Your presence has been a source of strength, says Kamal Haasan to Mani Ratnam in birthday wish

Chennai: Stating that director Mani Ratnam’s presence had been a source of strength to him, actor, producer and politician Kamal Haasan on Monday wished his ‘Thug Life’ director a very happy birthday.

Taking to his X timeline to pen a heartfelt birthday greeting, Kamal Haasan wrote, “Happy Birthday, Mani Ratnam. From Nayakan to Thug Life, we’ve journeyed through time together — as colleagues, family, co-dreamers, and above all, as lifelong students of cinema. Through every chapter, your presence has been a source of strength — a mind I turn to in moments of doubt, and a soul deeply attuned to the language of film like few others.”

The actor further wrote, “May your stories keep unfolding, for with every frame, your vision brings depth, beauty, and meaning to cinema. Forever your friend, Kamal Haasan.”

Interestingly, Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan have come together for their upcoming film ‘Thug Life’ after almost 38 years.

The film, which has triggered huge expectations among fans and film buffs, is scheduled to hit screens on June 5.

Apart from Kamal Haasan, the film features Silambarasan, Trisha, Joju George, Ashok Selvan and Abhirami in pivotal roles.

Kamal Haasan plays a character called Rangaraya Sakthivel Naickan in this film, which director Mani Ratnam’s production house Madras Talkies had described as “an epic tale of power, rebellion, and triumph.”

The film has music by A R Rahman and cinematography by Ravi K Chandran. It has editing by Mani Ratnam’s trusted editor Sreekar Prasad and stunts by the stuntmasters, Anbariv.

Kamal Haasan had recently disclosed how confident he was of the film and the fact that audiences would extend their support to him.

“Let me tell you how confident I am. Let other producers not think that I am throwing a challenge to them all. That is not the case. I have only sold the satellite and OTT rights of this film. Everything else, we are distributing ourselves. We are distributing without putting Mani sir at risk.

“Tell me, how much confidence we must have in this film to do this. We know to do business to an extent. Trusting you, we have made a good film and invested in it. We have ploughed the fields and put fertilizers to the crops. A farmer does not know anything else apart from this. Our farming is cinema farming. To ensure that corporate farming does not happen, I need comrades like Mani Ratnam to support me. If you support this film, I will have the strength to deliver more good films,” he disclosed.

–IANS