Recently, we reported about Venky Atluri's film Vishwanath and Sons exploring the love story between a middle-aged man and a woman who is half as old as him. The fact that the film's story itself revolves around the concept of the age gap between its hero and heroine is 'fresh,' according to its lead actor Mamitha Baiju.
Speaking to Sudhir Srinivasan about the upcoming film's main plot element, Mamitha said, "I found it fresh when I heard the story first. We do not mention it much. Venky sir called me and gave me a brief about the film's story, and I loved it then and there. I felt like, 'I should not miss out on an opportunity to do a character like this."
It remains interesting to see how the Telugu-Tamil bilingual, Vishwanath and Sons, explores the concept. At least, in terms of the premise, the fact that the makers address the age gap in the teaser and pre-release interviews themselves is refreshing, especially because the Indian film industry tends to normalise it.
For example, many actors, such as Salman Khan and Ravi Teja to name two, face criticism for romancing co-stars who are about half as old as them in their films.
Coming back to Vishwanath and Sons, it marks Suriya's 46th film in his career. The film also stars Radikaa Sarathkumar and Raveena Tandon in important roles. It brings Raveena Tandon back to Tamil cinema for the first time after her role in 2001's Aalavandhan, co-starring Kamal Haasan.
Vishwanath and Sons is slated for a July release in theatres. Suriya's upcoming films also include Karuppu, directed by RJ Balaji, and a film with Aavesham director Jithu Madhavan and co-star Nazriya Nazim. On the other hand, Mamitha Baiju's upcoming films include Jana Nayagan with Vijay, Kara with Dhanush, Irandu Vaanam with Vishnu Vishal, and Bethlehem Kudumba Unit with Nivin Pauly.
