Nayanthara docu review: Of struggles, stardom, love affairs, a big fat wedding

However, scenes from her dream wedding held in a glass house, with all the ‘gods of cinema' from superstars Rajnikanth, Shah Rukh Khan to Mani Ratnam in attendence is meant to be the icing on the cake.

Also watch: Rs 10 Cr for 3 secs’: Is Dhanush seeking ‘revenge’ against Nayanthara? 

Undeniably, Nayanthara has spunk. In a world where female actors keep notoriously silent (not one stepped forward during the Me Too movement), she does not shy away from taking digs at her misogynistic workplace.

After the release of Rajnikanth’s Annaatthe, where she had a blink-and-miss role as the leading lady, Nayanthara swore against acting in male superstar-driven films, declaring that she will only do female-centric roles henceforth. She also ran foul of the Hindu right wing when she played a Tamil Brahmin cook who dreams of becoming a chef and learns to make beef biryani from a Muslim lady.

By recently taking on actor Dhanush through an open letter Nayanthara was also being true to form. She lashed out at him for holding up her documentary for two years and exposed the actor’s “vengeance” and "personal grudge" he held against her and her husband Vignesh Shivan. She met and fell in love with her husband Shivan on the sets of his debut directorial Naanum Rowdy Than, a film produced by Dhanush and directed by her husband.

So, while using clips from this special film in their lives in her documentary she needed an NOC from Dhanush, who was withholding permission for his own reasons. She even called him “vile” and slammed him for wearing a mask in front of the world. Interestingly, other women actors also supported her, which is a record of sorts in the Tamil film industry. 

"The world is a big place and is meant for everyone... It is okay for normal people with no background in cinema to make it big…its only an ode to their work, blessings and people’s kindness," she wrote in her open letter to Dhanush.

Also read: Rs 10 cr for 3-sec clip: Nayanthara clobbers Dhanush for venting out ‘grudge’

Star quality

Well, in no small measure, the documentary drives home that it is Nayanthara’s ‘hard work’ that made her such a huge success in films.

The docu harps on her exceptional 'star' quality, her strength and how she framed her own rules in the industry. The docu also somewhere, somehow, cocks-a-snook at her detractors and her ex-partner (a married star) who let her down even forcing her to quit films at one stage.

Not short of dramatic elements, the docu is frankly a paean to an actor-diva, who is revelling in her 'hard-won' success.

The documentary starts off with Nayanthara and her wedding team trying to figure out an alternative venue for her wedding, after it becomes known that it will be impossible to hold the event in Tirupati. The film pivots around this one gala event and then swerves to take a biographical turn, as the viewer embarks on her journey in films.

This is done through interviews with the Malayalam film director, who discovered her – filmmaker Sathyan Anthikad and with the acclaimed Fazil, who recognised her star quality and signed her opposite Mohanlal.

And, Diana Kurien, the daughter of an air-force officer studying for her CA exam, changed her name and became the glamorous Nayanthara.

Also read: 'Annapoorani' controversy: Nayanthara apologises, pens 'Jai Shri Ram' note

High praise

There are also interviews with her mother, directors like good friend Nelson Dilipkumar (who also mediates in spats between Shivan and Nayanthara), Pushpa Kandaswamy, Radhika Sarathkumar, Atlee and Nagarjuna ( whose praise about her aura of royalty seems cringey). There is the stylishly-clad Nayanthara herself seated in different settings in her luxurious home confiding to the camera about life-turning events in her life like facing body shaming, her failed love affair with a married actor and finding true love with Vignesh.

It is Radhika Sarathkumar, who while praising Nayanthara for garnering recognition despite being a female star, also provides grist for some gossip on how Dhanush called her during the shooting of Naanum Rowdy Thaan to share a secret. Incidently, the clips shared in the documentary also features the BTS scenes from Naanum... that Dhanush had problems with.

There are other clips from her film from Shah Rukh’s Jawan; her striking bikini shot in Billa that got her fame and brickbats, from her stand-out movies like Raja Rani, Kolamaavu Kokila and others, where she made her mark as a female star who can give commercial hits.

Also read: Explainers Videos What’s female superstar Nayanthara doing in Jawan?

Real factor

Vignesh Shivan, who comes across as a simple man caught in a maelstrom, also shares his feelings about being married to this ‘beauty’. His candid confession that he never dreamt that she would be interested in him, comes across as real in this well-orchestrated fairy tale.

Towards the end, the docu tends to drag as Nayantara waxes on about her love for Shivan. It does perk up when it shifts to Nayanthara and Shivan's anticipated wedding scenes.

Its fun to watch Shah Rukh and Mani Ratnam sharing a joke and having a hearty laugh or Suriya and Jyotika enjoying a warm moment at the wedding. For fans, this docu will have its voyeuristic moments, while Nayanthra achieves what she probably set out to do: shout to the world that she too matters in a male-dominated film industry.