“Karthik Subbaraj is the Bharathiraja of the current generation and Siddharth is a ‘Kutti’ Kamal Haasan” - Event Story

Directed by Karthik Subbaraj of Pizza fame, Jigarthanda, according to the Forbes magazine, is one of the most anticipated Tamil movies of 2014. The music of the film was released today along with the trailer at the Satyam complex. Apart from the team that involved the director, producer Kathiresan, actor Siddharth and the rest, the event was graced by ace director Bharathiraja, SJ Surya, CV Kumar, Kasthuri Raja, director Ram, Kathir, Balaji Tharaneetharan, Nalan Kumarasamy, RS Prasanna, Ponram, Arun Kumar, ‘Thegidi’ Ramesh, Kalaipuli Thanu, Ashok Selvan and Durai Senthil Kumar.  

 

The function began with the screening of the teaser, followed by a live performance of ‘Pandia Naatu Kodi’ by Antony Dasan and the release of the theatrical trailer and ‘Kannamma’ video song.

 

The producer of Jigarthanda, Kathiresan, who has earlier bankrolled films like Polladhavan and Aadukalam, hopped on to the podium and thanked every guest, who graced the event.

 

Producer CV Kumar, who introduced Karthik Subbaraj in Pizza revealed that he heard the script of Jigarthanda and instantly fell in love with it. But, he apparently had to redirect the director to producer Kathiresan for various reasons.

 

Actor / film critic Madhan, who guided Karthik during the early stages of his career, said, “The most important thing in film making is story telling. If you can narrate a story well, you have a winner on hand. Karthik is one hell of a story teller and there’s no way he is going to fail. I hope, Jigarthanda turns out to be a massive victory for Siddharth and the rest of the team too.  

 

Ashok Selvan apparently used to be a huge fan of Karthik, even before Pizza. “One of his short films, Black and White, floored me. Since then I’m a fan of Karthik. I in fact used to request him on FB to take a look at my short films,” recollected the Thegidi actor.

 

RS Prasanna, the director of Kalyana Samayal Saadham, is happy that Karthik is his best friend. “Or else I would’ve killed him out of envy”, he laughed.

 

Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom maker, Balaji Tharaneetharan was at his comic best. “I started NKPK, before Karthik started Pizza. But he finished it earlier and released it before I did. But that turned out to be an advantage for me. Directly or indirectly, Pizza helped boost the business of Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom. And, I sincerely hope that Karthik does that again for my next film,” joked Balaji, bringing the audience into splits.  

 

Thanga Meengal Ram was all praise for the entire team. “Everyone complains about directors picking their story from some Korean or Iranian movies. But no one seems to be able to find where Karthik Subbaraj picks his script from. That’s what is brilliant about him,” he teased. Ram also applauded his originality and storytelling prowess before going on to talk about Siddharth. “One of the very few actors who, after watching Katradhu Thamizh, asked me to do a story with them was Siddharth. He in fact gave me Rs 2 lakhs and requested me to work on a script. Until today, I haven’t created one for him nor have I returned the money he gave me. That’s his passion for cinema,” Ram recounted. He also conveyed actor Simha his best and speculated that he’d be a big star in the Tamil industry very soon.

 

In a mock protest, director Vijay said that he wasn’t invited to the event at all. “But I came here for the passion I have for cinema. It is people like Karthik Subbaraj, Nalan and Balaji Tharaneetharan, who gave me confidence to go ahead with my current project, Saivam, which I have been waiting to do for a very long time,” he added, along with his best wishes message to the Jigarthanda team.

 

“Art must be effortless and at the same time it must draw the audience. Karthik naturally has the knack to do it and he has a very efficient team. Composer Santhosh Narayanan might look very innocent. But he is Lord Yama (God of death). He can do wonders with his music and still will not make a fuss of it. I wish this entire team a grand success,” wished Balaji Sakthivel.

 

The witty SJ Suryah disclosed that he is a huge fan of Karthik Subbaraj. “People call us experienced. But it is just a polite way of saying we are old. These young boys aren’t afraid of experimenting and that is why they stand out. The classics Uthamaputhiran, Moondram Pirai and many such films made a revolution in Tamil cinema. I think the current gen film makers have brought about the same kind of energy again. Personally, Karthik Subbaraj is the Bharathiraja of the current generation and Siddharth is a ‘Kutti’ Kamal Haasan”, said a visibly enthusiastic Suryah.  

 

Father of Dhanush and Selvaraghavan, director Kasthuriraja was all praise for Kathiresan, the producer of Jigarthanda. He said, “Kathiresan was the only producer, who made me cry. I cannot explain the moment, when he brought home the six National Awards, including one for Dhanush. It was a brave attempt to produce films like Polladhavan and Aadukalam. He has an eye for good and distinct scripts.”

 

The man of the moment, composer Santhosh Narayanan thanked the director for giving him the space to explore. He introduced the songs in the album and spoke in detail about the ‘Mokka Song’ he composed for the film. “Karthik asked me for a ‘Mokka’ song and I composed one. It turned out to be as it was meant to be. Personally, I thought it was the worst song Tamil cinema has ever produced. So, for the same reason we couldn’t have it in the movie. However, I’m looking forward to leak the track very soon,” he said.

 

Jigarthanda’s lead actor, Siddharth was enthusiastic about the presence of Bharathiraja at the event. He said, “He is the reason behind my love towards Cinema. I am a huge fan of his and sitting next to him during the whole function is an honour.”  

 

About his team, he said, “Jigarthanda involves a lovely young group. If my performance in the movie is any good, all thanks to Karthik Subbaraj’s parents. They took care of the entire team beautifully. While his mother fed us with sumptuous food, his father, like another producer of the film, took care of the location coordination.”

 

Addressing his young team, Siddharth summed up, “You guys are changing the game!”

 

Finally, Bharathiraja came on to the stage amidst heavy applause and began with his standard, ‘En Iniya Thamizh Makkaley’. Reasoning on why he doesn’t attend many events, he said that functions today are taking too long and are monotonous. “But I came here today, because Kathiresan called me. He is a very good man. So I promised I would definitely attend the event, even if he holds it in Australia,” he said.

 

At the same time, he is amazed by the way the youngsters of today think and work. “Take Karthik for instance. His Pizza was full of brain. There was not even a detailed love track. It was one of the films that had the director’s domination. His brilliance is as big as the man himself,” laughed Bharathiraja.

 

The veteran also had a couple of requests to make. “I love it when people make movies with Madurai as a background. It is my home town. But, it is not fair to stereotype the city as one with dangerous and angry people. Also, there is already a lot of violence in the society. So, let’s try to keep it down in films,” he added.

 

He summed up saying that there weren’t many people running the race during his time. “Today there are hundreds of directors. To stand out from this crowd is a huge achievement and you (Karthik Subbaraj) have done it,” he applauded and wished the team all the luck.

 

The event was wrapped up with all the guests on the dais unveiling the music album.