Did Shanthanu Baghyaraj Really Dub Thrice for 'Balti'?

Chennai, Sep 20 (NationPress) Actor Shanthanu Baghyaraj, who portrays a key role in director Unni Sivalingam's forthcoming Tamil-Malayalam bilingual sports action drama 'Balti', revealed that he doubled for the entire film three times!

During a pre-release event hosted by the film's creators, Shanthanu Baghyaraj expressed, "When the director shared the script with me, I was so captivated by both the narrative and my part that I wanted to seize the opportunity. I told him I could speak Malayalam, even though I couldn't. To enhance my portrayal, I requested some help with my dialogue delivery."

He mentioned that he took Malayalam lessons to ensure he could communicate effectively in the language, and ultimately dubbed for his parts in Malayalam. "Initially, I was invited to Kochi for dubbing. We finished it quickly, and I headed back. Later, the director called to say there were minor corrections, and asked if I could return to re-dub certain segments. When I returned, I ended up redoing the entire dubbing process. After coming back to Chennai, he mentioned more minor corrections were needed, leading to my third complete dubbing session."

Shanthanu expressed gratitude to the director for meticulously ensuring that the dubbing was flawless. "The first session focused on perfecting the dialogue flow, the second on refining my slang, and the final one on my performance. I play a Tamil character who speaks Malayalam. Since those in border regions are familiar with both languages, the director made sure I spoke Malayalam accurately. I appreciate his attention to detail."

The film has generated significant buzz among fans and film enthusiasts, originally slated for release on August 29 for Onam. However, the release has now been moved to September 26.

Shane Nigam portrays a Kabaddi player named Udhayan in the film. This sports drama centers on Kabaddi, highlighting Shane Nigam as a daring raider, instilling fear in opposing teams' defenses. Remarkably, this marks an important milestone in Shane Nigam's career as his 25th film.

In addition to Shane Nigam, the cast includes Preethi Asrani and Shanthanu Baghyaraj in significant roles. Notably, Alphonse Puthren, renowned for his blockbuster Premam, will play the cold-hearted gangster Soda Babu.

Shanthanu Baghyaraj's character is named Kumar, while Selvaraghavan plays Porthamarai Bhairavan in the film.

Written and directed by Unni Sivalingam, the film is produced by Santhosh T Kuruvilla and Binu George Alexander under their respective banners, STK Frames and Binu George Alexander Productions.

Cinematography is managed by Alex J Pulickal, art direction by Ashik S, and music is composed by the young sensation Sai Abhyankkar.

Editing is done by Shivkumar V. Panicker, while costume design is by Melwy J. The film promises high-octane action, featuring two stunt masters - Action Sandhosh and Vicky.