Kamal Haasan, the film’s writer, director, protagonist, confirms that his co-actor has finally got more than a wristwatch from the association
Avinash Lohana (MUMBAI MIRROR; April 4, 2018)

When Interstellar and Dunkirk director Christopher Nolan was in Mumbai last weekend, he met several Bollywood actors, cinematographers and filmmakers. Among them was Kamal Haasan who later sent a DVD of his National Award-winning political-thriller, Hey Ram, to the Hollywood filmmaker. The 63-year-old legend admitted that he was surprised to learn that Nolan had seen his 2015 Tamil drama thriller, Papanasam. “I apologised to him for seeing Dunkirk in the digital format and in return am sending Hey Ram in digital format for him to see,” Kamal revealed.

The actor-filmmaker-politician who also took part in a panel discussion with the American auteur, the Bachchans, Amitabh and Jaya, and Shyam Benegal, among others, informed that he was heartened that despite his stature, Nolan did not speak down to him and doesn’t take ‘brand Nolan’ too seriously. “He was speaking to me like any other filmmaker with all the problems of filmmaking and I found that really touching. Ang Lee is like that too,” said Kamal.

The South legend also met his Hey Ram co-star Shah Rukh Khan at the event and the duo reminisced about their shoot from almost two decades ago. Buzz is, SRK has bought the Hindi remake rights of Hey Ram.

Confirming the news, Kamal says with a laugh, “Shah Rukh only got a wristwatch for acting in my film at the time because by the end of it, I had nothing left in hand. Now, he is the brand ambassador for a watch brand. I am glad that he got the Hindi rights of Hey Ram from Bharat bhai (co-producer Bharat Shah). He should have some memory of the film as he gave his friendship and service for it.”

The film was written, directed and produced by Kamal Haasan, who also acted as the protagonist. Made in Tamil and Hindi, Hey Ram also featured Rani Mukerji, Hema Malini, Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri, Atul Kulkarni, Vikram Gokhale and Nassar among a host of other talented actors. It narrated the story of Saket Ram which unfolds on December 6, 1999, the seventh anniversary of the demolition of the Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, as the retired archaeologist lies on his deathbed.

It then flashbacks to the 1940s, when Saket Ram and a fellow archaeologist, Amjad Ali Khan played by SRK, are excavating the ruins of Mohenjo Daro in the Sindh province of pre-Independence India. Both are strongly opposed to the idea of Partition and Muhammad Ali Jinnah’s demand for the creation of a new country, Pakistan, with Amjad determined to stay back in India which he considers his homeland. The fear of riots shuts down the site and Saket Ram returns to Kolkata where life takes a drastic turn when he saves a Sikh girl from an angry mob only to see other Muslim rioters barge into his home to rape and kill his wife.

In this atmosphere of communal unrest, Gandhi makes an appeal for the two communities to co-exist peacefully, but believing this as an attempt to appease Muslims and treachery against Hindus, Saket Ram is drawn into a plot to assassinate the Mahatma. He carries this mission into independent India till a reunion with Amjad changes his mind. Gandhi is eventually assassinated by Nathuram Godse while Saket Ram lives by his principles till he is 89 when he dies with “Hey Ram” on his lips.

It remains to be seen how Shah Rukh will adapt this story if and when he does so.

Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; July 2, 2015)

The Tamil remake of Drishyam starring Kamal Haasan was scheduled to hit theatres on July 17, but the distributors decided to advance the date by two weeks to take almost a month’s lead on its Hindi version featuring Ajay Devgn. However, this move has apparently left the South star in a spot of bother as Papanasam’s promotional schedule has now gone for a toss.

A source says, “Haasan had allotted 15 days from his schedule to promote the film. However, distributors want to release it a fortnight in advance so that the business of this film and the Hindi remake does not get divided. Haasan had to rework his dates and can promote Papanasam only for a couple of days instead of two weeks as per the initial plan. He is quite concerned about this now.”

Originally made in Malayalam, Drishyam (2013) was a superhit at the box office and has been remade in Telugu and Kannada. While Papanasam will now release on July 3, the Hindi one, also called Drishyam, will hit the marquee on July 31. The Haasan-starrer will be released in Mumbai with subtitles.

