Cobra (upcoming film)

Cobra is an upcoming Indian Tamil-language action thriller film directed by R. Ajay Gnanamuthu, and produced by S. S. Lalit Kumar under the banner Seven Screen Studios, starring Vikram, Srinidhi Shetty, Miya and Irfan Pathan. This film marks the Tamil debut of Srinidhi Shetty and the film debut of Irfan Pathan. The music and original score is composed by A. R. Rahman, with cinematography handled by Harish Kannan and edited by Bhuvan Srinivasan.

Cobra
First look image
Directed byR. Ajay Gnanamuthu
Produced byAbdullah Thahir
Written byR. Ajay Gnanamuthu
Starring
Music byA. R. Rahman
CinematographyHarish Kannan
Edited byBhuvan Srinivasan
Production
company
Seven Screen Studios
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil

Cast

Production

Development

Producer S. S. Lalit Kumar of Seven Screen Studios, announced their upcoming project featuring Vikram on May 2019, tentatively tiled as Vikram 58.[lower-alpha 1][15] The film is directed by R. Ajay Gnanamuthu, who previously helmed Demonte Colony (2015) and Imaikkaa Nodigal (2018).[16] Originally planned to release as a pan-Indian film (in Tamil, Kannada, Hindi, Telugu), The makers originally planned to kickstart the film's shoot during August 2019, and release the film on April 2020, during the occasion of summer,[17] although principal photography commenced on October 2019. On July 2019, A. R. Rahman was roped in to score music for the flick.[18][19] A report from The New Indian Express, dated 2 August 2019, stated that Vikram will be seen in 25 different looks.[20]

While it was rumoured to be titled as Amar,[21][22] the makers finalised the film's official title as Cobra was announced on 25 December 2019.[23][24] The team titled the film 'Cobra' because it resembles the pivotal character of a cobra snake.[25] Director Ajay Gnanamuthu, in an interview with The Times of India stated that "The protagonist’s character and cobra has a link. If I reveal anything more now, it will give away too many details. Also, since the film is made in Tamil, Kannada, Telugu and Hindi, I wanted a title that works in all languages. Hence, we zeroed in on Cobra."[26][27]

Casting

Initially, Priya Bhavani Shankar announced her part in the project on July 2019.[28]Later for unknown reasons [29] Priya was replaced by Mirnalini Ravi. (of Super Deluxe fame) Mirnalini was roped in to the cast on January 2020.[30] and the makers finalised Srinidhi Shetty (of KGF fame) in late October 2019, marking her debut in Tamil film industry.[31][32] Indian cricketer Irfan Pathan,[33] also makes his film debut,[34] being added in the pivotal cast of the film.[35][36] After impressed by his performance in Kumbalangi Nights (2019), Gnanamuthu decided to rope in Shane Nigam for this flick.[37] However, after the Kerala Film Producers Association (KFPA), had written to the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce (SIFC), seeking a ban on the actor until he compensated the producers for his two projects in Malayalam that have been shelved, the makers replaced Sarjano Khalid for the fllm.[38][39] Theatre personality Mohammad Ali Baig,[40] was also roped in for the flick on February 2020.[41] In April 2020, Malayalam actors Roshan Mathew and Miya were included in the film's cast.[42] K. S. Ravikumar, Padmapriya Janakiraman, Kanika and Babu Antony were also in the part of the film.[43][44] Popular Malayalam actor Mamukoya, made his Tamil debut with this flick.[45]

Filming

Originally, the film's principal shoot was set to commence on 21 September 2019 in Chennai.[46] However the principal photography kickstarted from 4 October 2019.[47] While Irfan Pathan joined the sets of the shoot on 15 October, Srinidhi Shetty joined the film's sets only on the month-end.[48] The former had wrapped the first schedule of the film on 6 November 2019 at Chennai.[49][50] On 11 November 2019, Vikram and his team headed to Alleppey for a song shoot, which was wrapped up within two days.[51] By the end of November 2019, the second schedule of filming was completed in Kerala.[52] The third schedule of the film took place in Chennai on December 2019.

