''Merlin'' is a 2018 Indian Tamil fantasy film written and directed by Keera. The film features Vishnu Priyan and Ashwini Chandrashekar in the lead roles, while Jeeva,

Singampuli Singampuli is an Indian actor and director. After making ''Red'' (2002) and ''Maayavi'' (2005), he has made a career appearing in supporting roles in films. Career Singampuli was born and brought up in Theni, Periyakulam and after studying eng ...

and

Aadukalam Murugadoss Aadukalam Murugadoss is an Indian actor who has appeared in Tamil language films. He made his breakthrough portraying Dhanush's friend in Vetrimaaran's critically acclaimed 2011 film. ''Aadukalam'', thus adding the name of the film as a prefix to ...

play other pivotal roles. Featuring music by

Ganesh Raghavendra Ganesh Raghavendra is an Indian film score and soundtrack composer, who has predominantly scored music for Tamil films. He has won Two Best Film score (BGM) Awards for Vinveli Payana kurippugal at Cult critict movie awards, Kolkata & L’Age d ...

, the venture began production in early 2016 and was released on 23 February 2018.

Cast

; Special appearances in the song "Ain't No Sunshine" in order of appearance

Production

Director Keera announced that ''Merlin'' would be his second film after ''Pachai Engira Kaathu'' during late 2015, with production beginning thereafter. Vishnu Priyan was signed as the lead actor, while Kannada actress Ashwini Chandrashekar joined the cast to play the lead actress. Though it was the first Tamil film she signed up for, two other Tamil films ended up releasing earlier. Supporting actors including

Lollu Sabha Jeeva Jeeva, popularly known as Lollu Sabha Jeeva, is an Indian actor and comedian. He started his career with Television show ''Lollu Sabha'' alongside another comedian Santhanam Santhanam or Santanam ( te, సంతానం) is an Indian name that ...

and

Powerstar Srinivasan Srinivasan (popularly known as Powerstar and sometimes simply Power) is an Indian actor, doctor, politician and comedian, producer, singer, business man who has worked in the Tamil film industry. Beginning his career as a medical practitioner, ...

also worked on the film, while prominent cinematographer

Thangar Bachan Thangar Bachan (born 1961) is an Indian film director and actor, cinematographer and novelist. He has served as jury member in National Film Awards. Early life Thankar Bachan was born in Pathirakottai, a village near Panruti, Cuddalore distric ...

also worked as an actor. At the film's audio launch in September 2016, Keera announced that

Attakathi Dinesh Dinesh Ravi, better known as Attakathi Dinesh, is an Indian actor who has acted in leading roles in Tamil cinema. He made his breakthrough playing the lead role in ''Attakathi'' (2012), portraying Dinakaran. Career Dinesh completed his high ...

would portray himself in the film in a guest appearance. The event was attended by directors including

Pa. Ranjith Pa. Ranjith is an Indian film director and screenwriter who primarily works in Tamil cinema. He made his directorial debut with the 2012 romantic comedy ''Attakathi'', before earning unanimously positive reviews for his second film, the politi ...

Vasanthabalan Vasanthabalan (sometimes credited as Vasantha Balan) is an Indian Tamil film director and screenwriter, known for his Tragedy Films in Tamil Cinema. He has made critically acclaimed films including ''Veyil'' (2006), ''Angadi Theru'' (2010) and ' ...

and

Soundtrack

The film's music was composed by

, with five different lyricists working on the album. The soundtrack was released on 28 June 2017 through

TrendMusic Trend Music is a music label owned by Vision Time India Private Limited. The record label had been largely associated with south India music. The company began operation in 2015. Film soundtracks released under the Trend Music Label *''Zhagar ...

. A version of the English song "

Ain't No Sunshine "Ain't No Sunshine" is a song by Bill Withers from his 1971 album '' Just As I Am,'' produced by Booker T. Jones. The record featured musicians Donald "Duck" Dunn on bass guitar, Al Jackson Jr. on drums and Stephen Stills on guitar. String arrang ...

" by

Bill Withers William Harrison Withers Jr. (July 4, 1938 – March 30, 2020) was an American singer-songwriter and musician. He had several hits over a career spanning 18 years, including "Ain't No Sunshine" (1971), "Grandma's Hands" (1971), " Use Me" (1972) ...

from his 1971 album '' Just As I Am'' was included in the soundtrack of ''Merlin'', with

rendering the version. The song was used as a promotional track for the film, with actors such as

Chaams Chaams (born 17 July 1970) is an Indian actor and comedian who has appeared in Tamil language films. His birth name is Swaminathan. He has predominantly appeared in supporting roles, notably in Crazy Mohan dramas and playing one of the several ...

Aadukalam Naren Narayanan (better known as Aadukalam Naren) is an Indian actor who has appeared in Tamil and few Telugu films, mainly in supporting roles. He made his début in 1997 film ''Raman Abdullah'' but he got noticed for his role in the 2011 film, ''Aa ...

Aadhi ''Aadhi'' is a 2018 Indian Malayalam-language action thriller film written and directed by Jeethu Joseph. The film stars Pranav Mohanlal in the title role (in his debut adult role) and features Jagapathi Babu, Siddique, Lena, Aditi Ravi, Anus ...

Vemal Vimal (born 30 August 1981) is an Indian actor who appears in Tamil films. Following credited appearances and a supporting role in the critically acclaimed movie ''Kanchivaram'', he played the lead role in Pandiraj's critically acclaimed ''Pasan ...

Guru Somasundaram Guru Somasundaram is an Indian actor who is Mainly working in Tamil and Malayalam movies. He made his debut in ''Aaranya Kaandam'' (2011) winning critical acclaim for his role, before also appearing in the Tamil action film ''Pandiya Naadu'' (2 ...

Ma Ka Pa Anand Ma Ka Pa Anand is an Indian actor and television presenter who has been working with Star Vijay. He has hosted '' Super Singer, Athu Ithu Ethu'', ''Kings of Dance'', ''KPY Champions'', '' Mrs. Chinnathirai'', ''The Wall'', ''Cinema Kaaram C ...

, Shakthi Vasu,

Priyamani Priya Vasudev Mani Iyer (born 4 June 1984), known by her professional name Priyamani, is an Indian actress and former model, who works in the South Indian film industry. She is a recipient of Several Awards. Priyamani made her acting debut t ...

and

Vijay Sethupathi Vijaya Gurunatha Sethupathi (born 16 January 1978), known professionally as Vijay Sethupathi, is an Indian actor and film producer who predominantly works in Tamil films. He is a recipient of several accolades including a National Film Award. Fo ...

appearing in the making video.

Critical reception

''New Indian Express'' felt that film lacked realism and the editing is completely abrupt.

Controversy

Praveena filed a case and sought to stop the film from being screened as she felt that film contains dialogue which degrades women.

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 8060610 2018 films 2010s Tamil-language films Indian horror films