South News Makers Of The Week: Punnagai Mannan controversy, Prabhas' next, Rajinikanth’s Annaatthe

We are back with the bried round up of the hot news from the South Indian entertainment industry. This week, we have Kamal Haasan’s 1986 movie Punnagai Mannan, which caught in soup after Rekha, who was one of the female leads in the film, issued a statement about an unplanned kiss. On the other hand, it broke the internet, when the makers of Tollywood star Prabhas’ next announced that the film will be directed by Nag Ashwin and produced by Aswini Dutt. Here are the top newsmakers of the week for a quick read.

Punnagai Mannan controversy:

Actor Rekha, who was one of the two female leads in the 1986 movie of Kamal Haasan, Punnagai Mannan issued a statement, stating that she was unaware of a scene in which Kamal Haasan kissed her. Directed by K Balachander, the iconic scene, has Kamal Haasan planting a kiss on her lips. A video with Rekha talking about it shot without her permission made rounds on social media. However, when she was approached by media for further comments, she refused to make any and stated that the shot was apt for the scene, though it was taken without her consent.

Ashwin Saravanan's next with Samantha Akkineni:

Director Ashwin Saravanan, who rose to his fame after directing two critically acclaimed films – Maya and Game Over with Nayanthara and Tapsee Pannu respectively, announced his next film with Samantha Akkineni and Prasanna in the lead roles. It was also revealed that this film too, just like the director’s other movies, would have a horror based story, and it will be a female-centric one too. While Prasanna confirmed his role in the film during an interview, Samantha took to Twitter to confirm her role.

Prabhas’ next mega project with Nag Ashwin:

Rebel Star Prabhas will be teaming up with Nag Ashwin for his next film, which will be bankrolled by Aswini Dutt. There are media reports speculating that Prabhas will be seen as superhero in the film. Reportedly, the film will also have some big names in the cast list, and some say that Deepika Padukone has been approached to play the female lead. It is expected that this new project will be produced with a huge budget as we all know that Aswini Dutt has always had extravagant sets and mega production budget.

Rajinikanth's upcoming film Thalaivar 168 titled Annaatthe:

Superstar Rajinikanth’s next film with Sun Pictures has been titled Annaatthe. The film, directed by Siruthai Siva, has some big names from the south film industry. Annatthe has four female leads – Khushbu, Meena, Nayanthara and Keerthy Suresh. The film also has Prakash Raj, Sathish and Soori in prominent roles. First leg of the film’s shooting, which happened at Hyderabad Ramoji film city, was wrapped up recently.

Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan’s reactions to Delhi violence:

Many celebrities and politicians issuied statements against the violence that hit North Delhi. Kollywood superstar Rajinikanth addressed the press and issued a statement, condemning the Central Government. He also stated that violence has never been a solution for any problem and urged the Central Government to act quickly to contain the situation. Lauding Rajinikanth’s unexpected statement, Kamal Haasan took to his Twitter space and appreciated the actor for taking the ‘correct path’. It is to be noted that both the actors have announced their political entry.

Chiyaan Vikram's seven looks from his next film Cobra:

While it was reported earlier that Chiyan Vikram will have more than 20 looks in his next film titled Cobra, the makers released the first look poster, which showed the Saami actor in seven different looks. Apart from Vikram, the film also starrs cricket player Irfan Pathan, KGF famed actor Srinidhi Shetty, Mrinalini, Malayalam actor Lal, Kanika, Padmapriya, Babu Antony among the others. AR Rahman has scored music for the film.