The makers planned to shoot few sequences across Russia and Europe on January 2020.[53] However on 17 January, the makers headed to plan the shoot in Kolkata, for the third schedule.[54] Irfan Pathan completed his portions for the flick on 21 January, throughout the fourth schedule.[55] On 6 February, the makers planned to shoot the climax sequence in Russia.[56] The makers shot a crucial seqence at Ramee Mall located in Chennai on 7 February 2020.[57][58] Vikram and Gnanamuthu started filming on Russia on March 2020, despite the fear of the novel coronavirus spread.[59][60] However, due to rapid spread of the COVID-19, the crew halted filming and returned India.[61]

The film's shoot further affected due to the COVID-19 pandemic, as 25% of the shoot is pending as of March 2020.[62] The director Ajay Gnanamuthu had announced that he will take paycut for the film, in order to help producers in the current time of crisis.[63] As the team faced probems in shooting in Russia, due to non-availabilty of international travel facilities, the team created huge sets resembling Russia in a film city in Chennai.[64] On October 2020, the team had starting the dubbing portions of the film.[65]

The shooting of the film resumed in 3 December 2020 in Chennai, with Vikram joining the sets.[66] After completing the schedule, the team headed to Kolkata on 22 December.[67]

Music

Cobra
Soundtrack album by
Released2021
Recorded2019–2020
Studio
GenreFeature film soundtrack
LanguageTamil
LabelSony Music
ProducerA. R. Rahman
A. R. Rahman chronology
Dil Bechara
(2020)
Cobra
(2021)
Ayalaan
(2021)
Singles from Cobra
  1. "Thumbi Thullal"
    Released: 29 June 2020

The music and original score for the film are composed by A. R. Rahman,[68] marking his fourth collaboration with Vikram after composing for Pudhiya Mannargal (1994), Raavanan (2010) and I (2015);[69] whereas Sony Music acquired the film's audio rights.[18] The songs for the film featured lyrics written by Thamarai, Pa. Vijay and Vivek.

"Thumbi Thullal",[70] served as the first single which was released onto digital download platforms on 29 June 2020.[71] Gnanamuthu mentioned he wanted the track to have celebratory tunes with lyrics that have "a deeper meaning and are emotional". "Thumbi Thullal" was the first song composed by Rahman for this flick.[72] Shreya Ghoshal provided female vocals and Nakul Abhyankar provided male vocals on track. He worked on Cobra's soundtrack and sang chorus portions of the songs until the male charanam.[73] As per him, the vocal harmony was recorded to sound like "gumbala paadara maadhihri irukkanum".[73] Initially, the track was recorded with gibberish and hummings.[73] The lyrics were penned later. For the Malayalam lyrics, playback singer Jithin Raj brainstormed with the team (Rahman, Vivek and Gnanamuthu) who briefed him to centralise lyrics on a festival theme. Later, he was called to record vocals in Malayalam.[74]

The track spans around 4 minutes and half more; is spaced with orchestral strings, the score transcriptions were written by Shubham Bhat.[75] The improvised nadaswaram notes written were based on composition by Sheik Chinna Moulana.[75] Further, prominent instruments on the track are flute, sitar, thavil and continuum.[75] A review from Humming Heart concluded "The song has a very busy arrangement of classical instruments throughout, complex structuring and a tune that is not often easy to follow amidst several sounds fighting for attention. But when Shreya Ghoshal lands the opening ‘Thumbi Thumbi’ note following a meandering tune and onomatopoeic sounds, the song materializes and how.[76] The Indian Express stated "Thumbi Thullal is partially a Malayalam song like "Nenjinile" from the 1998 Tamil film Uyire. which has a catchy Malayalam chorus followed by Tamil lyrics."[77]

No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Thumbi Thullal"Vivek, Jithin RajShreya Ghoshal, Nakul Abhyankar4:43

Release

The film was scheduled for a release coinciding with the Eid Al-Fitr weekend, falling on 22 May 2020.[78] But the release was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India.[79]

