It's the 2008 science fiction film 'Dasavatharam' - the first Tamil film to gross Rs 200 crore worldwide.
There are actors (I won't take names, but you know) who - no matter what role you give them - play it the same way in every film. With the same mannerisms, the same voice modulation, and the same expressions, they transform all their roles into themselves on the screen. Well, then there's the legendary Kamal Haasan whose versatility makes you forget that this is the one actor who has played all those different roles across films. In fact, quite interestingly, he has even played 10 different characters in a single film.
Dasavathaaram (2008) was the first Indian film to be distributed by Walt Disney Studios International. They bought the rights for its distribution in Canada since others areas were already sold earlier. pic.twitter.com/b4PY6tlszL
— Films and Stuffs (@filmsandstuffs) May 7, 2021
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Ulaga Nayagan Kamal Haasan celebrates his 70th birthday today. On this occasion, let's revisit the 2008 film 'Dasavathaaram' where Haasan played 10 different characters.
'Dasavathaaram' is widely considered a milestone in Kamal Haasan's career. And besides its critical and commercial success, that owes to his performances in 10 different roles here.
The ten roles are as follows:
Rangarajan Ramanuja Nambi: A 12th-century Vaishnavite priest who gets killed by Chola Emperor Kulothunga II as he tries to prevent the destruction of the statue of Lord Vishnu.
Govindarajan "Govind" Ramaswamy: A Tamil American bio-scientist who discovers a bioweapon.
George W. Bush: The 43rd President of the United States
Balram Naidu: A Telugu police officer who challenges Govind.
Avatar Singh: A Punjabi popstar who suffers from throat cancer.
Vincent Poovaraghan: A social activist based in Nagercoil.
Shingen Narahazi: A Japanese martial artist who seeks to avenge his sister's murder.
Krishnaveni: A centenarian based in Chidambaram.
Khalifullah Khan Mukhtar: A local tailor who suffers from gigantism.
Christian Fletcher: A former CIA agent who wants the bioweapon.
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When 'Dasavathaaram' was released in 2008, its main selling point became Kamal Haasan appearing in 10 different roles. Fans were enthralled seeing their icon in so many avatars, while critics were divided over opinions. Many showered their praise on the actor, while some felt it was forced.
Credit: movieholic_mallu
For instance, renowned critic Nikhat Kazmi wrote in his review on The Times of India, "EXPERIMENTS aren't always successful. Like Dasavatharam, Kamal Haasan's ambitious venture sees him playing ten roles which include a take on George Bush too. Daring, we'd like to insist; only the make-up and the fake appearance borders more on the comic." T S Sudhir, on the other hand, wrote on NDTV, "'Dasavathaaram', unfortunately, remains just a film with its USP of 10 Kamals. This Kamal does not blossom the way he did in 'Indian' or 'Nayakan', 'Appu Raja', 'Mahanadi', 'Avvai Shanmughi', or in 'Thevar Magan'." However, Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu wrote, "All in all, 'Dasavathaaram' shows that Kamal Haasan has once again taken great pains to make his cinematic projects convincing. The effort has paid off."
Directed by K. S. Ravikumar and written by Kamal Haasan, 'Dasavathaaram' is a science-fiction action-drama film that explores philosophies like chaos theory, casteism, and Vaishnavism among others. Besides Haasan, it also stars Asin, Jaya Prada, K. R. Vijaya, Mallika Sherawat, P. Vasu, Rekha Harris, Nagesh, M. S. Bhaskar, Raghuram, and Napoleon.
(Credit: SonyMusicSouthVEVO)
Made on a budget of US$14 million, the film collected a whopping US$46 million at the box office worldwide.
