Sameera's perfect match..

Sameera Reddy has made an impact in Tamil cinema but so far she has been unfortunate in finding the perfect onscreen match.

In her debut film, Vaaranam Aayiram, Divya Spandana gets Suriya. In Asal, she was part of a two heroine project with Bhavana, so she had limited screen time with Ajith. Then in Nadunissi Naigal, her boyfriend gets killed by a psychopath who is obsessed with her.

Sameera up next has Vettai with Arya and Maddy next, but that is also a two heroine project where she shares screen space with Amala Paul.

But finally, it seems her luck has changed and she will be seen opposite Vishal in Vedi which is her first solo heroine project. Besides, everybody is saying that they make a great couple as they are both tall and have dusky good looks.

Mugamoodi

UTV Motion Pictures is all set to produce Mugamoodi, to be directed by Mysskin. The director is supposed to have written this script with Suriya in mind but couldn’t join hands with him for various reasons.

The director then had a discussion with Arya and later also with Vishal, but again the project failed to start until Jiiva agreed to play the lead in this Super Hero flick.

According to sources, Jiiva who is now flying high with the stupendous success of KO has been signed by UTV for this ambitious venture and was looking for someone equally famous to play the baddie opposite him and Actor Narain who debuted with Mysskin's Chithiram Pesuthadi seems to have accepted the role.

UTV’s Dhananjayan had said that Narain’s role will be a very powerful one and has thanked him for accepting the negative role, as it will be a deviation from his hero status.

Sameera is elder to Amala..

Sameera Reddy and Amala Paul play sisters in Vettai, says report from Kollywood. Interestingly, it is Sameera playing the eldest sister of the two.

The two heroes in this flick are Madhavan and Arya. While Arya plays the youngest and Madhavan is the one elder to him.

According to grapevine, Vettai is a family saga with loads of sentiments, action, romance and emotions.

Lingusamy is directing this flick, which is produced by his home production Tirupati Brothers. Yuvan Shankar Raja has scored the music and Nirav Shah has handled the camera for Vettai.

Wrath over Avan Ivan. Would it be banned?

The Singampatti Zameen is planning to take legal action against Bala and others involved in Avan Ivan for degrading their Zameen and their deity Sori Muthu.

The Zameen has condemned Bala for using their names in the film, particularly that of deity Sori Muthu and the Kaaraiyar Sorimuthaiyanar Temple.

The Simgampatti community members are an angry lot for Bala ridiculed them in the film. Further, the scene in which the Singampatti Zameen is stripped and killed has forced the members of Singampatti to seek deletion of those particular scenes.

It is said that they are making all arrangements to file a case seeking a ban on Avan Ivan. Is this another publicity stunt and most movies follow these days? Wonder what Bala has to say!

Sanusha, The Myna Heroine

Sanusha of Renigunta fame will be starring in the Kannada remake of sleeper hit 'Myna' that was considered by many to be a classic and won rave reviews from the critics.

Myna was also the film that catapulted actress Amala Paul to the big league making her the hot property in the industry that she went on receiving roles with the likes of Arya and Vikram.

The Renigunta actress is hoping that the Kannada version will work the same magic for her and give her the edge in the race for superstardom. Ganesh will be playing the male lead and the film will be directed by Narayan.

Maniratnam's Next ?

Ponniyin Selvan that was scheduled to have been directed by Mani Ratnam may have been a non-starter but that has not deterred the legendary filmmaker, who is all set to begin work on a fresh project.

It has been confirmed that Arya and Karthik's son, Gautam will be the male leads.

There was some confusion over this, as friends and well-wishers of Arya felt that he was doing too many multi-starrers and he should concentrate on solo hero projects.

Arya has readily accepted this offer considering the great Maniratnam as an exception and has put all speculations to rest.

Now if they would only announce the heroines!

Amala Paul returns to her roots..

Amala Paul made her debut in a Malayalam film but it was the Tamil film industry that welcomed her with open arms.

Amala will now be seen in two very happening films - Deiva Thirumagal and Vettai with Vikram and Arya respectively. Her Muppozhutham Un Karpanai with Atharva also has her in what is supposed to be a very good role.

Despite being very busy with Tamil films, she could not resist when an offer for a Malayalam film came her way. It is a Renjith film called Indian Rupee and Prithviraj will probably be the male lead.

