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Madha Gaja Raja

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Madha Gaja Raja
Theatrical release poster
Directed bySundar C
Written byVenkat Raghavan
Sundar C
Produced byAkkineni Manohar Prasad
Akkineni Anand Prasad
A. C. Shanmugam
A. C. S. Arun Kumar
StarringVishal
Anjali
Varalaxmi Sarathkumar
Santhanam
CinematographyRichard M. Nathan
Edited byPraveen K. L.
N. B. Srikanth
Music byVijay Antony
Production
companies
Gemini Film Circuit
Benzz Media (P) Ltd. (presents)
Distributed byVishal Film Factory
Release date
  • 12 January 2025 (2025-01-12)
Running time
155 minutes[1]
CountryIndia
LanguageTamil
Budget₹15 crore[2]
Box office₹43.60 crore[3]

Madha Gaja Raja (/məðəˈɡədʒəˈrɑːdʒɑː/) is a 2025 Indian Tamil-language action comedy film written and directed by Sundar C and produced by Gemini Film Circuit and Benzz Media (P) Ltd. The film stars Vishal in the titular role alongside Anjali, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar and Santhanam with Sonu Sood, Manivannan, Subbaraju, Nithin Sathya, Sadagoppan Ramesh, Munna Simon and John Kokken playing supporting roles.

The film was officially announced in February 2012 without any title and the official title was announced that April. Principal photography began the following month in Chennai. However, after the script was altered, schedules with a new cast were held in Palani, Jaipur, Hyderabad and Australia throughout June 2012 and January 2013. The music was composed by Vijay Antony, while cinematography and editing were handled by Richard M. Nathan and Praveen K. L. and N. B. Srikanth.

Madha Gaja Raja was released worldwide on 12 January 2025, during the Pongal weekend, after having been delayed for over 12 years due to legal and financial troubles. The film received generally positive reviews from both critics and audiences, and emerged a commercial success.[4]

Plot

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In Chinna Anaikatti, Madha Gaja Raja assumes his father Inspector Srinivasan's responsibility to protect Theekuchi Thirumugam and his daughter Madhavi from thugs hired by Shanmugapandi and citing safety Raja makes them stay at his residence. Thirumugam notices the romance between Raja and Madhavi, prompting him to request Raja's hand in marriage from Srinivasan, resulting in Srinivasan slapping Thirumugam. Angered, Madhavi and Thirumugam depart from Raja's residence. Kalyanasundaram, owner of Goodbye Travels is facing marital issues, as his wife, Gayathri, and mother-in-law are seeking divorce, citing Kalyanasundaram's failure to disclose his mortuary van service business before marriage. Before the divorce, Kalyanasundaram invites them to attend his schoolmaster Dhandapani's daughter's wedding. En route, they meet Shanmugam, Ramesh, their families, and Maya, Ramesh's sister-in-law.

Raja, Kalyanasundaram, Ramesh, and Shanmugam were close friends in childhood, defeating Rajesh and his team in a relay race. At the wedding, Rajesh challenges Raja and his friends to a rematch. Dhandapani is thrilled to reunite with his estranged brother-in-law Pedha Perumal, by accepting his son as the groom for his daughter, but Raja convinces Dhandapani to allow his daughter to marry her cousin and also fights off Pedha Perumal's son to facilitate the union of Dhandapani's daughter and her cousin. Raja using his friend Dickey David, staged a play to reunite Kalyanasundaram with Gayathri. The relay race commences, and Raja intentionally forfeits the competition to bring joy to Rajesh and his family, who were obsessed with winning.

Ramesh, a sub-collector, reveals that he has been falsely suspended and imprisoned on bribery charges. This, he believes, is revenge by Karukuvel Vishwanath, a powerful media baron, for sealing his pharmaceutical company, which produced drugs that killed 18 children. Sathya shares his struggles in the handloom business, where a fire accident mysteriously destroyed his shipments. The insurance claim money he received barely covered the damages to a nearby pharmaceutical company, which Ramesh had previously sealed. Ramesh and Sathya suspect Karukuvel Vishwanath's involvement in the fire accident and Raja vows to resolve their issues. Raja meets Vishwanath in Chennai and demands compensation for the losses incurred, totaling Rs. 52,02,650 but Vishwanath asserts that Raja won't be able to obtain a single penny. Vishwanath, in collusion with Minister Nallamuthu, falsely accuses Raja and the auto driver whom Raja befriended earlier of drug peddling. However, the auto driver voluntarily confesses to the crime, securing Raja's release. Raja redirects the auto drivers to target the corrupt Inspector Shankar, who had arrested him.

