It was a touch and go situation for Kollywood superstar Vijay’s Mersal, the 2017 Diwali release. Till last moment the release of the film was hanging fire, as it ran into trouble with the Animal Welfare Board of India (AWBI), which had to give an NOC for its censor certification. The producers of the film had not got the necessary pre-shoot permission for using animals in the film.
Mersal (Astonished / Stunned) got censored on 6 October, with a UA certificate, but the Censor Board of Film Certification (CBFC) refused to grant a certificate till they handed over the NOC from AWBI. Finally, the producers managed to get the NOC at the last moment after a week of dilly dallying .
The buzz is that Vijay met Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palanisamy at his residence on Sunday, though the actor’s PR claims he met him to thank him for the state government’s new revised cinema ticket prices. After a lot drama and tension the CBFC finally issued the certificate to Mersal a few hours before its release!
Vijay, affectionately called by his fans as Thalapathy (Leader) is one of the biggest stars in Tamil cinema with a huge fan base spread across Tamil Nadu and in neighbouring states of Kerala and Karnataka and has the biggest overseas market for a Tamil hero after Rajinikanth.
Mersal is a big budget action entertainer directed by Atlee and produced by one of Tamil cinema’s oldest production houses Thenandal Films, for whom it is their 100th film. One of the writers of the film is Vijayendra Prasad, star director SS Rajamouli’s father and writer of Baahubali 1 and 2. The Vijay and Atlee combination had the super hit Theri in 2016.
Mersal became the first south Indian film to get a Twitter emoji, which became very popular. The film’s teaser has clocked more than a record 22 million views. The story of the film unfolds in three periods and Vijay plays a triple role as a panchyat leader and a farmer, a magician and a doctor. Samantha, Kajal Aggarwal and Nitya Menen play the three heroines. SJ Surya plays the bad guy and Sathyaraj is in a pivotal character role. The synopsis of Mersal according to British Board of Film Classification says it is a:
“Tamil language action thriller in which a magician and a doctor attempt to expose the corruption at the heart of India’s medical industry”.
Mersal with music by AR Rahman had a high profile audio launch event in Chennai’s Nehru Stadium with nearly 30,000 fans of the actor attending it. In Kerala, Vijay is on par with Mohanlal and Mammootty as his films continue to fascinate the Malayali youth for his magical dancing, action scenes and punchlines.
Vijay has a huge fan base and the actor definitely has political ambitions and like all Dravidian superstars, it comes across in his films via sly dialogues and punchlines. During Jalikattu agitation, Vijay went to Marina beach and supported the agitators.
During former chief minister Jayalalithaa’s regime Vijay was at the receiving end of her sharp criticism and she saw a potential rival in him. His Thalaivaa (2013) could only release in Tamil Nadu two weeks after its international release!
A lot is riding on Mersal for Vijay and the Tamil film industry is also looking out for a super hit after Baahubali 2. Mersal is said to be Vijay’s costliest film, made on a budget of Rs 80 to 90 crore. The film is reported to have done pre-release business of Rs 125 to Rs 130 crore worldwide from Tamil Nadu, Rest of India and Overseas theatrical rights, dubbing, audio, satellite and digital.
G Dhananjayan, a producer and industry tracker, is quoted in The Hindu saying, “There is a lot of expectation in the trade on Mersal. The Tamil Nadu gross box-office collection for the five–day Deepavali weekend can be anywhere between Rs 60 to Rs 70 crore. And if the word of mouth is good, it has potential to gross over Rs 100 crore in two weeks from the State alone.”
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