At the rate that she is going, it won't be surprising if she goes on to capture hearts in the Kannada and Telugu film fraternities as well!

Avan Ivan trailer out..!

The trailer for much-awaited Bala's 'Avan Ivan' is out and we at Celebsfactory have got this exclusive piece for you.'

It shows our thieves Vishal and Arya along with GM Kumar, the duo donning various roles, probably for street plays and claiming themselves as 'kalaignars' (artists), with the BGM of "Dia dia dole..." a fast-paced number sung by Suchitra and "Kaatu sirikiye" an interlude from the track "Rasathi pole..."

We also get to see their lead ladies, Janani Iyer and Madhu Shalini.

It also looks like Arya gets a lot of beatings from brother, Vishal, in the movie. Probably, a Goundamani - Senthil sort of comedy? Two other things we get to notice, is the good rapport between GM Kumar and Arya and Ambika sporting a never-seen-before sort of look.

Buzz is that, the movie revolves around these two thieves who steal cows for a group that sells cows from Theni to Karnataka for beef. Cows are fed with mud water to make them look hefty.

While we can’t be sure of this, although it sounds real interesting, what we can see from the trailer is that, as promised, it will be a comedy entertainer from Bala for the first time ever, of course with many fight scenes, and immense importance to the script and characters as always.

The trailer has increased more hype about the movie, how many of you are geared up for 'Avan Ivan'? What do you movie buffs think about the trailer, tell us right away...

Maddy in Actiion!

While everyone thinks that Madhavan doesn’t have a big role in ‘Vettai’ as he plays just the brother’s role of Arya, Lingusamy comes up for the clarification saying that he has a mighty role just like Arya.

Lingusamy says “When I approached Madhavan for the brother’s role, he was quite reluctant as he didn’t want to don such roles, at least not yet. But soon after hearing the script, he apologized on realizing how much he would have regretted for missing this role.

As per sources, there is this particular scene where Madhavan would be chased by a group of baddies rushing behind him towards a subway and pull down the shutter. Madhavan comes up with a punch dialogue saying ‘Dae Enakkae Shuttera? (It is the most important scene in ‘Run’). Mark my words, the theatres will flood with irresistible applause for this scene.”

Speechless !

Shreya Reddy has said that she was left speechless after watching the special screening of Avan Ivan.

The former actress, who is married to producer Vikram Krishna and sister-in-law to Vishal, has said that she never expected such a performance from Vishal.

Shreya said that director Bala was instrumental in extracting such a performance from him. She was also full of praises for Arya and GM Kumar.

Shreya said that Avan Ivan is a simple story but director Bala has made it in such way that it has become exceptional.

Avan Ivan stars Arya, Vishal, Madhu Shalini and Janani Iyer in lead roles. The film is expected to hit the screens shortly.

Heroes waiting for Gowtham . .

Gautham Menon’s next project in Tamil is the hot topic for discussion in Kollywood as the director is very busy with 'Prem Katha' the Hindi remake of Vinnaithaandi Varuvaaya with Prateik Babbar and Amy Jackson playing roles that were originally played by Silambarasan and Trisha.

The Director's next project has become a hot topic as 'Prem Katha' is expected to be wrapped soon and his Tamil venture is now in question with all due respect to his films from Minnale to Nadunisi Naigal.

It is said that Gautham now has a wonderful action-based script and is looking for a suitable hero to play the lead role and Kollywood’s youngest heroes Arya, Karthi and Jiiva are vying with each other to lap up this role to boost their careers to the next level.

Arya in Action!

Lingusamy's Vettai starring Arya and Madhavan is going on in brisk pace. The unit is currently at Pondicherry shooting for an action sequence. Stunt master Selva is choreographing this sequence which has Arya taking on some goons. It is to be noted that a lot of scenes have been canned at Karaikudi with all the four lead stars- Arya, Madhavan, Sameera Reddy and Amala Paul. Arya and Madhavan are playing brothers in this movie and rumors are that Madhavan plays a cop.

Looks like Vettai is going to be an action extravaganza true to its name. Lingusamy is best appreciated for his action movies like Run and Sandakozhi and we hope he repeats the success with Vettai and showcase Arya in a complete action role.