Meanwhile, Raja loots the cannabis from the police station, which Inspector Shankar had used to frame him, and mixes it in Nallamuthu's buttermilk. Nallamuthu becomes intoxicated and creates a scene with a foreign delegate during an MoU signing ceremony, prompting Vishwanath to oust Nallamuthu from power and buy off 19 MLAs to secure his position as minister. Raja discovers that the auto driver's house owner is Madhavi, who refuses to let Raja stay. However, with the help of his friends, Raja manages to accommodate. Vishwanath's men kidnap Maya to frame Raja for Nallamuthu's murder. But Raja and Kalyanasundaram devise a plan, using Nallamuthu's corpse to create the illusion that he is still alive. They successfully escape with the corpse and Vishwanath also believes that Nallamuthu is indeed still alive. During Vishwanath's swearing-in ceremony, a video exposing his henchman's murder of Nallamuthu is broadcast, prompting the ceremony's cancellation.

Meanwhile, Vishwanath orchestrates a caste riot and also plans a procession to protest the martyrs of the caste riot. Furthermore, he plots an accident to kill Ramesh. Suspecting foul play, Raja rushes to Madurai. He captures Vishwanath's assistant, who reveals that the procession is a ruse to transport Vishwanath's amassed black money to the Tuticorin port. Raja escapes with one of the vans loaded with black money, while the villagers divert Vishwanath's party members. Ultimately, Raja and Vishwanath engage in an intense confrontation, culminating in Raja's triumph over Vishwanath. Vishwanath is arrested, Ramesh is exonerated and reinstated as Sub-Collector, and the government reimburses Shanmugam and the weavers for their losses. In the end, Raja chooses to pursue a relationship with a doctor, opting out against Maya and Madhavi.

Cast

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Production

[edit]

Director Sundar C and Vishal announced that they would work together on a project in early 2012, and it was revealed that Vishal would portray a triple role in the film.[5] After denying reports that the female lead role was first offered to Shruti Haasan, Sundar hinted that they were set to sign on Hansika Motwani, but her busy schedule left her unavailable to commit dates for the project.[6][7] Titled Madha Gaja Raja, after Vishal's three characters, Karthika Nair eventually joined the team to portray the role during April 2012.[8] The film subsequently began production in Chennai during early May 2012, with a song shot featuring Vishal alongside Sadha, who was revealed to be making an appearance in an item number.[9][10]

Soon after production began, Sundar chose to alter the script, with the new version having Vishal portray only one character, with two leading actresses instead of one. Disappointed with this development, Nair left the project stating that the role of the lead actress had been significantly diminished as a result of the change of story.[11] Taapsee Pannu signed on to replace her, but soon afterwards left the project citing date clashes with her commitments for the promotional activity of her Hindi film.[12] Varalaxmi Sarathkumar was consequently signed on after working with producers Gemini Film Circuit in their previous venture Podaa Podi (2012), while Anjali was selected for the main female lead role. The team subsequently began another schedule with the new storyline in Palani during June 2012.[12][13]

The team moved to Jaipur during August 2012 to complete another schedule, while Vishal revealed that the title now referred to the agitated state of Lord Ganesha rather than the names of his characters, stating that "Gaja Raja" could be literally translated as fury.[14] During the particular schedule, Vishal suffered an injury when filming a fight scene and was forced to take a week's break from working.[15] The film's shoot moved to Hyderabad during September 2012, with Arya joining the team's cast to shoot for a guest appearance. Arya had flown in from Chennai and completed his work on the film within a single day.[16][17] The team later shot in Australia.[18] By January 2013, the film was complete as Sundar had moved on to other projects.[19]

Music

[edit]

