Annakodi stalled?

Annakodi stalled?

Bharathiraja has stopped shooting his film because of the Mullaperiyar issue

M Suganth

It looks like director Bharathiraja will have to wait until the Mullaperiyar issue cools off to resume work on his Annakodiyum Kodiveeranum, which was launched in Theni in November amidst much fanfare.
The film, starring Ameer, Karthika, Iniya and newcomer Lakshmanan in the lead roles, was being shot in Theni, which is one of the regions that depend on water from the Mullaperiyar dam. But after the issue kicked up a storm, the director decided to postpone his shooting till the dust settles over the controversy.
Says a source, "With Theni being one of the places affected by the Mullaperiyar controversy, the team did not find it appropriate to shoot there at the moment. The shooting has been postponed and will resume only after a resolution of sorts happens with the dam issue."
Interestingly, the film's two female leads (Ko's Karthika and Iniya of Vaagai Sooda Vaa fame) are from Kerala and industry insiders say that this was also one of the factors that pushed the director, who is actively participating in protests over the issue, to take this extreme step. While the director could not be reached for a comment, a source in his office put the break in shooting to "callsheet problems of the artists."

Karthika

Iniya