Tamil director asks film stars to encourage fresh talent

Chennai, July 13 (IANS) Ace Tamil director K. Bhagyaraj exhorted artistes and directors to encourage fresh talent at the audio launch of forthcoming venture "Sakkarakkatti" Sunday.

"Stars allot dates only to hit directors and vice versa. Had my mentor Bharti Raja followed this trend, I would have never made it into the limelight. Present day directors need to take a cue from this," Bhagyaraj said.

"While stars can survive four flops after a hit, debutant directors depend not only on the stars but also their stars," said the trendsetting Bhagyaraj, also known as 'one-man-show'.

"Though I initially declined to do the film due to my prior commitments, I relented when the director told me he was willing to wait till I could find time," said A.R. Rahman who scored the film's music.

"Sakkarakkatti" is the launch vehicle of Bhagyaraj's son Shantanu as the male lead and Kala Prabhu - son of south Indian movie mogul Kalaipuli S. Dhanu.

Having starred in 35 films in a career spanning over 30 years, Bhagyaraj has also directed 25 movies, including three in Hindi which included thespian Amitabh Bachchan's memorable hit "Aakhree Rasta".