Sai Hemanth
Despite being caught in the web of commercial cinema, Tamil cinema is able to produce some indie movies that continue to push the cinematic boundaries. The Industry is not only famous for producing for some of the biggest movie stars like Rajnikanth and Kamal Hassan, but also some maverick filmmakers like Mani Ratnam and Gautam Menon. Culturally resonant and technically brilliant, Tamil cinema is one of the biggest movie industries of the country. 2018 was a great year for Tamil Movies. In my article on 20 best Tamil Movies of 2018, I said that South Indian movies have been a great parallel to Bollywood, and Tamil movies are the leading contributors with this regard. After having such a great year, will Tamil movies be able to score big in 2019 as well? What are the movies that can be looked forward to? I will answer these questions in this article. Here is the list of upcoming new Tamil movies in 2019 and 2020.
20. 100% Kadhal (2019)
‘100% Kadhal’ is the remake of a Telugu movie ‘100% Love’. The film is about an eccentric and egotistic nerd and his love story. Balu, the protagonist, is great with studies who helps Mahalakshmi to get a decent grade. Unexpectedly, Mahalakshmi, who initially is quite dull, takes up the challenge and exceeds Balu. This is when despite having feelings for each other, the couple starts fighting due to their egos. G.V. Prakash Kumar plays Balu. Shalini Pandey of ‘Arjun Reddy’ plays Mahalakshmi. The original was written and directed by Sukumar. We have to see if there are any changes in the story or screenplay, or they go on with an honest recreation of the original. The film is directed by MM Chandramouli.
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19. Vaan (2019)
The popular Malayalam star Dulquer Salman made his Telugu debut in 2018 with ‘Mahanati’. This year, he will appear in his first straight Tamil movie ‘Vaan’. The film is directed by debutant Ra. Karthik. George C. Williams will shoot the film, while National award winning A. Sheekar Kumar will edit it. It is heard that the film is a travelogue, which will be shot in and around the areas of Chennai, Coimbatore, Chandighar and henceforth. If the rumors are to be believed, Salman plays four different roles. Nivetha Pethura confirmed as one of the female leads. The film will probably release late in the year. Dulquer’s huge fan base will be eagerly waiting for the film, along with the Tamil audiences.
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18. Rocketry – The Nambi Effect (2019)
R. Madhavan acts, directs and co-writes ‘Rocketry – The Nambi Effect’. The movie is about Nambi Narayanan, who is an ISRO scientist. Madhavan tries to tell the story of NASA’s mission to Mars in 1996, and how Nambi was wronged by the world and robbed of his achievements and his contribution towards the mission. Madhavan obviously plays the titular character. A small glimpse of the movies was released, and the character of Nambi tells how he spent thirty-five years in a rocket and five years in prison. The film looks very intriguing, and it will be interesting to find out more about the story. Also, since this is the first time the veteran actor is directing a film, whether he can succeed or not will have to be seen. The movie will release in the summer of 2019.
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17. Aruvam (2019)
After his highly successful horror film ‘Aval’, actor Siddarth will appear in ‘Aruvam’ in 2019. The movie is directed by debutant Sai Sekar. ‘Aruvam’ also features Catherine Teresa, and this is the first them both the actors are working together. Siddarth has had a mixed career. He experienced good stardom in his initial days, but after a low phase in his career, he started making innovative movies, starting with ‘Jigarthanda’. After ‘Aval’, he will be looking to extend his success streak. Speaking at the first-look poster launch, the makers said, “we’ve spoken about a topic that we face in our day-to-day lives. The film is currently in post-production stage and we’re busy with CG works. Barring a song, we’ve completed the shooting portions. We’re planning not to reveal it as we want the audience to see the character in the film.”
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16. 100 (2019)
Atharvaa, the actor has had a brilliant 2018 with the successful and critically acclaimed ‘Imaikkaa Nodiga’, which is one of the best Tamil movies of 2018. He will be itching to continue his good form at the box-office in 2019 with his upcoming movie ‘100’. The film will also feature star actress Hansika Motwani. The film was supposed to release way back in May of 2017. It later got postponed to June. However, for unspecified reasons, the movie got pushed to 2019. It’s uncertain as to when the film will release exactly, but you can count on it to hit the screens by the end of this year. ‘100’ is written and directed by Sam Anton. The film is about a cop and his love story.
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15. Kanne Kalaimaane (2019)
Seenu Ramaswamy’s last movie ‘Dharma Durai’ with star actor Vijay Sethupathi and Tamannah was a decent success. The writer and director will direct Udayanidhi Stalin and Tamannah again in ‘Kanne Kalaimaane’. Apart from acting in it, Udayanidhi Stalin will also produce the film, as he usually does. Star music composer Yuvan Shankar Raja will provide the original soundtracks and the background score. Tamannah will continue her series of releases in several languages with this film. The makers began filming the movie way back at the beginning of 2018, and the film was completed within two months. It will release in the first few months of 2019.
