With special guest and friend Thanmye Lagudu we come together to crown a new king. Mani Ratnam completes his magnum opus with Ponniyin Selvan: Part II and we're back in the theatre again for more palace intrigue, romantic entanglements, and some of that signature Ratnam flair. Can Ratnam one-up himself with part two? We discuss PS2's visual glow-up, the challenges of adapting a literary classic, and bicker about who put in a better performance: Vikram or Aishwarya Rai Bachchan? Once again we are asking you to join the Church of Ratnam in our Discord server⁠. Keep up with Deep Cut on ⁠Instagram⁠, ⁠Twitter⁠, ⁠Facebook⁠, and ⁠Letterboxd⁠. Follow Thanmye on ⁠Letterboxd⁠ and ⁠Twitter⁠. Read his essay on PS2 here. CAST: Vikram - Aditha Karikalan Aishwarya Rai Bachchan - Nandini Karthi - Vanthiyathevan Jayam Ravi - Arulmozhi Varman aka Ponniyin Selvan Trisha Krishnan - Princess Kundavai Sobhita Dhulipala - Vanathi Aishwarya Lekshmi - Poonguzhali Prakash Raj - King Sundara Chola R. Sarathkumar - Periya ⁠P⁠azhuvettaraiyar R. Parthiban - Chinna Pazhuvettaraiyar Jayaram - Alwarkadiyan Nambi Rashin Rahman - Madurantaka Chola CREW: DIRECTOR Mani Ratnam PRODUCERS Mani Ratnam Subaskaran Allirajah Sivakumar Ananth WRITERS Mani Ratnam Jeyamohan Elango Kumaravel Original Novel: Kalki Krishnamurthy EDITOR Sreekar Prasad CINEMATOGRAPHY Ravi Varman PRODUCTION DESIGN Thotta Tharani VISUAL EFFECTS Sanjiv Anand Naik COMPOSER A. R. Rahman MAKE-UP Vikram Gaikwad