Veerappan’s life on celluloid

For those who are still intrigued by the stories doing the rounds on Veerappan the brigand or the saviour of his village folk, a film is set to reveal the man behind the persona.

More than a decade ago, Mani Ratnam made 'Iruvar', a fictionalised account of the lives of 1980s Tamil Nadu political icons M.G. Ramachandran and M. Karunanidhi. Mohan Lal stepped into the shoes of the late MGR and Prakash Raj enacted Kalaignar Karunanidhi.

Now award-winning filmmaker A.M.R. Ramesh after his earlier, critically-acclaimed releases like Cyanide, based on the hunt for the assassins of Rajiv Gandhi and Police Quarters, which dwelt on the predicament of Hindu-Muslim couples during the Babri Masjid demolition, has based his next bi-lingual on slain forest brigand Veerappan.

It’s titled Vana Yuddham in Tamil and Attahasa in Kannada. The highlights of the movie will be the episode where Veerappan abducted Rajkumar and his final gunning down by the then-Special Task Force head ADGP, Vijayakumar in 2004.

Kishore of Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu fame, who according to Ramesh bears a striking resemblance to Veerappan, especially his prominent nose, has been signed to play the role.

Tollywood veteran Akkineni Nageswara Rao has been signed on to play Rajkumar. “I can’t think of anyone other than Nageswara Rao to play the late legendary actor Rajkumar. I’m approaching him through a common producer friend in Hyderabad and I am confident that he will agree,” said Ramesh.

Action King Arjun will don the role of Vijayakumar. The movie will be shot in apt locations, including the Sathyamangalam forest.

Ramesh has done extensive research before commencing the project. “In fact, I consulted Veerappan’s wife Muthulakshmi too. I got through to her through common contacts. Additionally, I visited Mysore jail and met several of Veerappan’s friends who are still undergoing trial.”

When the life of a controversial brigand unfolds on celluloid, it might set off fresh controversies, but the director is determined to tell the real story and also do the film festival circuit.

source:deccan chronicle