By Krittivas Mukherjee
Fri Jun 15, 8:07 AM ET



MUMBAI (Reuters Life!) - Rioting for tickets to the first show, frenzied fans bathing their hero's cutout in milk -- India's most expensive film, "Sivaji -- The Boss", opened to huge anticipation on Friday, and it's not from Bollywood
Made at a cost of over $15 million, a huge budget by Indian standards, the Tamil language "Sivaji", has generated enormous interest with tickets sold out for weeks in the south.

The hero of the film is Rajnikanth, a regional star whose flamboyance is unequalled by Bollywood actors and who may have even more fans than India's best-known star Amitabh Bachchan.

The story of the film was kept a closely guarded secret, further piquing the curiosity of the 57-year-old actor's millions of followers.

Fans milled around cinemas screening "Sivaji" from early morning with cutouts and posters of the dark-skinned, heavy-lidded hero whose unique acting style is characterised by a trademark gesture: toss a cigarette in the air, catch it in his lips, then light it with a match struck on a shirt sleeve.

Posters show the actor sporting various hairdos, including a blonde one, standing in a strutting pose beside a young heroine.

"First day, first show. Nothing less when it is Rajnikanth's film," said Mayilraj, a middle-aged fan of the actor waiting to watch the new film.

"I have tickets for every day for the next one week. I have different sets of friends to watch the film with."

But Rajnikanth's popularity remains largely restricted to southern India, partly because in the north the language of his films is not understood.

He has acted in some Bollywood films as well, but he has never been able to replicate the success of his Tamil films in the Hindi language.

In southern India, fans collect opening day ticket stubs of his movies which change hands for exorbitant prices. Directors cannot kill off his character in films because angry fans have threatened to burn down the theatres.

Even his personal life reads like a movie script -- he started as a poor bus conductor in Bangalore with a penchant for acting before making it big.

The movie king has also dabbled in politics and once strongly influenced an election in Tamil Nadu.

His last film released in 2005 called "Chandramukhi" is completing 800 successive days in a theatre in south India.

We will have to wait on the DVD for this one, as I do not think that they screened Tamil films in North Americs.

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Quote:
Made at a cost of over $15 million, a huge budget by Indian standards, quote


Something doesnt seems correct.


Devdas was made at a cost ofUS$ 22.3 Million.
and In the making now is "The Mahabarata" budgeted at a cost of over US$50 Mil.

One of the costliest film made not in Mumbai, yes, but not the costliest in India.
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The lead actor Rajinikanth became the highest paid actor in India, receiving 20 crore rupees for his role in the movie.

It is estimated the the movie cost app Rs60 Crore, somewhere within the vicinity of US$ 25M and not 15 as was reported:
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Wow, he's 57 already? I remember him doing his cigarette trick.

quote:

Originally posted by asj:
Quote:
Made at a cost of over $15 million, a huge budget by Indian standards, quote


Something doesnt seems correct.


Devdas was made at a cost ofUS$ 22.3 Million.
and In the making now is "The Mahabarata" budgeted at a cost of over US$50 Mil.

One of the costliest film made not in Mumbai, yes, but not the costliest in India.
.

who decides what or which is the cooooolest??

quote:

who decides what or which is the cooooolest??

Hey Mikey whats up bro;

Tell us about some of your coooolest yesteryear gems.
.

quote:

Originally posted by asj:

quote:

who decides what or which is the cooooolest??

Hey Mikey whats up bro;

Tell us about some of your coooolest yesteryear gems.
.

I am doing great bro..you?? Bhai i am more of a ole school crew.Manna Dey,Mohammad Rafi,Mukesh,Mahendra Kapoor,Lata Mangeshkar,Shamshad Begum,Tallat.
Dosti,Rattan,Dulari,Booth polish,nite in London,Miland,Dillagie,Miss Mary,Annari,Guide,Dil He To Hai,Anmol Gharie,China town,Chaudhavin Ka Chand, Chori Chori, Dil Apna Aur Preet Parai just to give you a insight as to what i like.Spin me a few here na.

ah juss push in Sawan Ko Aane Do in me set yoo..good music fu relax after a hard day wuk.

quote:

Originally posted by asj:
We will have to wait on the DVD for this one, as I do not think that they screened Tamil films in North Americs.

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It opened at the Kew Gardens cinema, in the Richmond Hill North/Kew Gardens area of Queens.

