Reel Talk - Bhagyaraj launches daughter

Yet another star kid enters the acting arena. None other than Saranya, daughter of celebrity couple Bhagyaraj and Poornima Jairam. A visual communications student, Saranya, bitten by the acting bug, had expressed her desire to her father. Says Bhagyaraj, "I was taken by surprise when she told me she wanted to be an actress. I know expectations would be high from her. So I've decided to launch her myself." 'Parijatham' has Bhagyaraj scripting, directing and producing the film. The hero is a new face. With one of the best screenplay writers backing her, what more could a debutante heroine ask for!

Sushi hunt for new faces

Director Sushi Ganesh is on to his third film with Madhavan as the hero. And this time he needs 10 new faces to play the female lead opposite Madhavan. The director says that he's screen-tested innumerable aspirants but could select only two. "I'm still to find the rest," says he. The film has music by Kartik Raja.

Sharmelee goes west

Sharmelee may not have many takers in Tamil after her debut in 'Aasai Aasaiyai'. But Malayalam films have welcomed her with open arms. Her first Malayalam film with ace director Vinayan and current heart-throb Prithwiraj as hero ('Vellinakshathram') has got her a very positive response from the audience. And now the cute, bubbly actress has nearly half-a-dozen films in her kitty. The Tamil industry's loss seems to be the Malayalam industry's gain. "I've got totally varied and challenging roles in each of these films", gushes the actress excitedly.

Mumtaz back to item numbers

Mumtaz was the queen of item numbers, till she got the lead in a Tamil flm, 'Thathi Thaavuthu Manasu'. And then it was a no-no to item numbers for this screen sizzler. But after the film's release, there were not many offers to play the heroine. So it's to item numbers again for her. Apart from a single dance number in 'Gilli', Mumtaz has also entered the Kannada screen with an item number.

Deva's son goes places

Walking in his father's footsteps is Srikant Deva, son of music director Deva. Having debuted as a music composer in 'Doubles', Srikant composed tunes for the recently released 'Kuthu'. The vibrant tunes catching the fancy of film-makers, Srikant has bagged some offers in his kitty. Like the Sharat Kumar-starrer 'Aiye', the Jayam Ravi-Asin-starrer 'M Kumaran son of Mahalakshmi', and Radhika's home production 'Jithan'.