Pan-Indian films: Are Tamils syncing with rest of India? – Inmathi
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In the world of cinema, remake or dubbing is nothing new. Tamil cinema has been seeing such a trend even before the days of producers SS Vasan, AVM, Nagi Reddy and Lv Prasad. The pan-Indian movie trend is now catching up in the country where movies are made in multiple languages and released at the same time.
tollywood director s rajamouli turned the page with his trend-setting film ‘naan ee’ (eega in telugu). Rajamouli’s Baahubali: The Beginning and Baahubali 2: The Conclusion were true pan-Indian releases that became the highest grossing films in Indian cinema. rrr de rajamouli, a fiction woven in the context of the struggle for freedom, another pan india release, will hit the big screen in January. kannada movie kgf: 2 and maniratnam’s ponniyin selvan are also expecting big releases in 2022.
Priyadarshan Marakkar: Arabikadalinde Simham was launched in Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi to good reception. Pan-Indian releases will be the new norm in Indian cinema for a while.
A pan-Indian release is indeed a dream for production companies. unity in diversity could be a slogan for india. but it is not easy to make a film that appeals to everyone in the country, especially when the differences range from language, culture, landscape, caste, creed to religion. For a film to be successful in the midst of so many differences, it must really touch common themes such as human values, common problems or basic feelings applicable to all.
kalidas in Tamil cinema was a milestone when silent films gained sound. Interestingly, the heroine spoke Tamil while the hero spoke Telugu in that movie. followed the trend of making films in Tamil and Telugu simultaneously. Tamil film producers and directors embraced dubbing and remake with equal enthusiasm when these technologies arrived.
s s vasan’s gemini studio produced chandralekha in 1948. it was a box office hit across the country as the film had the perfect combination of all the entertainment features. Tamil Nadu’s famous production houses first produced Tamil and Telugu films and remade them in Hindi until 1965. The trend was later reversed. Bollywood movies started to rule the roost starting in the 1970s. When Amithabh Bachchan became a superstar in the 1980s, South Indian producers and directors were busy remaking his hits in their languages.
During the 1990s, Telugu directors such as Koti Ramakrishna, Raghavendra Rao, and Rama Rao dubbed Telugu films into Tamil and Hindi. Telugu actors such as Chiranjeevi, Suman, Venkatesh and Nagarjuna also had a large following in Tamil Nadu. Bollywood began to notice the talented technicians of South Indian cinema when Shankar’s Kadhalan and Maniratnam’s Roja were dubbed into Hindi.
Making a pan-Indian cinema is not easy. There is no guarantee that the plot, cast and cultural elements will connect viewers across India.
maniratnam came in for a lot of criticism because he has been trying to make films that will appeal to an all-India audience. Ella Ravanan and Ayutha Ezhuthu missed the bus while she was concentrating on producing these films for Tamil and Hindi audiences. abhishek bachchan testing tirunelveli tamil slang in guru turned troll material. the plot and the landscape did not connect with the audience.
To achieve this connection, a director has to create a fictional background like those cowboy movies released in almost every Indian language during the 1970s. Despite all these challenges, the term pan-Indian release is gaining popularity. only for the box office collection.
A pan-Indian victory comes with their advantage. such successes give a lot of recognition. The salary of Tamil directors and technicians, as well as their market, witnessed a multiple increase after successful pan-Indian launches such as Kadhalan, Indian and Jeans. prabhas and yash got vip status in indian cinema after baahubali and kgf. once ponniyin selvan is released, karthi and jayam ravi will also be able to enjoy the said privilege.
ott technology enabled viewers to watch their favorite movies in the languages they preferred. Not only movies, even series released in other languages are also gaining significant popularity.
even before technology came along, titanic made magic among indian viewers. although it was dubbed in many regional languages, the English film itself was engaging. created a loyal audience for english language films in india. In addition to the technical nuances, what moved the public was the love story. adventure-themed movies like the avengers and the matrix did the same.
However, the time has not come for the West to consume our films. With pan-Indian movies being a hot topic now, many Tamil movies like Vijay’s Beast, Ajith’s Valimai could try to be Pan-Indian. It gives satisfaction that our cultural tastes are appreciated in distant places.
but the pan-India concept should not become something like “one country, one cinema”. that will be a regressive phenomenon.
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