Notes

  1. Vikram's 58th film as a lead actor

References

  1. Sony Music South (29 June 2020). Cobra - Thumbi Thullal Lyric - Chiyaan Vikram - AR Rahman - Ajay Gnanamuthu - 7 Screen Studio (Video). Event occurs at 2:27.
  2. Gabbeta Ranjith Kumar (17 October 2019). "KGF actor Srinidhi Shetty and satyadev join the cast of Vikram 58". The Indian Express.
  3. "Roshan Mathew and Miya in Vikram's Cobra?". The Times of India.
  4. "Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh to make Kollywood entries with 'Vikram 58' and 'Dikkiloona' respectively". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 14 October 2019. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 16 October 2019.CS1 maint: others (link)
  5. Desk, The Hindu Net (28 February 2020). "'Cobra' movie first look: Vikram essays seven characters in his next thriller". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 12 April 2020.
  6. Ramanujam, Srinivasa (19 February 2020). "Theatre personality Mohammad Ali Baig on acting in Vikram's 'Cobra', Netflix's 'Baauhubali' series and Telugu film 'Kalinga'" via www.thehindu.com.
  7. "Cobra: Here's what we know about Vikram-starrer so far". 28 February 2020.
  8. "'June' fame Sarjano Khalid to collaborate with film-maker Gautham Menon?". The Times of India. 9 May 2019. Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  9. "Mirnalini Ravi in Vikram's Cobra". Times of India. 2 January 2020.
  10. "Mamukkoya to make his Tamil debut with Cobra". The Times of India.
  11. Sony Music South (29 June 2020). Cobra - Thumbi Thullal Lyric - Chiyaan Vikram - AR Rahman - Ajay Gnanamuthu - 7 Screen Studio (Video). Event occurs at 3:59.
  12. Sony Music South (29 June 2020). Cobra - Thumbi Thullal Lyric - Chiyaan Vikram - AR Rahman - Ajay Gnanamuthu - 7 Screen Studio (Video). Event occurs at 4:15.
  13. Sony Music South (29 June 2020). Cobra - Thumbi Thullal Lyric - Chiyaan Vikram - AR Rahman - Ajay Gnanamuthu - 7 Screen Studio (Video). Event occurs at 4:13.
  14. "Bigil star joins with Natpe Thunai actor". The Times of India.
  15. "Ajay Gnanamuthu to helm Chiyaan Vikram 58". The Indian Express. 20 May 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  16. "'Chiyaan Vikram 58' officially announced - Tamil News". IndiaGlitz.com. 20 May 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  17. "First look Poster of Vikram 58 directed by Ajay Gnanamuthu is here". Behindwoods. 20 May 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  18. Desk, The Hindu Net (13 July 2019). "AR Rahman joins team of 'Vikram 58'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  19. "AR Rahman to compose music for Vikram next film". Hindustan Times. 13 July 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  20. "Chiyaan Vikram to be seen in 25 different looks in Ajay Gnanamuthu's film?". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  21. "Vikram's film with Ajay Gnanamuthu titled 'Amar'?". The News Minute. 2 December 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  22. "Vikram's next film with Ajay Gnanamuthu titled Amar?". Hindustan Times. 1 December 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  23. "Chiyaan Vikram 58 titled Cobra". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  24. "Vikram 58: Chiyaan Vikram starrer to be named Cobra? Find Out". PINKVILLA. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  25. "Vikram's next with Ajay Gnanamuthu titled 'Cobra', motion poster out". www.thenewsminute.com. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  26. "Vikram's character and cobra have a link: Ajay Gnanamuthu". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  27. "Vikram's film with Ajay Gnanamuthu titled Cobra". India Today. 26 December 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  28. "Priya Bhavani Shankar likely to team up with Vikram next". The News Minute. 24 July 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  29. "Last minute heroine change in 'Vikram 58'? - Tamil News". IndiaGlitz.com. 3 October 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  30. "Mirnalini Ravi in Vikram's Cobra". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  31. "KGF actor Srinidhi Shetty joins the cast of Vikram 58". The Indian Express. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  32. "'KGF' actor Srinidhi Shetty to star opposite Vikram in his next". The News Minute. 17 October 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  33. "Irfan to debut in K-Town with Vikram-Ajay's film". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  34. "Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh to make Kollywood entries with 'Vikram 58' and 'Dikkiloona' respectively". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 14 October 2019. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2 January 2021.CS1 maint: others (link)
  35. Subramanian, Anupama (15 October 2019). "Irfan Pathan is on board Vikram 58". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  36. "Irfan Pathan joins the cast of Vikram's next with Ajay Gnanamuthu". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  37. World, Republic. "Vikram's 'Cobra': Actor Shane Nigam gets replaced by THIS actor". Republic World. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  38. "Sarjano Khalid replaces Shane Nigam in Vikram's 'Cobra'". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  39. "Malayalam actor Sarjano Khalid replaces Shane Nigam in Vikram's Cobra". India Today. 1 February 2020. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  40. "Mohammad Ali Baig joins the cast of Vikram's Cobra". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  41. Ramanujam, Srinivasa (19 February 2020). "Theatre personality Mohammad Ali Baig on acting in Vikram's 'Cobra', Netflix's 'Baauhubali' series and Telugu film 'Kalinga'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  42. "Roshan Mathew and Miya in Vikram's Cobra? - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  43. "Cobra: Here's what we know about Vikram-starrer so far". The Indian Express. 28 February 2020. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  44. "KS Ravikumar joins Vikram in Ajay Gnanamuthu's thriller". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  45. "Mamukkoya to make his Tamil debut with Cobra". The Times of India.
