Flight of stairs at Chennais Rajaji Hall the place intense scenes in Tamil cinema unfold

The flight of stairs at Rajaji Hall on the Omandurar Government Estate has borne witness to a few of the most iconic moments in Tamil cinema, ones that stay unforgettable thus far. It is on these stairs that actors Mammootty (solid as Devaraj) and Amrish Puri (Kalivardhan) share a refined but intense change within the presence of Rajnikanth (Surya) in Mani Ratnam’s Thalapathi, and even previous to that, it’s on these stairs that the character performed by actor Karthik is shot useless in broad daylight in entrance of the character performed by actor Revathi as she waits for him to reach for his or her wedding ceremony, in one other of Mani Ratnam’s hit Mouna Ragam.

The Rajaji Hall, with its grand colonial-era structure, makes for a preferred taking pictures locale within the coronary heart of the town. Featured in a number of Tamil movies, the constructing, which was constructed in 1802-03 and served as a public corridor connected to the Governor’s residence with its vast staircase, iconic columns, and imposing facade, has been the go-to place for scenes involving locations akin to authorities places of work and courtrooms.

In one more protagonist-antagonist sequence, actors Vijayakanth and Prakash Raj meet on the steps within the 1996 movie Alexander, wherein the previous performs a Central Bureau of Investigation officer.

‘A location like no different’

There was no place like Rajaji Hall in Chennai, says director A.M. Nandakumar, who has labored on 38 films, together with ones with administrators akin to P. Vasu. “I appreciated Rajaji Hall for its massive working house. Scenes of a number of films have been shot right here. For occasion, the Sathyaraj-starrer Rickshaw Mama, wherein I labored as an assistant director, had scenes shot there. Some scenes of Walter Vetrivel, Idhu Namma Bhoomi, Sethupathy IPS, and Vaimeiye Vellum have been additionally shot right here,” he recollects.

In 2000, a grand music sequence was shot right here for his film Kodiesvaran (which is but to see a theatrical launch), that includes actors Eby Kunjumon and Simran. “We created a set measuring 40,000 sq.ft right here. We had 120 dancers on a stage and practically 1,000 junior artistes. Such was the grandeur of the place,” he stated.

In reality, Mr. Nandakumar, who went on to work on a Japanese movie Nattu Odoru! Ninja Densetsu, says that their seek for a palace setting introduced them again to Rajaji Hall. “We visited some locations, together with Mysuru, however Rajaji Hall was the perfect match. A set for an enormous palace was created for the movie,” he added.

Actor Mohan V. Raman, who performed a job within the Japanese movie, recalled that Rajaji Hall had then lacked correct facilities for actors. “Caravans have been introduced in, and the movie crew had put up tents for actors,” he stated.

The corridor, which commemorates the victory of the British over Tipu Sultan, was constructed within the model of a Greek temple. It was remodelled between 1875 and 1895. Currently, the Public Works Department is within the strategy of renovating the corridor and plans to finish the work quickly.