Thalaivi: Kangana Ranaut shares latest look on Jayalalithaa’s birth anniversary, fans say ‘what a resemblance’

Kangana Ranaut, who will be seen playing former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa in Thalaivi, is a spitting image of the late politician in a new still from the film.

On former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa’s 72nd birth anniversary, Kangana Ranaut’s team took to Instagram to share her new look from Thalaivi. Kangana, dressed in a white sari with a black and red border, is a spitting image of Jayalalithaa when she was in her 30s and set to enter politics.

Kangana Ranaut will portray late actor-turned-politician J Jayalalithaa in Thalaivi.

Kangana will trace the journey of Jayalalithaa from “a superstar heroine” to “a revolutionary hero” in Thalaivi, which is being directed by AL Vijay. Fans could not get over the uncanny resemblance between the two and showered praise on the actor in the comments section of the post.

“This one is just on point. Bravo,” one Instagram user wrote. Another commented, “Wow!! What a resemblance! Unreal!!” Another wrote, “No doubt ... she is the most talented actress we hv ..”

Kangana, who earlier played Rani Laxmibai in Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi, said that she was “honoured” to play Jayalalithaa in her second biopic. “I am honored to portray such a strong lady. Her personality was very different from anything I have portrayed earlier. It’s very gratifying to play someone who was so determined, persevered but had a silent strength which distinguished her from everyone else,” she said.

Kangana Ranaut in a Bharatnatyam sequence from Thalaivi.

Kangana Ranaut as Jayalalithaa in Thalaivi’s first look.

Director AL Vijay said that Thalaivi, which is being made in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, will showcase the struggles faced by Jayalalithaa as an actor and politician. “Her life was a mix of glamour, love, heartbreak, struggle and success. Our focus is to make it as real as possible, without trying to glorify her, but show the human side of the person she was,” he said.

The filmmaker was all praise for his leading lady. “Kangana’s dedication towards playing the character shows in the fact that she gained weight to stay true to the stage of her life that she is portraying. Her attention to detail, her makeup and costumes will make it a visual treat for the audience. They will feel like they are watching Jayalalitha herself on screen,” he said.

Thalaivi also stars Arvind Swamy, Jisshu Sengupta and Prakash Raj. Produced by Vishnu Vardhan Iduri and Shaailesh R Singh, the film is slated to hit the theatres on June 26, 2020.

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