Thefilm was officially announced in July 2006, in addition to the official title. Principal photography commenced the same month. It was predominantly shot in Chennai, and wrapped by late-November. The film has music composed by Mani Sharma, cinematography handled by Nirav Shah and editing by Kola Bhaskar.
Pokkiri was released theatrically on 12 January 2007 and received positive reviews with praise for Vijay's performance, action sequences and music.[2] It became a huge commercial success, running for more than 200 days at the box office.[3] Six years later, it was dubbed in Hindi as Wanted Baaghi and was also dubbed in Odia as Wanted Police, as well as Malayalam under the same title as the Tamil version. Vijay's Pokkiri was re-released multiple times in Kerala.[1] A re-mastered version in 4K was re-released worldwide in theatres on 21 June 2024.[4]
The city of Chennai is rife with the nefarious activities of land mafia. There are two rival gangs: one under Ali Bhai, who resides in Dubai where he controls the India operations through his skilled henchmen Guru and Korattur Logu, as well as his girlfriend Mona; and another operated by a local goon named Narasimhan. They threaten builders and landowners into giving them protection money or property through force, extortion, or murder. Mohammed Maideen Khan takes charge as the new Police Commissioner of Chennai and starts cracking down on crime.
Tamizh's first assignment with Ali Bhai's gang is to kill a member of Narasimhan's gang. However, the police show up at the spot where Tamizh and the other gangsters are waiting. Tamizh engages the cops long enough for the others to finish the task and flee. He also helps Shruthi escape from Govindan. She is impressed by his kindness, and a friendship soon blossoms between the two, leading to the development of unspoken romantic feelings for each other. When Shruthi tries to express her feelings to Tamizh, they are attacked by members of Narasimhan's gang, whom Tamizh finishes off in the presence of Shruthi. Shruthi is shocked to learn that Tamizh is a cold-blooded gangster with no qualms about killing people. Later, having been rebuked by Shruthi and Lakshmi multiple times, Govindan arranges for some thugs to pretend to assault Shruthi and they accept his demands. Tamizh learns of this and thrashes Govindan incognito. After much ado and mental anguish, Shruthi accepts Tamizh's love. Soon, Guru is found dead, presumably killed by Narasimhan in retaliation against the deaths of his gang members at the hands of Tamizh earlier, which forces Ali Bhai to come to Chennai from Dubai and kill Narasimhan. He also meets Tamizh to discuss the killing of a minister by blowing up a school. Tamizh disagrees with Ali Bhai's method as it would involve killing women and children, which goes against his principles.
After the failure of Aathi in January 2006, for nearly six months Vijay was listening to stories, but none had appealed; he was supposed to remake Dharani's Bangaram (2006), until its failure made him look for other options.[6] Being a childhood friend of Mahesh Babu from his Madras days, Vijay watched the Telugu Pokiri (2006) and felt that it would also work well in Tamil.[7] After some difficulty in finding the right director for adapting it in Tamil, Prabhu Deva was selected, directing his first film in Tamil after the failure of his second directorial, Pournami (2006).[8][9]
The film was launched on 6 July 2006.[10] Vijay's father, S. A. Chandrasekhar, conducted a special puja at the Sri Arunachaleswarar Temple in Tiruvannamalai. On Saturday night, which was the full moon day, an auspicious occasion for the presiding deity there, he spent a full hour before the Lord seeking his blessings. He also prayed at the Sacred Church at Velankanni.[11] Asin was selected, pairing with Vijay for the second time after Sivakasi (2005).[12]
The first day of shoot for the film was held at the new Pillayar Kovil at AVM studios, with various dignitaries gracing the occasion. Vijay's mother Shobha Chandrasekhar gave the clap for the first shot. The first scene shot was with Asin and Vijay, the lead pair in the film, in an elevator that was specially designed for the film. Principal photography was completed in late November.[13]
The soundtrack has 8 songs composed by Mani Sharma. Two of the songs from the original Telugu version were retained and remade in Tamil including "Dole Dole Than" and "En Chella Peru Apple". The soundtrack also features a remix of the song "Vasantha Mullai" from Sarangadhara (1958).[14][15]
The Hindu wrote, "After watching the Telugu Pokkiri, one wondered how it could be rehashed to suit Vijay. Well, kudos to Prabhu Deva for doing a fine job of the remake".[27] Sify said that the film was "enjoyable while it lasts".[28] Indiaglitz stated that Vijay stole the show with his "typical 'Vijayisms' (action, humor and punch dialogues)" and that the show was "action-packed entertainer".[29] Behindwoods review felt that Vadivelu and Prakash Raj's performances were lackluster, and stated that Raj " might do well to sit back and analyze the roles that he accepts," but concluded that the movie overall "packs a punch."[30] Rediff.com gave the movie two stars, stating "there's nothing more tedious than a badly made remake."[31] Nowrunning.com stated that "Pokkiri is attractively packaged and presented".[32] Oneindia.in stated that "Pokkiri is a full length action movie of Vijay."[33] Ananda Vikatan rated the film 42 out of 100.[34] Malini Mannath of Chennai Online wrote "'Pokkiri' is not much different from the earlier gangster films. And if it manages to hold interest to a point, it's mainly due to the Vijay-factor and it's racy narrative style."[35] Lajjavathi of Kalki wrote Prabhu Deva has scored a six in the first film, and his screenplay is elegant and stunning, leading to the last scene and loved the way he moved the film by keeping suspense here and there.[36]
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The fandom of Tamil star Vijay is at an unbelievable level and the madness on social media is testimony to it. Fans of Thalapathy Vijay, as they call him, go to any extent to prove their love for him and we have seen that many a times in the past. But this latest development takes the madness to a new level. A gym in Iran plays a song from Vijay-starrer Pokkiri to warm-up their members before their workout sessions. The song is Mambazhamam Mambazham from Pokkiri which features Vijay and Asin. A video is going viral on social media in which the members of the gym are seen dancing to the massy number and warming up. Not just India, Iran too loves Thalapathy Vijay. Don't believe us? Watch the video right here: Also Read - Not Allu Arjun, Atlee to direct his next with Salman Khan?
Pokkiri is a remake of Telugu film with the same title that starred Mahesh Babu in it. The Tamil remake brought huge success to Vijay and made him a huge star. Since then, Vijay's fandom has only been on the rise and films like Kaththi, Thuppakki and Mersal have made him an iconic star. Also Read - Shah Rukh Khan's reaction to Mohanlal dancing on Zinda Banda from Jawan proves why he is the KING of hearts
On the work front, Vijay is gearing up for the release of his next Bigil which is directed by Atlee. Vijay would be seen playing dual roles in the film one of them being a football coach. Another role will have him playing a massy gangster which was revealed in the title poster released on Vijay's birthday. Check them out here: Also Read - Aishwarya Shankar, Tarun Karthikeyan wedding: Rajinikanth, Suriya and more South celebrities attend Shankar's daughter's big day
Bigil also stars Nayanthara as the leading lady and will be her fourth film alongside Vijay. Going by the reports, Bigil is slated to be released during Diwali, a season which has been very successful for Vijay. His previous releases, Mersal and Sarkar, released during Diwali and turned out to be blockbuster hits.
Pokkiri movie has 8 tracks and you can download the following songs Aadungada Yennai Suththi, Dole Dole Than, En Chella Peru Apple, Mambazhamam Mambazham, Nee Mutham Ondru Remix, Nee Mutham Ondru, Vasantha Mullai, Yuthamee Theme from this movie.
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