Vijay's 'Thalaivaa' stopped at the last minute in Tamil Nadu

Chennai: Popular Tamil actor Vijay's latest release 'Thalaivaa' was stalled in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry even as the movie has already hit the screens worldwide.

The movie, slated for release today, hit a block in the last minute following objections by a man called Karnan, hailing from Tirunelveli in the state, who claims the movie was based on the life of his grandfather S S Kandaswamy and his father S K Ramaswamy who live in Dharavi in Mumbai.

A few theatres in Chennai also received bomb threats from a little known outfit Tamil Nadu Oppressed Students Revolutionary Force, who supported the arguments of Karnan, prompting the theatre owners to cancel bookings, which began on Wednesday.

To those who booked tickets over the counter were asked to come to the theatre and collect their money. Refund for tickets booked online would be done directly to their account, sources in theatre owner's association has said.

"Discussions between theatre owners association and the government officials were progressing for the release of the movie," they said.

The movie was expected to hit around 500 theatres in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. While popular Sathyam theatre in Chennai has cancelled the booking for the film. AGS Cinemas said "due to unavoidable reasons, 'Thalaiva' movie has been cancelled. We will update about the release shortly." Social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter were abuzz with the same.

The movie's official webpage said, "We can update about 'Thalaivaa' release in Tamil Nadu only after we get some updates. Be patient. Thanks for all your support".

The lead actress in the movie Amala Paul tweeted, "Praying along with the whole unit and Vijay fans that Thalaivaa will hit the big screen soon.

The movie's music director G V Prakash Kumar added, "Hope the Government will understand and give us permission to release Thalaivaa in Tamil Nadu."

National award winning actor Dhanush extended his support to the movie saying, "What happened to Thalaivaa is unfair. I wish they show this kind of effort in making this country a better place to live than just to ban a film."