Director Vasantabalan tells director Shankar: Only because of you was Veyil possible!

Chennai, Aug 17 (IANS) One of Tamil cinema's finest directors Vasantabalan has penned a heartfelt birthday post to ace director Shankar, in which he has now disclosed that his critically acclaimed film, Veyil, which went on to win a National Award, was possible only because of Shankar.

Taking to his social media timelines on Sunday, director Vasantabalan, who is widely known for his critically acclaimed works like Veyil and Angaadi Theru, wrote, "Wishing you a sweet birthday Shankar sir. Only because of you was Veyil possible."

Playing on the Tamil word Veyil, which means the Sun, Vasantabalan further wrote, "It is only in the shadows of Veyil (the sun) that I still rest today. Because of your great love for me, you continue to retrieve and raise me up. It is due to time's mercy that the journey that started with you in 1992 still continues. My day turns refreshing when I hear your voice fondly calling me "Balu". Love you sir."

To the unaware, Vasantabalan began his film career by being an assistant director to Shankar, who turned 62 on Sunday. Vasantabalan worked with Shankar on four of his blockbusters -- Gentleman, Kadhalan, Indian and Jeans before going onto to turn director with Album.The film was hailed for its refreshing and good content, but did not fetch Vasantabalan the recognition that he truly deserved.

Vasantabalan's second film 'Veyil', which featured Bharath, Pasupathy, Bhavana, Priyanka Nair and Sriya Reddy in the lead, was a critically acclaimed superhit film, which shot the director to fame.

The film, which came in for widespread praise for its hearttouching tale of two brothers, won the National Award in 2006 for Best Regional Feature Film (Tamil). Apart from that, Veyil also holds the honour of being the first Tamil film to be screened at Cannes. Screened under the 'Tous les Cinemas du Monde' category, Veyil was so popular that it got remade in Bangladeshi Bengali as Antor Jala.

Apart from Vasantabalan, several other eminent directors, actors and production houses of Tamil cinema, too have wished the ace director on his birthday.

--IANS

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