This line was repeated the most at the audio launch of actor Kamal Haasan and director Shankar’s film ‘Indian is Back’. Indian 2. The stars gathered at the Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on Sunday to celebrate the music of the film and the reunion between the veteran actor and director after the 1996 film ‘Hum Saath Hain’. Indian,
Apart from Anirudh Ravichander, who is working with Shankar for the first time as a music director indian 2The film’s cast and crew, including Kajal Aggarwal, Rakul Preet Singh, Bobby Simha and Brahmanandam were present at the event. Actor Silambarasan TR and directors Lokesh Kanagaraj and Nelson also attended the audio launch.
Shruti Haasan performs at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
At the event, actress-singer Shruti Haasan surprised fans by singing several of Kamal Haasan’s hit songs; on the other hand, Shankar’s son Arijit Shankar gave a dance performance, while the filmmaker’s daughter and actress Aditi Shankar sang and danced to several songs from Shankar’s previous films. Naagin-Famous actresses Mouni Roy and Urvashi Rautela also danced on many songs.
Aditi Shankar performing at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
Nelson, who directed the reality show bigg boss tamil Kamal Haasan said, “I was present in the episode in which indian 2 was announced. I have seen the long journey of this film. I have even directed its audio launch events. I And 2.0 Right here. Shankar sir pushes the boundaries and takes Tamil cinema to new heights. It is a dream to even get close to him. Rajini sir often praised Shankar sir’s commitment and dedication.” Pointing to an incident that happened on the sets Bigg BossHe also added, “I remember he (Kamal Haasan) caught a spelling mistake in Tamil during a task on the show and scolded me for it. I felt so proud of getting scolded by Kamal sir that I told everyone about it.”
Lokesh Kangraaj, who worked closely with Kamal Vikram (2022) said, “I’ve always asked for updates about indian 2 Whenever I meet someone related to this, to get his signature Vikram’s contract, I went to the set of indian 2 Where I met him in the film ‘Indian’. ‘Thatha’ Avatar. It took about five minutes for him to remove the prosthetics from two of his fingers to sign the contract.”
Rakul Preet Singh and Kajal Aggarwal at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
Next, the film’s lead actresses Kajal Aggarwal and Rakul Preet Singh took the stage. Kajal said, “I have learnt a lot from Kamal sir and working with Shankar sir is a dream come true.” Rakul added, “Kamal sir shows a lot of dedication and tries to challenge himself more. I have learnt a lot from him. I can finally say that I am also the heroine of Shankar sir’s film.”
Veteran actor Brahmanandam said, “Shankar, more than being a world-renowned director, is a great human being. He is very dedicated to his work. Kamal is a dedicated actor and I am proud to be his contemporary.”
Anirudh at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
Anirudh, who had previously worked with Kamal VikramTeaming up with Shankar for the first time indian 2 and the result indian 3“When I was a child Indian As a 90s kid, Shankar sir has always been my favourite director. I travelled with him for five years for this film. I loved how, while getting the music, he would explain the locations, details and lyrics. I am blessed to have worked with him in back-to-back films.” Addressing the fan-followers of AR Rahman’s music Indian Talking about the popularity the film has gained over the years, Anirudh said, “I know the expectations are very high with the sequel coming 28 years after the first film. Rahman sir’s music inspires me.”
The next person to come on stage was actor Silambarasan, who is acting in an untitled film produced by Kamal, and is sharing the screen with the actor in Mani Ratnam’s upcoming film. thug Life, The actor began his speech by taking a dig at how people criticise him for arriving late. “Don’t make the mistake of arriving late to my event; I am coming from shooting. thug Life, Indian One of my favorite films, and it’s very close to my heart. I don’t think there’s any other film with a better structure and formula for a commercial film than this IndianRahman sir’s music is still a part of our playlist.
“If Appa (Actor-director T Rajendar) is my guru behind the camera, Kamal sir is my on-screen guru. I can’t put into words the joy I got to work with him. Everyone is talking about pan-India films, but he worked in all languages even before the term came into vogue. ‘Indian’ is an apt title for him,” Simbu said.
Silambarasan at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
Director Shankar named each cast and crew member and thanked them for their work in the film. On how the sequel film came to be, the veteran filmmaker said, “Kamal sir wanted to make a sequel Indian There was a sequel at that time, but I had no story. Unfortunately even today we see news about bribery and corruption and I wonder what Indians are doing Thatha What will he do if he sees this. This is how I got an idea after the release 2.0. I remember when I saw Kamal sir in Indian cinema, I got goosebumps. Thatha He wore the same outfit when we shot the first film. 28 years later, when he returned for a photo shoot in the same outfit, it gave me goosebumps. Thatha He is the protector of the common man and a deadly villain for the wicked.
