Five interesting facts about Minnale

As Gautham Menon's Minnale re-releasing in theatres, fans of actor Madhavan, Reemma Sen and Abbas, are an excited lot. The film, which hit screens in 2001, has completed 20 years since release. Here's a look at five interesting facts about the film...

Minnale marked the directorial debut of Gautham Menon. The film is originally said to have been titled O Lala but the makers went on to rename it as Minnale. The film had many new faces on board and Menon confessed in an interview that since the entire team was new, with the exception of editor Suresh Urs, it was a tad difficult making the film.

Madhavan became a star overnight after the release of his maiden venture Alaipayuthey in 2000, which was directed by none other than Mani Ratnam. But, his second film, Ennavale, tanked at the box office. But, with the release of Minnale, Madhavan once again earned a huge fan following, especially among women. This was the second time that Abbas and Madhavan were teaming up for a film after the Kannada film Shanti Shanti Shanti.

Minnale marked the debut of Harris Jayaraj as a music director. The soundtrack was such a rage among fans that almost all the songs were used in the Hindi remake as well. Harris scored the music for the Hindi version. The song Vaseegara marked the debut of lyricist Thamarai and it went on become one of the most popular songs of the film. The song was sung by Bombay Jayashri.

Before Reema Sen was on board, it is said that Miss World Yukta Mookhey was considered for the lead role. Yukta then went on to make a guest appearance in Ajith's Poovellam Un Vasam. Isha Koppikhar, too, was on the list. The role eventually went to Reema Sen. Madhavan and Reema then went on to act together in Rendu as well.

The film had Madhavan reprising his character from the original, while Saif Ali Khan taking on the role of Abbas. RHTDM marked the debut of Dia Mirza as the leading lady, along with the debut of Gautham Menon and Harris Jayaraj in Hindi. Though the film didn't do well at release, it gained a cult following over the years. The song Dil Ko Tumse Pyar Hua was later reused as Ondra Renda Aasaigal in Kaakha Kaakha.