Watch: Trailer for Tamil anthology ‘Navarasa’ showcases gritty stories

The trailer for Netflix’s upcoming Tamil anthology ‘Navarasa’ is out and promises audiences nine intriguing stories that aren’t your typical commercial fare.

The project created by iconic filmmaker Mani Ratnam and director Jayendra Panchapakesan will premiere on Netflix on August 6 and features an all-star cast. Famous faces from South Indian cinema that feature in the anthology include Suriya, Vijay Sethupathi, Arvind Swami, Siddharth, Prakash Raj, Revathy and Nithya Menen.

According to reports, the cast and crew have worked on the project for free, and profits from it will be donated to members of the Film Employees Federation of South India that were impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The anthology is formed by nine short films based on the nine ‘rasas’ or human emotions — anger, compassion, courage, disgust, fear, laughter, love, peace and wonder.

Talking about the anthology, Ratnam said, “Emotions may be momentary but some of those moments stay with us for life. Emotions are part of every day of our lives and yet some of these can change the course of our lives. This is what makes ‘Navarasa’ interesting. Though at most times there is more than one emotion in play, often it is one that takes control of our mind and soul and spurs us into action. ‘Navarasa’ is a collection of nine stories born out of nine such emotions. Some of these pivot in a moment. Some take shape from deep-rooted feelings. ‘Navarasa’ showcases them all.”

Opening up about how the project is meant to help workers, Panchapakesan added: “We are extremely happy and proud of our colleagues in the industry, directors, actors and technicians, who have created engaging, exciting stories from these nine emotions or the classical ‘rasas’. We are sure viewers across the globe will enjoy and celebrate this confluence of ‘rasas’.”

The nine short films are directed by Arvind Swami, Bejoy Nambiar, Gautham Vasudev Menon, Karthik Subbaraj, Karthick Naren, Priyadarshan, Rathindran R Prasad, Sarjun and Vasanth S Sai.

Composers including AR Rahman, D Imman and Ghibran have also worked on the project.

— With inputs from IANS