Muni (film series)
| Muni | |
|---|---|
Logo | |
| Created by | Raghava Lawrence |
| Original work | Muni (2007) |
| Owners | |
| Years | 2007–present |
| Films and television | |
| Film(s) |
|
| Miscellaneous | |
| Budget | est. ₹45 crore (4 films) |
| Box office | est. ₹346 crore (4 films) (See more details |
Muni, also known as Kanchana, is an Indian Tamil-language comedy horror film series created and directed by Raghava Lawrence, consisting of Muni (2007), Muni 2: Kanchana (2011), Muni 3: Kanchana 2: Ganga (2015) and Muni 4: Kanchana 3 (2019). Muni 5: Kanchana 4 is in production. All films were successful at the box office and is currently the third highest grossing Tamil film franchise.
Kanchana was remade in Kannada as Kalpana (2012).[1] In 2016 the Sri Lankan remake Maya was released.[2] It was unofficially remade in Burmese as Tar Tay Gyi (2017).[3] In 2017, the Bengali language remake was released, titled Mayabini.[4] Lawrence himself directed the Hindi remake titled Laxmii (2020).[5] Kanchana 2 was remade in Kannada as Kalpana 2 (2016).
Films
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Film | Release date | Director | Cast | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muni | 9 March 2007 | Raghava Lawrence | Lawrence, Rajkiran, Vedika | Saran |
| Muni 2: Kanchana | 22 July 2011 | Lawrence, R. Sarathkumar, Lakshmi Rai | Raghava Lawrence | |
| Muni 3: Kanchana 2 | 17 April 2015 | Lawrence, Taapsee Pannu, Nithya Menen | ||
| Muni 4: Kanchana 3 | 19 April 2019 | Lawrence, Oviya, Vedika, Nikki Tamboli | Kalanithi Maran, Raghava Lawrence | |
| Muni 5: Kanchana 4 † | TBA | Lawrence, Pooja Hegde, Nora Fatehi | Manish Shah |
Muni (2007)
The first installment of the series, based on fictional incidents. A young man, along with his wife and his parents, migrates to Chennai where he gets possessed by the spirit of a kind-hearted person who was murdered by an ambitious and corrupt political leader. Muni was released on 9 March 2007 and gained positive response.[6] It earned ₹15 crore against a budget of ₹4 crore.[7]
Kanchana
After the success of Muni Raghava and Sarala Re-unite once again for sequel. The film was titled as Muni 2: Kanchana and also second installment in this series.[8] The film was released on 22 July 2011 worldwide. The film's soundtrack was composed by S. Thaman.[9] Kanchana opened to mostly positive reviews.[10] The film grossed ₹108 crore worldwide becoming the second highest grossing Tamil film of 2011.[11]
Kanchana 2
A stand-alone sequel, Muni 3: Kanchana 2, was commissioned after the success of the previous films and was also directed by Raghava.[12] It stars Raghava Lawrence, Taapsee Pannu and Kovai Sarala in lead roles.[13] And also the third installment in this series. It was released on 17 April 2015 in around 750 screens worldwide alongside Mani Ratnam's O Kadhal Kanmani. The Telugu version titled Ganga[14] was released later on 1 May 2015 in around 550 screens.[15][16] Film received positive response from audience.[17] Proving to be similarly successful to the first entry in the series, the film emerged as a huge box office success, becoming the third highest grossing Tamil film of 2015.[18]
Kanchana 3
The fourth installment in this series, written and directed by Raghava.[19] The film was titled as Naga,[20] then changed to Muni 4: Kanchana 3, produced by Sun Pictures.[21] The film stars Raghava in a dual role with Oviya, Vedhika, Nikki Tamboli,[22] Keerthi Pandian and Ri Djavi Alexandra. While Kovai Sarala, Soori, Tarun Arora, and Kabir Duhan Singh play supporting roles. Kanchana 3 was released on Good Friday in 2019.[23] The film received mixed reviews from audiences, comparisons of Kanchana 1 and 2.[24][25] It earned ₹130 crore worldwide against a budget of ₹20 crore, becoming one of the fourth highest grossing Tamil film of 2019.[26]
Kanchana 4
The fifth installment in this series, written and directed by Raghava, and stars Pooja Hegde and Nora Fatehi in the lead roles is in production.[27]
Recurring cast and characters
List indicator
- This table lists the main characters who appear in the film series.