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14. Psycho (2019)
Mysskin’s ‘Psycho’ was supposed to be made in 2016 with debutant actor Maitreya. However, the film’s shoot got delayed several times until the actor reportedly backed off from the project. Mysskin later announced that the film will be made with comedian Shanthanu in the lead. The actor also made several statements regarding his excitement towards working in the film. But under confusing circumstances, Udhayanidhi Stalin was roped in for the lead role, and the crew started filming the movie. Aditi Rao Hydari and Nithya Menon will also be seen in the movie. Ace cinematographer P.C. Sreeram will shoot the movie a and legendary music composer Illayaraja will provide the music.
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13. Muni 4 / Kanchana 3 (2019)
Raghava Lawrence’s horror film series will have its fourth installment this year. In the first part, Raghava is possed by the spirit of a good man, who has to take revenge on the people who killed him. The second part saw Raghava possessed by multiple spirits, including a transgender, a Muslim priest, and a kid. Once again these spirits are not evil, and they are helped by Raghava to complete their vengeful acts. The third part has so many spirits that I lost count. As ridiculous as they may sound, these movies are very entertaining. They have good jump scares and engaging horror sequences. However, it’s the comedy, which is blended along with the horror, that gives uniqueness to these movies. ‘Muni 4’ will apparently have three female leads, and I assume an umpteen number of spirits.
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12. Devi 2 (2019)
‘Devi’ was a Tamil-Telugu-Hindi trilingual which released in Telugu as ‘Abhinetri’ and as ‘Tutuk Tutuk Tutiya’ in Hindi. The film has Prabhu Deva, Tamannah and Sonu Sood in the lead. Falling under the horror-comedy genre, ‘Devi’ went on to be a good success in all the languages. The film was based on the story of a spirit that posses reserved Tamannah and becomes a star heroine. The film deals with the relationship of her and her husband played by Prabhu Deva. ‘Devi 2’ will also have Prabhu Deva and Tammanah in the lead roles, with actress Nanditha Swetha joining them this time. It is not official whether the film will be a continuation of the sequel, or a different story altogether.
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11. Dhruva Natchathiram (2019)
After two successful films ‘Kaakha Kaakha’ and ‘Vaaranam Ayiravam’ together, director Gautham Vasudev Menon and actor Suriya were to collaborate for the third time. After scouting several scripts, the duo agreed on making a spy-thriller. Gautham announced that Parthiepan and Simran were going to act in the film and it was also reported that Arun Vijay will be playing a negative role. But after several delays, Suriya walked out of the project citing Gautham’s slow script work. After making ‘Yennai Arindhaal’ with Ajith Kumar, Menon roped in Vikram for the movie. Again, after several delays, the makers started filming the movie. There have been several delays since then, but it is believed that the film will finally release this year. Ritu Varma and Aishwarya Rajesh will play the female leads.
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10. Dev (2019)
Karthi had a good 2018. His ‘Theeran Adigaaram Ondru’ was a breakthrough success. The cop action-thriller, written and directed by debutant H. Vinoth, was highly acclaimed. His family drama ‘Kadaikutty Singham’ was also a decent success. He will start this year with a road adventure ‘Dev’. After ‘Theeran Adigaaram Ondru’, Karthi will work again with Rakul Preet Singh. ‘Dev’ will be directed by debutant Rajath Ravishankar, who was the assistant of Anurag Kashyap. Harris Jayaraj provides the soundtracks. The film will also feature veteran actors Prakash Raj and Ramya Krishnan in important roles. The film will probably release sometime in the first half of 2019.
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9. The Iron Lady (2019)
2018 saw the shocking demise of Honorable Late Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Jayalalitha. Not after many days, ace director Priyadarshini will be making a biopic on the politician turned actress. Jayalalitha lived quite a controversial and sensational life. Whether her acting career, or her relationship with Former Chief Minister M. G. Ramachandran, or her political career, everything has been popular news. Her life is still extremely relevant in Tamil Nadu at the moment, and her biopic coming out at this time will be subjected to utmost attention. ‘The Iron Lady’ will be one of the several Jayalalitha biopics which will release, and it is also the first one to be officially announced. Nithya Menon will be playing Jayalalitha.
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8. Super Deluxe (2019)
‘Super Deluxe’ is a montage film directed by Thiagarajan Kumararaja of ‘Aaranya Kaandam’ fame. The film will be a collage of multiple stories, like ‘Sin City’ and ‘Lust Stories’. A major talking point of the film is Vijay Sethupathi’s part in the film. After Kamal Hassan, Sharath Kumar, Shiva Karthikeyan and briefly Vikram, Vijay Sethupathi will be playing a full-length female character. His look has come out, and it looks very interesting. Other than Vijay Sethupathi, Samantha Akkineni, Fahadh Faashil, Ramya Krishnan and Mysskin in other roles, and all will be seen in different plots. Various parts of the movie will be shot by multiple cinematographers. P.C. Sreeram, Nirav Shah and P.S. Vinod will all roll the camera. However, Yuvan Shankar Raja will be giving the music for the entire film.
