Aegan
Encyclopedia
Aegan is a 2008
Tamil
action
and comedy
film directed and co-written by Raju Sundaram
and produced by Ayngaran International
based on the 2004 Shahrukh Khan
starrer Main Hoon Na
. It stars Ajith Kumar
, Nayantara
, Suman
, Jayaram
, Navdeep
and Piaa Bajpai
.
The film revolves around a daredevil cop who, on behalf of his ailing father and the ambition of a lieutenant general, returns to college
in Ooty. Whilst protecting the general's daughter, he attempts to reconcile with his stepbrother from his father's marriage. Furthermore, he has to ward off the international criminal John Chinnappa, who is trying to kill the general, an ex-aide of his who has turned police approver. How the cop manages to solve all three problems forms the crux of the story.
The film opened to Indian audiences on 25 October 2008, coinciding with the Diwali
season. The film, upon release received mixed reviews at the South Indian box office.
), a CBI officer, and his efforts to foil the terrorist John Chinnappa (Suman
). Major Shiva is simultaneously attempting to mend relations with his father's estranged first wife and his half-brother Narain (Navdeep
). Complications ensue.
Major John Chinnappa is a scientist who had created tablets by operating on human guinea pig
s. His ploys have always been controversial but inconclusive due to the lack of witnesses. However, an ex-gang member, General Ram Prasad (Devan), became a police approver
and is on the verge of revealing Chinnappa's ploys to the police. However, he is on the run to avoid charges. The case falls to Lieutenant Karthikeyan (Nassar
), Major Shiva's father, who had ordered his decommission, who assigns his son to go and help solve the mission.
Karthik tells Shiva to attend college in Tamil Nadu
— St. John’s College, Ooty — to protect Ram Prasad's daughter, Pooja (Piaa Bajpai
), from meeting with her father. Shiva pleads that he has never seen a civilian college before and doesn't know much about the current generation. The General points out that, by a strange coincidence, Pooja attends school in the same town where Ram Prasad is hiding. Shiva can protect Pooja and look for Ram Prasad at the same time. Shiva goes undercover as a student returning to college after many years away taking care of the family business. He is much older than the other students, who at first make fun of him because of his lack of new-generation styles. He also has to deal with the many goofy teachers as well the idiotic forgetful principal of the college, Albert (Jayaram
).
He finds Narain, who is later revealed to be Shiva's brother. Pooja is Narain's best friend and he is secretly jealous that other girls can get his attention but she can't. Shiva saves Pooja from John Chinnapa's men, who kidnap her while Narain and others think it's a prank. He later becomes a sensation among the students and teachers. He befriends Narain and Pooja and falls in love with the chemistry teacher, Mallika (Nayantara
), after being attracted by her beauty and in a bid to convince other students that he is one of them. During his regular jogging sessions Shiva spots Ram Prasad and chases him till he escapes with the help of an helmet-clad bike rider who is later revealed to be Narain. Pooja comes to know that Narain has been helping her father and feels cheated by him.
Narain tries to apologize to Pooja many times, but she refuses to talk to him. Irked by this, Narain drinks and explains his actions when John's men come again to kidnap Pooja. They beat up Narain, but Shiva comes to their rescue. Narain and Pooja patch up after the fight sequences. Shiva takes Narain to his home where he learns that Narain is his brother and meets his mother. The flashback sequences describe Shiva's childhood (he is an orphan) and explain why his mother and father live separately.
The next day when Pooja introduces Ram Prasad to Shiva, Shiva arrests him — much to the disappointment of Pooja and Narain. Then everyone in the college including Mallika learns that Shiva is a policeman.
Shiva then drives Ram Prasad straight to John Chinnapa's hiding place, avoiding the traps that he had set. A fight ensues between Shiva and John Chinnappa's men in which John is finally killed.
In the final scenes Mallika is shown with Shiva's parents and brother while he has gone to Afghanistan as part of another mission.
were set to make a film starring Ajith Kumar
directed by Venkat Prabhu
, however the chance went to first-time director Raju Sundaram
, in a project titled Akbar. Despite denying the title, Ajith confirmed the project and stating that he had put on weight and grew a beard for his participation in the project. Following the success of Billa
, Ajith Kumar waited till the birth of his first child, in January 2008, before commencing his shoot for the film.
The 40-member unit consisting of Ajith, director Raju Sundaram,cinematographer Arjun Jena, action choreographer Stun Shiva and a few stunt men from Chennai flew to Hong Kong on 14 January 2008 and began their first schedule for a 10-day stint.
The portions in Hong Kong were shot showing Ajith's introduction stunt scene set against the skyscrapers, Hong Kong airport, and the sea with the help of Chinese action choreographers. The crew shot schedules in Theni
and Ooty and other locations in South India
during the filming. The film finished its talkie portion in early September 2008, and the songs were canned in India
as well as parts of Switzerland
. The film, initially described as a "musical action comedy,". The film previously referred to as Akbar, Ramakrishnan and Anthony Gonsalves was christened as Aegan, a name of Lord Shiva.
was rumoured to be the heroine, following her successful role in Sivaji: The Boss
. However due to differences, Saran was ousted from the project due to her limited callsheets, as she had to fly to and from America
where she was then shooting for her Hollywood film, The Other End of the Line
. However other indications claimed that Saran was ousted from the project due to her involvement in Indiralohathil Na Azhagappan
, in which she appeared in an item number
, which Ajith Kumar
was unhappy with due to previous feuds with the lead, Vadivelu
of that film. Reports indicated that Parvati Melton
had replaced Saran but later denied it signaling that she was not approached.