- An empty dark grey cell indicates that the character was not in the film, or that the character's presence in the film has yet to be announced.
| Actors | Films | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muni | Muni 2: Kanchana | Muni 3: Kanchana 2 | Muni 4: Kanchana 3 | Muni 5: Kanchana 4 | |
| 2007 | 2011 | 2015 | 2019 | TBA | |
| Introduced in Muni | |||||
| Raghava Lawrence | Ganesh | Raghava | Raghava & Shiva (Dual role) | Raghava & Kaali (Dual role) | Raghava |
| Kovai Sarala | Sarala | ||||
| Vedhika | Priya | Priya | |||
| Introduced in Kanchana | |||||
| Raai Laxmi | Priya | ||||
| Sriman | Prasad | ||||
| Devadarshini | Kamakshi | Kamakshi | |||
| Introduced in Kanchana 2 | |||||
| Taapsee Pannu | Nandini | ||||
| Nithya Menen | Ganga | ||||
| Introduced in Kanchana 3 | |||||
| Oviya | Kavya | ||||
| Nikki Tamboli | Divya | ||||
| Introduced in Kanchana 4 | |||||
| Pooja Hegde | TBA | ||||
| Nora Fatehi | TBA | ||||
Crew
| Occupation | Film | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muni | Muni 2: Kanchana | Muni 3: Kanchana 2 | Muni 4: Kanchana 3 | Muni 5: Kanchana 4 | |
| 2007 | 2011 | 2015 | 2019 | TBA | |
| Producer(s) | Saran | Raghava Lawrence | Kalanithi Maran Raghava Lawrence | ||
| Director | Raghava Lawrence | ||||
| Story writer | |||||
| Screenplay writer | |||||
| Dialogue writer | Ramesh Khanna | Raghava Lawrence | |||
| Song composer(s) | Bharadwaj | S. Thaman | S. Thaman C. Sathya Aswamithra Leon James |
Doo Paa Doo | TBA |
| Background Score | Sangeetharajan | S. Thaman | TBA | ||
| Director of photography |
K. V. Guhan | Vetri E. Krishnasamy |
Rajavel Oliveeran R. B. Gurudev |
Vetri Sarvesh Murari |
TBA |
| Editor(s) | Suresh Urs | Kishore Te. | Ruben | TBA | |
| Art Director(s) | Mohana Mahendran | Jana | TBA | ||
| Stunt co-ordinator | Super Subbarayan | TBA | |||
| Production companies | Gemini Productions | Raghavendra Productions Sri Thenandal Films |
Raghavendra Productions |
Raghavendra Productions Sun Pictures |
Goldmines Telefilms |
| Distributing company | Gemini Productions Sri Thenandal Films |
Sun Pictures | Sun Pictures Wellborn International (Kerala) |
Sun Pictures | TBA |
| Running time | 153 minutes | 170 minutes | 164 minutes | 166 minutes | TBA |
Release and revenue
Box office
| Film | Release date | Budget | Box office revenue | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Muni | 9 March 2007 | |||
| Muni 2: Kanchana | 22 July 2011 | ₹7 crore (US$830,000) | ₹108 crore (US$13 million) | [11] |
| Muni 3: Kanchana 2 | 17 April 2015 | ₹18 crore (US$2.1 million) | ₹108 crore (US$13 million) | [28] |
| Muni 4: Kanchana 3 | 19 April 2019 | ₹20 crore (US$2.4 million) | ₹130 crore (US$15 million) | [29] |
| Total | ₹45 crore (US$5.3 million) (four films) |
₹346 crore (US$41 million) (four films) |
||
Remakes
| Year | Film | Language | Cast | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Kalpana | Kannada | Upendra, Raai Laxmi, Saikumar, Babu Antony | Remake of Kanchana | [30] |
| 2016 | Maya | Sinhalese | Ranjan Ramanayake, Pubudu Chathuranga, Giriraj Kaushalya, Nilmini Kottegoda and Upeksha Swarnamali | [2] | |
| 2017 | Tar Tay Gyi | Burmese | Nay Toe and Shwe Thamee | [3] | |
| Mayabini | Bengali Bangladesh | Symon Sadik, Airin Sultana, Amit Hasan | [31] | ||
| 2020 | Laxmii | Hindi | Akshay Kumar, Kiara Advani, Ayesha Raza Mishra, Rajesh Sharma, Ashwini Kalsekar and Sharad Kelkar | [32][33] | |
| 2016 | Kalpana 2 | Kannada | Upendra, Priyamani and Avantika Shetty | Remake of Kanchana 2 | [34] |
Legacy
Along with Chandramukhi (2005), Muni became a trendsetter for horror comedy films. The success of the film inspired several other horror comedy films including the Aranmanai film series (2014) and Darling (2015).[35][36][37]
References
- ^ Sharadhaa, A. (18 November 2015). "Upendra' s Challenge with Kalpana". The New Indian Express.
- ^ a b Srinivasan, Meera (28 October 2017). "Now, Mersal finds a supporter in Sri Lanka". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 25 July 2020. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
- ^ a b "'New wave' directors take movie industry forward". Frontier Myanmar. 7 June 2018. Archived from the original on 25 March 2023. Retrieved 25 July 2020.