The music was composed by Vijay Antony.[20] Vishal made his singing debut with "My Dear Loveru".[21][22]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Chikku Bukku"AnnamalaiChinnaponnu, Prabhu Pandala04:26
2."My Dear Loveru"Pa. VijayVishal, Vijay Antony04:24
3."Nee Dhana Nee Dhana"Pa. VijayVijay Antony04:35
4."Sattru Mun Varai"AnnamalaiSanthosh Hariharan05:27
5."Thumbakki Thumbai"Pa. VijayVijay Antony04:17
Total length:23:09

Release

[edit]

Promotional campaigns started for the film in November 2012, with an initial release window of Pongal (mid-January 2013) announced by Gemini Film Circuit. However, Vishal's other film Samar (2013) had been long-delayed and also wanted to release on the same date, and the actor tried to ensure both films did not clash. As a result, Madha Gaja Raja was put on hold until the release of Samar.[23]

After nine months of little information about the project, the producers announced their intentions of releasing the film on 9 September 2013 to coincide with the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi.[24][25] However the plans were put on hold after an Australian national, Santhanam, successfully appealed for a court injunction to stop the film's release in September 2013. He claimed that Gemini Film Circuit had agreed to pay him a sum of six million rupees for his services of providing production facilities during the team's schedule in Australia, but had failed to make the payment. Under financial restraints, Gemini Film Circuits had also sold on the film to Vishal's newly launched production studio, Vishal Film Factory, but failed to inform Vishal of the outstanding payment which had to be made to Santhanam. The High Court subsequently had put a stay order on the release of the film until the issue was sorted.[18][26] Vishal then took up the responsibility in trying to release the film, but was unsuccessful. He later disassociated from the film and Gemini Film Circuit acquired the film again from the actor.[27]

The makers continued to announce more potential release dates throughout 2014, none of which materialised. Distributor P. T. Selvakumar contemplated purchasing the film's distributing rights and planned to release the film on 7 March 2014 but the idea was dropped.[27][28] Similarly Vishal made further efforts to try and release the film after the success of his own productions, but failed in his attempts. Sundar and Vishal subsequently moved on to finish and release another film together during the period of delay, Aambala (2015).[29] Subsequently, in November 2015, Vishal pledged that he would take action to release the film by December 2015.[30] The plans to release on 29 April 2016 also failed and the film remained unreleased.[31] In 2024, Sundar said he did not understand why the film was still unreleased, and mentioned him and Vishal having requested the production company to sell the distribution rights to them.[32] In January 2025, it was announced that the film would release on 12 January that month, during the Pongal weekend.[33]

Reception

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Critical response

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M Suganth of The Times of India gave 3/5 stars and wrote "Madha Gaja Raja might not rank among his best works, Ullathai Allitha and Kalakalappu, but this is still an OG film that deserves what's now become a promotional mantra: 'Fight venuma fight irukku, dance venuma dance irukku, romance venuma romance irukku, glamour venuma glamour irukku, comedy venuma comedy irukku...'" (transl. If you want fights, there are fights. If you want dance, there is dance …).[34][b] A critic of Dinamalar gave 3/5 stars.[36]

Avinash Ramachandran of The Indian Express gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "The laughs keep on coming, and it is a terrific mix of nostalgia and wistful thinking about the times that were that makes us throw our weights behind this Vishal-Santhanam film, directed by Sundar C."[37] Janani K of India Today gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "Madha Gaja Raja, even though outdated and politically incorrect, manages to bring much-needed laughs as it reminds you of the good old days when all you needed was a comedy film to unwind."[38] Anusha Sundar of OTTPlay gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "Sundar C and Vishal's film is entertaining as long as you are an audience of good old Tamil cinema days where jokes stemmed out from unawareness. It might not suit the sensibilities of today's times, yet cannot be ruled out for it evokes some quips that films today rarely do."[39]

