But, amongst all the highflying expectations and hopes, there seems to be the necessity for a word of caution. Many a movie has disappointed us mainly because we had expectations of it that kissed the sky, sometimes it is necessary to keep our ambitions in check to be able to enjoy a movie for what it is and not for what we expected it to be.

We don’t know how far Thalaivan Irukkiraan is going to be a true remake of A Wednesday; i.e., we are not sure about Kamal’s intentions, whether he is going to make changes to the script to suit the audience down south. Those who have seen ‘A Wednesday’ will agree that too many changes to the script may take the zing off the movie. But a faithful remake of the movie too does not ensure the same result as the Hindi original. The reason for this feeling is that the movie was scripted and shot for Mumbai. That ‘Mumbai’ the ‘Maximum city’ as Suketu Mehta put it, was as important to the script as any of the characters is fact that cannot be denied. The sheer size of the city, its dark lanes and more importantly its frequent trysts with terror made it the perfect setting for such a script to be built around it. The instant connect that one experiences when Mumbai and terror are mentioned was a clinching factor in the movie. Though it can be argued that as Indians, terror is not alien to any of us, the fact remains that Chennai remains one providentially lucky metropolitan cities of India on which the dark hands of terror have not yet encroached. All residents of Chennai are endlessly thankful for this. Can Chennai provide as pertinent a setting for the script as did Mumbai is a doubt that surfaces again and again. That will be the big challenge that Kamal faces as he sets out to make Thalaivan Irukkiraan.

A lot has been said about the Mohanlal-Kamal Haasan combination. It is indeed an exciting prospect. The last time something of similar proportions happened was in Thalapathi where Mammootty and Rajinikanth created a memorable combination. Now, there has been lot of talk about how the Kamal-Lal combination is going to come out. But again, those who have seen the original ‘A Wednesday’ will know that the roles that Kamal and Mohanlal are supposed to be playing come face to face for all but a few seconds. For the best part of the movie, the characters are negotiating over the phone. Now, after all the years of waiting, if one expected sparks to fly from this combination, then there are pretty good chances of disappointment creeping in. Whether Kamal will try to bring in more of this combination is a question that will be answered only when the movie releases. But, that would also mean considerable tweaking of the script which is a risky prospect.

The point here is: there is no denying that Thalaivan Irukkiraan is a dream project. But there is also the need to understand that it is the remake of a tightly written self-contained script. It is not really going to be a magnum opus creation that will enthrall us. It will point towards a common enemy that we are all facing at the moment. Don’t expect fireworks on the screen, instead, be prepared to ignite a fire within; love the movie for what it will be, don’t hate it for not being what you wanted it to be.