- ^ "Akshay Kumar to star in the Hindi remake of 'Kanchana'?". The News Minute. 19 October 2018. Archived from the original on 16 February 2025. Retrieved 16 February 2025.
- ^ "Akshay Kumar film Laxmmi Bomb to premiere on Disney Plus Hotstar". The Indian Express. 29 June 2020. Archived from the original on 2 July 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
- ^ "Happy Birthday, Raghava Lawrence: Five times when the actor proved he is the 'Master' of horror dramas". The Times of India. 29 October 2020 – via The Economic Times — The Times of India.
- ^ "Muni Review – Three cheers to Saran and Larencce". IndiaGlitz. 9 March 2007. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ Anupama Subramaniam DC chennai (29 February 2012). "Lawrence gearing up for a sequel". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 1 March 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ "Lawrence Raghava, Ritika Singh pair up for horror flick Shivalinga". 24 November 2016.
- ^ Ramachandran, Rohit (22 July 2011). "Kanchana Review". Nowrunning.com. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
- ^ a b Team, DNA Web. "Made for Rs 7 crore, earned Rs 108 crore, this blockbuster movie was released in..." DNA India.
- ^ https://www.hindustantimes.com/regional-movies/kanchana-2-new-stills-this-tantric-looks-devious/story-EJZQvmZdkh75X9kmLrMcNI.html
- ^ Lakshmi, V. "Taapsee is part of Ganga". The Times of India – via The Economic Times — The Times of India.
- ^ "'Ganga' Rechristened 'Kanchana 2'". Indo-Asian News Service. 23 February 2015. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
- ^ "'Ok Kanmani', 'Kanchana 2' First Day Box Office Collection: Films of Mani Ratnam, Raghava Get Fantastic Openings Worldwide". IB Times. 18 April 2015.
- ^ 'Ganga' First Week Collection at AP/T Box Office: Lawrence Starrer Grosses ₹19.3 Crore in 7 Days. International Business Times. (8 May 2015). Retrieved 2015-05-29.
- ^ "Kanchana-2 Movie Review". The Times of India. 17 April 2015.
- ^ Service, Express News (6 August 2015). "Raghava Lawrence's Priceless Gift". The New Indian Express.
- ^ "KANCHANA 3". British Board of Film Classification. Archived from the original on 10 May 2019.
- ^ "Raghava Lawrence is on a spree". The Times of India. 16 January 2017 – via The Economic Times — The Times of India.
- ^ "కాంచన 3 ట్విట్టర్ రివ్యూ". Asianet News Telugu.
- ^ "Oviya vedhika: Oviya, Vedhika team up with Lawrencce in 'Kanchana 3'". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 10 January 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
- ^ "Kanchana 3 to hit screens on April 19". The Times of India. 11 March 2019 – via The Economic Times — The Times of India.
- ^ "Kanchana 3 Movie final box office collections report". thehansindia.com. 22 May 2019.
- ^ "'Kanchana 3' mints Rs 100 crore in a week".
- ^ "Tamil film 'Kanchana 3' hits the jackpot, mints Rs 100-crore in a week". The Economic Times. 27 April 2019. Retrieved 26 September 2019.
- ^ Hungama, Bollywood (24 January 2025). "MEGA EXCLUSIVE: Manish Shah of Goldmine Telefilms gets back to producing films after Pushpa: The Rise – Part 01; backs Kanchana 4 starring Pooja Hegde, Nora Fatehi, Raghava Lawrence : Bollywood News — Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama.
- ^ "'Kanchana 2' a blockbuster, collects over Rs.100 crore". 9 June 2015.
- ^ "Bigil, Petta, Viswasam, Kanchana 3, Nerkonda Paarvai, Kaithi power Kollywood's theatrical takings in 2019 to Rs 1000 cr". Firstpost. 4 December 2019.
- ^ "Upendra to Star in Kalpana 2". Desimartini. 28 August 2015. Archived from the original on 6 April 2025.
- ^ "Kanchana 4: Raghava Lawrence's Return, Cast, Release Date & Everything We Know About The Film". news.abplive.com. 6 June 2024.
- ^ Lakshmi, V. "Akshay Kumar in the remake of Kanchana". The Times of India. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
- ^ "Disney Plus Hotstar Makes Strategic Choice to Bypass India's Theaters, Give More Movies Streaming Premieres". Variety. 29 June 2020. Retrieved 29 June 2020.
- ^ Khajane, Muralidhara (9 May 2016). "Sequel time in Sandalwood". The Hindu. Retrieved 18 May 2016.
- ^ "Like Chandramukhi... Horror comedy franchises in Tamil cinema | Times of India". The Times of India.
- ^ K. Jeshi (8 May 2015). "The funny thing about horror". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 10 May 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2015.
- ^ Srinivasan, Sudhir (16 January 2015). "Darling: A familiar ghost serves as humour fodder, again". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 10 May 2015. Retrieved 10 May 2015.