Sreejith Mullappilly of Cinema Express gave 2/5 stars and wrote "there is inarguably an entertaining first half in Madha Gaja Raja, with Santhanam delivering some big laughs amidst the duds [...] Vishal has done many sequences, actions and others, that are all about flaunting his stardom. While the action is mostly enjoyable, the fight at the end goes on a bit too long and makes the film rather anticlimactic."[40] Bhuvanesh Chandar of The Hindu wrote, "perhaps most of what glitters about Madha Gaja Raja isn’t the film itself, but the mindless fun of watching something that as a whole could only exist in your past. It’s nothing more than a could-have-been that has somehow become a has-been."[41] The film was reviewed favourably by Sivashankar of Dinamani, who felt the film despite being made a decade ago was still entertaining, but criticised the body shaming jokes and suggestive dialogues.[42]

Box office

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As of 14 January 2025, the Pongal day the film grossed ₹13 crore (US$1.5 million)[43] and on 15 January it grossed ₹7 crore (US$810,000) from Tamil Nadu, making the total collections there ₹20 crore (US$2.3 million).[44] The following day, Pinkvilla estimated the film would end its theatrical run with ₹50 crore (US$5.8 million).[45]

Notes

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  1. ^ a b c d e Posthumous release; film dedicated to his memory
  2. ^ Based on Dil Raju's speech at Varisu's audio launch.[35]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Madha Gaja Raja". Central Board of Film Certification. Archived from the original on 18 January 2025. Retrieved 18 January 2025.
  2. ^ Jayaprakash, Mugilavan (16 January 2025). "Madhagajaraja Approaches 25 Crore Milestone in Ongoing Box Office Success - Tamil News". IndiaGlitz.com. Retrieved 20 January 2025.
  3. ^ "Madha Gaja Raja Day 9 Tamil Nadu Box Office Collections: Vishal's action-comedy records decent hold after long weekend; grosses Rs 1.25 crore on 2nd Monday". PINKVILLA. 20 January 2025. Retrieved 21 January 2025.
  4. ^ Rajpal, Roktim (13 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja box office collection day 1: Vishal and Sundar C's film opens well, earns Rs 5 crore". Indiatimes. Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 13 January 2025.
  5. ^ "'Vishal plays a triple role'". The Times of India. 27 February 2012. Archived from the original on 6 December 2024. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
  6. ^ "Hansika- The Dream girl of Kollywood". Sify. 2 March 2012. Archived from the original on 18 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  7. ^ "Sundar C opens up on Vishal starrer". Moviepettai.com. 21 February 2012. Archived from the original on 22 February 2012. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  8. ^ "Karthika is Vishal's heroine!". Sify. 16 April 2012. Archived from the original on 20 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  9. ^ "Sada to sizzle with Vishal!". Sify. 3 May 2012. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  10. ^ "Vishal starts MGR with Sundar C". Sify. 4 May 2012. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  11. ^ "Karthika opts out of MGR". Sify. 29 May 2012. Archived from the original on 20 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  12. ^ a b Manigandan, K. R. (26 June 2012). "Shot Cuts: Narrow escape". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  13. ^ "Varalakshmi replaces Taapsee in MGR". Sify. 26 June 2012. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  14. ^ Manigandan, K. R. (11 August 2012). "Trekking on a new path". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 24 May 2024. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  15. ^ "Vishal injured, advised rest!". Sify. 5 September 2012. Archived from the original on 19 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  16. ^ "Arya in director Sundar C's next with Vishal". The New Indian Express. 16 September 2012. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  17. ^ "Arya to do a special appearance for Vishal sake!". Sify. 11 September 2012. Archived from the original on 20 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  18. ^ a b "Bank guarantee sought for release of Madha Gaja Raja". The New Indian Express. 18 September 2013. Archived from the original on 9 December 2024. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
  19. ^ "Sundar C busy with 'Theeya Vela Seiyaanum Kumaru'". The Times of India. 16 January 2013. Archived from the original on 9 December 2024. Retrieved 6 December 2024.
  20. ^ "Madha Gaja Raja – EP". Apple Music. 24 August 2013. Archived from the original on 4 January 2025. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  21. ^ "Vishal's huge opening". The Times of India. 4 September 2013. Archived from the original on 9 January 2025. Retrieved 9 January 2025.
