Mainstream Bollywood stars are rushing to the South film industry. And it is happening at a never-seen-before pace and volume.
So, what has changed in the last couple of years? What are the rewards?
In the vibrant mosaic of Indian cinema, the melding of talent from distinct regions has become a hallmark of creativity and cross-cultural brilliance.
A few decades back, the only kind of cross-collaboration between Bollywood and the South Indian film industry would be when Tamil, Telugu and Kannada movies would get remade in Hindi.
The other case is when prominent South actors forayed into Hindi cinema or Bollywood stars played the occasional part.
The aberration has become the norm given the popularity of pan-India films after the Covid-19 pandemic. This has become obvious after the success of films like SS Rajamouli’s ‘RRR’ and Prashanth Neel’s ‘KGF’ where a number of Hindi cinema stars elevated the cinematic experience.
The South film industry, too, has grown in terms of the use of technology, scale, grandeur and reach.
Be it Ajay Devgn, Alia Bhatt, Anupam Kher, Vivek Oberoi, Sanjay Dutt, Jackie Shroff or Raveena Tandon, the whole galaxy is shining on the southern horizon. Deepika Padukone and Janhvi Kapoor are all set for their debut.
‘COLLABORATIVE PROCESS IS REFRESHING’
Yash and Raveena Tandon-starrer ‘KGF: Chapter 2’ shattered the box office records in 2022. In 33 days, the action drama had entered the prestigious Rs 1,200-crore club worldwide.
Raveena, who played the powerful role of Ramika Sen, the prime minister, in the movie, had spoken to IndiaToday.
In about her experience of being a part of a pan-India film that received a huge positive response from moviegoers across the country.
“KGF 2 was a wonderful experience. I had fun working with these youngsters and, especially Prashanth, as a director, was so focused. He knew exactly what he wanted and what he was doing. So, it was just an amazing experience working with them.”
As the collaboration that transcends linguistic and cultural boundaries continues to grow, Vivek Oberoi who has worked with some of the big names in South cinema, including Prithviraj Sukumaran, Mani Ratnam and Mohanlal, expressed his admiration for South cinema.
“The collaborative thought process is extremely refreshing. As a predominantly Hindi film actor, I love working with their technicians and stars. My first film, ‘Company’ was helmed by Ram Gopal Verma, who grew in Telugu cinema and created landmarks in Bollywood.
Mohanlal collaborated with us in that film too,” Vivek Oberoi told IndiaToday.in an exclusive interaction. (Courtesy: https://www.indiatoday.in/)
