Nanban

Nanban (meaning “Friend”) is a 2012 Tamil-language coming-of-age comedy drama directed by S. Shankar and produced by Gemini Film Circuit. A remake of Rajkumar Hirani’s Hindi hit 3 Idiots (2009), itself based on Chetan Bhagat’s novel Five Point Someone, it stars Vijay, Jiiva, Srikanth, Sathyaraj, Ileana D’Cruz, Sathyan and Anuya, with S. J. Suryah and Vijay Vasanth in cameos. It was also released in a Telugu version, and was Shankar’s first remake.

Story

Venkat, a wildlife photographer, gets a call from an old college acquaintance claiming to know where their long-lost friend Pari has gone. Venkat and his friend Senthil set off to find him, and the story moves back to their engineering college days: Venkat pushed into engineering by his father, Senthil carrying his poor family’s hopes, and Pari, a carefree student who loves the subject for its own sake and keeps clashing with the rigid principal, Virus. The film follows their friendship and its questions about education and pressure.

Cast

• Vijay in the role played by Aamir Khan in the original
• Srikanth in the role played by R. Madhavan in the original
• Jiiva, Ileana D’Cruz, Sathyan and Anuya
• Sathyaraj as a college professor
• S. J. Suryah and Vijay Vasanth in cameos

Development and casting

Gemini Film Circuit bought the remake rights in January 2010 and approached several directors before Shankar committed in October 2010; he said he broke his rule of making only original films after seeing 3 Idiots while making Enthiran. For the lead, Suriya, Mahesh Babu and Ram Charan were reported as front-runners; Ram Charan later said he had turned it down without knowing Shankar would direct. Vijay was signed, walked out over dates in December 2010, and then returned after talks with Suriya fell through. Srikanth was cast after his performance in Drohi.

Production

Principal photography began in February 2011 and was shot in several legs until late October, in Ooty, Dehradun, Pondicherry, Chennai, London and Buckingham. Harris Jayaraj composed the music, Manoj Paramahamsa was the cinematographer and Anthony Gonsalves the editor, with sound designer Resul Pookutty and visual effects designer V. Srinivas Mohan returning from Enthiran.

Release and reception

Nanban was released worldwide on 12 January 2012 to positive reviews and was screened at the Melbourne Film Festival. The Indian Express reported that it grossed ₹1.50 billion. Sathyaraj’s role as the professor won him Filmfare, Vijay and SIIMA awards for Best Supporting Actor.

Sources: Wikipedia and Wikidata.