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THE 12 MEN SHOOT OUT SCENE IN THUPPAKI HAD 20 HOURS OF RAW FOOTAGE

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Why is Thuppaki a blockbuster

Thuppaki -  A movie which broke the myth of Vijay's action template movies was re-released at Jazz Cinemas last evening. It's 1563 days (November 13, 2012) since the movie released and I watched it for the 6th time in big screen after 1532 days (I did my count 5 on December 13, 2012).

 

My Experience with my Count 6

 

The thing which I loved the most is the freshness in the screenplay. Even though after watching it 10 times (5 times in theaters and another 5 times at home) I neither felt bored nor exhausted. The reason behind is definitely not because of the Vijay factor but what I'd say is the screenplay's presentation. Moreover, the crowd was electrifying that they were screaming well in advance (They know the scenes by heart).

 

Santhosh Sivan's lens work and Sreekar Prasad's sharp cuts were the other advantages for the screenplay that it kept me well connected with the film. Especially the 12 men shoot out scene gave me the same level of goosebumps which I got during my first watch. Speaking about the 12 men shootout sequence, I remember a conversation I had with Bhuvan Srinivasan (Assistant Editor in Thuppaki). He said that the raw version of the sequence had a footage time of  20 hours and it was a challenge to convert it to a magic on screen. There's another uncleared rumour that Thuppaki was supposed to be made in Chennai but 26/11 attack made a major impact in ARM's mind and he converted the script to Mumbai.

 

Is Thuppaki a lucky charm for Tamil Cinema?

 

Thuppaki is a movie which should be considered a lucky charm as most of them who have worked in the movie are now proven technicians in Kollywood. The list is huge

 

1. Ajay Gnamuthu (Assistant Director in Thuppaki, Director of Demonte Colony, Imaikka Nodigal)

 

2. Anand Shankar (Assistant Director in Thuppaki, Director of Iru Mugan, Arima Nambi)

 

3. TN Santhosh (Assistant Director in Thuppaki, Director of Kanithan)

 

4. Divakar Mani (Assistant Cinematographer in Thuppaki, Cinematographer of Jugni)

 

5. Aravind Singh (Assistant Cinematographer in Thuppaki, Cinematographer of Demonte Colony, Aarathu Sinam, Shaitan Ka Bachcha)

 

6. Bhuvan Srinivasan ( Assitant Editor in Thuppaki, Editor of Arima Nambi, Iru Mugan, Kuttram 23, Kanithan, Demonte Colony and Imaikka Nodigal)

 

7. Rajkumar Periasamy (Assistant Director in Thuppaki, Director of Rangoon)

 

8. Justin Prabhakaran ( Assistant Sound Engineer in Thuppaki, Music Director of Pannaiyaarum Padminiyum, Thondan, Ulkuthu etc.)

 

9. G K Prasanna ( Subtitle Editor of Thuppaki, Editor of Maari, VIP2, Mannavan Vandhanadi, Nenjam Marapathillai etc.)

 

10. S.Harsha Vardhana (Assistant Director in Thuppaki, Director of China)

 

11. Venkat Mohan (Assistant Director in Thuppaki, Director of an Untitled film with a leading hero)

 

Firsts of Thuppaki

 

Thuppaki was the first film to be shot in Arri Alexa camera

 

 

Santhosh Sivan was one of the first cinematographer to try this technology

 

First Non-Rajini starrer in South India to gross 100 crores

 

First Vijay Starrer to gross 100 crores

 

To sum this up Thuppaki is a movie which is made out of sheer hard work and brilliance. The movie's screenplay is sculpted in a way that you never get bored despite any number of times you watch. A.R.Murugadoss said once in an interview "I made this film for repeat audience and I'm happy it happened". Yes sir, you made it happen and looking forward to another blockbuster with the same quadrant in 2018.


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