Everything That Made News In Entertainment From The South (March 19 - 25)

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.

PS-2 trailer gets a release date (Tamil)

The second instalment of Mani Ratnam’s magnum opus Ponniyin Selvan is all set for release on April 28th, 2023. The makers of the film have started the promotional activities for the historic epic’s release. While earlier this week, the makers released the first promotional single ‘Aga Naga’, the trailer of the film is said to be released on March 29th. 

Based on Kalki Krishnamurthy’s epic novel, Ponniyin Selvan stars Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Karthi, Jayam Ravi, Trisha, Sarathkumar, R Parthiban, Prakash Raj and Sobhita Dhulipala among others. Backed by Mani Ratnam through Madras Talkies and Subaskaran of Lyca Productions, the film is co-written by Ratnam along with Jeyamohan and Elango Kumaravel. Mani Ratnam’s frequent collaborators AR Rahman (music), Ravi Varman (cinematography), Thota Tharani (production design) and Sreekar Prasad (editing) return for the epic.

Gautham Karthik’s historical drama releases a trailer (Tamil)

The makers of Gautham Karthik starrer 16th August, 1947 recently released the trailer of the film. The two-minute trailer introduces Sengodu, a village in Tamil Nadu, which was under British rule. Various atrocities by British authorities of the East India Company on the citizens of the village are shown. The villagers seem to have resolved to their fate of slavery until the character played by Gatham Karthik rouses them to take action.

The period drama is directed by NS Ponkumar and is produced by AR Murugadoss, Om Prakash Bhatt, Narsiram Chaudhary and Vakil Khan. The technical crew of the film includes music by Sean Roldan, cinematography by Selvakumar SK and editing by R. Sudarshan. The film also stars debutant Revathy, Pugazh and Richard Ashton. The film is also set to release on 7th April, 2023.

Pizza 3: The Mummy is all set to release (Tamil)

The third entry in the Pizza franchise has finally got a release date. While the Ashwin Kakumanu starrer was initially set to release in November 2022, but following a delay, the makers have announced that the film will be released on May 12th. Similar to the second part, Pizza 3 will also be a standalone story with the tagline being The Mummy. The makers released a promo which included bits from all the three films and announced the release date. 

The horror film also stars Kaali Venkat, Raveena Daha, Pavithrah Marimuthu, and Gaurav Narayanan. Produced by CV Kumar of Thirukumaran Entertainment, the film is directed by debutant Mohan Govind with music by Arun Raj and cinematography by Prabhu Raghav.

Manoj Bharathiraja to make his debut as a director (Tamil)

Renowned director Bharathiraja’s son Manoh Bharathiraja will be making his debut as a director. Featuring his father, the yet-to-be-titled film is all set to go on floors by the end of the month. Produced by Suseenthiran under Vennila Productions, the makers have roped in GV Prakash to score the music of the film.

Pawan Kalyan-Sai Dharam Tej film gets a release date (Telugu)

Actors Pawan Kalyan and Sai Dharam Tej are set to collaborate for the first time. The makers recently announced the release date of the film, which is on July 28th. The untitled film is a remake of Vinodaya Sitham, which is written and directed by renowned actor Samuthirakani, who is also directing the Telugu version.

The film is backed by Vishwa Prasad TG and Vivek Kuchibhotla under their banner People Media Factory along with Zee Studios.

Jr.NTR’s next begins shooting (Telugu)

After the tremendous success of RRR, Jr.NTR is all set with his next film, which will be directed by Koratala Siva. Currently titled as NTR30, the film was officially launched with the actor present. Also attending the occasion were the female lead Jahnvi Kapoor, who is making her Telugu debut, Koratala Siva, music composer Anirudh Ravichander and actors Prakash Raj and Srikanth. The muhurtham ceremony was also attended by directors SS Rajamouli and Prashanth Neel.

NTR30 will be Koratala Siva and Jr.NTR’s second collaboration after Janatha Garage.

Nithin and Rashmika Mandanna begin shooting for Venky Kudumula’s next (Telugu)

The successful team of Nithin, Rashmika Mandanna and Venky Kudumula are collaborating once again after Bheeshma. The film, currently titled VNR Trio, was officially launched with the cast and crew. Chiranjeevi graced the muhurtham ceremony and gave the first clap. Filmmakers Hanu Raghavapudi of Sita Ramam fame, Gopichand Malineni and Buchi Babu Sana were also present.

VNR Trio would be the third collaboration between Rashmika Mandanna and Venky Kudumula after Bheeshma and Chalo, the latter of which was the actor’s debut in Telugu cinema. The film is produced by Mythri Movie Makers.

