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Padmasree Bharat Dr. Saroj Kumar
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Wikipedia article
'Padmasree Bharat Dr. Saroj Kumar' is a 2012 Indian Malayalam language comedy satirical film .The movie was directed by Sajin Raaghavan in his directorial debut. The movie starred Sreenivasan in titular role with Vineeth Sreenivasan, Fahadh Faasil, Mamta Mohandas, Jagathy Sreekumar, Mukesh and Suraj Venjaramoodu.The film is a spin-off of popular 2005 film 'Udayananu Tharam'. Sreenivasan reprises the role of Megastar Saroj Kumar from the original. The director announced that this is not a sequel: Only some characters from 'Udayananu Tharam' were used. The film was shot mainly in Chennai and Kochi.
Plot
Saroj Kumar is the megastar of the Malayalam film industry and one of the most popular actors in Kerala. He lost his fan base and hit films due to his arrogance and vanity; his latest films, like Vekkada Vedi Turn into big flops due to his bad heroism.
Alex Samuel and Pachalam Bhasi start their new film with Shyam. Saroj bribes film associations and gets Samuel and Bhasi's film banned. He gets the rank of Colonel in the Army and brags about it. Meanwhile, Babykuttan, another producer, helps Alex Samuel and Pachalam Bhasi to resume their project. Saroj Kumar tries to cancel the film in many ways but it is successfully completed and is well received by the audiences.
Meanwhile, the income tax department raids his premises and starts prosecution proceedings for tax evasion. Saroj is tense about this, and he drinks a lot acting in a different manner. Many truths regarding Saroj's personal life are revealed towards the end. The film ends with a silhouette showing the film's timeline (and Saroj's failure) and Alex Samuel, along with Shyam, who is revealed to be the son of Saroj Kumar and his first wife, celebrating the success of the film.
Cast
* Sreenivasan as Megastar Padmasree Bharat Dr. Saroj Kumar / Rajappan Thengumoodu
* Vineeth Sreenivasan as Shyam
* Fahadh Faasil as Alex Samuel
* Jagathy Sreekumar as Pachalam Bhasi
* Suraj Venjarammoodu as Muttathara Babu
* Mamta Mohandas as Neelima
* Salim Kumar as Rafeek
* Mukesh as Babykkuttan
* Manikuttan as Rajesh
* Sandhya (special appearance)
* Meera Nandan (special appearance)
* Sarayu (special appearance)
* Roopa (special appearance)
* Nimisha Suresh (special appearance)
* Kollam Thulasi as Union Leader
* Liimal G Padath as Fahadh's Assistant
* Apoorva Bose as Lekha, Shyam's Love interest
* Sajitha Betti as Neelima's friend
* Ponnamma Babu as Neelima's friend
* Shari as Shyam's mother
* Manoj Kumar as Shyam's neighbour
* Cherthala Lalitha as Shyam's neighbour
* Deepika Mohan as Servant
Production
About the idea of making 'Padmasree Bharat Dr. Saroj Kumar', Sreenivasan says:
The thought of the film came to us when we started thinking about what should be happening to a superstar like Saroj Kumar at this point of time. He is getting old and the most challenging aspect about stardom is that once you have got it, the next question is how long it will last. Some people can accept the changes in life in a mature way but for most others, it is never easy. This superstar is wary of new thoughts and new experiments because he knows he won't fit into the changing scheme of things. It is easy to be a hero in films as even a weak person can fight with any number of goons and get applause from viewers. But Dr Saroj Kumar forces the directors to cater to his thoughts. All this makes the character very exciting.[http://www.rediff.com/movies/slide-show/slide-show-1-south-interview-with-sreenivasan/20120117.htm Sreenivasan: It is easy to be a hero in films], Rediff.com,
January 17, 2012
As the characters are already known to the viewers, the expectations could be huge. The film was mainly shot in Chennai and Kochi.
Reception
Critical reception
The film released on 14 January 2012[http://english.manoramaonline.com/cgi-bin/MMOnline.dll/portal/ep/contentView.do?programId=1080132927&contentId=10823435&tabId=19&BV_ID=@@@ "Saroj Kumar to hit screens today"] to mainly negative reviews from critics. Paresh C. Palicha of Rediff.com concluded his review saying, "On the whole, 'Padmasree Bharat Dr. Saroj Kumar' is disappointing, to say the least."[http://www.rediff.com/movies/review/south-review-padmasree-bharat-dr-saroj-kumar-is-crass/20120116.htm "Review: Padmasree Bharat Dr Saroj Kumar is crass"] Hari Prasad of Yentha.com said that "the film, despite having a good theme, suffers from a messy script."[http://www.yentha.com/news/view/features/movie-review-padmashree-bharat-dr.saroj-kumar-mal "Movie Review: Padmashree Bharat Dr.Saroj Kumar (Mal) - Disappoints Big Time!"] Sify.com and Oneindia.in also published negative reviews saying that it is "disappointing."[http://www.sify.com/movies/reviews/category/malayalam/ Movie Review: Padmashree Bharat Dr. Saroj Kumar"][http://entertainment.oneindia.in/malayalam/reviews/2012/padmasree-bharat-dr-saroj-kumar-movie-review-160112.html "Padmasree Bharat Dr Saroj Kumar Movie Review"] Fahadh Faasil won the Asianet Youth Icon Award.Controversies
Although Sreenivasan clarified that the characterisation of Saroj Kumar was not at all based on any existing superstars, it has been accused that Sreenivasan tried to mock actor Mohanlal. Many comments are made in the film about real happenings including Mohanlal's derogatory comments against Sukumar Azhikode, his Lieutenant Colonel honour, income tax raids and recovering of elephant tusks from his house, and his famous ad campaigns. S. Kumar, the cinematographer of the film, claimed live on television that he was threatened over phone by Antony Perumbavoor, a producer and close aide of Mohanlal.[https://www.hindustantimes.com/regional-movies/sreenivasan-denies-mocking-mohanlal-in-film/story-0BVWzuqkcPJ6DzBA2YxFRP.html "Sreenivasan denies mocking Mohanlal in film"][https://www.rediff.com/movies/slide-show/slide-show-1-south-sreenivasan-clears-the-air-on-padmashree-bharath-dr-saroj-kumar/20120209.htm "'Comedy was not aimed at Mohanlal'"]Soundtrack
Music: Deepak Dev, Lyrics: Kaithapram Damodaran Namboothiri
See also
* 'Udayananu Tharam'
References
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