''Ilami'' is a 2016 Indian Tamil period drama film directed by J. Julian Prakash, based on the backdrop of

Jallikattu (or ), also known as and , is a traditional event in which a bull ('' Bos indicus''), such as the Pulikulam or Kangayam breeds, is released into a crowd of people, and multiple human participants attempt to grab the large hump on the bull's b ...

. It features

Yuvan Yuvan may refer to: * Yuvan, Iran, a village in Miyan Darband Rural District, Kermanshah Province, Iran * Yuvan (actor), Indian film actor * Yuvan Shankar Raja, Indian film score and soundtrack composer and singer-songwriter * ''Keratam ''Ke ...

and Anu Krishna in the lead roles, with Akhil and

Ravi Mariya S. Ravi Mariya (born August 4, 1979) is an Indian film director and actor who works primarily in Tamil cinema. He appears in villain and supporting roles. Career Ravi Mariya's directorial debut was meant to be ''Nee Naan Kaadhal'' starring Pras ...

in supporting roles, and Kishore in a guest appearance. ''Ilami'' had a low profile theatrical release on 25 November 2016.

Cast

as Karuppu * Anu Krishna as Ilami * Akhil as Sadai Puli *

as Verayyan * Kishore as a king (guest appearance)

Production

Julian Prakash revealed that he was inspired to make a film about vadam

jallikattu (or ), also known as and , is a traditional event in which a bull ('' Bos indicus''), such as the Pulikulam or Kangayam breeds, is released into a crowd of people, and multiple human participants attempt to grab the large hump on the bull's b ...

as a result of his fascination with the sport, while growing up as a youngster in Madurai and called for more Tamil people to celebrate their culture. While rookie actors

and Akhil were cast in the film in the leading and lead negative roles, Anu Krishna, previously seen in ''

Kaththi ''Kaththi'' (; ) is a 2014 Indian Tamil-language action social drama film written and directed by A. R. Murugadoss, and produced by Allirajah Subaskaran under the banner Lyca Productions, along with Ayngaran International, as the co-producer ...

'' (2014), was signed on to portray the titular character. To resemble scenes from the year 1715, director Prakash and his team constructed a huge set in Talakona, a forested area in Andhra Pradesh. This came after the team trialled a smaller set at Theni, near Madurai, in Tamil Nadu, but found it difficult to find any place in the state that was untouched by 21st century development. To prepare for his role, actor Yuvan bulked up and grew long hair, to resemble a tribal settler from the 18th century.

Soundtrack

The music composed by Srikanth Deva.

Release

The film had a low key theatrical release across

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil languag ...

in November 2016. Anupama Subramaniam of the Deccan Chronicle wrote "that the director has narrated his story neatly, without much deviation and executed it well" adding that "Srikanth Deva’s music, cinematography by Yuga and art direction by John Britto aids the narration in a big way, but the graphically generated bulls are tacky", while concluding "though there are few flaws, nevertheless the film is worth a watch!" A reviewer from the Hindustan Times, noted "Given the budget constraints of a small independent director, Prakash’s effort is laudable, though one felt disappointed with Yuvan’s wooden performance and Krishna was of course expressively engaging". Another reviewer pointed out the crew's amateur film making process was an evident drawback of the film.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ilami 2016 films 2010s Tamil-language films Films set in ancient India Indian historical drama films Indian epic films Films scored by Srikanth Deva