Kamal, Rajni to come together for Mani Ratnam film

Rajnikanth and Kamal Haasan, the two stalwarts of Tamil cinema, are likely to come together in a Mani Ratnam film, say reports.

News about the trio working together started trickling in when Rajni and Mani Ratnam had a series of meetings. The two stars recently met, first at the Kamal's residence and then in the Raghavendra Mandapam, a wedding hall owned by Rajni, further igniting speculation.

According to the sources, Kamal will also produce the film.

If the project materialises, this will be their second film together. Three decades ago, director Bharathiraja had cast both the stars in his 1977 movie Pathinaru Vayathinile. Both Kamal and Rajni made their mark as the hero and the villain respectively in the film set in a rural ambience.

After that, they went on to carve their separate careers - Rajnikant remaining an anti-hero for a long time. When he started accepting popular roles, the tabloid media presented Kamal and him as clashing titans though both have always denied any personal enmity.

Both the stars have worked with Ratnam separately. Kamal was seen in the title role in Nayakan. Released in 1987, the film brought laurels to the director as an innovative filmmaker and Kamal too got overwhelming response for his memorable performance as a Mumbai gangster, modelled on the legendary Varadaraja Mudaliyar.

Similarly, Ratnam's Dalapathy, released in 1991, took Rajnikant several steps up the popularity ladder.