Kew Gardens Cinemas
La Vie en Rose 1:30, 4:30, 7:30,
Golden Door (PG-13) 1:00, 3:35, 6:10, 8:45,
Waitress (PG-13) 1:00, 3:15, 5:30, 7:45,
Once (R) 1:00, 3:15, 5:30, 7:45,
Sivaji 2:00, 5:30, 9:00, Sivaji 2:00, 5:30, 9:00,

quote:

Originally posted by Kari:

quote:

Originally posted by asj:
We will have to wait on the DVD for this one, as I do not think that they screened Tamil films in North Americs.

.

It opened at the Kew Gardens cinema, in the Richmond Hill North/Kew Gardens area of Queens.

Thanks Kari, I am sure that so many will take in Sivaji, not just for the good reviews it has been getting but maybe it carries a message that would wow cinegoers.

Perchance if you happens to look at Sivaji, maybe you can give us the scope.

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A scene from Sivaji:


Hey Mikey whats up bro;

Tell us about some of your coooolest yesteryear gems.
.



I am doing great bro..you?? Bhai i am more of a ole school crew.Manna Dey,Mohammad Rafi,Mukesh,Mahendra Kapoor,Lata Mangeshkar,Shamshad Begum,Tallat.
Dosti,Rattan,Dulari,Booth polish,nite in London,Miland,Dillagie,Miss Mary,Annari,Guide,Dil He To Hai,Anmol Gharie,China town,Chaudhavin Ka Chand, Chori Chori, Dil Apna Aur Preet Parai just to give you a insight as to what i like.Spin me a few here na. cool.gif

Mikey those movies are Classics, and the names Mahendra, Shamshad and Talat Mehmood are nostalgic, their songs are memorable, and worth the effort in bringing them to the fore.

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'Sivaji' breaks premiere record in Malaysia
AFP
Sunday, June 17, 2007 14:47 IST

KUALA LUMPUR: Tamil film 'Sivaji' created history in the Indian film industry in Malaysia with its opening day takings, an official said Sunday despite glitches and violence that marred its premiere.

S. Vel Paari, chief executive of the Pyramid Saimira Theatre Chain distributing the movie in Malaysia informed it raked in takings of 560,000 ringgit (165,000 US) on its opening day.

"Yes, we are surprised since there were technical glitches on Thursday and only 40 of the 53 locations were able to screen the movie," he said.

Vel Paari said the film 'Sivaji: The Boss' starring Rajnikanth broke the previous record high of at least 350,000 ringgit for the film 'Jeans', starring Prasanth and Aishwarya Rai in 1997.

The movie was released simultaneously in India and Malaysia but was delayed by a few hours at some local cinemas and cancelled at others due to technical problems.

This angered some fans who turned violent, smashing glass displays and setting fire to one cinema. Such violence is rare in Malaysia.

About 10 per cent of Malaysia's 26 million population are ethnic Indians, mainly Tamils, and South Indian movies are a major source of entertainment.

In central Selangor, northern Perak and Penang states police were needed to stop the opening day violence.

Vel Paari said there was overwhelming demand for tickets in all theaters in the country and advised patrons not to buy tickets from touts selling tickets for up to 15 times normal prices

Reference Source

Sivaji Movie image courtsey: movies.sulekha.com

From Sivaji

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This is the second weekend of the showing of Sivaji, and the Kew Gardens cinema in Queens, NY, was sold out. Also a notice was placed saying that there is no English subtitles.

I therefore would not go see it. The only Indian movie I saw without English subtitles was Umrao Jaan in Rotterdam last year with Dutch subtitles. Naturally I bought the DVD to see it with English subtitles.

Whey all dese people come from? The Sivaji sold-out crowd, and most of these look like dark-skinned Indians.

quote:

Originally posted by asj:

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I love this guy I never miss any of his movie. I guess I will have to wait until the dvd comes out with the english subtitles

Here's a review from: http://www.searchindia.com/search/tamil-movies/shivaji-movie-review.html

Sivaji The Boss
Reviewer's Summary - Disappointing

Language: Tamil
Year: June 14, 2007 in the U.S.
Actors: Rajnikanth, Shriya, Suman, Vivek, Raghuvaran
Director: S. Shankar
Producer: Saravanan
Story: S. Shankar
Screenplay: S. Shankar
Music: A R Rahman
Lyrics: Vairamuthu
Dialogs: Sujatha
Superstar Rajnikanth and director Shankar have both come up short in the new Tamil movie Sivaji The Boss.

A flawed movie in many respects, Sivaji fails to scale the lofty heights that one expects when the two top-guns in the Tamil film industry come together.

We loved Shankar's last film Anniyan and enjoyed Rajnikanth's 2005 movie Chandramukhi.

