ED searches Chennai office of 'Ponniyin Selvan' makers
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted a search at the office of LYCA Productions on Tuesday in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. The search, which is presently underway, is said to have been conducted in connection to a money laundering case. It is the same production house that backed Mani Ratnam's directorial Ponniyin Selvan: I and Ponniyin Selvan: II, released in October 2022, and April 2023, respectively.
Why does this story matter?
LYCA Productions is one of the biggest production houses in Tamil Nadu. Owned by Subaskaran Allirajah, the production house has backed several big-budget films in Kollywood or Tamil cinema, including the recently released Ponniyin Selvan franchise. Apart from this, it also bankrolled Darbar and 2.0 in the past. The production house will also be backing Rajinikanth's Thalaivar 171 and Ajith's VidaaMuyarchi.
Search is underway at LYCA's office
Per NDTV, the search is being conducted at eight locations in Chennai. The search by the central agency was started on Tuesday morning. More details are awaited. Meanwhile, similar searches were also carried out by the income tax (I-T) department in 2022 at production houses in Tamil Nadu. Then, the ED detected Rs. 200 crore as undisclosed income, along with gold jewelry and cash.
Do these searches have a connection with 2022's I-T search?
At present, it is not clear if the central agency's search is in connection with the I-T searches that were conducted last year at various production houses across Tami Nadu. As far as LYCA Productions is concerned, it was founded by Allirajah in 2014. Since then, it has produced and distributed many films. It is a subgroup of the parent company called Lycamobile.
Everything to know about Ratnam's periodical drama
Directed by Mani Ratnam, Ponniyin Selvan: II was released in theaters last month. Starring Vikram, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Karthi in the lead, the periodical drama is based on Kalki's novel of the same title. The film also features "Jayam" Ravi, Trisha Krishnan, Prakash Raj, and Sobhita Dhulipala in important roles, while Rai Bachchan was seen in a dual role.
