When Tamil cinema and railways cross tracks in Chennai

There’s a monitor the place Tamil cinema and the railways intersect in Madras. Several hit movies and iconic scenes, that are etched within the reminiscence of filmgoers, have been shot on railway premises. These locations present excellent backdrop to a number of movies, a lot so, that they’re remembered extra for being set in these areas than their actors.

A movie music devoted to the prepare itself featured in Gentleman, the place Prabhudeva danced to the hit quantity Chikku Bukku Chikku Bukku Raile. The approach the music, which additionally launched music director G.V. Prakash as a baby singer, sways in sync with the prepare’s motion endeared each the music and the railway station to audiences.

M. Senthamil Selvan, Chief Public Relations Officer of Southern Railway, stated income from movie capturing permission was a very good supply of non-fare revenue for the railways. The Public Relations Department is in control of giving permissions for movie capturing, which necessitates a number of formalities as passengers or prepare operations shouldn’t be affected. Southern Railway earned round ₹60 lakh from the payment collected for movie capturing licences throughout 2024-25, he added.

D. Om Prakash, Senior Public Relations Officer, Southern Railway, stated a few of the favorite movies that have been shot on railway premises have been Alaipayuthey on the Tambaram railway station, Gentleman on the Egmore railway station, and Agni Natchathiram and Singaravelan on the Southern Railway Headquarters, positioned subsequent to the Puratchi Thalaivar Dr. M.G. Ramachandran Central Railway Station.

Many movie administrators, together with Mani Ratnam, Shankar, Myskin, and Fazil, characteristic trains together with railway stations both as a key setting or backdrop throughout memorable scenes. A notable instance was Thodari, a movie solely set on a operating prepare, to not point out Bharathiraja’s traditional Kizhekke Pogum Rail, which features a music sequence on a transferring prepare.

Additionally, films equivalent to Chennai Express and Anbu Karangal have train-related sequences, although they will not be solely train-based flicks. The Tondiarpet railway yard was featured in Kamal’s 2022 hit movie ‘Vikram’. The Royapuram railway station, from the place the primary prepare in south India was operated, is a heritage station and is widespread capturing spot within the Tamil movie business.

‘Rail’ Ravi, a retired officer from the railways, reminisces concerning the movies that have been shot on railway premises. Actor Sivaji in Pachai Vilakku stars as a prepare driver, with the movie having been shot on the Basin Bridge railway station. Also, actor Kamal’s hit movies Anbe Sivam, Kurudhipunal, Vasool Raja MBBS, and actor Rajinikanth’s Sivaji had scenes that have been shot on the railway headquarters, he stated.

Interestingly, for the movie Madrasapattinam, the producers, as a substitute of renting the Chennai Central railway station, constructed a completely new set of the station to carry the texture of the pre-independence period.