Tamil cinema’s profit booking has been a game of complexities. For a long time now, there have been whispers that the majority of entertainers, even those that claim to be a box office success, do not actually do good business. The classic example of it is producer Suresh Kamatchi’s Maanaadu which was touted to be a massive commercial success. But when talking to a popular YouTube channel about how much profit he actually made out of Maanaadu, the producer said that he did not enjoy any profit from the movie. He went on to reveal his reasons for it. His revelations came as a shocker, and gave us the gist of the circumstance in which Tamil cinema is operating. The producer is now gearing up to present his next project, the sequel of Jiivi to the audience. For some reason he had skipped the traditional theoretical route and opted to release it in the Aha Tamil OTT platform. We had also reported the news.
Jiivi 2 Movie Poster
Producer Suresh Kamatchi’s decision to release the entertainer in the OTT platform has become a talking point. Recently, Jiivi 2 team had organized a press meet as part of promoting the flick. Speaking at that event, producer Suresh Kamatchi said, “I must address the concern that director V. J. Gopinath expressed interest in going for the OTT release. To be honest, everyone including myself feel bad that the film is getting released only in the digital space. But all of us know what sort of reception small budget dramas have in theaters. Even the recent movie Maamanithan did not perform well on the big screens. Surprisingly, it did good business in the OTT.”
Speaking further, he said, “This is the scenario we are in. Now, if I choose to release the flick in the theaters and in case if it fails to get the attention of the audience, and seeing that if the OTT platforms do not come forward to purchase the project, it not only will affect the career of the director but also of Vetri’s who has banked huge trust in me. Considering all these factors, I decided to go for the OTT release.”
The first installment of Jiivi was helmed by V. J. Gopinath had an interesting concept called ‘Thodarbiyal’ (synchronicity). The low budget movie became a decent box office success. This instilled hope in the director to make a sequel. The venture which went on floors earlier this year in the month of march was wrapped up in just a matter of 27 days. Besides actor Vetri, the second part of the film has actors Karunakaran, Monica Chinnakotla, Rohini, Ashwini Chandrashekar, and Mime Gopi reprising their roles in the sequel. Musician K. S. Sundaramoorthy has composed the music for the drama. Cinematographer Praveen Kumar has cranked the camera for the flick. Editor Praveen K. L has trimmed the project. The entertainer is funded by Suresh Kamatchi for his production house V House Productions.
On the work front, actor Vetri who was last seen on screens in Jothi is currently busy shooting for multiple movies concurrently. He is shooting for Kannagi scripted by C Sivam in which he has co starred with actresses Keerthi Pandian, for Theenkirai directed by Prakash Raghavadass in which he has collaborated with actress Aadhira Panilakshmi, and Vidya Pradeep, for Bumper filmed by M. Selvakumar in which has associated with actress Shivani Narayanan, and for an untitled project directed by Shaams. Besides these ventures, the actor has Memories helmed by Syam Praveen in which he has romanced actress Parvathy Arun, and Red Sandal helmed by debutant Guru Ramaanujam getting shaped in the post production for release.