Avan & Ivan are ready

Avan Ivan, A Film by Director Bala with Arya, Vishal, Madhu Shalini and Janani Iyer in the lead roles has the musical score by Yuvan Shankar Raja that is already sensational and is making news about the film.

It is to be noted that this is the first time the Director has completed his project within a short span of time as most of his previous films were shot for a span of atleast 2years.

Plans about releasing the film is getting close and the producers are planning to get over with it soon planning to release the film as soon as possible. According to the sources, reports are that the film will be hitting screens during the third or last week of May.

Submerged !

Janani Iyer, model-turned-actress will make her debut with Bala’s Avan Ivan. After the news that she had signed on for this project, Janani seemed to have gone in hiding. Recently, she was seen at the audio launch of Avan Ivan, looking absolutely gorgeous in a red and black sari.

Quizzed about her disappearance from the scene, she said that she had only been following her director’s strict instructions. Bala wanted his heroine to be the surprise package in the film and retain her USP as a fresh face, so he had asked her to stay away from the media blitz.

Janani Iyer added that she had submerged herself in the character completely and took a complete break from modeling and did not sign any more films. But now that the shooting is completed, she says she is happy with her work and is eager to do more films.

New Kollywood hottie..!!

Those who see Madhushalini for the first time, will definitely take a second look at her. First, for her good looks and second, because she resembles a few other actresses in tinsel town.

"A lot of people have told me that I look like Heera because of my high cheekbones. Earlier, when I used to be skinny, people used to mistake me for Sonali Bendre. I don't know when people will identify me as Madhushalini," giggles the chirpy lady from the City of Pearls.

And what's keeping this Telugu ammayi on top of the world now is the fact that she is dubbing for Avan Ivan. "I have picked up Tamil and have put my newly-learnt skill to good use in the film. I play a college student who happens to be Arya's love interest. And let me tell you, though my look in the film can be classified as simple, it isn't deglamourised," clarifies the actress.

Madhushalini is extremely delighted at having grabbed this film, that too, so early in her career. "I have always aspired to work with Bala sir and when I got the offer, it was nothing short of a dream come true. Initially, I didn't know when my part would come as I had to wait for quite a while before my portions were shot. It was a long wait but it was definitely worth it."

Having been part of the Avan Ivan camp for almost a year now, Madhu adds that she was extremely comfortable throughout the shoot. But isn't director Bala a tough taskmaster, we ask, and she shrugs off nonchalantly. "In fact, he is quite a prankster. He was the one who was pulling off the maximum pranks on the sets, to the extent, that I was left in tears. Only when his assistant convinced me that it was just a prank did I realise that he was pulling my leg. Nevertheless, he is a serious filmmaker who is very sure of what he wants."

Though Madhushalini had to share screen space with Janani Iyer in the film, she has absolutely no qualms about it. "She was quite helpful throughout the shoot. She is a Tamil girl and helped me with my lines during the shoot. She was very co-operative on the sets and we had a great time together. As for Arya, he has prior experience of working with Bala sir in Naan Kadavul and hence, we would call him 'senior' on the sets. Since Bala sir's films are always out-of-the-box, we had to put in a lot of effort for this movie. And trust me, the boys — Vishal and Arya — had to push the envelope for their respective characters."

Now that the actress has done a film with the veteran director, she is in no hurry to sign new films. "I do not want to do a film for the heck of it. I want to experiment and do characters that will stand out," concludes the actress.

Meet Squint eyed Vishal

The tall, dark and handsome hero has stretched to the toughest possible limits for his upcoming Bala flick ‘Avan Ivan.’ Sharing screen space with long-time friend Arya, Vishal seems to have bagged the role of his life with Bala’s new offing ‘Avan Ivan’. The actor who has completely altered his looks for the film is quite happy with his hard work for the film because of the results it has reaped.

The actor recently found time to share his mind on his upcoming flick ‘Avan Ivan’.

Vishal plays Walter Vanagamudi, who is basically a thief and travels doing stage shows in villages along with his half-brother played by Arya. Vishal’s avatar in the film has an almost tonsured head, eyes sans eyelashes and a squint. Vishal reveals that the first response that Bala had on seeing him were tears of joy in his eyes!

