Why Trisha, Abhirami Admire Kamal Haasan

Thug
Life
actors
Trisha
Krishnan
and
Abhirami
on
sharing
screen
space
with
Kamal
Haasan
and
working
with
Mani
Ratnam.

What’s
so
charming
about
watching
a
70-year-old
actor
on
screen?

With
his
receding
hairline,
well
groomed
salt
and
pepper
look,
to
the
GenZ,
Kamal
Haasan
is
probably
the
same
age
as
their
grandfathers.
Yet,
there
is
something
magnetic
about
his
deep
expressive
eyes,
his
old
world
personality
and
onscreen
presence
that
is
hard
to
ignore.

His
recent
film



Indian
2,
a
sequel
to
his
super
hit
vigilante
drama
was
underwhelming.

But
his
incredible
transformation
as
Supreme
Yaskin,
the
haunting
antagonist
in



Kalki
2989
AD
was
nothing
short
of
spectacular.

Lest
we
forget,
he
is
also
the
same
actor
who
gave
the
most
entertaining
thriller



Vikram.

In

Thug
Life,
co-written
and
directed
by
Mani
Ratnam,
Kamal
plays
Rangaraaya
Sakthivel
Naiker
—
a
nostalgic
tribute
to
his
iconic
role
in

Nayakan
(1987).

At
the
Hindi
trailer
launch
in
Mumbai
on
Tuesday,
Mani
Ratnam
called
the
film
“an
emotional
drama
set
in
a
world
of
crime.”

While
the
trailer
is
packed
with
layered
characters
and
high
octane
music,
a
brief
moment
that
stands
out
is
Kamal
Haasan
locking
lips
in
an
intense
moment
with
Abhirami,
who
plays
his
wife,
and
is
probably
three
decades
younger
in
real
life.

The
controversial
kissing
scene,
which
was
a
part
of
the
trailer,
has
been


reportedly
removed
from
the
film.

There
is
also
Trisha
whose
character
is
ironically
named
‘Sugar
Baby’
playing
his
love
interest.

‘Madam
I
am
your
only
Adam’
Kamal’s
character
flirts
with
Trisha
as
he
emerges
playfully
from
behind
her
ear,
in
the
trailer.

The
dialogue
instantly
reminds
you
of
Amitabh
Bachchan
teasing
Aishwarya
Rai
in

Bunty
and
Babli
after
the
song

Kajra
Re.

There
is
an
interesting
story
how
Trisha
became
a
part
of

Thug
Life.
Watch
the
video
to
find
out!

Abhirami,
who
has
collaborated
with
Kamal
in
several
films
including

Virumaandi,
seemed
unflinched
by
negative
criticism
about
her
few
seconds
of
fame
in
the
pulsating
teaser.

The
Malayalam
actor,
who
started
her
career
as
a
television
anchor,
revealed
how
she
had
“made
it
in
life”
after
joining
the
film.

In
a


2003

Rediff
interview,
Abhirami
had
spoken
about
being
cast
in

Sandhiyar
starring
Kamal
Haasan.

‘Most
Kamal
Haasan
films
include
intimate
kissing
scenes,’
the
interviewer
had
asked
Abhirami,
to
which
a
younger
Abhirami
replied:
‘It
is
not
war,
only
love.
Many
people
have
done
such
roles.
Why
should
I
make
a
hue
and
cry
about
it?
When
Kamal
Sir
is
making
a
movie,
he
will
not
make
it
look
vulgar.
If
you
look
at
his
films,
you
will
see
those
scenes
are
not
repulsive
at
all.’

After
all
these
years,
what
does
Abhirami
think
about
working
with
Kamal
Haasan
now?
Watch
the
video
below:

The
mutual
admiration
for
the
film’s
terrific
trio
—
Kamal
Haasan,
Mani
Ratnam
and
A
R
Rahman
—
was
boundless,
with
each
of
them
sharing
stories
of
their
comfort
and
friendship
with
each
other.

Surreal.
Honoured.
Grateful.

The
adjectives
constantly
repeated
by
his
co-stars
Silambarasan,
Trisha,
Abirami
and
Ashok
Selvan,
may
be
short
of
describing
the
multi-faceted
star
described
as
‘vinveli
nayaga‘
(a
cosmic
hero)
in
the
film’s
background
score
composed
by
Rahman.

While
several
regional
actors
continue
to
revel
in
the
glory
of
fan
generated
titles,
the
OG
pan-India
star
who
has
charmed
audiences
across
languages
and
borders,
recently
requested
to
drop
the
title
‘Ulaga
Nayagam‘
and
simply
address
him
as
Kamal.

For
an
actor
who
started
working
at
age
5
and
spent
over
six
decades
in
show
business,
Kamal
smiled
and
humbly
credited
his
success
to
the
audience
for
accepting
and
loving
him
in
his
various
roles
and
avatars.

Would
the
audience
embrace
him
again
in

Thug
Life?
We’ll
have
to
wait
until
June
5
to
find
out.