Velli Thirai
Velli Thirai (transl. Silver Screen) is a 2008 Indian Tamil-language Drama satirical film directed by debutant Viji and produced by Prakash Raj. It is a remake of the 2005 Malayalam film Udayananu Tharam.[1] The film stars Prithviraj, as an assistant director hoping to make it big, and Gopika, his love interest, along with Prakash Raj in a prominent role. Jayam Ravi and Trisha, amongst others, appeared in cameo roles as themselves.
| Velli Thirai | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Directed by | Viji |
| Produced by | Prakash Raj |
| Written by | Viji |
| Based on | Udayananu Tharam by Sreenivasan & Rosshan Andrrews |
| Starring | Prithviraj Prakash Raj Gopika M. S. Bhaskar Sarath Babu Elango Kumaravel Sathyan |
| Music by | G. V. Prakash Kumar |
| Cinematography | M. V. Panneerselvam K. V. Guhan |
| Edited by | M. Kasi Vishwanathan |
| Distributed by | Duet Films |
Release date |
|
Running time | 152 minutes |
| Country | India |
| Language | Tamil |
Principal photography took place in locations in India, Indonesia, and Australia. The film score and soundtrack were composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar, with many songs altered from the original. The film released on 7 March 2008. The movie failed to do well at box office.
Plot
When Saravanan goes to Hyderabad, Kanniah plagiarizes his script and pitches it to a producer, under the condition that he has to play the hero in the film. Impressed by the script, the producer agrees to the condition. The movie turns Kanniah, now rechristened Dilipkanth, into a star. Saravanan does not give up and creates another story. However, he finds out that he cannot make his film unless Dilipkanth plays the hero. Because of this, they lead into minor problems, which annoy Saravanan and their team. The shooting starts with Dilipkanth as the hero but is halted midway, owing to various tantrums thrown by the new opportunistic hero. Determined to finish the movie, Saravanan seeks the help of his crew and friends in the cinema industry. Unknown to Dilipkanth, Saravanan and his crew manipulate him into situations that match the storyline of the movie they are shooting for, and capture Dilipkanth's live reactions. They manage to fool Dilipkanth and finish shooting the climax of the film even as the self-claimed new star makes a fool of himself. A few days later, he is invited to watch the premiere of the movie and is shocked to see the recent events of his life unfold on the silver screen. He soon realizes the effort put in by Saravanan and crew and feels humbled. He genuinely acknowledges the talent of the director and leaves the place, apologizing to Saravanan for his pathetic behavior and agreeing that Saravanan is better than him in a very mannered way.
Cast
| Actor | Role |
|---|---|
| Prithviraj | Saravanan |
| Prakash Raj | Kannaiah/Dileep |
| Gopika | Mythili |
| M. S. Baskar | Ram Gopal Sharma |
| Sarath Babu | Balaji |
| Elango Kumaravel | Musthafa |
| Sathyan | Driver Thirupathi |
| Charle | Assistant Director Santhanam |
| Prathap Pothan | as himself (Cameo appearance) |
| Jayam Ravi | Cameo appearance |
| Trisha | Cameo appearance |
| Lakshmi Rai | Actress Lakshmi |
| Sandhya | Cameo appearance |
| Swarnamalya | Anchor (Cameo appearance) |
| Shama Sikander | Cameo appearance |
Soundtrack
| Velli Thirai | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Soundtrack album by | ||||
| Released | 2007 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| G. V. Prakash Kumar chronology | ||||
| ||||
The soundtrack consisted of five songs composed by G. V. Prakash.[2]
| Song title | Singers |
|---|---|
| "Kanchi Paanai" | K. S. Chitra, Jassie Gift |
| "Sooriyane" | Lucky Ali, Rahul Nambiar |
| "Thaiyya Thaiyya" | Shreya Ghoshal |
| "Uyirilae" | Naresh Iyer |
| "Vizhiyilae" | K. S. Chitra |
Reception
Behindwoods wrote "A witty satire of the perils of stardom in Indian cinema. Though Vellithirai, the Tamil remake of Malayalam’s Udayananu Tharam, lacks the original’s brilliant touches, it is still entertaining to an extent".[3] Rediff wrote "Watch Vellithirai for some good old cat-and-mouse games in the movie industry with well-timed punches. The magic of the silver screen rarely disappoints".[4] Sify wrote "On the whole Vellithira is not a faithful remake and therein lies its pitfalls, but at the same time it is a breezy fun movie".[5]
References
- http://cinema.dinamalar.com/tamil-news/34110/cinema/Kollywood/Mohanlal-movies-and-their-remakes.htm
- http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-music-reviews/review-1/vellithirai-music-review.html
- http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movie-reviews/reviews-1/vellithirai-review.html
- https://www.rediff.com/movies/2008/mar/07ssvel.htm
- https://www.sify.com/movies/vellithirai-review-tamil-pclw6rhgahajc.html