  22. ^ "Vishal sings for 'Madha Gaja Raja'!". Sify. 26 August 2013. Archived from the original on 25 May 2014. Retrieved 20 July 2014.
  23. ^ "Vishal v/s Vishal upsets the trade". Sify. 20 November 2012. Archived from the original on 19 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  24. ^ "Long-delayed 'Madha Gaja Raja' to release on Ganesh Chaturthi". Sify. IANS. 7 August 2013. Archived from the original on 20 November 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
  25. ^ Naig, Udhav (31 August 2013). "A new innings". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 22 October 2021. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  26. ^ "Madha Gaja Raja courts trouble over payment". The New Indian Express. 6 September 2013. Archived from the original on 4 January 2025. Retrieved 4 January 2025.
  27. ^ a b "'Madha Gaja Raja' gets a release date!". Sify. 18 February 2014. Archived from the original on 26 February 2022. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  28. ^ "Vijay's manager takes up Vishal's long delayed movie". Behindwoods.com. 18 February 2014. Archived from the original on 26 March 2018. Retrieved 24 May 2024.
  29. ^ Srinivasan, Sudhir (10 January 2015). "Paradise regained". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  30. ^ "Will Vishal's 'MGR' see the light of day?". Sify. 3 November 2015. Archived from the original on 19 November 2015. Retrieved 17 November 2015.
  31. ^ Vishal [@VishalKOfficial] (15 April 2016). "#madhagajaraja release on April 29th😬😬😬😬. Awaiting it. Jus like everyone.as a sundar c fan.god bless" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 4 January 2025. Retrieved 24 May 2024 – via Twitter.
  32. ^ Sundar, Anusha (3 April 2024). "Will Vishal's Madha Gaja Raja see the light of day? This is what Sundar C has to say". OTTPlay. Archived from the original on 14 April 2024. Retrieved 26 May 2024.
  33. ^ Kumar, Akshay (3 January 2025). "Vishal-Sundar C's Madha Gaja Raja finally gets a release date". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 3 January 2025. Retrieved 3 January 2025.
  34. ^ Suganth, M (12 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja Movie Review : A self-aware, largely entertaining throwback". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 12 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  35. ^ "Thaata Theestha: Dil Raju's emotional outburst against fringe news portals turns into meme material". The South First. 10 January 2024. Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  36. ^ "மத கஜ ராஜா". Dinamalar (in Tamil). 12 January 2025. Archived from the original on 12 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  37. ^ Ramachandran, Avinash (12 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja movie review: Vishal, Santhanam power this Sundar C throwback to simpler yet sus times". The Indian Express. Archived from the original on 12 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  38. ^ K, Janani (12 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja review: Vishal, Sundar C's film takes you on a nostalgic ride". India Today. Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  39. ^ Sundar, Anusha (12 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja Movie Review: Sundar C- Vishal film is old school entertainment". OTTPlay. Archived from the original on 12 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  40. ^ Mullappilly, Sreejith (12 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja Movie Review: Punches land, but the jokes don't". Cinema Express. Archived from the original on 14 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  41. ^ Chandar, Bhuvanesh (12 January 2025). "'Madha Gaja Raja' movie review: Vishal, Sundar C's fun, largely engaging throwback to masala cinema of the past". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 13 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  42. ^ சிவசங்கர் (12 January 2025). "'கலகல'வென வந்தாரா? மத கஜ ராஜா - திரை விமர்சனம்!". Dinamani (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 12 January 2025. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  43. ^ Dixit, Mohit (15 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja Day 3 Tamil Nadu Box Office: Vishal starrer action-comedy records HUGE growth on Pongal; grosses Rs 6 crore on Day 3". Pinkvilla. Archived from the original on 15 January 2025. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
  44. ^ Dixit, Mohit (15 January 2025). "Madha Gaja Raja Day 4 Tamil Nadu Box Office: Vishal's action comedy records another BIG DAY; grosses Rs 7 crore". Pinkvilla. Archived from the original on 15 January 2025. Retrieved 15 January 2025.
  45. ^ Singh, Nisha (16 January 2025). "Vanangaan Box Office Collections Update: Arun Vijay's movie faces tough time because of Madha Gaja Raja's onslaught". Pinkvilla. Archived from the original on 16 January 2025. Retrieved 16 January 2025.
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