PM Narendra Modi has given a thumbs up to Mohanlal’s Mahabharata. The Malayalam actor is playing the role of Bheema in the movie which is an adaptation of Malayalam writer MT Vasudevan’s award-winning book, Randamoozham. It is being directed by VA Shrikumar Menon. What is most exciting about this movie is the fact that it’s being made on a whopping budget of Rs 1000 crore, by BR Shetty, the Founder and Chairman of NMC Healthcare and UAE Exchange.
Mahabharata was in the wrong news recently due to its title when the Hindu Aikya Vedi aka Hindu United Front in Kerala backed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), had threatened to stall its screening once the film hit the screens.
“Randamoozham was a fiction which actually misinterpreted Mahabharatham completely. Hence, they should retain the name Randamoozham for the film version as well. Earlier, popular adaptations like Chemmeen, Aranazhika Neram and Odayil Ninu retained the same title, So Randamoozham too should follow it! If they are trying to release the film under the name Mahabharatha, I bet that it will not see the cinemas “, KP Shashikala , the state president of Hindu Aikya Vedi said .
However, now it seems to have received the biggest validation. As reported by Matrabhumi, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has written a letter to film producer BR Shetty announcing his full support for the most ambitious project of India. The report also has it that the film’s team has also sought an appointment from the PM and they are expected to meet him on July 7.
Interestingly, Modi’s letter of support to the film comes after the threat issued by Shasikala. To avoid the controversy, Shetty reportedly wrote to the Prime Minister expressing his concerns and PM Modi wrote back assuring him of his complete support.
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On Sunday, June 4, VA Shrikumar announced that the film will release as Randamoozham, the original title of MT Vasudevan Nair’s award-winning novel, in Malayalam while in other languages, it will release as Mahabharata – The Randamoozham. The story will be told through the perspective of Bheemasena, Mohanlal’s character in the film. It will be made in English, Hindi, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, and Telugu, and will be dubbed into major Indian languages and leading foreign languages later.
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Mahabharata will start rolling in September 2018 and will hit the screens as two parts in 2020.
