VETERAN'S DREAM VENTURE~"MARUDHANAYAGAM"~

Kamal in and as Marudhanayagam:

Now "ULAGANAYAGAN" Kamal hassan's fans have more reasons to be happy.The actor's cherished venture "MARUDHANAYAGAM" is being revived and this has become the talk of the town.Predictably not surprising,because the man of several talents always proves himself in his every other film and this is a sure shot.According to sources,after completing his next film which is tentatively titled,"MARMAYOGI",that brings several stars together along with the great actor,this magnum opus would be released.


MARUDHANAYAGAM is all about the historical warrior who became a commander in the British East India Company by his war skills and his tactics.His original name was MOHAMMAD YUSUF KHAN.Born in 1725 in the village of Panaiyur,Ramnad,he protested against the practice of social evils like untouchability.


He left Panaiyur,went to Pondicherry and later to
Tanjore,where he joined as a soldier in the troops.He then
left to Nellore where a series of incidents led him to join
the Carnatic wars(1751).This war established him well.He wooed a Portuguese lady,"Massa" and married her.

Gradually,he rose to the level of governing the entire Madurai city when there was administration crisis.He proved himself as an able administrator. Company officials considered Yusuf Khan "the bravest and ablest of all native soldiers that ever served the English."After a rally of incidents,due to a dispute,the British troops ordered death sentence to him.

In 1765,his fort was surrounded by the British troops and so he had to remain hidden inside the fort for several days without food and water along with his men.(Said that he survived on the meat of Horse and Monkey but some deny).
But he still battled with great determination,killing a considerable number of the British troops.

But,the Arcot Nawab bribed Srinivasa Rao Marchand,the captain of the French mercenaries and Khan’s doctor Baba Sahib to kill him.There were 3 conspirators,one,a European, was whipped by Yusuf waiting to take a revenge.



Once when Yusuf Khan was offering prayers,both pinned him to the ground and strangulated him in their turban.The youth nearby,who tried to rescue Yusuf was also killed.On hearing this,His wife came with the troops ,but they were not able to defend the mighty British solidiers who helped the traitors.The saddest part was that the whole incident went unnoticed and a major part of Khan's troops were unaware of the incidents.He was smuggled to Madurai,where he was hanged.



Several facts arose on the death of the warrior which might have made our artist to do the film.

Some claim that when he was hanged the noose broke twice and he fell down.Some claim that neither he came down nor the hanging rope went up.This was due to his YOGA training as some say or due to his divine magic power according to a few or even some claim he had a golden magical ball beneath his arm.One night,a soldier who guarded his body,appealed to the Nawab that Khan appeared in his dream and threatened to return on the third day to take revenge.The Nawab immediately ordered to cut Khan's body and to bury his head in Trichy,arms in Palayamkottai,legs in Tanjore and the remaining body in Madurai.It is also believed that his body parts were kept for public to see so that it could create fear in their minds.Only then it was said to be buried.


The film was supposed to be done with the support of Queen Elizabeth herself.The budget of the film is reportedly told as Rs.200 million.But due to financial controversies,the movie has not been completed yet.The film was initially said to be released in 1999.At that time the BBC expressed it's desire to release the dubbed version of the film on television.Lot of controversies arose:regarding the caste of the Protagonist,Yusuf Khan-some claim that he belonged to the Islam community right from the beginning whereas some claim that he originally belonged to the Vellala caste who later converted into a Muslim.Also,a few felt that the story depicts the British in order to create a bad impression.Moreover, the history goes like Khan himself was used by the Nawab to defeat the local chiefs where he was made the ruler.He also spearheaded the French troops which tried to overpower the British East India Comany at Madras.When things grew big between Nawab and him,it forced him to rebel.So,when,Kamal Hassan expressed that Yusuf Khan was indeed,'a Pioneer of freedom struggle' and was not given the enough praise and the place that he deserves,controversies sparked out.

But rubbing away all the contorversies,the cast and the crew makes one think that the film would be a visual treat to all film lovers.Kamal Hassan is reportedly producing,directing and acting in the film.Ravichandran is the camera man and Sabu Cyril is the art director.Birju Maharaj handles the choreography while Music is by Ilayaraja along with Andrew Lloyd Webber.M.s.Subbulakhmi,the late legendary Carnatic singer was supposed to sing in the film.But we are really unlucky,we have to admit, for the great singer is no more.The cast also includes Om Puri,Nasser and more stars.(as announced during the official press meet in 1995 app.)


It has been a long,long time since the official announcements about the film was made but since then only promotional stills and a trailer has been made.But they are Breath-taking and Poignant.A very few-minutes trailer cost the producer
RS.15 million!!!!!!!
LET'S HOPE THAT KAMAL WILL ONCE AGAIN SUCCEED THROUGH THIS FILM.
Watch the legend in action: "Marudhanayagam trailer":