Everything That Made News In Entertainment From The South (20-26 March)

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.

A glimpse of Nani's Dasara (Telugu)

After Shyam Singha Roy, Nani returns to play a raw and rustic role in Dasara. An introductory video was released on March 20. The teaser opens with an aerial portrayal of a mine and zooms in revealing fires and bulldozers. Amidst those, walks Nani leading a group of people, who, just like him, are covered in blood. 

The film is directed by Srikanth Odela and the music is composed by Santhosh Narayanan. it also stars Keerthy Suresh.

Puneeth Rajkumar honoured with a Doctorate posthumously (Kannada)

The late Kannada actor Puneeth Rajkumar was conferred with a doctorate for his contribution in the field of cinema and for his philanthropic works by the University of Mysore on March 22. His wife Ashwini accepted it on his behalf.

Premam director Alphonse Puthren makes a comeback after seven years (Malayalam)

Alphonse Puthren, who directed the 2015 blockbuster Premam, is back with his next titled Gold. The film features Prithviraj Sukumaran and Nayanthara in the lead. It is produced by Supriya Menon and Listin Stephen under the banner Prithviraj Productions and Magic Frames. 

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KGF: Chapter 2 First Single 'Toofan' released (Kannada)

The KGF: Chapter 2 team released its first single 'Toofan', in five languages. The song begins as a worker protests courageously and praises Rocky (Yash). Throughout the song, he is seen building a new empire, along with the workers in Narachi. 

The film is directed by Prashanth Neel and will hit the theatres on April 14. 

Upendra plays a stay-at-home dad in Home Minister (Kannada)

The trailer of Home Minister opens with Upendra happily doing his morning chores — cooking, buying groceries, dropping his kid at school, etc. When someone asks him why can't he go to work, he says 'everybody dies, only a few people live and I am living'. 

Home Minister is pitched as a mix of rom-com and thriller. It also features Vedhika, Vedika, Adhya, Sadhu Kokila and Avinash. The film is directed by Sujay K Shrihari. It is produced by Poorna Naidu under the banner Sreeyas Chitra.

Maria Ryaboshapka is female lead in SK20 directed by KV Anudeep (Tamil)

KV Anudeep's upcoming film starring Sivakarthikeyan has roped in Ukrainian actress Maria Ryaboshapka as the female lead. She earlier starred in the Hindi web series Special Ops. Tentatively titled SK20,  it is a bilingual and went on floors this February. 

The film also stars Sathyaraj, Premgi Amaran and Naveen Polishetty in vital roles. The music is composed by S Thaman.

Adhira is a superhero film starring debutant Kalyan Dasari, teaser released (Telugu)

Adhira directed by Prasanth Varma, who his known for his earlier films like Awe and Zombie Reddy. It is a superhero film. Kalyan Dasari, who plays the superhero, is shown to use the powers and electrocute a bad goon in one scene, and save an old man in another. The film is produced by K Niranjan Reddy under the banner Primeshow Entertainment. 

Venkat Prabhu's Manmatha Leelai to release on April 1, trailer released (Tamil)

After the successful run of Maanaadu, Venkat Prabhu is gearing up for the release of his next film titled Manmatha Leelai. The film is an adult comedy involving an extra-marital affair and the chaos that follows. It stars Ashok Selvan in the lead, along with Samyukta Hegde, Riya Suman and Smruthi Venkat. The film will release on April 1 in theatres. 

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Vineeth Sreenivasan's Hridayam to get a remake in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi (Malayalam)

Vineeth Sreenivasan's Hridayam starring Pranav Mohanlal, Kalyani Priyadarshan and Darshana Rajendran is a coming-of-age love story. After a theatrical run, the film is streaming in Disney+ Hotstar. It is now all set to be remade in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. The remake rights have been acquired by Dharma Productions and Fox Star Studios. 

Dhanush's Naane Varuven in final stages of shooting, poster released (Tamil)

The team of Naane Varuven starring Dhanush have released a new poster. The film is directed by Selvaraghavan and is the fourth collaboration of the actor-director duo. The music is composed by Yuvan Shankar Raja.  The poster also reveals that the film is in the final stages of shooting.

Ravi Teja's Ramarao On Duty gets a new release date (Telugu)

Ravi Teja's Ramarao On Duty was earlier scheduled to release on March 25. However, it was postponed due to the release of SS Rajamouli's RRR. Directed by debutant Sarath Mandeva, the film is now slated to hit the screens on June 17. Apart from Ravi Teja, the film also stars Divyansha Kaushik, Rajisha Vijayan, Tottempudi Venu, John Vijay and Nasser.

Vijay's Beast release date announced (Tamil)

Vijay's next film Beast, directed by Nelson of Doctor-fame is expected to release on April 13. It releases during the Tamil New Year Weekend, alongside the Yash-starrer KGF: Chapter 2. 

Meera Jasmine makes a comeback with Makal (Malayalam)

The film is directed by Sathyan Anthikad and they are collaborating after 13 years. After the teaser release, the Makal team released a song teaser 'Mayalle'. The film stars Jayaram, Sreenivasan, Devika Sanjay, Naslen, Innocent and Sidhique. It is produced under the banner of Central Productions. 

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Sanchari Vijay's Taledanda to hit screens on April 1 (Kannada)

Taledanda starring the late actor Sanchari Vijay is set to release on April 1. The film talks about a human vs planet situation and is based on a true character. Sanchari Vijay essays the role of a man who loves trees and struggles to preserve nature. The film is directed by Praveen Krupakar and also features Mangala, Be Suresh, Mandya Ramesh and Ramesh Pandit in lead roles. 

Patham Valavu release date announced, trailer out (Malayalam)

Patham Valavu is a cop-thriller starring Indrajith Sukumaran and Suraj Venjaramoodu in lead roles. It is about the pursuit of a missing convict who is out on parole, played by Suraj. The film is scheduled to be released on May 13. The film is directed by M Padmakumar and stars Ajmal Ameer, Aditi Ravi, Kanmani and Swasika Vijay.

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Saranya Ponvannan's next called Gangster Granny (Tamil)

Saranya Ponvannan, known for her mother characters, plays a gangster in her next titled Gangster Granny. It is directed by Vishnu Ramakrishnan. Apart from Saranya, the film also features Raaj Varma and Amzath Khan. Actor Jiva unveiled the first look of Gangster Granny.