in an accident and Venkateswaren duly decided to give debutant Majith a chance to direct a film with the same cast. To prepare for her role in the film, Priyanka watched Tamil films and tried to pick up a Tamil accent. Gautami was initially selected to play Vijay's sister in the film, but was later replaced by Revathi. Vivek was signed on to film comedy scenes for a sum of 15 lakh. A new technical team of music director 18-year-old Imman, who had scored for serials earlier, and cinematographer Ekambaram, who had apprenticed with Jeeva, were also selected. Furthermore, the sets were designed by Sabu Cyril, dance choreography was by Raju Sundaram, and stunts were arranged by Super Subbarayan. A scene for the film featured the producer and lyricist Vairamuthu making guest appearances as themselves during a book launch event. The patriotic nature of the film led to a postal stamp being released with Vijay's face on it. The similarities of title and release date between Thamizhan and the Prashanth-starrer Thamizh created confusion, with the producers of both films unable to accommodate any changes. Release and reception The film was released on 12 April 2002. Made on a high budget of 5 crore, Thamizhan was sold for 11.5 crore to distributors. The film was later dubbed in Hindi as Jeet - Born To Win (2009). Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu praised Vijay's image change and claimed he acts out a "creditable portrayal", while adding that "dialogue is a strong point of the film". She further added "debutante Priyanka Chopra has precious little to do" and that Revathi's role was of a clichéd elder sister. In comparison, a reviewer from Bizhat.com stated that "the message conveyed leaves you exhausted and stressed", giving the film an average review. Ananda Vikatan rated the film 40 out of 100. Soundtrack The soundtrack of the film was composed by D. Imman, who made his debut at 19 years old. Priyanka Chopra sang a song in the film, with Vijay recommending her after he had heard her humming to a tune. References External links Indian courtroom films 2002 films Indian legal films 2000s Tamil-language films Films scored by D. Imman 2002 action drama films Indian action drama films 2002 directorial debut films