A biopic on the life of Jayalalithaa will begin production in late January, Times of India reported. Titled Thaai: Puratchi Thalaivi, the biopic will be produced by Aditya Bharadwaj, among others, in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi.
The film was reportedly planned while Jayalalithaa was alive. The biopic maps the former Tamil Nadu chief minister’s journey from an actress to a politician. “The script is almost ready; we are doing the seventh draft now,” Bharadwaj told Times of India. “By end of January 2018, or beginning of February, we will begin shooting. I cannot reveal who all are we considering for essaying Jayalalithaa’s character at the moment, but we will soon be making an announcement.” The movie’s director hasn’t been identified yet.
The producer did not reveal any information about how the makers were collecting information on Jayalalithaa’s life. “All I can say is most of the information on Jayalalithaa is available to us freely, as she was a public figure,” he said. “Ours is a fictionalised story, but we will be using real footages interspersed with recreated scenes. We have been in touch with one of her very close associates, whose name I cannot reveal right now, for all personal details. We are working on the cast, and so far, we have had no problems, either political, or otherwise.” At least 70% of the film will be shot in Mumbai, Bharadwaj added.