Adds the source, “Haasan has a few projects in hand and so, it was difficult on his part to rework his dates.” Despite repeated attempts, Haasan remained unavailable for comment.

Roshmila Bhattacharya (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 27, 2015)

Kamal Haasan's upcoming Tamil film, Papanasam, is lining up for release on July 3. What is interesting is that it's a remake of Mohanlal's 2013 Malayalam film, Drishyam, as is Ajay Devgn's Drishyam. But the Hindi version will only arrive on July 31.

Papanasam's producer, Sitara Suresh Balaje, confirmed the news saying, "Yes, it is opening for sure on July 3. The ads in the papers are already carrying the date."

While the Hindi version is directed by Nishikant Kamat, the Tamil film has been written and directed by the original director, Jeethu Joseph.

"And since this is a repeat act for him, Jeethu will bring a lot more to the table. Also, Kamal Haasan is a superstar down South with a pan-India presence so I can see viewers in Mumbai enjoying the film which will release across the country with subtitles," says Ananth Narayan Mahadevan who plays the IG's husband and the father of the boy gone missing. Kamal is the father of the girl he was blackmailing. Ajay reprises Kamal's role and Rajat Kapoor's in the Hindi remake.

Will this cut into Drishyam's market, particularly down South? Ananth points out that the film has been remade in Kannada (Drishya, 2014) with V. Ravichandran and in Telugu (Drushyam, 2014) with Daggubati Venkatesh. Both did extremely well. "Now a Tamil remake is coming up. It'll be interesting to see how a fifth film on the same subject will fare. For us it's an advantage to have a clear four-week run before the Hindi remake arrives," says Ananth.

The Hindi film's director, Nishikant Kamat is unfazed. He says, "Our rendition and treatment of the story is very different. The power of the story of Drishyam will make it successful in any language."

A studio has bought the Hindi remake rights of a Malayalam film 'inspired' by a Japanese novel. And Ekta Kapoor, who is working on the official adapation of the same book, is threatening legal action.
Ankur Pathak (MUMBAI MIRROR; September 23, 2014)

Oct 2013
Ekta Kapoor announced the Bollywood adaptation of the Japanese novel, The Devotion Of Suspect X. She had purchased the film rights to Keigo Higashino's bestseller for a generous amount. Kahaani director Sujoy Ghosh was signed to helm the thriller and he started working on the screenplay.

Dec 2013
The Mohanlal starrer, Drishyam, releases and goes on to become the highest grosser in Malayalam cinema. A shocked Ekta finds several parallels between her official adaptation of the Japanese novel and this film, which doesn't claim any connection with the book.

Jan 2014 
Following Drishyam's success, Kamal Haasan signs up for Papanasam, the Tamil remake of Drishyam helmed by the same director, Jeethu Joseph. He was shooting for this film when he had to be hospitalised last week following an acute case of food poisoning.

June 2014
Sensing that the producers of the Malayalam film will soon strike a deal with a studio for a Hindi remake, Balaji's legal team sends out a caution notice which means that any production house planning a film whose plot is similar to The Devotion of Suspect X, will invite a case of alleged copyright infringement.

July 11, 2014
The Telugu remake, Drushyam, with Venkatesh in the lead releases to packed houses and is another super hit.

Sep 2014
Mirror has learnt that after months of negotiations, Viacom18 Motion Pictures, has acquired the Hindi remake rights of Dhrisyam and is in talks with top Bollywood stars. "Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn have already expressed interest and the studio is currently negotiating remuneration and dates with both. In a month's time, one of them will be finalised," informs a source close to the production.

Confirming the same, Ajit Andhare, the studio's COO, says, "Drishyam is a very exciting film with an exhilarating subject. It's the kind of cinema we want to back as it stands on a solid script. We are happy that the film - whose rights were much sought after - has finally been closed and we have secured the rights from the film's South producers."

To this, Tanuj Garg, CEO, Balaji Motion Pictures, reacted sharply saying, "As the remake rights of the book The Devotion of Suspect X have been officially licensed by us, we are already evaluating legal options. There are numerous reports pointing to similarities between the novel and the Malayalam film. We have also issued a caution notice to this effect to sound off the industry."