Suhani Kalita
was announced as the second heroine of the project but was later removed for unknown reasons. Several Bollywood
heroines including Deepika Padukone
, Bipasha Basu
, Katrina Kaif
, Ayesha Takia
, Ileana D'Cruz
, Tanushree Dutta
and Sneha Ullal
were linked to the role, as well as reports that Shriya Saran
would reprise the role after making up with Ajith. The role eventually was given to Katrina Kaif
, who was set to make her debut in Tamil films with Aegan, however she later opted out due to callsheet clashes. It was announced that Nayantara
would play the role of the heroine in the film, following her role opposite Ajith in Billa
. In February 2008, it was confirmed that Navdeep
would play a role in the film as well as Suman
, who will appear in a villainous role. Malayalam actor, Jayaram
will also play a role in the film, which will be co-produced by actor, Arun Pandian.
Nassar
and Suhasini were selected to play the roles of the parents of Ajith
, whilst Raju Sundaram
's elder brother, Prabhu Deva was given a chance to make a cameo appearance in the film as a dancer but politely refused. Supporting actors Livingston
, Sathyan and Sriman also play roles in Aegan, as does model Piaa Bajpai
, who appears as the ladylove to Navdeep. Yuvan Shankar Raja
was signed on as the music composer whilst Arjun Jena was the cinematographer for the project and Milan, who did the art direction for Billa
, renews his association with Ajith in the film.
.com claim that "the trouble with the film is that it looks like an amateurish attempt by debutant director Raju Sundaram" dismissing the climax
as "a colossal embarrassment", but adding that "no film is perfect". Ajith Kumar
was praised for being "at his best but look[ed] plump and stiff in some scenes where he need to be relaxed and natural", drawing comparisons with a similar feedback from his previous venture, Billa
. Nayantara
is said to "look perfect as Mallika, a role that fits her like a glove" with her make-up and costumes "rocking". The reviewer goes on to add that "Piaa Bajpai
is promising, Jayaram as Principal and Haneefa have been wasted and do little in the way of bringing smiles to the audiences faces. Comedy is schoolboyish and ajith misplaced and mistimed attempts at humour are uncalled for. Suman with a weird wig is a horrendous mistake. The review also singles out the performance of rookie cinematographer, Arjun Jena, whose work is labelled as "eye-catching".
Similarly Rediff.com labelled the film as "watchable in parts", giving it negative feedback in comparison with Main Hoon Na
. It like Sify, claims that "Aegan loses its spontaneity and meanders between humour and seriousness" in the second half. The reviewer praises Ajith claiming he looks as though he "really did enjoy himself on screen, after a really long time". The reviewer adds that "Nayantara's outfits get smaller and smaller, while the actress herself has nothing more to do than dance in transparent saris and high-heels. Sometimes she looks amused, at others, irritated and bored", comparing her unchalenging roles to previous roles in Sathyam and Kuselan
. It criticizes Piaa Bajpai claiming she "hams it to glory", and "makes you want to watch Amrita Rao
's naivety in the original", however, it praises Navdeep
citing he is "far more natural, but you pity the fact that his role is so small". Rediff also criticize Suman
and Sriman labelling their portrayals as "pathetic". In reference to minor characters, Cochin Hanifa is praised while Suhasini Mani Ratnam
's role is said to be "terribly dealt with, robbing her part of any sympathy".
as was the film score. It was noticeably, the third time Yuvan Shankar was scoring music for an Ajith Kumar
film, after Dheena
(2001) and Billa
(2007), the songs of which were very popular and went on to become chartbusters.
The soundtrack released on October 9, 2008 at a private ceremony at the HelloFM Studios by composer Yuvan Shankar Raja himself as the lead cast and the director were away shooting the video for the song in Switzerland
. The album features 6 tracks overall, including one of the songs ("Hey Salaa") repeated at the end. Lyrics were provided by Pa. Vijay and Snehan. However, since their names were not credited in the album, it is unknown, which of the songs were penned by which lyricist.
2008 in film
This is a list of all major films made in 2008.-Highest-grossing films:Please note that following the tradition of the English-language film industry, these are the top grossing films that were first released in the USA in 2008...
Tamil
Tamil language
Tamil is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamil people of the Indian subcontinent. It has official status in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and in the Indian union territory of Pondicherry. Tamil is also an official language of Sri Lanka and Singapore...
action
Action film
Action film is a film genre where one or more heroes is thrust into a series of challenges that require physical feats, extended fights and frenetic chases...
and comedy
Comedy
Comedy , as a popular meaning, is any humorous discourse or work generally intended to amuse by creating laughter, especially in television, film, and stand-up comedy. This must be carefully distinguished from its academic definition, namely the comic theatre, whose Western origins are found in...
film directed and co-written by Raju Sundaram
Raju Sundaram
Raju Sundaram is a Kollywood cine artiste who acts, directs, and choreographs for films. He is an eldest son of dance master Mugur Sundar, and elder brother to Prabhu Deva and Nagendra Prasad.-Birth:...
and produced by Ayngaran International
Ayngaran International
Ayngaran is a film distribution and production company of Tamil films, based in the United Kingdom. The company has distributed various Indian-produced Tamil films in Europe and North America. It is also responsible for the production of Tamil films into home media, such as VHS, DVD, and blu-ray...
based on the 2004 Shahrukh Khan
Shahrukh Khan
Shahrukh Khan , often credited as Shah Rukh Khan, is an Indian film actor, as well as a film producer and television host. Often referred to as "the King of Bollywood", Khan has acted in over 70 Hindi films....
starrer Main Hoon Na
Main Hoon Na
Main Hoon Na is a Bollywood masala film written and directed by Farah Khan. It was the first film of Khan production company Red Chillies Entertainment. It was released on 30 April 2004 and went on to become a box-office success...
. It stars Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
, Nayantara
Nayantara
Nayantara , is an Indian film actress. She made her acting debut in 2003 in the Malayalam film Manassinakkare. She debuted in Tamil cinema with Ayya and in Telugu cinema with Lakshmi , following which she starred alongside popular lead actors...
, Suman
Suman (actor)
Suman is a South Indian Telugu film actor. He played action hero and romantic hero in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam films during the 1980s. After a long while away from cinema, he returned to acting in Tamil films in 2007, starring in S. Shankar's Sivaji: The Boss with Rajinikanth. He has also...
, Jayaram
Jayaram
Jayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
, Navdeep
Navdeep
Navdeep is a regional Indian actor.Navdeep has appeared in both Telugu and Tamil films in his career, portraying diverse characters.Navdeep's first major film appearance was in the 2004 Telugu romantic film, Jai, in which he played an Indian boxer fighting against Laskar-E-Taiba terrorists...
and Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Tamil and Telugu films. She is best known for her performances as Roshini in Venkat Prabhu's comedy Goa and Saro in K. V. Anand's political thriller Ko...
.
The film revolves around a daredevil cop who, on behalf of his ailing father and the ambition of a lieutenant general, returns to college
College
A college is an educational institution or a constituent part of an educational institution. Usage varies in English-speaking nations...
in Ooty. Whilst protecting the general's daughter, he attempts to reconcile with his stepbrother from his father's marriage. Furthermore, he has to ward off the international criminal John Chinnappa, who is trying to kill the general, an ex-aide of his who has turned police approver. How the cop manages to solve all three problems forms the crux of the story.
The film opened to Indian audiences on 25 October 2008, coinciding with the Diwali
Diwali
Diwali or DeepavaliThe name of the festival in various regional languages include:, , , , , , , , , , , , , popularly known as the "festival of lights," is a festival celebrated between mid-October and mid-December for different reasons...
season. The film, upon release received mixed reviews at the South Indian box office.
Plot
Aegans story is based around Shiva (Ajith KumarAjith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
), a CBI officer, and his efforts to foil the terrorist John Chinnappa (Suman
Suman (actor)
Suman is a South Indian Telugu film actor. He played action hero and romantic hero in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam films during the 1980s. After a long while away from cinema, he returned to acting in Tamil films in 2007, starring in S. Shankar's Sivaji: The Boss with Rajinikanth. He has also...
). Major Shiva is simultaneously attempting to mend relations with his father's estranged first wife and his half-brother Narain (Navdeep
Navdeep
Navdeep is a regional Indian actor.Navdeep has appeared in both Telugu and Tamil films in his career, portraying diverse characters.Navdeep's first major film appearance was in the 2004 Telugu romantic film, Jai, in which he played an Indian boxer fighting against Laskar-E-Taiba terrorists...
). Complications ensue.
Major John Chinnappa is a scientist who had created tablets by operating on human guinea pig
Guinea pig
The guinea pig , also called the cavy, is a species of rodent belonging to the family Caviidae and the genus Cavia. Despite their common name, these animals are not in the pig family, nor are they from Guinea...
s. His ploys have always been controversial but inconclusive due to the lack of witnesses. However, an ex-gang member, General Ram Prasad (Devan), became a police approver
Informant
An informant is a person who provides privileged information about a person or organization to an agency. The term is usually used within the law enforcement world, where they are officially known as confidential or criminal informants , and can often refer pejoratively to the supply of information...
and is on the verge of revealing Chinnappa's ploys to the police. However, he is on the run to avoid charges. The case falls to Lieutenant Karthikeyan (Nassar
Nassar
Nassar is a Tamil actor, producer, writer, director, lyricist, and singer. He has appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi and English films. He is often cited as part of India's specialist character actors, along with the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Nana Patekar...
), Major Shiva's father, who had ordered his decommission, who assigns his son to go and help solve the mission.
Karthik tells Shiva to attend college in Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu
Tamil Nadu is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh...
— St. John’s College, Ooty — to protect Ram Prasad's daughter, Pooja (Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Tamil and Telugu films. She is best known for her performances as Roshini in Venkat Prabhu's comedy Goa and Saro in K. V. Anand's political thriller Ko...
), from meeting with her father. Shiva pleads that he has never seen a civilian college before and doesn't know much about the current generation. The General points out that, by a strange coincidence, Pooja attends school in the same town where Ram Prasad is hiding. Shiva can protect Pooja and look for Ram Prasad at the same time. Shiva goes undercover as a student returning to college after many years away taking care of the family business. He is much older than the other students, who at first make fun of him because of his lack of new-generation styles. He also has to deal with the many goofy teachers as well the idiotic forgetful principal of the college, Albert (Jayaram
Jayaram
Jayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
).
He finds Narain, who is later revealed to be Shiva's brother. Pooja is Narain's best friend and he is secretly jealous that other girls can get his attention but she can't. Shiva saves Pooja from John Chinnapa's men, who kidnap her while Narain and others think it's a prank. He later becomes a sensation among the students and teachers. He befriends Narain and Pooja and falls in love with the chemistry teacher, Mallika (Nayantara
Nayantara
Nayantara , is an Indian film actress. She made her acting debut in 2003 in the Malayalam film Manassinakkare. She debuted in Tamil cinema with Ayya and in Telugu cinema with Lakshmi , following which she starred alongside popular lead actors...
), after being attracted by her beauty and in a bid to convince other students that he is one of them. During his regular jogging sessions Shiva spots Ram Prasad and chases him till he escapes with the help of an helmet-clad bike rider who is later revealed to be Narain. Pooja comes to know that Narain has been helping her father and feels cheated by him.
Narain tries to apologize to Pooja many times, but she refuses to talk to him. Irked by this, Narain drinks and explains his actions when John's men come again to kidnap Pooja. They beat up Narain, but Shiva comes to their rescue. Narain and Pooja patch up after the fight sequences. Shiva takes Narain to his home where he learns that Narain is his brother and meets his mother. The flashback sequences describe Shiva's childhood (he is an orphan) and explain why his mother and father live separately.
The next day when Pooja introduces Ram Prasad to Shiva, Shiva arrests him — much to the disappointment of Pooja and Narain. Then everyone in the college including Mallika learns that Shiva is a policeman.
Shiva then drives Ram Prasad straight to John Chinnapa's hiding place, avoiding the traps that he had set. A fight ensues between Shiva and John Chinnappa's men in which John is finally killed.
In the final scenes Mallika is shown with Shiva's parents and brother while he has gone to Afghanistan as part of another mission.
Cast
- Ajith KumarAjith KumarAjith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
as Shiva. Shiva is a short-tempered, daredevil cop who is sent by his foster father, Karthikeyan, to find an approver, Ram Prasad using his daughter, Pooja. During his college stay, he falls in love with the chemistry teacher, Mallika. - NayantaraNayantaraNayantara , is an Indian film actress. She made her acting debut in 2003 in the Malayalam film Manassinakkare. She debuted in Tamil cinema with Ayya and in Telugu cinema with Lakshmi , following which she starred alongside popular lead actors...
as Mallika. Mallika is a chemistry teacher at the college who falls in love with Shiva, although at first she is irritated by him. - NassarNassarNassar is a Tamil actor, producer, writer, director, lyricist, and singer. He has appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi and English films. He is often cited as part of India's specialist character actors, along with the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Nana Patekar...
as Karthikeyan. He is a policeman and a father to Narain. He adopts Shiva before Narain is born. Even after Narain was born, he cared more for Shiva, which made him and his wife separate. - JayaramJayaramJayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
as Albert Aandiyapatham. Albert is college principal of St. John’s College in Ooty. Assisted by his peon, Sathyan, Albert indulges in activities to find out the relationship between Mallika and Shiva. - SumanSuman (actor)Suman is a South Indian Telugu film actor. He played action hero and romantic hero in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam films during the 1980s. After a long while away from cinema, he returned to acting in Tamil films in 2007, starring in S. Shankar's Sivaji: The Boss with Rajinikanth. He has also...
as John Chinnappa. The character was initially called Joseph Chinnappa, but Ajith demanded the name to be changed, so it does not anger rival actor, Joseph VijayJoseph VijayVijay is an Indian film actor and playback singer, who is based in the cinema of Tamil Nadu. He is the son of film producer and director S. A. Chandrasekhar. After performing uncredited roles as a child actor in films produced by his father, he made his debut in a lead role in the 1992 film...
. Chinnappa is an underworld don who wishes to kill his old best friend and now approver Ram Prasad. - NavdeepNavdeepNavdeep is a regional Indian actor.Navdeep has appeared in both Telugu and Tamil films in his career, portraying diverse characters.Navdeep's first major film appearance was in the 2004 Telugu romantic film, Jai, in which he played an Indian boxer fighting against Laskar-E-Taiba terrorists...
as Narain. Narain is the real son of Karthikeyan. He attends college in Ooty and is wanted by Shiva to reconcile him and his mother with Karthikeyan. He is in love with classmate Pooja Prasad. - Piaa BajpaiPiaa BajpaiPiaa Bajpai is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Tamil and Telugu films. She is best known for her performances as Roshini in Venkat Prabhu's comedy Goa and Saro in K. V. Anand's political thriller Ko...
as Pooja. Pooja is the daughter of Approver Ram Prasad, who has gone into hiding. Shiva comes to Ooty to find out where Ram Prasad is, through Pooja. She is in love with her collegemate, Narain - Devan as Ram Prasad. The father of Pooja, who had turned from Chinnappa's best friend to a police-approver. This change had made Chinnappa furious with him, resulting in subsequent attempts to kill him off.
- Cochin Hanifa as Hanifa. Hanifa lives with Shiva during his stay at Ooty, helping him settle in with college life as well as to support Shiva on his mission.
Development
In September 2007, early indications suggested that Ayngaran InternationalAyngaran International
Ayngaran is a film distribution and production company of Tamil films, based in the United Kingdom. The company has distributed various Indian-produced Tamil films in Europe and North America. It is also responsible for the production of Tamil films into home media, such as VHS, DVD, and blu-ray...
were set to make a film starring Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
directed by Venkat Prabhu
Venkat Prabhu
Venkat Kumar Gangai Amaren , better known by his stage name Venkat Prabhu is an Indian filmmaker, who has worked as an actor, director and playback singer in the Tamil film industry...
, however the chance went to first-time director Raju Sundaram
Raju Sundaram
Raju Sundaram is a Kollywood cine artiste who acts, directs, and choreographs for films. He is an eldest son of dance master Mugur Sundar, and elder brother to Prabhu Deva and Nagendra Prasad.-Birth:...
, in a project titled Akbar. Despite denying the title, Ajith confirmed the project and stating that he had put on weight and grew a beard for his participation in the project. Following the success of Billa
Billa (2007 film)
Billa is a 2007 Tamil gangster-thriller film directed by Vishnuvardhan. Based on the 1980 Tamil film of the same name and the 2006 Hindi film, Don: The Chase Begins Again, it was adapted by the director, who rewrote portions of the film from the original...
, Ajith Kumar waited till the birth of his first child, in January 2008, before commencing his shoot for the film.
The 40-member unit consisting of Ajith, director Raju Sundaram,cinematographer Arjun Jena, action choreographer Stun Shiva and a few stunt men from Chennai flew to Hong Kong on 14 January 2008 and began their first schedule for a 10-day stint.
The portions in Hong Kong were shot showing Ajith's introduction stunt scene set against the skyscrapers, Hong Kong airport, and the sea with the help of Chinese action choreographers. The crew shot schedules in Theni
Theni
Theni is a town in the Western Tamil Nadu state of South India. It is the headquarters of Theni District. It is known for the large-scale trading of Cardamom, Cotton, Grapes, chilli and Textiles. It hosts the second largest weekly market in Tamil Nadu and the fourth largest in South India...
and Ooty and other locations in South India
South India
South India is the area encompassing India's states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu as well as the union territories of Lakshadweep and Pondicherry, occupying 19.31% of India's area...
during the filming. The film finished its talkie portion in early September 2008, and the songs were canned in India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
as well as parts of Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. The film, initially described as a "musical action comedy,". The film previously referred to as Akbar, Ramakrishnan and Anthony Gonsalves was christened as Aegan, a name of Lord Shiva.
Casting
Following the announcement of the project, tentatively titled as Akbar, Shriya SaranShriya Saran
Shriya Saran , also known by the mononym Shriya, is an Indian film actress and model. She has worked in several of the regional industries of Indian cinema, having acted in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi language films, as well as a few films in English, Malayalam and Kannada...
was rumoured to be the heroine, following her successful role in Sivaji: The Boss
Sivaji: The Boss
Sivaji is a 2007 Tamil political thriller film directed by S. Shankar and produced by AVM Productions. Rajinikanth and Shriya Saran played the lead roles, with Suman, Vivek and Raghuvaran playing other significant roles in the film. A. R. Rahman composed the film's soundtrack and background music,...
. However due to differences, Saran was ousted from the project due to her limited callsheets, as she had to fly to and from America
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
where she was then shooting for her Hollywood film, The Other End of the Line
The Other End of the Line
The Other End of the Line is a romantic comedy film released in 2008 starring Jesse Metcalfe, Shriya Saran and Anupam Kher. James Dodson directed the project. The film is based on an employee at an Indian call-center who travels to San Francisco to be with a guy she falls for over the phone. The...
. However other indications claimed that Saran was ousted from the project due to her involvement in Indiralohathil Na Azhagappan
Indiralohathil Na Azhagappan
Indralohathil Na Azhagappan is a periodical comedy film directed by Thambi Ramiah, who directs his second feature film after Manuneethi. After the success of Vadivelu's debut film as the protagonist in Imsai Arasan 23am Pulikesi, Ramiah signed him up for the project.Apart from Vadivelu, the rest...
, in which she appeared in an item number
Item number
An item number or an item song, in Indian cinema, is a musical performance that has little to do with the film in which it appears, but is presented to showcase beautiful dancing women in very revealing clothes, to lend support to the marketability of the film...
, which Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
was unhappy with due to previous feuds with the lead, Vadivelu
Vadivelu
Vadivelu , often referred to as Vadivel, is a Tamil film actor,comedian and playback singer. Since 2000, he has acted as a comedian in various Tamil films. During his career, Vadivelu has won several Filmfare Awards and Tamil Nadu State Film Awards...
of that film. Reports indicated that Parvati Melton
Parvati Melton
Parvati Melton is a tall Indian model. She acts in Telugu and Malayalam movies. She acted with Raja in the film Vennela, which turned out to be a success. She acted in the super hit Malayalam film Hallo with South Indian star Mohanlal.-Filmography:-External links:...
had replaced Saran but later denied it signaling that she was not approached.
