The upcoming film Thalaivi has created a lot of buzz among the audience. The film based on the life of former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa started rolling earlier this month. While Kangana Ranaut is playing the central character of late Jayalalithaa, Arvind Swami will be seen as former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and legendary actor MG Ramachandran. Apart from these two, names of other cast members have not been announced yet.
There were reports that actor Junior NTR might play his grandfather Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (NTR) in the film. But according to latest media reports, the south star has refused to step into the shoes of his grandfather.
The late actress-turned-politician Jayalalithaa and NTR had worked together in a number of films. It is reported that the makers of Thalaivi approached Jr NTR with the offer to play his grandfather but the actor politely declined.
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Apparently, Jr NTR has said on several occasions that he will never be able to play his grandfather on screen. In the past, he had said it would be impossible for him to pull off the role as it’s very tough to replicate the veteran’s aura and charisma.
Although he has paid tributes to his grandfather briefly in several of his films over the years, he believes the idea of slipping into his shoes for a full-length role would be very challenging.
Kangana has been working very hard for preparing her role in the film. She reportedly spent six months in the prep session. She underwent Bharatanatyam classes, learnt Tamil and even spent hours in the prosthetic make up sessions.
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In a recent media interaction, she admitted that she is finding it difficult to learn the Tamil language. She added that she is learning the language as per the demand of the film’s script.
“I am finding it difficult to learn Tamil. This film will be released in Hindi and Tamil, so we will do something about it. Obviously, I have to mug up those dialogues because Tamil is not an easy language. Earlier, I was trying to learn the complete Tamil language because I have learned English as well, but now I am learning Tamil as per the demand of film’s script,” said Kangana, while interacting with the media earlier this month in Mumbai.
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The project was announced along with its title and first look poster on February 25, on the 71st birth anniversary of Jayalalithaa.
Directed by Vijay, Thalaivi will release in 2020 in three languages – Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu.