There is undoubted optimism amongst all sectors about more conversations between the industries,leading to more commerce. Will there be more traffic between the film industries of the two parts of the country,now that social media networks lead the way into unknown territories,chattering about new films,new stars,forcing mainstream media to follow where it would never have ventured before? Rajinikanths birthday a couple of weeks ago got the kind of carpet coverage on national networks reserved only for an Amitabh Bachchan or a Shah Rukh Khan,interspersed with interviews with the birthday boy,and an unending stream of Rajini jokes. This is also the year when Vikram increased his profile with Mani Ratnams Raavan and Raavanan where he played two diametrically opposite roles with felicity.Īll this moving and shaking leads one to ask whether the borders between the north and the south,so long steadfastly held in place by differences in language and cultures and,yes,odious colour prejudices,are getting more porous. This is the year when you could enjoy Suriyas impressive calisthenics in Singham the same time as your counterparts in the south you could also see him in his first Hindi movie avatar in Rakta Charitra II.

This is the year when day-date releases of south Indian films quickened in north Indian multiplexes,to the point that there is similar excitement when Kamal Haasans latest Manmadhan Ambu releases in Mumbai and Chennai. What may come as a surprise is that of the hefty Rs 300 crore that producers Sun Pictures made from Rajinikanths Enthiran,a significant component came from north Indian screens with Hindi dub Robot. Given such outpouring of crossover love,its no surprise that Dabangg did excellent business in the south. In a big-budget mainstream masala film,the hero can do anything. Cop coasting purely on attitude,breaking off during a fight scene to dance to a ringtone. The main elements in Dabangg,the biggest Bollywood hit this year,have instant resonances for a Tamil-speaking audience. Dabangg is just like one of our masala Tamil films. Er,really? I encounter this sentiment more than once during my two days in Chennai where I have gone looking for our cinema,their cinema and where the twain intersect.

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