Summer sizzlers

Summer is the best season to release big-budget entertainers, worldwide. Market research has proved that summer releases always get 10 to 15 per cent extra box-office collections. And here in Kollywood, having a big masala film release in the summer is a matter of prestige for heroes.
However, the summer of 2010 will only see Vijay, Suriya, Vikram and a few rising stars like Jayam Ravi and Karthi having major releases.
The season will kickstart this Friday, with the release of Lingusamy-directed Paiyya featuring Karthi and Tamannaah. Karthi, after delivering his second consecutive hit with Aayirathil Oruvan, is a major draw with the youth while Tammu will feature in three of the summer biggies. The film is said to be a racy road movie with all the essential commercial ingredients; Yuvan���������s music is already topping the charts. The film will release in about 300 screens across the globe and its Telugu version Aawara will release two weeks later in Andhra Pradesh.
The first Tamil cowboy film in 37 years, the Chimbudevan-directed Irumbu Kottai Murattu Singam, is due for release on April 9. The film has Raghava Lawrence, Nasser, Lakshmi Rai, Padmapriya and Sandhya in the cast and music by GV Prakash. Says Chimbudevan, ���������Since my childhood, I have been fascinated by cowboy movies. After Imsai Arasan 23am Pulikesi and Arai En 305il Kadavul, I took time to do research on cowboys. Irumbu... is a wacky movie targetted at kids and family audiences.���������
Next up, on April 14, is Arun Vijay���������s Maanja Velu, a full-blown action adventure, directed by A Venkatesh. The film marks the return of one-time romantic hero Karthik in a pivotal role along with Prabhu and new girl Dhansika. On the same day, another masala film Guru Sishayan, directed by Sakthi Chidambaram and featuring Sathyaraj, Sundar C and Hema Malini, is due to be out.
Ilaiyathalapathy Vijay���������s golden jubilee film Sura is scheduled to release on April 30. The film, directed by SP Rajkumar, is going to be an action entertainer, laced with sentiment and comedy, with Tamannnaah playing the female lead. The music has been scored by Vijay���������s favourite composer Mani Sharma and its launch is set to take place today.
Towards the end of May, Suriya���������s Singam directed by mass masala specialist Hari is due for release. Anushka plays the female lead in the film which also has Prakash Raj in an important role. Suriya plays a Dirty Harry type of cop in the film and the music has been scored by Devi Sri Prasad. In June, Mani Ratnam���������s eagerly-awaited Raavan���������s Tamil version is due for release. The audio of the film, which has music by AR Rahman, will be launched in the last week of April. Another June release is likely to be the musical entertainer Thillalangadi, which stars Jayam Ravi, Tamannaah and Shaam. The film is directed by M Raja and has music by Yuvan Shankar Raja.
With all that���������s in store for the season, summer in Kollywood is all set to sizzle!
Follow us on Twitter for more stories