Karthi: Mani sir finished Ponniyin Selvan duology in 120 days 

As we had previously reported, the first single for Mani Ratnam’s Ponniyin Selvan titled Ponni Nadhi was launched at a grand event organised at Chennai’s E A Mall. The single launch was attended by stars of the film Jayam Ravi, Karthi, and Jayaram. Jayam Ravi plays the protagonist, Cholan prince Arulmozhivarman, while Karthi plays Vallavaraiyan Vandiyadevan and Jayaraman plays Azhwarkadiyan Nambi aka Thirumalaiappan.

Ponni Nadhi is composed by AR Rahman and has lyrics penned by Ilango Krishnan. The first single has vocals by the music director himself along with AR Raihanah and Bamba Baky.

Actor Jayaram attended the event with a T-shirt that had the film’s logo on it. He humorously quipped, “They didn’t let me wear shirts all through the film so I asked them to give me a shirt at least for the promotions,” he then ended the speech by confidently announcing how his character Azhwarkadiyan Nambi will remain in people’s hearts.

Actor Karthi opened his speech with praise for his co-star Jayaram’s performance in the film. Speaking about the song he recalled how the river Kaveri was once called Ponni Nadhi in ancient Tamil Nadu. He then went on to talk about how every river has its own personality, from their ferocious might to the grace with which they flow across different terrains. Karthi then recalled how, just like rivers, the PS team had faced many hurdles, including COVID, while filming Ponniyin Selvan and how the cast and crew trusted Mani Ratnam to finish the film. “Mani sir finished both PS-1 and PS-2 in 120 days,” said Karthi.

Jayam Ravi, who plays the protagonist Arunmozhi Varman, took to the stage to express his excitement for the long-awaited film. “I respect the Tamil audience,” the actor said, before continuing “I’ve observed audiences from all across the world, They will clap for good songs or scenes or even action but Tamil audiences are mature enough to clap for great shots”

The actor was all praise for producer Subaskaran, calling him the second hero of the film. He then said Ponniyin Selvan will reach the heights of the Tamil film Chandralekha, which was released in 1948 and cemented Tamil cinema’s place in film history.

The song Ponni Nadhi follows Karthi’s character Vandiyadevan as he journeys along the banks of the Kaveri river, known in the ancient Cholan times as the Ponni river. The film is produced by Subaskaran under his banner Lyca Productions along with Mani Ratnam’s Madras Talkies.

The film is scheduled to release on 30 September. The ensemble cast includes stars like Jayam Ravi, Aishwarya Rai, Trisha, Karthi, Vikram Prabhu, Sarathkumar, Parthiban, and Vikram.