Evergreen Movie International is an Indian film production and distribution company headed by V. A. Durai. The studio collaborated with actor Sathyaraj and director Sakthi Chidambaram on multiple ventures in the early 2000s, before running into financial trouble through the making of Bala's Pithamagan (2003).[1][2]
| Company type | Film production Film distribution |
|---|---|
| Industry | Entertainment |
| Founded | 2000 |
| Headquarters | , India |
Key people | V. A. Durai |
| Products | Motion pictures (Tamil) |
History edit
Durai made his first film Ennamma Kannu (2000) directed by Sakthi Chidambaram, and starring Sathyaraj and Devayani. He later collaborated with Sathyaraj again in Looty (2001) and Vivaramana Aalu (2002), and with Sakthi Chidambaram in Lovely (2001). Durai and Evergreen Movie International worked as executive producers for the making of Suresh Krishna's Baba (2002) starring Rajinikanth.
The studio ran into financial trouble during the making of Bala's Pithamagan (2003) starring Vikram and Suriya. Bala went over the agreed budget, and as a result, Durai held back on settling the payments for the lead actors. The film won critical acclaim upon release, also winning Durai the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Film.[3] Bala later agreed to pay Durai following the release of his maiden production venture.[4] Bala announced and started projects as a producer including Maayavi (2005), Paramasivan (2006) and Naan Kadavul (2009), before selling the rights to other producers. As a result, Durai pursued a litigation case against Bala.[5][6] As a result of the complications following Pithamagan's release, Durai produced Gajendra under a different production studio named Tamilanai Cine Creation. The film ran into release issues as a result of Vijayakanth's political involvement, with cadres from Pattali Makkal Katchi threatening to indulge in violence at theatres owing to Vijayakanth's comments against their party leader.[7][8] In 2005, Durai planned a film with director P. C. Anbazhagan and actor Murali, but the film did not begin production.[9] He later also attempted to cast Ajith Kumar and Jiiva in films by Tarun Gopi and Ameer respectively, but neither project materialised.[10][11]
In mid-2008, Durai announced a return to films with a project titled Naai Kutty (2010) by newcomer S. S. Joe.[12] Prasanna and Nicole signed to play the lead roles while comedian Santhanam was approached to play a significant role and Sundar C. Babu was chosen to compose the music.[13][14] In late-September 2008, a complaint had been lodged by director Ram Shiva alleging that the story had been taken from the Kannada film Nanda Loves Nanditha. He alleged that Durai tried to buy the rights for remaking the film in Tamil but his efforts were in vain and had decided to plagiarise the script as a result.[15][16] Durai later restarted the project with a new script and Sathaji was chosen to direct the film after Joe opted out. Newcomer Selvin signed on after Prasanna opted out of the role and Soori replaced Santhanam.[17][18][19] He made a second attempted comeback through the comedy drama Kagitha Kappal (2016) starring Appukutty but the film went unnoticed.[20]
V. A. Durai died in October 2023 following long-term illnesses.[21]
Filmography edit
| Title | Year | Director | Cast | Synopsis | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ennamma Kannu | 2000 | Sakthi Chidambaram | Sathyaraj, Devayani, Ranjith | Kaasi, a womaniser woos a girl Gayathri she rejects him and is in love with his friend Vishwa. When Vishwa deserts her on the day of the wedding, Kaasi offers refuge to her. | [22] |
| Looty | 2001 | Parameshwar | Sathyaraj, Roja, Mumtaj | Rasappa and Geetha who are childless adopt a baby however Geetha suspects the baby as Rasappa's biological son | [23] |
| Lovely | 2001 | Sakthi Chidambaram | Karthik, Malavika, Monal | Chandru and Niveditha who are in love comes up with a plan to impress her father who hates love | [24] |
| Vivaramana Aalu | 2002 | K. Selva Bharathy | Sathyaraj, Devayani, Mumtaj | [25] | |
| Pithamagan | 2003 | Bala | Vikram, Suriya, Laila, Sangeetha | A naive but violent grave digger and loud mouthed thief befriend each other | [26] |
| Gajendra | 2004 | Suresh Krissna | Vijayakanth, Flora, Laya | [27] | |
| Naai Kutty | 2009 | Sathaji | Selvin, Nicole, Soori | [28] | |
| Kagitha Kappal | 2016 | S. Sivaraman | Appukutty, Dilija, M. S. Bhaskar | [29] |
References edit
- ^ "V.A. Durai". BFI.[dead link]
- ^ "Pitamagan". Sify.[dead link]
- ^ "Pithamagan Awards: List of Awards won by Tamil movie Pithamagan". The Times of India.
- ^ "Tamil movies : Pithamagan controversy still haunts Bala". www.behindwoods.com.
- ^ "Madras High Court". indiankanoon.org. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
- ^ "Mayavi has the last laugh – Tamil News". IndiaGlitz.com. 10 March 2005.
- ^ "Film industry strike back at PMK | undefined News – Times of India". The Times of India. 24 June 2004.
- ^ "Gajendra's producers holds meeting Ramadoss – Telugu News". IndiaGlitz.com. 30 August 2004.
- ^ "V A Durai's next with Murali – News". IndiaGlitz.com. 3 March 2005.
- ^ "Tharun Gopi in demand – Tamil News". IndiaGlitz.com. 20 September 2007.
- ^ "Jeeva reaching towards the top - Tamil News". IndiaGlitz.com. 16 September 2006. Retrieved 13 August 2023.
- ^ "'Naai Kutty' – Saga of a slum dweller". IndiaGlitz.com. Archived from the original on 25 September 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Prasanna to play a rustic youth". IndiaGlitz.com. Archived from the original on 25 September 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Nai Kutti from tomorrow". cinesouth.com. Archived from the original on 4 August 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Debutant director Joe opts out of 'Naai Kutty'?". IndiaGlitz.com. Archived from the original on 25 September 2008. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Complaint against 'Naai Kutty'". IndiaGlitz.com. Archived from the original on 30 August 2009. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Naaikutty dropped, Prasanna dejected". Sify. 21 December 2008. Archived from the original on 6 November 2019. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Parotta Suri's kuthu dance!". IndiaGlitz.com. Archived from the original on 6 January 2010. Retrieved 6 November 2019.
- ^ "Simbu releases Naikutty audio". The New Indian Express.
- ^ "Appukutti's Return Gift to Ajith – News". IndiaGlitz.com. 12 August 2016.
- ^ "Film producer VA Durai passes away; film industry mourns the loss". The Times of India. 3 October 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
- ^ "Film Review: Ennamma Kannu". The Hindu. 23 June 2000 – via www.thehindu.com.
- ^ "Film Review: Looty". The Hindu. 19 January 2001 – via www.thehindu.com.
- ^ "Film Review: Lovely – The Hindu". web.archive.org. 13 August 2012. Archived from the original on 13 August 2012.
- ^ "Vivaramana Aalu". Sify. Archived from the original on 28 December 2016.
- ^ "Pithamagan". The Hindu. 31 October 2003 – via www.thehindu.com.
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 18 December 2021. Retrieved 19 December 2020.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Naai Kutty". Sify. Archived from the original on 10 September 2015.
- ^ "Kagitha Kappal Movie: Showtimes, Review, Trailer, Posters, News & Videos | eTimes". The Times of India.