Both Anniyan and Chandramukhi had strong, unusual stories and passionate performances that captured the audience's interest.

So it was with heightened anticipation that we headed for the Premiere show ($25.00 per ticket) of Sivaji at CinePlaza in North Bergen, New Jersey on Thursday, June 14, 2007.

To our great disappointment, Sivaji is not half as good as Anniyan or Chandramukhi. Gosh, Sivaji is not even as entertaining as Pokiri, a remake of a Telugu film featuring Vijay.

Where Sivaji falls short the most compared to Anniyan or Chandramukhi is in its banal story that focuses on the twin evils of corruption and black money. Both subjects are hardly unusual themes in Indian movies and have been so beaten to death thoroughly over the past 25 years in both Tamil and Hindi films that it's hard to see new angles emerging here.

Director Shankar's play-it-safe decision to hang the movie on the slender threads of corruption and black money means the Sivaji story can never go beyond the commonplace.

As if that were not bad enough, the Sivaji story is more than a wee bit disjointed. Altruism, revenge, homilies on eradicating the pernicious influence of Black Money and corruption, helping the poor and romancing the heroine follow each other in haphazard fashion.

The Sivaji story is pretty simplistic.

Sivaji (Rajnikanth) returns from the U.S., a rich man with plans to set up a university and hospital to help the less privileged sections of society. But his altruistic mission is thwarted by rival businessman Adiseshan (Suman), who has the corrupt bureaucracy and venal politicians on his side.

The rubber meets the road after the intermission when Sivaji is rendered penniless as a result of Adiseshan's machinations and decides to go after the scheming scoundrel. But director Shankar slips and slips badly in his amateurish treatment of Sivaji's revenge trip.

Although Rajnikanth's die-hard fans will protest here, the aging actor is no Marlon Brando, Naseeruddin Shah or Jack Nicholson. But to see him mostly fail to set the screen afire is frustrating to fans of Tamil movies. Of course, Rajni fans will disagree here because their overwheming adulation blinds them to their hero's limitations.

Watching Sivaji, we never experienced even once the adrenalin rush we felt while watching Chandramukhi, Anniyan, Pokiri, Kaakha Kaakha, Namesake or recent Hollywood movies like The Departed or Fracture.

The fighting/action scenes in Sivaji are beyond crude. They are bizarre. It's high time Tamil film directors stop this ridiculous nonsense of the hero beating to pulp a dozen or more villains simultaneously. Mercifully, Bollywood directors are putting a stop to this rubbish.

Shriya Saran, who plays the female lead and Rajnikanth's love interest in Sivaji, does a decent job.

The petite North Indian lass doesn't have that big a role but demonstrates some acting abilities, a rarity among Tamil heroines. If Shriya sticks around in Tamil movies, she could challenge the Trishas, Nayantaras and Asins (now busy with the Hindi remake of the successful Tamil movie Ghajini).

Suman acquits himself well as the villain Adiseshan seeking to thwart Sivaji at every step, a welcome change from the crude, maniacal villains commonplace in Tamil films.

As Sivaji's sidekick, comedian Vivek is there with the supposed goal of providing comic relief. However since Vivek's efforts are not supported either by thoughtful dialogs that have made small-budget movies like Mozhi so charming or by commonsense, the end result in Sivaji is unfunny comedy most of the time.

Sivaji's music does not soar to great heights but the crafty fox A.R.Rahman doesn't let you down completely either.

Much effort and cost seem to have gone into picturization of most of the Sivaji songs. We loved Vajee Vajee, Balleilakka and Sahana. The other songs were sheer cacophony to us.

All in all, we found Sivaji to be all sizzle and no steak falling way short of the hype built up over the last six months. - Copyright SearchIndia.com.

N.B.: CinePlaza in New Jersey is a disgrace of a movie hall. The sound system was so bad in Hall No-4 for the 6:30 PM Premiere show of Shivaji on Thursday that the movie was stopped 15 minutes into the screening and the audience asked to move to Hall No-3.

quote:

Whey all dese people come from? The Sivaji sold-out crowd, and most of these look like dark-skinned Indians.

I myself wonders when I visited The India Day Parade "Whey all dese people come from?"

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quote:

Whey all dese people come from? The Sivaji sold-out crowd, and most of these look like dark-skinned Indians.

Its a Madrasi movie, so these dark-skinned Indians who came to see it are Madrasi.

The costliest will be the Mahabarata which will cost 30 million dollars and will be released next year, produced by Ravi Chopra.