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7. Kaappaan (2019)
K.V. Anand ventured into direction after cinematographing for several successful movies in Tamil, like Shankar’s movies ‘Mudhalvan’, ‘Boys’, and ‘Shivaji’. He also worked for Hindi movies like ‘The Legend of Bhagat Singh’, ‘Khakhee’ and ‘Naayak’, the Hindi remake of ‘Mudhalvan’. Anand has also been successful as a director, with movies such as ‘Ko’ and ‘Ayan’. He often makes action thrillers, with a lot of plot twists and also adds the right amount of drama to his scripts. He will be directing ‘Mohanlal’, ‘Suriya’ and ‘Arya’ in this ambitious multi-starer. The film will also feature Boman Irani and Sayeesha. The movie is touted to be an action thriller.
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6. Siva Karthikeyan and Nayanthara’s Untitled Project (2019)
It was officially confirmed in the summer of 2018 that Shivakarthikeyan and Nayanthara will act together for the second time. Gnanavel Raja of Studio Green will be producing the movie. Shivakarthikeyan has been enjoying good form and stardom over the past few years. Nayanthara is probably one of the biggest female stars Tamil movie industry has seen. She has a box-office value comparable to sever star heroes of South India. Both the actors acted in ‘Velaikkaran’ before, which was a good hit. This film is reportedly a comedy-drama. It was initially supposed to release at the end of 2018, but it got pushed to 2019. M. Rajesh is the director.
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5. NGK (2019)
‘Nanda Gopalan Kumaran’ or ‘NGK’ is an upcoming Tamil film directed by Selvaraghavan. The movie features Suriya, Rakul Preet Singh, Sai Pallavi, Bala Singh, and several other actors. This will be Suriya’s first release this year, while the aforementioned ‘Kaappaan’ will release in the latter half. The movie is a political action-drama. After a lukewarm ‘Thaana Serndha Kootam’, Suriya will be hoping to score big with this movie. Rakul Preet Singh has been enjoying good stardom in Telugu movies, and she would be hoping to get a big hit in Tamil movies. The movie will release in April of this year.
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4. Ajith Kumar’s Pink Remake (2019)
Ajith Kumar acted in a cameo role on Late Sridevi’s ‘English Vinglish’. This is the same role that Amitabh Bachchan portrayed in the Hindi version of the film. During the shoot of this film, Ajith agreed to act in Sridevi’s husband Boney Kapoor’s production. To honor the commitment, Ajith Kumar signed for the Tamil remake of ‘Pink’, which was produced by Boney Kapoor. Ironically, he will once again be reprising the role of Amitabh Bachchan. ‘Pink’ was a great success and it is nothing like the movies Ajith generally does. He is probably a star with one of the biggest fan base and it will be interesting to see how he will be portrayed in the film. H.Vnoth, who made ‘Theeram Adigaaram Ondru’ with Karthi, will direct this film.
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3. Vijay’s 63rd Movie (2019)
After a string of massive hits, Vijay will be working with writer-director Atlee. Both of them collaborated for ‘Theri and ‘Mersal’ before. Both of those movies are entertaining and saw massive success at the box-office. So naturally, there will be high expectations from the film. Once again, A.R. Rahman will score music for this film. Vijay’s previous film ‘Sarkar’ got a mixed reception and got itself indulged in unwanted controversies like plagiarism and raised several political agitations. The makers of this film will probably try to avoid such unwanted issues. However, Vijay and Atlee’s last film ‘Mersal’ also had controversies surrounding it, so you never know.
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2. Viswasam (2019)
The combination of director Siva and actor Ajith is a strange one. The duo had decent hits and several disappointments in their various collaborations. Siva’s films are often criticized to be thin on the subject and they often tend to cater to the masses. Despite all these, both of them keep working together, and the buzz around their films never seem to fade away. After ‘Veeram’, ‘Vedalam’ and ‘Vivegam’, the duo will work together for ‘Viswasam’. The movie is one of the first films to release this year, along with Rajnikanth’s ‘Petta’. By the looks of it, Ajith will be portraying two different characters. Reportedly, the movie will have a rural backdrop and it was shot in and around the areas of Madhurai. Nayanthara will be seen as the lead actress.
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1. Petta (2019)
‘Petta’ will be released on the same date as ‘Viswasam’. This clash between two of the biggest superstars’ movies has been the talk of the town for some time now. There is obviously huge buzz around both the movies, but I will have to give a slight edge to ‘Petta’, not because of Rajnikanth, but because of its writer and director Karthik Subbaraj. Karthik is one of the most promising directors from South India. His movies ‘Pizza’, ‘Jigarthanda’ and ‘Mercury’ made him a highly acclaimed director. Rajnikanth once again, despite his massive stardom, decides to work with an up and coming director. \
The cast and the crew have been extremely tight-lipped regarding the film. The songs, teaser, and trailer are carefully designed in such a way that they don’t give away anything. The movie has several other stars including Vijay Sethupathi, Nawazuddin Siddique, Bobby Simha, Sasikumar, Simran, Trisha and henceforth. These are the few reasons why the film is highly anticipated, and I have a ticket booked for myself while writing this.
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