Bison (upcoming film)

Bison (also marketed as Bison: Kaalamaadan) is an upcoming Indian Tamil-language sports drama film written and directed by Mari Selvaraj. It is jointly produced by Sameer Nair, Deepak Seigal, Pa. Ranjith and Aditi Anand under Applause Entertainment and Neelam Studios. The film stars Dhruv Vikram and Anupama Parameswaran, with Lal, Pasupathy, Rajisha Vijayan, Hari Krishnan, Azhagam Perumal and Kalaiyarasan in supporting roles.

The film was officially announced in December 2020 under the tentative title DV03, as it is Dhruv's third film as the lead actor, and the official title was announced in May 2024. Principal photography commenced the same month in Chennai. The film has music composed by Nivas K. Prasanna, cinematography handled by Ezhil Arasu K and editing by Sakthi Thiru.

Development
In March 2020, Dhruv Vikram, who debuted as an actor with Adithya Varma (2019), was reported to star in the lead role of Mari Selvaraj's directorial venture after Karnan (2021). E4 Entertainment, which produced Dhruv's debut film, would reportedly fund the venture. On 31 December, the collaboration of Dhruv and Mari was publicly announced through their respective social media accounts, tentatively titled DV03. A few days later, Pa. Ranjith announced he would produce the project under his banner Neelam Studios. Ranjith also funded Mari's directorial debut Pariyerum Perumal (2018). In January 2021, Mari stated "The film is based on the life story of a sportsperson and this is going to showcase their lives in a raw and lively manner which has not been shown in Tamil cinema before". In April 2023, he said it was based on the life of the kabaddi player Manathi Ganesan, but a year later, said it was completely fictional. Production was set to begin after Dhruv completed filming for Mahaan (2022), as sports training was needed for his character.

In the meantime, Mari began working on Maamannan (2023). Dhruv began training by late August 2021, as he had completed filming for Mahaan. In 2023, reports claimed that the venture was shelved. However, Mari confirmed that works was still ongoing. On 12 March 2024, Applause Entertainment were announced to jointly fund the venture, and Anupama Parameswaran was announced in the lead female role. Ezhil Arasu K himself announced through his X (formerly Twitter) page that he would handle the film's cinematography. The film's official title, Bison: Kaalamaadan, was announced on 6 May. The technical crew, consisting of composer Nivas K. Prasanna, cinematographer Ezhil Arasu K, editor Sakthi Thiru, art director Kumar Gangappan, action director Dhilip Subbarayan, costume designer Aegan Ekambaram and publicity designer Kabilan Chelliah, were announced by the production house's on the same day along with the supporting cast, which includes Lal, Pasupathy, Rajisha Vijayan, Hari Krishnan, Azhagam Perumal, Aruvi Madhanand and Kalaiyarasan.

Filming
Principal photography began with the first schedule on 6 May 2024 with an inaugural puja at a film city in Chennai.

Music
The music and background score are composed by Nivas K. Prasanna, in his first collaboration with both Dhruv and Mari.