Actor Meena took her time out to watch CM Vijay's latest film Jana Nayagan in theatres on Friday. The veteran star, who was all in praise of the movie, called it an "amazing awesome entertainer" and said she will "miss this dearly thalapathy," almost seemingly penning a farewell story for the star-turned-Chief Minister.
For the unversed, Jana Nayagan, directed by H Vinoth, marked Vijay's final film outing before his full-fledged political jump. The film was scheduled for release during the Pongal festival in January, but was unfortunately stuck in censor-related issues for six months before finally locking a release date in July.
Meena's association with Vijay goes back to the time when they famously collaborated on the hit 2001 Tamil movie Shahjahan for the special track 'Sarakku Vachiruken'. Their professional and personal connection extends further as Meena's daughter, Nainika, played the role of Vijay’s daughter in the 2016 blockbuster film Theri, directed by Atlee.
Jana Nayagan has been drawing crowds to theatres in huge numbers since Thursday and has already earned a nett of Rs 41 crore across 13,067 shows, with gross collections at Rs 48.27 crore. Worldwide, the film earned Rs 78.27 crore. It boasts a star-studded ensemble featuring Mamitha Baiju, Pooja Hegde, and Bobby Deol, alongside Gautham Vasudev Menon, Prakash Raj, Narain and Priyamani. The film is backed by Venkat K Narayana of KVN Productions, in its foray into Tamil cinema.
A partial remake of 2023 National Award-winning Telugu film Bhagavanth Kesari, headlined by Nandamuri Balakrishna, it follows a former police officer who raises the daughter of a deceased friend and encourages her to overcome childhood trauma and pursue a career in the Indian Army. Jana Nayagan is first of his films to be released after he assumed office as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.