Anushka Shetty's 'Arundhati' to Jyotika's '36 Vayadhinile': Is Southern cinema warming up to heroine-centric films?
Anushka Shetty's 'Arundhati' to Jyotika's '36 Vayadhinile': Is Southern cinema warming up to heroine-centric films?
Boasting of some melodious music from none other than Ilaiyaraaja, ‘Rudramadevi’ continues southern cinema’s recent fascination with heroine-centric projects.

Hyderabad: It was just a few days ago that fans of Telugu cinema went into a state of frenzy when noted filmmaker Gunasekhar stated that his long delayed and much-hyped ‘Rudramadevi’ would finally arrive in theatres this September.

Featuring Anushka Shetty in the titular role, the movie revolves around a warrior queen. Boasting of some melodious music from none other than Ilaiyaraaja, ‘Rudramadevi’ continues southern cinema’s recent fascination with heroine-centric projects. Here is a look at some other heroine-centric movies which have been released over the last few years.

Anaamika: The official Tamil remake of the Sujoy Ghosh-directed ‘Kahaani’. ‘Anamika’ revolved around a young IT professional who travel s from Chennai to Hyderabad, hoping to locate her missing husband. Featuring Nayantara in the lead, the film was simultaneously shot in Tamil as ‘Nee Enge En Anbe’. Directed by Sekhar Kammula, ‘Anaamika’ fared reasonably well at the box office despite receiving mixed reviews.

Arundhati: Generally regarded as one of the most important releases of Anushka Shetty’s career ‘Arundhati’ created quite a buzz in the industry thanks to its gripping storyline and captivating screenplay. Touted as a horror-thriller, the film was directed by Kodi Ramakrishna and proved to be a runaway hit at the box office. Shot in Telugu, ‘Arundhati was later on dubbed in to Hindi, Tamil and Malayalam .Interestingly; it was also remade in Bengali under the same title.

36 Vayadhinile: Directed by Rosshan Andrrews, ’36 Vayadhinile’ marked Jyotika’s comeback to the big screen after a nearly eight-year hiatus. The official Tamil remake of Manju Warrier’s ‘How Old Are You?’, it received tremendous critical acclaim for highlighting how society tends to use age as the yardstick for measuring a woman’s abilities. Interestingly, ‘36 Vayadhinile’ fared pretty well at the ticket window as well.

Kalimannu: Best remembered for its maverick ‘delivery scene’, this Blessy-directed Malayalam movie focused on the bond between a woman and her yet to be born child. Featuring Shewta Menon in the lead, ‘Kalimannu’ received some rave reviews courtesy its socially-relevant plot and mature performances. Interestingly, it was also dubbed into Telugu as ‘Malle Teega’.

Poo: Revolving around the heartwarming friendship between a young woman and her cousin, ‘Poo’ created quite a buzz amongst movie lovers thanks to the owing to the crackling chemistry between Srikanth and Parvathy. Directed by Sasi this Tamil film was screened at the Los Angeles Film Festival.

The renewed focus on heroine-centric films can by and large be attributed to the changing composition of the movie watching audience.

“Earlier only men used to go to theatres. So, most filmmakers would cater to their tastes by focusing on the hero. But now owing to the multiplex culture women feel safe while going to theatres .Moreover, the audience is constantly exposed to female-centric content made in other languages. All of this has created a demand for heroine-centric regional films”, says actress Anupama Kumar.

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