The poster for Mollywood star Nivin Pauly's ‘first straight Tamil film’ Richie is out. The film is a remake of the Kannada hit Ulidavaru Kandanthe which was written and directed by Rakshit Shetty who also starred in the lead role.
While Nivin Pauly has previously acted in the Tamil-Malayalam bilingual Neram, directed by Alphonse Puthren, it was only after the wild success of Premam that he became a household name in Tamil Nadu.
Ulidavaru Kandanthe is about five people and their perspectives on a murder that takes place during Sri Krishna Janmashtami. It remains to be seen how faithful a remake Richie will be. Director Gautam Ramachandran and Nivin Pauly have supposedly worked together to ensure that the film appeals to the Tamil audience. The project was initially supposed to be a Tamil-Malayalam bilingual but the idea was dropped.
Shraddha Srinath, who is among the fast-rising female stars in Kannada, plays the female lead in Richie. The film also stars Prakash Raj, Natarajan Subramaniam, and Lakshmi Priyaa Chandramouli.
The poster shows an aggressive Nivin in a port, staring down at a man who appears to be begging for mercy. Nivin has mostly done humorous and romantic roles. Two out of his last three films, Action Hero Biju and Sakhavu, however, have brought out a different actor in him.
The crime thriller genre is currently in vogue in Kollywood, with films like Dhuruvangal Padhinaaru and 8 Thottakal doing well. Can Richie match up? The numerous Nivin Pauly fans across Tamil Nadu will certainly hope so.