Suhani Kalita
Suhani Kalita
Suhani Kalita is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam and Bengali films.- Early life :...
was announced as the second heroine of the project but was later removed for unknown reasons. Several Bollywood
Bollywood
Bollywood is the informal term popularly used for the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai , Maharashtra, India. The term is often incorrectly used to refer to the whole of Indian cinema; it is only a part of the total Indian film industry, which includes other production centers producing...
heroines including Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone is an Indian actress and a former model. She appears mostly in Hindi as well as Tamil and Kannada language films. Born to Badminton player Prakash Padukone, she chose to become an actress and not pursue a career in sports.Padukone made her acting debut in the 2006 Kannada film...
, Bipasha Basu
Bipasha Basu
Bipasha Basu is an Indian actress who mainly appears in Bollywood films. A former model, she was the winner of the Ford's Godrej Cinthol Supermodel contest in 1996.-Early life:...
, Katrina Kaif
Katrina Kaif
Katrina Kaif is a British Indian actress and former model who appears in Indian films, mainly in the Hindi-language film industry. She has also appeared in Telugu and Malayalam films. She was voted the sexiest Asian woman in the world by Eastern Eye in the years 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011...
, Ayesha Takia
Ayesha Takia
-Early life:Ayesha was born in Chembur Mumbai, Maharashtra to a Gujarati father, Nishit and a mother of mixed British-Maharashtrian descent, Faridah. She attended St. Anthony's High School in Chembur...
, Ileana D'Cruz
Ileana D'Cruz
Ileana D'Cruz is an Indian film actress, who predominantly appears in Telugu cinema. Starting her career as a model, she made her feature film debut in Y.V.S. Chowdhary's 2006 Telugu film Devadasu...
, Tanushree Dutta
Tanushree Dutta
Tanushree Dutta is an Indian actress who appears in mainly Bollywood films. A former beauty queen, she won the Femina Miss India universe title in 2004.- Biography :...
and Sneha Ullal
Sneha Ullal
Sneha Ullal is an Indian film actress who has appeared in Tollywood and Bollywood films. She is best known for her role in the Telugu film Ullasamga Utsahamga and Simha.-Personal life and education:...
were linked to the role, as well as reports that Shriya Saran
Shriya Saran
Shriya Saran , also known by the mononym Shriya, is an Indian film actress and model. She has worked in several of the regional industries of Indian cinema, having acted in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi language films, as well as a few films in English, Malayalam and Kannada...
would reprise the role after making up with Ajith. The role eventually was given to Katrina Kaif
Katrina Kaif
Katrina Kaif is a British Indian actress and former model who appears in Indian films, mainly in the Hindi-language film industry. She has also appeared in Telugu and Malayalam films. She was voted the sexiest Asian woman in the world by Eastern Eye in the years 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011...
, who was set to make her debut in Tamil films with Aegan, however she later opted out due to callsheet clashes. It was announced that Nayantara
Nayantara
Nayantara , is an Indian film actress. She made her acting debut in 2003 in the Malayalam film Manassinakkare. She debuted in Tamil cinema with Ayya and in Telugu cinema with Lakshmi , following which she starred alongside popular lead actors...
would play the role of the heroine in the film, following her role opposite Ajith in Billa
Billa (2007 film)
Billa is a 2007 Tamil gangster-thriller film directed by Vishnuvardhan. Based on the 1980 Tamil film of the same name and the 2006 Hindi film, Don: The Chase Begins Again, it was adapted by the director, who rewrote portions of the film from the original...
. In February 2008, it was confirmed that Navdeep
Navdeep
Navdeep is a regional Indian actor.Navdeep has appeared in both Telugu and Tamil films in his career, portraying diverse characters.Navdeep's first major film appearance was in the 2004 Telugu romantic film, Jai, in which he played an Indian boxer fighting against Laskar-E-Taiba terrorists...
would play a role in the film as well as Suman
Suman (actor)
Suman is a South Indian Telugu film actor. He played action hero and romantic hero in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam films during the 1980s. After a long while away from cinema, he returned to acting in Tamil films in 2007, starring in S. Shankar's Sivaji: The Boss with Rajinikanth. He has also...
, who will appear in a villainous role. Malayalam actor, Jayaram
Jayaram
Jayaram is an Indian film actor who mainly acts in Malayalam and Tamil films. He is also a chenda percussionist and mimic artist. In 2011, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India for his contribution towards the arts.-Early life:...
will also play a role in the film, which will be co-produced by actor, Arun Pandian.
Nassar
Nassar
Nassar is a Tamil actor, producer, writer, director, lyricist, and singer. He has appeared in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi and English films. He is often cited as part of India's specialist character actors, along with the likes of Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Nana Patekar...
and Suhasini were selected to play the roles of the parents of Ajith
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
, whilst Raju Sundaram
Raju Sundaram
Raju Sundaram is a Kollywood cine artiste who acts, directs, and choreographs for films. He is an eldest son of dance master Mugur Sundar, and elder brother to Prabhu Deva and Nagendra Prasad.-Birth:...
