Nadigaiyar Thilagam (English: Pride of actresses) in Tamil is a 2018 Indian Telugu-Tamil biographical period film based on the life of former South Indian actress Savitri. It is directed by Nag Ashwin, produced by C. Ashwini Dutt, Swapna Dutt and Priyanka Dutt under Vyjayanthi Movies and Swapna Cinema banners and stars Keerthy Suresh in the lead role while Dulquer Salmaan, Samantha Akkineni, Vijay Devarakonda, Rajendra Prasad and Bhanupriya in other pivotal roles. Music for the film is composed by Mickey J. Meyer. Production began in May 2017, and it was released on 9 May 2018.

Mahanati depicts the life and career of one of Telugu cinema's greatest and most iconic starlets, the first Indian female super star, Savitri.

Cast
Keerthy Suresh as Savitri
Dulquer Salmaan as Gemini Ganesan
Samantha Akkineni as Madhuravani
Vijay Devarakonda as Vijay Anthony
Rajendra Prasad as K.V. Chowdary, Savitri's paternal uncle
Tanikella Bharani
Bhanupriya as Durgamamba, Savitri's paternal Aunt
Malavika Nair as Alamelu, first wife of Gemini Ganesan
Shalini Pandey as Susheela, Savitri's childhood friend
Tulasi as Madhuravani’s mother
Divyavani as Subhadramma, Savitri's mother

Cameo Appearance
Akkineni Naga Chaitanya as Akkineni Nageswara Rao
N.T.Ramarao via Computer Graphics
Mohan Babu as S. V. Ranga Rao
Prakash Raj as Aluri Chakrapani
Naresh as Cameraman
Krish as K. V. Reddy
Srinivas Avasarala as L. V. Prasad
Sandeep Vanga as Adurthi Subba Rao
Tharun Bhascker Dhaassyam as Singeetham Srinivasa Rao
Sai Madhav Burra as Pingali Nagendra Rao

In May 2016, director Nag Ashwin, who had previously made Yevade Subramanyam (2016), announced that his next film would be a biopic of South Indian actress Savitri and that it would be shot simultaneously in Telugu, Malayalam and Tamil. Titled Mahanati, Ashwin revealed that he had finished work on the script and was in the middle of casting actors to be a part of the project. During the pre-production phase, Ashwin spent six months in research by reading articles and books, while meeting old journalists and actors who had been associated with the actress. Explaining why he chose to turn Savitri's career into a film script, he stated "from a penniless origin to the first female superstar, her life is quite a story" and that it was a "moment in time where it has been long enough that film legends have left us" and "that we will have to revisit them and understand why they are legends". Soon after the announcement of the film, the media carried speculative reports that either Anushka Shetty, Sonakshi Sinha or Vidya Balan would be cast in the lead role. Denying the developments in August 2016, Ashwin stated he was still editing the script and intended to cast the lead actress with an audience poll.

The team continued to hold talks with actresses for the lead role, and despite extended discussions with Nithya Menen, the actress did not agree to sign the film. Samantha was the first lead actor to be cast in the film during December 2016 and revealed she would portray a character from whose point of view the story is narrated, rather than the role of Savitri. Reports also suggested that she may be appearing as another actress from the era, Jamuna, a close friend of Savitri. Subsequently, Keerthy Suresh was cast in the lead role of Savitri in early January 2017. The film's first look poster featuring both actresses was released in March 2017 to coincide with International Women's Day. For the role of Gemini Ganesan, Savitri's husband, Ashwin had considered Suriya or Madhavan, before finalising Dulquer Salmaan for the character. Vijay Deverakonda, who had also earlier been considered for Gemini Ganesan's role, was then selected to portray another role opposite Samantha in the film.

The principal shoot of the biopic began on 29 May 2017 at Ramakrishna Studios in Hyderabad, with the Telugu title confirmed as Mahanati and the Tamil title confirmed as Nadigaiyar Thilagam. Actor Rajendra Prasad joined the cast during the first schedule, while Mickey J Meyer and Dani Sanchez-Lopez were confirmed as music composer and cinematographer respectively. Ashwin revealed that Dulquer's portrayal of Gemini Ganesan would go beyond just the physical resemblance and the character's emotional side would also be depicted. Keerthy Suresh was requested to put on weight for the film and shot for a vintage song in early June 2017 as a part of the first schedule. Prakash Raj also joined the team in August 2017 to allegedly play the role of producer Aluri Chakrapani.

Directed by Nag Ashwin
Produced by
C. Ashwini Dutt
Swapna Dutt
Priyanka Dutt
Written by
Sai Madhav Burra (Telugu dialogues)
Madhan Karky (Tamil dialogues)
Screenplay by Siddhaarth Sivasamy
Based on Life of Savitri


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