Ram Charan Tej all set for Kollywood

[kramkumar]

The fastest rising star in Tollywood, Ram Charan Tej, son of Telugu megastar Chiranjeevi, is all set to debut in Tamil. His blockbuster Magadheera, the fantasy action drama directed by hit maker S S Rajamouli, is being dubbed in Tamil as Maaveeran and releasing in May.

The film, which won prestigious awards, is considered to be the biggest hit in Telugu as it grossed nearly ` 118 crore, making it the only film in Tollywood to collect more than ` 100 crore!

At the star-studded audio launch of the Tamil version that took place in Chennai recently, Kamal Haasan welcomed Charan to Tamil cinema and said if there was more fusion between Tollywood and Kollywood, it would become the biggest film industry in India. Ace filmmaker Mani Ratnam was all praise for the technical finesse in Magadheera.

The soft-spoken Ram Charan Tej, speaking exclusively to CT, said, "I grew up in Chennai where I did part of my schooling. I can understand and speak in Tamil. I always wanted to come back to Chennai and watch my film in a popular multiplex. Now, I'm thrilled that Maaveeran will be releasing big in May."

The dubbed movies of Charan's dad, Chiranjeevi, have usually done well at the Chennai BO. Reveals Charan, "My dad has always wanted me to do Tamil films. Actually, it was his idea to release the dubbed version in Tamil. Allu Aravind, my uncle and producer of the film, ensured that it was done well. I'm sure Maaveeran will work as it tells the story of romance and valour, packaged with a lot of emotion and sentiment. S S Rajamouli has packaged it perfectly as a roller-coaster ride with all the essential mass elements."

The actor feels that Tamil film audiences are large-hearted and love watching movies that are different. The fans in Andhra, he states, love good content and support a movie irrespective of the star value, something that has made Tamil stars like Vikram and Suriya popular. Concludes the actor, "Ultimately, it is content that matters. Thanks to the success of Tamil stars in Andhra, our cinema has improved. Similarly, I feel Tamil cinema will give a new market to Telugu films when they get dubbed. However, towards the end of the year, I will definitely be doing a straight Tamil film with a noted director."