's elder brother, Prabhu Deva was given a chance to make a cameo appearance in the film as a dancer but politely refused. Supporting actors Livingston
Livingston (actor)
Livingston is a Tamil film actor who usually plays in supporting roles. He is credited in his earlier films by the stage name Ranjan. His first starring role was in Poonthotta Kavalkaran . He started out playing villains and graduated to playing lead roles with Sundara Purushan in 1997...
, Sathyan and Sriman also play roles in Aegan, as does model Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Tamil and Telugu films. She is best known for her performances as Roshini in Venkat Prabhu's comedy Goa and Saro in K. V. Anand's political thriller Ko...
, who appears as the ladylove to Navdeep. Yuvan Shankar Raja
Yuvan Shankar Raja
Yuvan Shankar Raja is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer, singer and occasional lyricist. He has predominantly scored music for Tamil as well as several Telugu films. His musical career began in 1996, at age 16, as he composed the film score for Aravindhan...
was signed on as the music composer whilst Arjun Jena was the cinematographer for the project and Milan, who did the art direction for Billa
Billa (2007 film)
Billa is a 2007 Tamil gangster-thriller film directed by Vishnuvardhan. Based on the 1980 Tamil film of the same name and the 2006 Hindi film, Don: The Chase Begins Again, it was adapted by the director, who rewrote portions of the film from the original...
, renews his association with Ajith in the film.
Release
The film in total was labelled as "average". SifySify
Sify Technologies Limited is an Internet service provider established in 1998, based in Chennai, India.-Company profile:...
.com claim that "the trouble with the film is that it looks like an amateurish attempt by debutant director Raju Sundaram" dismissing the climax
Climax (narrative)
The Climax is the point in the story where the main character's point of view changes, or the most exciting/action filled part of the story. It also known has the main turning point in the story...
as "a colossal embarrassment", but adding that "no film is perfect". Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
was praised for being "at his best but look[ed] plump and stiff in some scenes where he need to be relaxed and natural", drawing comparisons with a similar feedback from his previous venture, Billa
Billa (2007 film)
Billa is a 2007 Tamil gangster-thriller film directed by Vishnuvardhan. Based on the 1980 Tamil film of the same name and the 2006 Hindi film, Don: The Chase Begins Again, it was adapted by the director, who rewrote portions of the film from the original...
. Nayantara
Nayantara
Nayantara , is an Indian film actress. She made her acting debut in 2003 in the Malayalam film Manassinakkare. She debuted in Tamil cinema with Ayya and in Telugu cinema with Lakshmi , following which she starred alongside popular lead actors...
is said to "look perfect as Mallika, a role that fits her like a glove" with her make-up and costumes "rocking". The reviewer goes on to add that "Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai
Piaa Bajpai is an Indian film actress and model, who has appeared in Tamil and Telugu films. She is best known for her performances as Roshini in Venkat Prabhu's comedy Goa and Saro in K. V. Anand's political thriller Ko...
is promising, Jayaram as Principal and Haneefa have been wasted and do little in the way of bringing smiles to the audiences faces. Comedy is schoolboyish and ajith misplaced and mistimed attempts at humour are uncalled for. Suman with a weird wig is a horrendous mistake. The review also singles out the performance of rookie cinematographer, Arjun Jena, whose work is labelled as "eye-catching".
Similarly Rediff.com labelled the film as "watchable in parts", giving it negative feedback in comparison with Main Hoon Na
Main Hoon Na
Main Hoon Na is a Bollywood masala film written and directed by Farah Khan. It was the first film of Khan production company Red Chillies Entertainment. It was released on 30 April 2004 and went on to become a box-office success...
. It like Sify, claims that "Aegan loses its spontaneity and meanders between humour and seriousness" in the second half. The reviewer praises Ajith claiming he looks as though he "really did enjoy himself on screen, after a really long time". The reviewer adds that "Nayantara's outfits get smaller and smaller, while the actress herself has nothing more to do than dance in transparent saris and high-heels. Sometimes she looks amused, at others, irritated and bored", comparing her unchalenging roles to previous roles in Sathyam and Kuselan
Kuselan
Kuselan is a 2008 Tamil drama film directed by P. Vasu, which was simultaneously made in Telugu as Kathanayakudu . Both remake of the Malayalam film Kadha Parayumbol, the film is directed by P. Vasu and produced by Pushpa Kandaswamy, Aswani Dutt and G. P. Vijayakumar in two languages...
. It criticizes Piaa Bajpai claiming she "hams it to glory", and "makes you want to watch Amrita Rao
Amrita Rao
Amrita Rao is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films.Beginning her career as a model, Rao made her acting debut with Ab Ke Baras...
's naivety in the original", however, it praises Navdeep
Navdeep
Navdeep is a regional Indian actor.Navdeep has appeared in both Telugu and Tamil films in his career, portraying diverse characters.Navdeep's first major film appearance was in the 2004 Telugu romantic film, Jai, in which he played an Indian boxer fighting against Laskar-E-Taiba terrorists...
citing he is "far more natural, but you pity the fact that his role is so small". Rediff also criticize Suman
Suman (actor)
Suman is a South Indian Telugu film actor. He played action hero and romantic hero in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam films during the 1980s. After a long while away from cinema, he returned to acting in Tamil films in 2007, starring in S. Shankar's Sivaji: The Boss with Rajinikanth. He has also...
and Sriman labelling their portrayals as "pathetic". In reference to minor characters, Cochin Hanifa is praised while Suhasini Mani Ratnam
Suhasini Mani Ratnam
Suhasini Maniratnam is an Indian actress. She made her film debut in 1980 with the Tamil film Nenjathai Killathe for which she won the Best Actress award. Suhasini has won a National Film Award for Best Actress for Sindhu Bhairavi in 1986...
