Amitabh Bachchan did not appear at the trailer launch of Shamitabh, R.Balki’s upcoming film, in Chennai earlier this week.
Making up for Bachchan’s absence were director Balki and actors Dhanush and Akshara Hasan.
When asked who the Shamitabh was in the story, director Balki said: “Actually, nobody can be successful alone and you require several persons’ support to achieve something. Behind every individual’s success lies a team of people and that is the moral of the story.”
And that explains the title — a combination of the lead actors’ names.
Calling Dhanush a spontaneous actor, Balki wished he had met him earlier.
“He is one of the most powerful and intelligent actors of Indian cinema,” he said.
“While there is great chemistry between Dhanush and Akshara, the Physics between Dhanush and Big B is interesting,” added Balki.
For the first time, Bachchan has lent his voice to another actor, in this case to Dhanush’s character in the film.
Ilayaraja, Balki’s favourite composer who scored music for his earlier films, Cheeni Kum and Paa is the composer for Shamitabh.
The event — a quick affair — was wrapped up with the song, Oodhunguda Sangu, sung by Dhanush, much to the delight of his fans.
