vidya Balan.

Director: Mani Ratnam

Producer: Mani Ratnam

A rag to riches story of a young man from Idhar, a tiny village in Gujarat. Abhishek plays the title role of Guru Kant Desai. Aishwarya Rai plays his wife Sujatha. Mithun Chakraborthy plays the owner of a newspaper, and Madhavan is a simple, idealistic journalist with Vidya Balan as his wife. Mallika Sherwat’s item number Mayya Mayya is already a hit.

AALWAR

Cast: Ajith, Asin, Vivek, Lal

Direction: Sellaa

Producer: Mohan Natrajan

An action flick with an offbeat theme. Ajith plays a hospital ward boy and fights a dada who commits atrocities. Asin is a college girl. Malayalam actor Lal plays the villain.

POKKIRI

Cast: Vijay, Asin, Prakash Raj

Direction: Prabhu Deva

Producer: Ramesh Babu

A remake of Telugu blockbuster of the same title starring Mahesh Babu. An IPS officer, Vijay sneaks into a mafia in the garb of a mercenary to take revenge on the don, Prakash Raj. Asin plays his love interest. Mumait Khan’s sizzling item number is special.

THAMIRABARANI

Cast: Vishal, Bhanu, Prabhu, Nadhiya

Direction: Hari

Producer: Vijaya Production

Vishal tries his hand at comedy for the first time. Though it is mainly an action-oriented film, the first half has a few comedy scenes. The story is centered on the people living on the banks of the river Thamirabharani. Bhanu plays the heroine. Nadhiya is given the role of an upright officer.

PARUTHI VEERAN

Cast: Karthi, Priya Mani, Ganja Karuppu

Direction: Ameer

Producer: Team work Productions

Karthi, the younger brother of actor Surya, makes his debut. He plays the role of a rugged rural hero who fights for the people of his village. The film with a powerful, action-oriented theme was shot in rural areas in Madurai district. Priya Mani is the heroine. Ganja Karuppu plays the villain. Yuvan Shankar Raja has composed the music.

VEERASAMY

Cast: Vijaya T. Rajendar, Mumtaz, Meghna Naidu, Aziz

Director: Vijaya T. Rajendar

Producer: Simbhu Cine Arts

With this film Rajendar stages a comeback after a long gap. He plays the role of a lawyer. This is a one-man show in the sense he has written the story, screenplay, dialogues and lyrics, composed the songs and directed the film. Aziz from Mumbai is the hero with two heroines, Meghna Naidu and Mumtaz.

KALAKKARA CHANDRU

Cast: Karthik, Anu, Pandiarajan

Director: Ravi Raja

After lying in the cans for years, this film is finally releasing for Pongal. . Karthi plays a lawyer with Pandiarajan as his bumbling assistant. New face Anu is the heroine.