Vijay Devarakonda and Samantha Ruth Prabhu’s film gets a release date (Telugu)

The Vijay Deverakonda and Samantha Ruth Prabhu starrer Khushi is set to release in theatres on September 1st. The makers of the romance released a poster announcing the same. The actors will be seen together for the second time after playing supporting roles in Mahanati.

Backed by Mythri Movie Makers, the film is directed by Shiva Nirvana, who previously directed the Nani starrer Tuck Jagadish. Hesham Abdul Wahab of Hridhayam fame is composing the music. 

Newsense releases a teaser (Telugu)

The first season of the new web series from Aha released its teaser. Created by Sri Prawin Kumar, the series stars Navdeep as a journalist who has skewed morals and follows his investigation of an event in his village. The series raises important questions about sensationalism in news, corruption and the role of media in society.

The series is directed by Sri Prawin Kumar and is backed by People Media Factory. It also stars Bindhu Madhavi and is all set to stream soon on Aha.

Gurudev Hoysala releases a trailer and announces release date (Kannada)

The makers of the action drama Gurudev Hoysala, starring Dhananjaya in his 25th film, recently released the trailer. Dhananjaya plays a tough cop in Belagavi who is tasked with resolving a local issue when things get more serious. The film is directed by debutant Vijay N and is produced by Karthik Gowda and Yogi G Raj under KRG Connects. Vijay Kiragandur of Hombale Films is presenting it

Saptha Saagaradaache Ello wraps up filming (Kannada)

The makers of the romantic thriller Saptha Saagaradaache Ello announced the wrap of their final schedule with a small video. The Rakshit Shetty starrer was shot for over 130 days. While the plot details are yet to be revealed, the two teasers that have been released show the saga of Manu (played by Shetty), a criminal and his relationship with Priya, played by Rukmini Vasanth. 

The film is the second collaboration between director Hemanth M Rao and Rakshit Shetty after the successful Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu. Produced by Rakshit Shetty under Paramvah Studios, the film also stars Chaithra J Achar, Avinash, Achyuth Kumar, Sharath Lohitashwa among others. Written by Hemanth Rao, the film has music by frequent collaborator Charan Raj and cinematography by Advaitha Gurumurthy.

Shilpa Shetty’s character in KD revealed (Kannada)

The Dhruva Sarja starrer KD recently released the character poster of actor Shilpa Shetty’s character, in the film. The poster shows Shilps Shetty in a retro look, playing the character called Satyavati. No other details about the character have been revealed. The period film is directed by Prem of Jogi and The Villain fame.

Shilpa Shetty returns to Kannada cinema after a long gap. She was last seen in Upendra’s Auto Shankar. She has collaborated twice before with senior actor Ravichandran, who also stars in KD. The action entertainer is written by Prem, with music by Arjun Janya and cinematography by William David of Vikrant Rona fame. It is produced by KVN Productions.

Shivarajkumar and Ganesh collaborate for the first time (Kannada)

The makers of the Kiccha Sudeepa starrer Kotigobba 3 recently announced their next film with ace actors Dr. Shivarajkumar and Ganesh. The yet-to-be-titled film is directed by KS Ravikumar who also directed the banner’s Kotigobba 2, which also starred Sudeep.

Nithya Menen starrer Kolaambi gets a trailer (Malayalam)

The makers of Kolaambi released the trailer of the film recently. The Nithya Menen starrer is a family drama. The opening text says that the film will be a musical about ‘love, harmony and partition’.

Directed by TK Rajeev Kumar (in his 25th film), the film is produced by Roopesh Omana under Nirmalyam Cinema. The film also stars Renji Panicker, Rohini Mollatti, Dileesh Pothan and Vijay Yesudas. The film has cinematography by Ravi Varman, sound design by Resul Pookutty, Sabu Cyrill as the production designer and Ramesh Narayanan on music.

Anna Ben’s Thrishanku releases first poster (Malayalam)

The makers of the Anna Ben and Arjun Ashokan starrer Thrishanku released the first look poster of the film. Touted to be a romantic comedy, the film is directed by Achyuth Vinayak who is making his directorial debut. The film is produced by Sanjay Routray and Sarita Patil under Matchbox Shots in association with Lacuna Pictures and Clocktower Pictures & Co

Aashiq Abu’s Neelavelicham gets a release date (Malayalam)

The makers of Aashiq Abu’s next directorial, Neelavelicham, announced the release date. Based on Vaikom Muhammad Basheer’s short story, the film will be released on April 21st, 2023. This is the second adaptation of the short story, the first being Bhargavi Nilayam, starring Madhu.

The film stars Tovino Thomas, Rima Kallingal, Roshan Mathew, Shine Tom Chacko and Rajesh Madhavan. The film is backed by Aashiq Abu and Rima Kallingal under OPM Cinemas. The technical crew includes Bijibal and Rex Vijayan on music, Girish Gangadharan as the cinematographer and V Saajan as the editor.