Director Shankar at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
Talking about working with Kamal after almost three decades, the director said, “He makes every scene he is in, great. Some senior actors feel monotonous about their work, but Kamal sir keeps improving his acting skills. He had to wear prosthetics for 70 days of shooting and it took three hours to put it on and four hours to remove it.” Pointing to a “futuristic scene” in the film, Shankar said, “For that scene, he had to hang on a rope for three days. It is a slow-mo sequence shot in 48 frames per second and he has to speak his dialogues in 12 frames per second… that too in Punjabi while his hands are busy making something. I don’t think any other actor can do that. I am very proud to be associated with him.”
Talking about working with Anirudh, Shankar said, “Even if the song he gives is brilliant, I would say it is only eighty per cent right but he will keep making changes to it until I think it is a hundred per cent right. He is very talented and can deliver songs in any genre.” Talking about the rest of the cast, the director paid tribute to late actors Vivek and Manobala. “They are not with us today but the film will make you feel that they will always be with us. Vivek sir has played a different character and there is a great chemistry between him and Anirudh ThathaSiddharth might get an award for his performance and SJ Suryah has played a different role from his previous roles.
Shankar also spoke about the problems the film faced during production. “We had to halt production for a few years and Udhayanidhi Stalin came in and sorted it out for us. The climax of this film has a lot of surprises and I am glad that my filmmakers Vasanthabalan, Chimbudevan and Arivazhagan worked with me again as second unit directors. I have used the animated version of RK Laxman’s common man cartoon character as a narrative tool in the film.”
Kamal Haasan at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
Kamal, who then took the stage, spoke about his history with Shankar. “The toughness I saw in him so many years ago is still there. He came to me with his first film, which I did not accept due to differences. I thought he might not come back to me,” said Kamal, who was surprised to see him with another script after the success of his first release. “Later Thevar MaganI wanted to direct a film with Sivaji sir. Shankar’s story was similar to mine and I had initially turned it down as well. When Sivaji sir came to know about it, he said that we should drop our film as he plays the father and I the son, but in Shankar’s film I am playing both the roles. This shows his affection towards me and thus Indian happened.”
Talking about the film’s producer, Subaskaran Allirajah of Lyca Productions, Kamal said, “We had an accident in which we lost a few people and then we had the pandemic and then some political issues came along. Producer Subaskaran stood by us through all this. It shows his Tamil bravery. It may seem like I am doing politics but Indian It’s also about politics.” Praising Anirudh’s work he said, “I heard from Shankar and other crew members about Anirudh’s enthusiasm about the film’s progress. I am not surprised at how good his music is and it is all because of his enthusiasm.”
Kamal also shared interesting details about his make-up crew, which included Academy Award-winning make-up artist Michael Westmore. “He worked on the first film and is now retired. But he came in as a supervisor without taking any salary. indian 2 And 3His assistants have also worked in the film.” Praising the work of his co-stars in the film, Kamal said, “Actors should not only praise me but also stand with me; the actors of the film indian 2 With their help the palanquin was lifted, which Indian A little higher. I also stand here on behalf of the people we lost during the making of this film.”
Kamal Haasan at the audio launch of ‘Indian 2’ | Photo Credit: Gopinath Rajendran
Dispelling rumours about Senapathy’s age, his character has been named ‘Akashgaanga’. IndianKamal said, “I played an old man when I was 40 years old, but I noticed that some people were assuming my character’s age in the new film to be around 120. I can assure you that he is about 15 years older than me right now.” The actor further added that indian 2 And 3 talked about identity. “I am a Tamilian and an Indian; that is my identity and that is your identity too. That is the concept behind the sequel. Divide and rule is a British concept and they did it then because they had a home to go back to. It will not work now and I wonder where will those who are trying to do it today go back to.” Pointing to the famous poem by Kaniyan Pungundranar, ‘Yathum Ore, Yaavarum Kelir’ “Every city is your city. Everyone is your relative,” Kamal said. “We are known for giving life to people who come to our state. Why shouldn’t a day come when a Tamil rules the country? This is my country and we must protect the unity within it.”
Indian 2 will release in cinemas on July 12
