It wouldn't be an overstatement to suggest that the tamil cinema industry's dream project was the adaptation of ponniyin selvan, an acclaimed novel by kalki Krishnamurthy. Everyone wanted a piece of the five-part novel, from Puratchi Thalaivar mgr to Ulaganayagan kamal haasan to Mani Ratnam.

One of the first actors to express interest in playing ponniyin selvan in a movie was MGR. MGR's announcement that he was interested in adapting the book for the film caught everyone off guard as he was basking in the huge success of Nadodi Mannan (1958). mgr made the decision to not only act in the movie but also direct it and produce it after purchasing the rights to the book from Krishnamurthy's family.

According to rumours, mgr intended to play Vallavarayan Vanthiyathevan and wanted Gemini Ganesan, Vyjayanthimala Bala, Savitri, and Padmini, who are his equivalents, to appear in the movie. ponniyin selvan was intended to be produced on a large scale, but it was never released.

Then mgr approached bharathiraja to produce the movie. At a gathering, the director of 16 Vayathinile disclosed that mgr had intended for kamal haasan to play Vanthiyathevan and sridevi to play Kundavai. However, because mgr had to depart for his treatment in the US, the topic was left hanging.

Later, kamal haasan came into possession of the movie. Speaking at the ponniyin selvan Part 1 audio launch, kamal haasan said that he purchased the rights from MGR. He provided it to me right away when I requested. He did, however, have some guidance for me. He asked me to finish the movie right away. I can still see the days when I used to ponder whether we could ever create a movie like Sholay. ponniyin selvan is one such instance from today. ponniyin selvan was ultimately made in 2019 after mani ratnam chose to use the current star cast. The filmmaking process incites terror. However, bravery is the absence of fear. mani ratnam undoubtedly felt the dread, but it was his persistence that allowed the movie to be made. Making a movie like ponniyin selvan requires a lot of courage.