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| Billa 2 - Billa II - Movie Description - Yuvan |
DEVELOPMENT
In 2008, reports claimed that Soundarya Rajinikanth was planning to make a follow-up after noting Billa's commercial success, to be produced by Ocher Studios in association with Warner Bros. However, the sequel did not materialize and the idea was dropped, with Ajith Kumar, Vishnuvardhan and Soundarya getting busy with other projects.
In 2010, sources confirmed that Vishnuvardhan had finished penning the script for a prequel, which would star Ajith Kumar as the titular character again, and would commence in 2011. The project became officially announced in late 2010, after Ajith Kumar signed up to the prequel and first production poster were published to the media. Further details were disclosed, with Suresh Balaje, son of producer and actor K. Balaji, who produced the original Billa with Rajinikanth, and George Pius from Wide Angle Creations banner, being confirmed as the producer, who would associate with Mumbai-based IN Entertainment Limited, a Hinduja group company. The entire production team of the Billa remake, including cinematographer Nirav Shah, editor Sreekar Prasad and music director Yuvan Shankar Raja, were announced to be retained for the sequel. Furthermore, Na. Muthukumar agreed to write the lyrics for the songs in the film.
In a turn of events, Vishnuvardhan opted out of the project citing that his dates clashed with the making of his Telugu film, Panjaa (earlier titled as The Shadow). Chakri Toleti who directed the 2009 Kamal Haasan-Mohanlal starrer Unnaipol Oruvan was subsequently signed on by the producers to direct the venture. In May 2011, Chakri Toleti held his first press conference stating that production would begin in late June 2011 and revealing that "Billa 2 would focus on how David, an ordinary man from the coastal Thoothukudi in South Tamil Nadu, becomes `Billa`, a dreaded underworld don". With Vishnuvardhan's exit from the project, his script was also scraped, and Toleti along with Ajith Kumar began penning a new script for the prequel. Yuvan Shankar Raja only was retained from the original production team, with the rest of the technical crew being finalized in the following weeks. Hemant Chaturvedi, who hitherto had worked in Bollywood productions only, was signed on to replace Nirav Shah as the cinematographer after the latter's schedules clashed with the making of his other film, Vettai. However in July 2011, Hemant Chaturvedi too moved out of the project, fearing the delay in commencement of Billa 2 may hurt his chances in Bollywood, and R. D. Rajasekhar was appointed as the new cinematographer. Selvakumar who had notably worked in Madrasapattinam was selected as the art director. The crew also announced that the film would become the first Indian production to be filmed with an RED EPIC Camera, being shot at 5K resolution. Writer Ee. Raa. Murugan, who had previously collaborated with Chakri Toleti in the Kamal Hassan-starrer Unnaipol Oruvan, was appointed to write the dialogues.
CASTING
From the previous film, the producers made it clear that apart from Ajith Kumar,Prabhu and Rahman, most of the other characters would not be retained. The female lead role was expected to be handed to Anushka Shetty, but despite media speculation she was not signed on. The female lead role was handed to debutant Huma Qureshi, a Mumbai-based theatre actor who had previously been featured in commercials, with Toleti finalising Huma after a nationwide search for an actress. However, she was removed from the project by September 2011, owing to changes in the script, and became replaced by Miss India World 2008 Parvathy Omanakuttan later that month. Bollywood actress and model Bruna Abdullah was selected to portray another significant character, which she went on term as "super powerful, very strong and sexy". Besides Abdullah, another Brazilian model Gabriela Bertante was recruited to perform a dance number alongside one more model.
Television actor Krishna Kumar, who made appearances in Kaavalan and Deiva Thirumagal, was signed on to play a "dirty cop". Sudhanshu Pandey, a former model who has appeared in several Hindi films, was given a role in the project in June 2011, whilst Malayalam character actor Manoj K. Jayan was roped in for a "key role". Actress Vimala Raman was signed on to make a special appearance in the film, however she opted out in July 2011 citing date problems. Meenakshi Dixit was later finalized for that role and shot her scenes in July 2011 during the first schedule. Vidyut Jamwal who played negative roles in the Hindi film Force and the Telugu film Oosaravelli was selected to play the villain, also making his debut in Tamil cinema. In December 2011 sources revealed that Sricharan, who starred in Payanam, was shooting for a supporting role in the film. Reports in February 2012 suggested that the team was trying to sign Nayantara, who played the female lead in Billa, for a cameo role; the actress refuted the rumors. Furthermore, composer Yuvan Shankar Raja on Toleti's insistence agreed to make a brief appearance in one of the songs.
FILMING
The film's production was delayed as Ajith Kumar's previous film, Mankatha, progressed beyond the anticipated completion dates. In March 2011, the producers released a press note that the film would begin in early May 2011, however this failed to happen. During that period, it was also suggested that Billa II may not be Ajith Kumar's successive project and commence only after the actor completed a film with M. Raja. Eventually, a photo shoot was held in June 2011 with Ajith sporting an appearance of a man in his mid-twenties. Principal photography eventually commenced on 14 July 2011 at the Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad. Filming during the first 30 day schedule throughout July and August 2011 was held in Hyderabad and Vizag. As part of the schedule, one song was shot in Pondicherry under the direction of choreographer Raju Sundaram. Both actresses Parvathy Omanakuttan and Bruna Abdullah joined the crew for the second schedule in Goa, that lasted for 39 days and ended in the first week of November.
In the third week of November, a unit of thirty-six members left for Georgia in Eastern Europe for the final 20 day schedule of the film. In Georgia, the crew filmed at the country's capital, Tbilisi, Borjomi and Rustavi. The climax portions were filmed there against a snowy backdrop, for which aerial shots were done from a helicopter. The stunt sequences were partly choreographed by an award-winning German-based company led by stuntman Stefan Richter, while other action scenes were done by Kecha Khamphakdee's Jaika Stunt team. Approximately half a million dollars were spent for the whole schedule in Georgia, which was finished by mid-December. In February 2012, the remaining scenes, including the film's title song, were canned at the Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad, despite the ongoing strike in the film industry. An item number featuring Brazilian model Gabriela Bertante was shot in a studio in Goa. Although producer Kheterpal named Bangkok, Thailand as a potential location for filming, shooting was not held there. The entire filming was completed over a period of 90 days.
