‘Serndhu Polama?’ takes pristine New Zealand
If you were to see ‘Thalaivasal’ Vijay, Thambi Ramaiah, Vinay Rai, Madhurima Banerjee and Anand Sri Krishna (Nandu) at shopping malls or restaurants in New Zealand and think that they are lookalike of popular artistes of the South Indian film industry, you would be wrong.
They would indeed be the stars working in a mystery film being shot here.
Called ‘Serndhu Polama? (Shall we go together?), the film is produced by Auckland based Aiswarya Entertainments Limited and its Managing Director Sasi Nambissan.
Fun & thrill
Stated to be filled with mystery and fun, the film would incorporate the scenic beauty of New Zealand as the story unfolds with a young pair (Vinay and Madhurima) confronting emotions and vicissitudes. As the movie progresses, an array of other characters add to its entertainment value.
Veteran director
Anil Kumar, a popular and experienced Director of Kerala, commenced shooting ‘Serndhu Polama?’ with Muhurat on January 28, a day after a special Pooja was conducted at Shri Ganesha Temple in Papakura by Chief Priest Parameswaran.
Mr Nambissan said that he chose Anil to direct the film because he was convinced of the moviemaker’s competence to handle even difficult scripts and put together a team of artistes with commitment and dedication.
“Anil is a veteran of 38 feature films in Malayalam and his star cast has included almost all the big names in the industry including Mammootty, Dileep and Jayaram. Since his debut in 1989, Anil has tried almost all the genre in films and the success of his recent releases (‘Manthirikan’ and ‘Climax’) has made him a hotly pursued Director,” he said.
Talented team
Anil’s team comprises Sanjeev Shankar (Cinematographer), Ravi Mathew (Script & Dialogue Writer) and many other experts of the film industry.
While a number of actors including Vinay, Madhurima, Thambi and Nandu are attending to their shooting schedule in Auckland, ‘Thalaivasal’ Vijay is expected to join them next fortnight.
Thalaivasal Vijay
Vijay made his debut in ‘Thalaivasal’ a Tamil film released in 1992. Since then he has appeared in more than 170 films in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu. His performance in R Sukumaran’s ‘Yugapurushan’ earned him a Special Jury Award given by the Kerala Government.
Thambi Ramaiah
Although he entered the Tamil film industry as a lyricist and music composer, Thambi Ramaiah became a successful director and actor with more than 65 films to his credit, in addition to three films in which he was a playback singer.
Vinay Rai
Vinay was a model in Bangalore, and his passion for films saw him debut as an actor in ‘Unnale Unnale,’ directed by Jeeva. The film starred Sadha (Sadaf Mohammed Sayed) and Tanisha Mukherjee. He was a recipient of the Vijay Television Award for Best Debut Actor.
Apart from ‘Serndhu Polama?’ the year will see him in two other films, namely ‘Senthatti Kaalai Sevatha Kaalai’ and ‘Iruvar Ullam.’
Madhurima Banerjee
Following appearances in various television serials, Madhurima entered the film industry with ‘Toss: A Flip of Destiny’ (2009) and has since then acted in 12 films. She learnt Hindustani Classical music, Ghazal and North Indian Classical dance Kathak. She was a popular star in the Television serial ‘Kadambari,’ on Jaya TV.
Anand Sri Krishna
Anand Sri Krishna, aka Nandu, is a Telugu actor. Engaged to be married to popular playback singer Geetha Madhuri, he has a promising career. His film, ‘100% Love’ was a box-office hit.
Local actors
“One of the avowed objectives of Aiswarya Entertainments is to explore and expose local talent as done in our dance drama ‘Taj Mahal’ in 2012. We held an audition in Auckland on January 25 and hope to include a few New Zealanders in the ‘Serndhu Polama?’ Although the movie is comparatively a low-budget film costing about Rs 30 million (about $600,000), we are confident of its high production value,” Mr Nambissan said.
A Chemical Engineer by profession, he has evinced keen interest in Indian fine arts and cinema, with a passion for promoting his country’s heritage among wider ethnic communities in New Zealand.
