Namitha dons khaki
Glam doll Namitha seems to be all set to conquer the whole of South Indian cinema. While she is getting releases after releases in Tamil, she is getting busier in Telugu too. At the same time, she is all set to get her first release in Malayalam, Black Stallion. In Telugu Namitha is currently basking in the success of Billa and is awaiting the release of her Jaganmohini. Meanwhile, Namitha is all set to play the cop in one of her forthcoming movies, Deshadrohi, to be directed by K.S.Nageswara Rao, will have Three fame Shanthi Chandra in a key role. Produced by GVH Prasad under the banner of Sridevi Cinechitra, Deshadrohi was launched recently at the Annapurna Studios in Hyderabad.

Nandalala is Myshkin’s next
Myshkin, the director of Chithiram Pesuthedi and Anjathay, is now getting ready with his latest film, Nandalala. Produced by Ayngaran Films International, the film has Myshkin donning the lead role. The film is, in fact, the story of a journey undertaken by two people, a 30-year-old man (played by Myshkin) and a seven-year-old boy (played by Master Ashwath Ram) in search of their respective mothers. Snigdha Akolkar, who shot to fame with the Kathala kannaala number in Anjathay, is the heroine of Nandalala, which is scripted by the director himself. Nandalala is reportedly based on the Japanese film Kikujiro, directed by Takeshi Kitano. Ilayaraja is in charge of the music.

Factional feud may hit Malayalam film industry
Actor-Director Sreenivasan has become the centre of a new row between various organisations in the Malayalam film industry, with unconfirmed reports saying he has been banned by the Producers’ Association for not acting in a film after taking an advance.
This adds to the commotion in the industry plagued by the fight between MACTA (Malayalam Cine Technicians Association), a registered trade union affiliated to AITUC led by director Vinayan and FEFKA (Film Employees Federation of Kerala), led by the other section of directors and actors. MACTA federation had alleged that their members were being denied jobs in films involving actors and directors owing allegiance to FEFKA. Hundreds of workers had been left jobless in the past few months, they alleged. A delegation led by AITUC state secretary Kanam Rajendran had submitted a memorandum to Chief Minister V. S. Achuthanandan and Labour Minister P. K. Gurudasan, asking them to summon the Film Chamber and other associations for discussions to end the stalemate. They have also served a strike notice.
Sreenivasan had reportedly taken an undisclosed amount for acting in a film, to be directed by Vindhyan, but had not kept his word and he would not be allowed to act in films before settling the issue, sources said. This evoked strong reaction from Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (AMMA) and the parallel outfit of producers, Malayalam Producers’ Association, who vowed to protect the actor. However, Producers’ Association spokesman Sabu Cherian said there was no ban on Sreenivasan as such and talks were on for a settlement of the issue. Sreenivasan was not available for comment.

Suriya to act in Singam
Suriya is set to act once again in a film directed by the hit-maker Hari. He will be playing a cop in Singam, which will be produced jointly by Gnanavel Raja of Studio Green (the producer of Sillinu Oru Kathal and Paruthiveeran) and Big Pictures. Telugu actress Anushka will play the female lead role in the film, which would be an action thriller. Devi Sriprasad will be the music director while Priyan will be in charge of the cinematography. Singam will also have Prakashraj and Vivek in key roles and is likely to commence in the coming months, after Suriya finishes Aadhavan, the K.S. Ravikumar- directed film in which he is currently acting.

Priyamani in Pellaina Kottalo
Pellaina Kottalo, directed by Madan and with Jagapathy Babu in the lead role, was the film that launched Priyamani in Telugu. And now, the National award-winning actress is all set to team up with the Pellaina Kottalo team once again in Pravarakyudu. Slated to start rolling this month, Pravarakyudu is produced by Ganesh Kandukuri under the banner of Tolly 2 Holly Films and has Jagapathy Babu playing a lecturer in a women’s college. The film, a romantic entertainer, will have M.M.Keeravani as the music director while Surendar Reddy will crank the camera and M.R.Varma will do the editing. The story and the script for Pravarakyudu will be by director Madan himself. It remains to be seem if the Priyamani-Jagapathy Babu-Madan team repeats the success of Pellaina Kottalo with Pravarakyudu too.