Thaayin Manikodi

The film was first announced in January 1996, with director and lead actor Arjun initially casting Vijayashanti in a leading role.[3] However the actress later left the project after she had creative differences with the film's producer, Sudhakar Raju.[4] The film began production in October 1996 and took over a year to complete. Hindi actress Tabu and model Nivedita Jain were cast in key roles, with the latter subsequently making her debut in Tamil films. The film was named after a popular song from Arjun's previous film, Jai Hind (1994), which had a similar patriotic theme.

The film was shot extensively in foreign locations, with scenes filmed in locations in Hong Kong and Switzerland, which the team had to settle for after their visas for Canada were rejected.[5] Further scenes were also shot in Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, with art director Thotta Tharani constructing sets for the film.[4] Production was delayed as a result of the FEFSI strike of 1997.[6]

The soundtrack features 6 songs composed by Vidyasagar.[7]

The film was initially scheduled to release in November 1997 coinciding with the Diwali season, but was subsequently put on hold for several months.[4] The film was later released in August 1998, with the title card of the film including a tribute to the film's lead actress Nivedita Jain, who died before the film's release. The film received a good commercial response at the box office.[8][9]

Four years after the original release, the film was later dubbed and released in Telugu during November 2002 as Jaatiya Pattaakam.[10]