Here's a recap of the significant stories in entertainment across Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada films, and sometimes the odd television series as well.
Tovino Thomas runs away from the past and ghosts his friends in this ambiguous trailer of Dear Friend. The trailer cuts into multiple events portraying friendship memories, a scene where he hits one of his friends in anger, and another in which he is being interrogated by police. Without showing why such events take place, the trailer keeps us in the dark, building curiosity.
Dear Friend is directed by Vineeth Kumar and written by Sharfu, Suhas, and Arjun Lal. The film stars Tovino Thomas, Basil Joseph, Darshana Rajendran, Arjun Lal, Arjun Radhakrishnan, and Sanchana Natarajan. It is produced by Sameer Thahir, Shyju Khalid, and Ashiq Usman under the banner Happy Hours Entertainments & Ashiq Usman Productions. While Deepu Joseph handles editing, Justin Varghese is the music composer and Shyju Khalid is the DOP.
Helmed by Hanu Raghavapudi, Sita Ramam stars Dulquer Salmaan, Mrunal Thakur, and Rashmika Mandanna. The film's plot revolves around Rama (Dulquer) and Sita (Mrunal). Rashmika's character is Afreen and based on the teaser, she plays an important role in helping Rama and Sita.
The makers have announced that Sita Ramam will release on August 5 in theatres. Dulquer Salmaan's Tweet caption read "A love letter from the pages of history delivering soon to theatres near you…" Sita Ramam is scheduled to release in Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam. While PS Vinod and Shreyass Krishna handle the cinematography, Vishal Chandrasekhar scores the music for the film.
Veetla Vishesham is the Tamil remake of Ayushmann Khurrana's Hindi film Badhaai Ho. When a mother of two sons, the elder being 25-years-old, gets pregnant in her 50s, the family goes through a whirlwind of emotions. From society's talks and the sons handling their personal lives to the mother going through pregnancy in her 50s, Veetla Vishesham promises a fun take on how they handle the situation.
Veetla Vishesham is directed by RJ Balaji and NJ Saravanan, the combo known for the 2020 Nayanthara-starrer Mookuthi Amman. Veetla Vishesham is produced by Boney Kapoor and presented by Zee Studios & BayView Projects In Association with Romeo Pictures. It stars RJ Balaji, Sathyaraj, Urvashi, Aparna Balamurali, KPAC Lalitha, Pavithra Lokesh, and Visvesh. Karthik Muthukumar is the DOP, Selva RK is the editor and Girishh Gopalakrishnan handles the music department. The film is slated to hit the theatres on June 17.
Thank You teaser opens up with Abhi (Naga Chaitanya) claiming that he is the only reason for his success. He is blamed as self-centered and arrogant. However, he reasons his behaviors by saying, "he has sacrificed enough to come this far so he will not compromise in life hereafter". In Premam style, the film seems to portray three stages of his love life. The three female characters are played by Raashi Khanna, Malavika Nair, and Avika Gor.
Thank You is directed by Vikram K Kumar. PC Sreeram handles the cinematography and Thaman S is the musician. The film is produced by Dil Raju and Shirish under the banner of Sri Venkateswara Creations. It is co-produced by Harshith Reddy. The film is slated to hit the screens on July 8.
Laththi is directed by debutant A Vinodkumar. It stars Vishal and Sunaina in the lead roles, and Vishal will be seen as Muruganantham, a police officer. Actor Prabhu is also playing an important role. The makers have recently announced the release date as August 12, and Vishal tweeted the release poster with the caption "Stay tuned for my Chapter of Enmity". The film is produced by Ramana and Nandaa's production house. M Balasubramaniem handles the camera and Sam CS scores the music for the film.
Three robberies occur at three banks, but who is behind those? Are they all connected or are they individual events? While the thieves escape from two banks, the police can nab all the criminals if they manage to arrest the robbers in the last bank. 9 Hours is a web series releasing on Disney+ Hotstar on June 2 in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi.
9 Hours is directed by Jacob Verghese & Niranjan Kaushik. The story is written by Krish Jagarlamudi. It is produced by Y. Rajeev Reddy and Saibabu Jagarlamudi. Shakthi Kanth Karthick is the music director, Manojh Reddy is the cinematographer and Dharmendra Kakarala AFE is the editor.
The 52nd Kerala State Film Awards saw an entry of over 140 films. The Jury, headed by Bollywood filmmaker-screenwriter Saeed Akhtar Mirza, shortlisted a total of 29 films. Kerala's Minister for Cultural, Fisheries, and Youth Affairs Saji Cherian announced the awards on May 27.
Fahadh Faasil's Joji and Tovino Thomas's Minnal Murali bagged four awards each. While Joji won Best Script Adaptation and Best Director, Minnal Murali won Best VFX and Best Costumes, among others. Biju Menon and Joju George shared the award for Best Actor for their films Aarkkariyam, and Madhuram and Nayattu, respectively. Revathi was awarded the Best Actress for her role in Bhoothakalam.
