Award-winning filmmaker Mani Ratnam, who has helmed several notable films in his illustrious career, resumed production on his next directorial offering Ponniyin Selvan on Wednesday in Hyderabad.
The filmmaker and his team returned to the sets almost nine months after all shooting activities came to a grinding halt in March 2020 due to the sudden outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic. The team resumed shooting at a magnificent set erected in Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad.
Ponniyin Selvan is a multi-starrer that boasts of actors from different film producing industries across India. The star-studded cast includes Vikram, Jayam Ravi, Vikram Prabhu, Amitabh Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Mohan Babu.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, who began her acting career with Mani Ratnam’s Iruvar (1997), reunites with the celebrated filmmaker after a long gap of a decade. The duo last worked together on the 2010 film Raavan which also starred the actor’s husband Abhishek Bachchan in the lead role. She is expected to join the ongoing schedule of Ponniyin Selvan soon.
Ponniyin Selvan hit the shooting floor in Thailand in December 2019. The team wrapped up the first shooting schedule of over 90 days with Karthi, Jayam Ravi, and Aishwarya Lekshmi. After wrapping up the Thailand schedule, the team had to call off the next schedule due to the rising cases of Coronavirus and a host of restrictions it brought along.
The entire cast and crew got themselves tested for Covid-19 before commencing the shoot on 6th January in Hyderabad. It was after everybody tested negative for the novel Coronavirus, did the team began production.
Oscar-winning music director AR Rahman is composing music, while Ravi Varman is cinematographing the fictional historical drama. The film is being jointly produced by Mani Ratnam and Lyca Productions.
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The actress defended her claim that acting demands more than desk jobs in a recent interview.
She said office workers can "chill out" during work hours, unlike film stars.
Fans and working professionals called her comments privileged and out of touch.
The backlash started after her appearance on Amazon Prime's Two Much with Kajol & Twinkle.
Critics pointed out the financial gap and support systems actors have compared to regular employees.
Kajol probably didn't expect this reaction when she sat down with Twinkle Khanna on Two Much. But her comments about actors working harder than people with 9-to-5 jobs have blown up, and not in a good way.
Fans slam Kajol after she says actors work harder than regular employees sparking online outrage Getty Images
The comments that started it all
Kajol was speaking out about her earlier comments on Two Much with Kajol & Twinkle on Amazon Prime, where she said actors work harder than most people. This time she was explaining why she thinks that.
She told The Hollywood Reporter India that her days are full of shoots, events, and very early flights. One day involved waking at 5 AM to catch a flight to Jaipur for a 3 PM event.
But it was her take on regular jobs that got people talking. She claimed desk workers don't need to be "100% present" and can take breaks, "chill out," and relax while working. She kept coming back to the unending scrutiny actors face like the feeling of always being watched or something as simple as how you cross your legs or who's snapping a picture in the background becomes a constant calculation. You have to be switched on, she insisted, all the time.
The internet, frankly, was having none of it. YouTube and Reddit exploded with responses. "For the kind of remuneration actors are paid, they shouldn't have a problem working 12 hours a day for 4 days a week," one user wrote. Another pointed out that films typically take 3-4 months to shoot, while regular jobs run year-round.
The responses got more pointed. "Vanity mein naps or massages bhi toh hum lete hain," a Reddit user commented, referencing the comfort of vanity vans. Someone else joked: "If you work poorly, you get fired. If you act poorly, you get a Filmfare award."
The bluntest response yet? "Respectfully, Kajol, shut up."
Nobody denies acting is demanding. Long hours, public pressure, and constant judgement are very real. But comparing it to regular employment ignores some major differences.
Most people work 12 months a year with two weeks' holiday if they're lucky. They don't have spot boys fetching drinks or vanity vans for rest breaks. One netizen nailed it: "A working parent's schedule is continuous, every single day, with no wrap-up party or off-season."
Online erupts as Kajol defends claim that acting demands more than everyday 9-to-5 workGetty Images
There's also the money. While her fee for a single film is probably more than most people earn in a year, she says that doesn’t make the work easy. Still, it does provide a comfort that regular employees don’t have. Kajol has not yet replied to the backlash.
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