's role is said to be "terribly dealt with, robbing her part of any sympathy".
Soundtrack
The soundtrack of Aegan was composed by Yuvan Shankar RajaYuvan Shankar Raja
Yuvan Shankar Raja is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer, singer and occasional lyricist. He has predominantly scored music for Tamil as well as several Telugu films. His musical career began in 1996, at age 16, as he composed the film score for Aravindhan...
as was the film score. It was noticeably, the third time Yuvan Shankar was scoring music for an Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar
Ajith Kumar is an Indian film actor who works mainly in Tamil cinema. He began his career as a supporting actor in a Telugu film before gaining critical recognition in the Tamil thriller Aasai . A succession of high-grossing films followed where Ajith was usually depicted as a romantic hero, with...
film, after Dheena
Dheena
Dheena is a 2001 Indian Tamil film starring Ajith Kumar, Suresh Gopi and Laila in lead roles. It marks the directorial debut of A. R. Murugadoss. Ajith plays the title role of Dheena, while Suresh Gopi enacts the role of Ajith's older brother...
(2001) and Billa
Billa (2007 film)
Billa is a 2007 Tamil gangster-thriller film directed by Vishnuvardhan. Based on the 1980 Tamil film of the same name and the 2006 Hindi film, Don: The Chase Begins Again, it was adapted by the director, who rewrote portions of the film from the original...
(2007), the songs of which were very popular and went on to become chartbusters.
The soundtrack released on October 9, 2008 at a private ceremony at the HelloFM Studios by composer Yuvan Shankar Raja himself as the lead cast and the director were away shooting the video for the song in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
. The album features 6 tracks overall, including one of the songs ("Hey Salaa") repeated at the end. Lyrics were provided by Pa. Vijay and Snehan. However, since their names were not credited in the album, it is unknown, which of the songs were penned by which lyricist.
| Track | Song | Singer(s) | Duration (min:sec) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Hey Salaa" | Blaaze Blaaze Blaaze is a rap artist and a popular playback singer in Indian films. An Indian by birth, born in Chennai, he grew up in Zambia and later did his education in England and in the US... , Naresh Iyer Naresh Iyer Naresh Iyer is a playback singer from Chennai, India. Naresh Iyer has rendered film songs in several Indian languages and has several chart hits to his credit. His rendition of "Roobaroo" from the movie Rang De Basanti composed by A. R. Rahman topped the music charts for many weeks in 2006 and won... , Mohammed Aslam |
5:09 | |
| 2 | "Yahoo Yahoo" | Suvi, Ujayinee, Sathyan Sathyan (singer) Sathyan Mahalingam, simply known and creditted as Sathyan is an Indian playback singer and composer, best known for performing the hit numbers "Kalakkapovathu Yaaru" , "Sil Sil" and the title track from Boss Engira Bhaskaran.-External links:Discographies* *... , Ranjith Ranjith (singer) Ranjith is an Indian playback singer who originally hails from Kerala. He was brought up in Tamil Nadu and he is very famous for his playback singing in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam.... & Naveen |
4:36 | |
| 3 | "Hey Baby" | Shankar Mahadevan Shankar Mahadevan Shankar Mahadevan is an Indian music composer and singer. He is a part of the Shankar Ehsaan Loy trio team that composes for Indian films and a playback singer.-Early life:... |
4:39 | |
| 4 | "Odum Varayil" | Kay Kay, Bela Shende Bela Shende Bela Shende is an Indian playback singer. She performed several songs in Bollywood and regional films. 'Su Che' from the film What's Your Raashee?, 'Aata Wajle Ki Baara' and 'Apsara Aali' from Natarang are some of her hits.... |
4:31 | |
| 5 | "Kichu Kichu" | Vasundhara Das Vasundhara Das Vasundhara Das born 1977, is an Indian singer and actress. She has acted in Hindi, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam films. She is the co-founder of world music band Arya. As a playback singer, she is best remembered for singing "Shakalaka Baby" from the Tamil film Mudhalvan, which was also her debut... , Yuvan Shankar Raja Yuvan Shankar Raja Yuvan Shankar Raja is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer, singer and occasional lyricist. He has predominantly scored music for Tamil as well as several Telugu films. His musical career began in 1996, at age 16, as he composed the film score for Aravindhan... |
5:11 | |
| 6 | "Hey Salaa 2" | Blaaze Blaaze Blaaze is a rap artist and a popular playback singer in Indian films. An Indian by birth, born in Chennai, he grew up in Zambia and later did his education in England and in the US... , Naresh Iyer Naresh Iyer Naresh Iyer is a playback singer from Chennai, India. Naresh Iyer has rendered film songs in several Indian languages and has several chart hits to his credit. His rendition of "Roobaroo" from the movie Rang De Basanti composed by A. R. Rahman topped the music charts for many weeks in 2006 and won... , Mohammed Aslam |
5:02 | Provided as background music. |