J Baby is an emotional drama narrating the tale of a mother in her old age and her three children. Urvashi plays the mother, she is a carefree individual who helps others and is also very close to her grandchildren. However, when her three sons fight, she is heartbroken. One day, she goes missing. The remaining plot focuses on why she went missing and how her sons search for her.
J Baby is directed by Suresh Mari. It stars Dinesh, Urvasi, Maran, Kavitha Bharathy, Jaya Murthy, Shegar Narayanan, and Ezhumalai. Jayanth Sethu Mathavan is the DOP, Shanmugam Velusamy is the editor and Tony Britto is the music director. The film is produced by Pa.Ranjith, Abhayanand Singh, Piiyush Singh, Saurabh Gupta, and Aditi Anand.
After Moodar Koodam in 2013, director Naveen is back with his second venture Agni Siragugal. The film seems to be a highly packed action drama that takes place between two friends-turned-enemies. The teaser has a narrative dialogue in the background emphasising the fight between both, and how only one person should return alive and that is the real victory. The major face-off appears to be between Vijay Antony and Arun Vijay.
Agni Siragugal is written and directed by Naveen M. It stars Vijay Antony, Arun Vijay, Akshara Hassan, and Nasser. KA Batcha is the DOP, Vetre Krishnan is the editor and Natarajan Sankaran is the music composer. The film is produced by T Siva.
The makers of Kichcha Sudeep's upcoming 3D film Vikrant Rona have released the first single 'Ra Ra Rakkamma'. The dance number features Jacqueline Fernandez as Gadang Rakkamma. Shabbir Ahmed has penned the lyrics, and Nakash Aziz and Sunidhi Chauhan have sung the song. The music is composed by B Ajaneesh Loknath.
Vikrant Rona stars Kichcha Sudeep, Nirup Bhandari, Neetha Ashok and Jacqueline Fernandez. It is directed by Anup Bhandari and produced by Jack Manjunath and Shalini Manjunath. Ashik Kusugolli is the editor and William David is the DOP. The film is slated to hit the screens on July 28.
Innale Vare tracks the journey of Adhi (Asif Ali), an actor, and how he gets stuck in the complicated web of money, fame, and passion. It is directed by Jis Joy. The story was penned by Bobby and Sanjay. The film stars Asif Ali, Nimisha Sajayan, Antony Varghese, Reba John, Irshad Ali, Rony David, Sreelakshmi, and Athulya Chandra. Bahul Ramesh is the DOP and Ratheesh Raj is the editor. It is bankrolled by Mathew George.
After his outing in Oh My Dog, Arun Vijay's next is Yaanai, scheduled to release on June 17. Priya Bhavani Shankar, who was last seen in Hostel, plays the female lead. Apart from the leads, the film also features Radhika Sarathkumar, Samuthirakani, Ammu Abhirami, and Yogi Babu.
The makers unveiled a series of release posters featuring different actors. Yaanai is directed by Hari. Set in a village background, the film is billed as an action entertainer. It will also be released in Telugu titled Enugu. GV Prakash composed music for the film.
Rakshit Shetty appears in a new look for Sapta Sagaradaache Yello (SSE). The makers shared the poster of the film. He is seen in a salt-and-pepper look and has put on weight for his new role as Manu. Rakshit Shetty shared the poster with the caption "A world of events stay hidden behind Manu's new appearance".
The film marks the collaboration of Rakshit Shetty and director Hemanth after Godhi Banna Sadharan Mykattu. SSE is produced by Paramvah Studios. Rukmini Vasanth plays the female lead. Charan Raj is the music composer and Adhvaitha Gurumurthy is the cinematographer.
Set in the backdrop of Cochin Port from 1927 to 1953, Thuramukham follows the lives of workers who struggle for basic rights and power. Nivin Pauly plays a worker who is a part of the rebellion and fights for power in this periodic action film.
Thuramukham is directed by Rajeev Ravi (who is also the cinematographer) and written by Gopan Chidambaram, based on a play by KN Chidambaram. B Ajith Kumar is the editor. The film also stars Indrajith Sukumaran, Arjun Ashokan, Joju George, Poornima Indrajith, Nimisha Sajayan, Darshana Rajendran and Sudev Nair. It is produced by Sukumar Thekkepat, Jose Thomas, and Anoop Joseph. The music is composed by "K" & Shahabaz Aman. The film is scheduled to hit the theatres on June 3.
Filmmaker AR Murugadoss and producer Om Prakash Bhatt join hands to produce 1947 August 16, a pan-Indian film. The makers released the first look poster on 25 May. Gautham Karthik and debutant Revathy play the lead characters. The film is directed by NS Ponkumar and produced under the banners AR Murugadoss Productions, Purple Bull Entertainment, and God Bless Entertainment.