Refuting to rumors suggesting Vishal’s role as a Thirunangai (eunuch), the actor clarifies that he does not appear as a eunuch and was surprised seeing such stories doing the rounds. Vishal has revealed that unlike the other Bala films which are too serious with not much scope for comedy ‘Avan Ivan’ will be a surprise for the audience. The actor has also revealed that the final twenty minutes of the film will bear the Bala stamp.

Arya's brother to debut with Ramya

Arya’s younger brother Sathya is all set to make his Kollywood debut with Kadhal 2 Kalyanam, directed by Milind with Divya Spandana playing the heroine.

The latest buzz is that Arya would be making a special appearence in the film.

When queried, the director says, ' of course. Arya is doing a cameo. It is a suspense character. Audience ill love it'.

On working with Sathya, he says, 'he fits the role well. He has given his best. Besides the whole cast and crew have worked hard for the movie'.

The songs tuned by Yuvan Shankar Raja were released last week. All have gone on to top the audio charts

Bala's Avan Ivan

At a time when actors in Tamil cinema consider it is unsafe to do multi-starrers, Arya and Vishal has chosen to do otherwise. They have come together for Avan Ivan and even after the shooting is completed, they remain good friends.

Says Arya, ' what's wrong in doing a multi-starrer? My comfort level with Bala is good and we enjoyed working in the project. Bala guided both of us well.'

Echoing the same, Vishal says, ' we are friendly and did what Bala told us to do'.

Interestingly after Pithamagan which brought Vikram and Suriya together comes Avan Ivan with Arya and Vishal in the cast. Expectations are running high for the movie that would hit the screens next month

Priyanka approached for "Ponniyin Selvan"

If sources from Bollywood are to be believed, hottie Priyanka Chopra has been approached by ace filmmaker Mani Ratnam for his period film Ponniyin Selvan to play one of the female leads.

The actress is not new to K’Town as she has already starred opposite Ilaya Thalapathy Vijay in Tamizhan way back in 2002. Interestingly, Mani roped in Vijay to play the lead protagonist Vandhiyathevan for this multilingual project and the actor’s associates confirmed it to this newspaper.

Reportedly, Anushka has been finalised for one of the female leads and she’ll be seen opposite Vijay. Mahesh Babu is another hero in the film. Apparently, according to the story, Anushka is Mahesh Babu’s sister in the movie. Reports suggest that Mani wants Priyanka to play Mahesh Babu’s love interest.

Actor Arya will also be seen in an important role.It is reliably learnt that Priyanka is excited about working with Mani and will soon be meeting him for a personal discussion.

Though the Fashion star is busy with Bollywood movies, insiders reveal that considering this is a Mani Ratnam film, the actress will not relinquish the opportunity.

Magic to be recreated

After Naan Kadavul, Arya joins hands with maverick filmmaker Bala again to repeat the same magic. But this time they are joined by young and bubbly Vishal. The trio teams up for Avan Ivan.

Naan Kadavul, a 2009 film co-written and directed by Bala, is based on the Tamil novel Yezhaam Ulagam by Jayamohan who also penned the dialogues for the film. The movie had music by Ilaiyaraja. The film, which was in the making for over three years, was finally released on 6 February 2009 and it received rave reviews and critical acclaims, winning two National Film Awards, including the Best Director Award for Bala, and three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards. he film grossed over $10 million at the box office in the first 6 weeks.

Now come Avan Ivan. It's Bala's first attempt at comedy, written and directed by himself. The film will star Arya, Vishal Krishna, Janani Iyer, and Madhu Shalini in the lead roles. The film, produced by Kalpathi S. Agoram's AGS Entertainment, features music by Yuvan Shankar Raja, cinematography by Arthur A Wilson and editing by A Sreekar Prasad.

Says Vishal, "Sporting a squint and acting is no easy task. It was a tough ask and I had to really stretch to play that role to perfection. Luckily for me, Arya, who is a good friend, was with me in this project. Hadn't Arya been with me, I would have felt the pressure more."

Vishal adds that their friendship has helped the final output. "When the comfort levels of the lead actors is good, it reflects on screen. That is what has happened in the case of Avan Ivan," says Vishal.

It would be a double Nan Kadavul, say those involved in making of the movie.