Kamal ka film?

For Kamal Hassan, his latest film Dasaavatharam is all about new ideas and breaking barriers. He is unstoppable, even if controversy does follow him everywhere
Suresh S Kumar
Controversy might seem to graze producer, director and actor Kamal Hassan, yet he always seems to come out unscathed. A lawsuit was filed by Senthil Kumar — an assistant director, against Hassan on his latest film Dasavatharam, claiming that the script was copied from his. The high court, which had previously rejected this petition on account of lack of evidence, had asked for a full script in English to be submitted to check on the veracity of the claim. Now, Senthil has again filed a case with some new evidence to support his claim.
Even with the script controversy still raging, Kamal Hassan is undeterred and is busy completing the film. Almost 90 per cent of the film has been shot with the climax scene also getting ready with great fanfare, according to sources.
The film directed by K S Ravikumar, features Kamal Haasan in 10 different roles. Sources say that the movie is inspired by the 10 avatars of Lord Narayanan, which, in mythology is called Dasavatharam.
Ten times better?
Hassan will break the past record of nine roles performed by actor Sivaji Ganesan in Navaratri with this new film, where he plays 10 different roles. In the film, Hassan is a Vaishnavite saint in his first avatar. For this, the actor travelled to the US to get the best make-up techniques. He also hired a team of American experts to work on the technical side. This big budget film has been shot in America, Japan, Malaysia and Thailand, with the climax slated to be done in Chennai. The actor also had plans of shooting in the 2,000-year-old Airavatheeshwarar Temple near Kumbakonam, but was denied permission by the temple authorities. The crew then recreated the locale on a five-acre plot in Chennai. Over 500 workers built the set of the temple.
The film also features mega stars like Asin who plays the lead opposite Hassan and actresses Jayapradha and Mallika Sherawat. Actress Gowthami has done his costumes and Jeeva is on camera.
The music for the film is being done by Himesh Reshammiya, who working in a South film for the first time. Hassan’s daughter Shruti has also contributed by singing a track for the film. Sources saw that producer Ravichandran has spent Rs 3 crore on just one of the song. So, one can expect a visual feast, no doubt.
Riding a Tsunami
The film shows the devastation of southern India during the tsunami that killed over 2,758 people. Since North Chennai was the worst hit, Kamal Hassan has incorporated the disaster with a crew that worked tirelessly to recreate the tidal wave on silver screen. An artificial sea was created across two acres near the fishing village of Royapuram, on the outskirts of Chennai. The art direction team lead by Thota Tharani was behind this simulation. Interestingly, Dasavatharam will be the first film to have had a tsunami-like artificial sea for a shoot of such large proportions.
Back with Rekha
The onscreen chemistry between Kamal Hassan and Rekha in the film Punnagai Mannan will revive itself with another kiss after 21 years! The actress once again appears with Hassan in the film in an important role.
Being different
Kamal has always been known to explore new areas. He was first to introduce Dolby stereo sound in Kuruthipunal in 1996 and after that, he shot Mumbai Express and Virumandi digitally. This time around, Hassan walks the unique path again. While the budget does not in anyway match the much-hyped Rajnikant release Sivaji, Dasavatharam will have a new marketing technique to sell tickets.
At a recent FICCI-Frames meeting, the actor is said to have revealed that the tickets will be sold through retail shops and malls, which will hopefully end the sale of tickets in black.