The upcoming Ponniyin Selvan-I is an epic period action drama directed by the ace director Mani Ratnam. This movie is based on one of the bestselling Tamil novels – Ponniyin Selvan by Kalki Krishnamurthy. The five-part series of the historical fiction novel was expected to be a standalone film, but later it was decided to be released in two cinematic parts. Ponniyin Selvan-I boasts of an ensemble cast, which includes Vikram, Jayam Ravi, Karthi, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Trisha, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Sobhita Dhulipala, Prabhu, R. Sarathkumar, Vikram Prabhu, Jayaram, Prakash Raj, Rahman, and R. Parthiban.
The Ponniyin Selvan-I plot revolves around the early life of Ponniyin Selvan aka Arulmozhi Varman, and the journey of the second protagonist Vandiyathevan who is out on a mission to deliver crown prince Aditha Karikalan’s message. It also showcases the various attempts made by Kundavai to maintain political peace in the region. Ponniyin Selvan-I is Mani Ratnam’s dream project and is releasing in theatres worldwide in both standard and IMAX format on September 30th; so don’t forget to book your tickets in advance.
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Ponniyin Selvan-I Release Date, Where to watch online
Ponniyin Selvan-I is the first instalment of the two-part feature film that will be released worldwide on the big screen on 30th September in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi languages in both standard and IMAX formats. It will be the first Tamil film to release in IMAX format in theatres. Mani Ratnam’s magnum opus will be released on more than 7500 screens across the globe, including 4500-5000 screens in India alone. The digital streaming rights have been purchased by the OTT giant Amazon Prime Video for a whopping ₹125 crore (US$16 million), whereas its satellite rights have been acquired by Sun TV. Unconfirmed sources suggest that Ponniyin Selvan-I is expected to premiere on the OTT platform after six weeks of the theatrical release, maybe around November 11th.
| Theatre Release Date | 30th September 2022 |
| OTT Release Date | 11th November 2022 (unofficial) on Amazon Prime Video |
| Language | Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada |
| Genre(s) | Action, Period, Drama |
| Budget | ₹250 crore |
| Director | Mani Ratnam |
| Producer(s) | Mani Ratnam, Subaskaran Allirajah |
| Starring (Cast) | Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Jayam Ravi, Karthi, Trisha, Prabhu, R Sarathkumar, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Sobhita Dhulipala, Vikram Prabhu, Jayaram, Prakash Raj, Rahman, Radhakrishnan Parthiban |
Ponniyin Selvan-I Synopsis or Plot
Based on the historical fiction novel, Ponniyin Selvan-I is an epic period action drama that primarily explores the early days of Arulmozhi Varman aka Ponniyin Selvan. King Sundara Chola had three children – sons – Adithya Karikalan and Arulmozhi Varman, as well as a daughter Kundavai). Arulmozhi Varman was the youngest son and had to face many odds to later emerge as the great king Rajaraja I aka Raja Raja Chola. The plot also shows the power struggle and conspiracies of the 10th-century Chola empire. The movie chronicles the second protagonist Vandiyathevan’s journey to deliver Aditha Karikalan’s message to Sundara Chola in Thanjavur. The story also showcases Kundavai’s many attempts to maintain political peace in the region. Multiple emotions like love, deceit, courage, sacrifice, conspiracy, and more have been explored through the numerous characters of Ponniyin Selvan-I.
Ponniyin Selvan-I Cast
- Vikram as Aditha Karikalan
- Jayam Ravi as Arulmozhi Varman aka Ponniyin Selvan
- Karthi as Vallavaraiyan Vanthiyathevan aka Vanthiyathevan
- Aishwarya Rai Bachchan as Nandini / Mandakini Devi
- Trisha as Kundavai aka Ilaiya Piratti
- Aishwarya Lekshmi as Poonguzhali aka Samuthirakumari
- Sobhita Dhulipala as Vaanathi aka Kodambalur Ilavarasi
- Prabhu as Periya Vellar Boothi Vikramakesari
- R. Sarathkumar as Periya Pazhuvettaraiyar
- Vikram Prabhu as Parthibendra Pallavan
- Jayaram as Azhwarkadiyan Nambi aka Thirumalaiappan
- Prakash Raj as Sundara Chola aka Parantaka Chola II
- Rahman as Madurantaka Uttama Chola
- R. Parthiban as Chinna Pazhuvettaraiyar
- Ashwin Kakumanu as Senthan Amudhan
- Aswin Rao as Kandhamaaran aka Illaiya Sambuvaraiyan
- Nizhalgal Ravi as Kadmabur Sambuvaraiyar
- Nassar as Veerapandiyan
- Lal as Tirukoilur Malaiyaman aka Milaadudaiyar
- Vijaykumar as Vijayalaya Chola
- Vidya Subramanian as Vanavan Mahadevi
- Jayachitra as Sembiyan Mahadevi aka Periya Piratti
- Mohan Raman as Aniruddha Brahmarayar
- Kishore Kumar G. as Ravi Dasan
- Riyaz Khan as Soman Sambhavan
- Vinay Kumar as Parameswaran aka Devaralan
- Arjun Chidambaram as Varagunan
- Nimmy Raphel as Rakkamaal
- Vinodhini Vaidyanathan as Vasuki
- Master Raghavan as Pandya prince
- Sara Arjun as Young Nandini
- Babu Antony as Rashtrakuta king
- Makarand Deshpande as Chief Kaalamugar
- Amzath Khan
Ponniyin Selvan-I Crew
- Director: Mani Ratnam
- Producers: Mani Ratnam, Subaskaran Allirajah
- Screenplay: Mani Ratnam, B. Jeyamohan, Kumaravel
- Dialogue: B. Jeyamohan, Divya Prakash Dubey (Hindi dialogue), Tanikella Bharani (Telugu dialogue), Varadaraj Chikkaballapura (Kannada dialogue), Shankar Ramakrishnan (Malayalam dialogue)
- Cinematography: Ravi Varman
- Music: A.R. Rahman
- Lyrics: Mehboob
- Production Designer / Art Director: Thota Tharrani
- Choreography: Brinda
- Executive Producer: Siva Ananth
- Costume Designer: Eka Lakhani
- Additional Costume Designer: Chandrakant Sonawane
- Jewellery: Kishandas & Co
- Hair & Make Up: Vikram Gaikwad
- Action: Kecha Khamphakdee & Sham Kaushal
- VFX: NYVFXWaala
Ponniyin Selvan-I Photos
Ponniyin Selvan-I FAQs
What is the running time of Ponniyin Selvan-I?
Ponniyin Selvan-I has a running time of 167 minutes or 2 hours 47 minutes.
Who is the director of Ponniyin Selvan-I?
Mani Ratnam is the director of Ponniyin Selvan-I.
What are the other popular movies of the director?
The six times National Film Awards winner Mani Ratnam has directed many popular movies since he made his debut with the Kannada language Pallavi Anu Pallavi in 1983. His blockbuster movies include Mouna Ragam (1986), Nayakan (1987), Agni Natchathiram (1988), Geethanjali (1989), Chatriyan (1990), and Thalapathi (1991). Audiences loved his terrorism trilogy – Roja (1992), Bombay (1995), and Dil Se.. (1998), as well as Thiruda Thiruda (1993), Alaipayuthey (2000), Kannathil Muthamittal (2002), Guru (2007), O Kadhal Kanmani (2015), and Chekka Chivantha Vaanam (2018), to name a few.
What is the genre of Ponniyin Selvan-I?
Ponniyin Selvan-I is an epic period action drama movie.
