- Indian Director A.T. Gnanam’s latest movie to be released in Sinhala and Tamil
The Sri Lankan film industry has recently started thriving, with films being made in Sri Lanka, local films being remade abroad, producers being offered chances to direct foreign films, and many more exciting developments. Given how hard the film industry was hit by the Covid-19 pandemic, with many TV series and films being put on hold for years, it seems the industry has picked back up and is gaining more and more international recognition.
Local actor Hemal Ranasinghe was offered the lead role in Second Show – a film written and directed by Indian director A.T. Gnanam. The movie Second Show also gave local producer Kaushalya Wickramasinghe the opportunity to co-produce for the first time on behalf of Dark Room Creations, with the help of co-producer Ganesh Mahadevan.
Ranasinghe is the only Sri Lankan to act in this movie, shining the spotlight on his skills as an actor that allowed him the opportunity to play the lead role in such a well-anticipated movie in both Sri Lanka and India. The upcoming movie, produced by Dark Room Creations, was shot entirely in London, and is a fantasy and suspense thriller.
The pre-release trailer for the film as well as the launch of the songs in the movie were premiered recently at an event held at Cinnamon Lakeside with the presence of many esteemed actors, actresses, and personalities in the film industry.
Perhaps what makes this movie so unique, and what adds to its anticipation, is that the movie is to be screened in both Sinhala and Tamil. The Sinhala dialogues are written by film director Thisara Imbulana. While Ranasinghe stars as the main lead in the Sinhala production, Kollywood Filmfare Award-winning actor Ajmal Ameer stars in the Tamil remake.
Second Show also features songs in both Sinhala and Tamil. The Sinhala lyrics were composed by Kasun Heenatigala, while the songs were sung by many local musicians such as Kasun Kalhara, Uresha Ravihari, Kushani Sandareka, Dinendra Bandara, and Kavindi Gunawardena. This film seems to be a bridge between Indian and Sri Lankan cinema, and with local musicians and actors collaborating with their foreign counterparts, this opens up many potential avenues for the further development of our film industry.
The movie also features renowned Indian actress Pallavi Subhash, who plays the main female lead and Ranasinghe’s on-screen love interest. Both Ranasinghe and Subhash took the stage at the pre-trailer launch event, speaking of their time together filming, and what the audience could expect from this movie. Talking about her time here, Subhash informed the audience that she arrived in Sri Lanka on 18 May, and although it has only been a few days, it was enough for her to fall in love with the country.
Ranasinghe also commented on what an honour it was to work with such a talented actress, going on to add that Subhash is incredibly talented and they were able to work as a team very well during the filming process. He said that everything went smoothly because of how co-operative and skilled she was. Just from watching the trailer, one can see how seasoned the actors are by their palpable chemistry – the two portray lovers in such an intimate way that it almost feels like the two are interacting right in front of the viewer.
They also spoke of the filming process, revealing that it was shot during the months of November and December way back in 2019, in Birmingham, London, and had to be held back due to the global pandemic. After two long years, the movie is finally completed and ready to be shown in theatres both locally and internationally.
