A fictionalized account of the lives of 1980s Tamil Nadu political icons M. G. Ramachandran and M. Karunanidhi, continuing the tryst between Tamil cinema and Dravidian politics.
Acting
Mohanlal and Prakash Raj — volcanic chemistry, devastating final scene.
Direction
Mani Ratnam at his most fearless; banned, delayed, legendary.
Cinematography
Santosh Sivan's black-and-white film-within-film sequences.
Director
Mani Ratnam
Mohanlal
Anandan
Prakash Raj
Tamil Selvam
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
Pushpavalli / Kalpana
Gautami Tadimalla
Ramani
Revathi
Marathagam
Tabu
Senthamarai
Nassar
Ayya Veluthambi
Major Sundarrajan
Police Officer
Rajesh
Madhivanan
Delhi Ganesh
Nambi
Nizhalgal Ravi
Ramani's uncle
Kalpana Iyer
Anand's Mother
S. N. Lakshmi
Tamizhselvan's Mother
Gowtham Sundararajan
Arivazhagan
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
The film was banned for two years because MGR's widow and Karunanidhi himself were still politically active — cinema and politics too dangerously intertwined.
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