  46. "The shooting date of Vikram 58 directed by Ajay Gnanamuthu ft. AR Rahman". Behindwoods. 10 September 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  47. "Vikram-58 starts rolling from October 4". Sify. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  48. "Srinidhi Shetty begins shooting for Vikram 58". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  49. "Cricketer Irfan Pathan completes first schedule of Vikram 58, thanks Tamil people". India Today. 6 November 2019. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  50. "Cricketer Irfan Pathan wraps up first schedule of his Tamil debut, Chiyaan Vikram 58". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  51. "Vikram shoots a song in Alleppey for Vikram 58!". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  52. "Vikram 58 director Ajay Gnanamuthu wishes Dhruv for Adithya Varma". Behindwoods. 22 November 2019. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  53. "Cobra: Chiyaan Vikram starrer to be filmed in Russia and Europe; DEETS inside". PINKVILLA. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  54. "Vikram's 'Cobra' team start shooting in Kolkata". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  55. "Irfan Pathan wraps up shooting for Ajay Gnanamuthu's 'Cobra'". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  56. "Climax scene for Vikram's 'Cobra' to be shot in THIS country?". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  57. "Cobra shooting underway in a city mall?". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  58. "Chiyaan Vikram and Ajay Gnanamuthu's Cobra current and final shoot details". Behindwoods. 7 February 2020. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  59. Hungama, Bollywood (10 March 2020). "Makers of Chiyaan Vikram starrer Cobra to shoot in Russia amid coronavirus outbreak : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama". Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  60. Hungama, Bollywood (19 March 2020). "Cobra director Ajay Gnanamuthu confirms he is not directing Thalapathy 65 : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama". Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  61. "Vikram's Cobra wraps up shoot halfway due to Corona scare". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  62. Subramanian, Anupama (30 June 2020). "Animation of Thumbi Thullal adds to attraction". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  63. "'Cobra' director Ajay Gnanamuthu takes a cut in his pay to help the producers in the current time of crisis". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  64. "Team 'Cobra' to create massive sets like Russia for the Vikram starrer". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  65. "Vikram's Cobra dubbing begins". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  66. "Chiyaan Vikram's 'Cobra' shoot resumes in Chennai". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  67. "Vikram heads Kolkata to shoot the next schedule of 'Cobra'". The Times of India. Retrieved 2 January 2021.
  68. "Vikram's next with Ajay Gnanamuthu titled 'Cobra'". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 26 December 2019. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 4 July 2020.CS1 maint: others (link)
  69. "AR Rahman to compose music for Vikram's next with Ajay Gnanamuthu". The News Minute. 14 July 2019. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  70. "AR Rahman's festive 'Thumbi Thullal' from Vikram's 'Cobra' is out". The News Minute. 29 June 2020. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  71. A.R. Rahman - Thumbi Thullal (From "Cobra"), Tidal, 29 June 2020, retrieved 4 July 2020
  72. World, Republic. "Ajay Gnanamuthu in awe of 'Cobra's' first song 'Thumbi Thullal', thanks AR Rahman". Republic World. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  73. Lakshmi, V (4 July 2020). "Nakul Abhyankar recorded Shreya Ghoshal's voice for ARR's Thumbi Thullal song". The Times of India. Retrieved 18 August 2020.
  74. Ramamoorthy, Preethi (24 July 2020). "Jithin Raj on penning lyrics for AR Rahman's 'Thumbi Thullal'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 28 July 2020.
  75. "YouTube". www.youtube.com. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  76. "LISTEN | AR Rahman's 'Thumbi Thullal' from Cobra". A Humming Heart. 1 July 2020. Retrieved 13 December 2020.
  77. "Cobra song Thumbi Thullal: AR Rahman delivers a Jiya Jale-esque track". The Indian Express. 30 June 2020. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  78. Pillai, Sreedhar (22 January 2020). "After 'Darbar' and 'Pattas', Kollywood is looking at festival films". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 4 July 2020.
  79. "'Master' to 'Annaatthe': Five films that missed to release in 2020". The Times of India. 15 December 2020. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.