In 2001 , producer G. Venkateswaran signed on Thirupathisamy to direct Vijay in an action film titled '' Velan '' . The film , a remake of the director 's Telugu film '' Azad '' , saw Priyanka Chopra , winner of the beauty pageant Miss World 2000 , being brought in by Venkateswaren to make her debut and play the lead female role . However , before production began , Thirupathisamy died in an accident and Venkateswaren duly decided to give debutant Majith a chance to direct a film with the same cast . A social drama , campaigning for the widespread knowledge of legal rights , the film created anticipation prior to release . The film opened to mixed reviews from film critics on 14 April 2002 and Malathi Rangarajan of The Hindu praised the film adding that " dialogue is a strong point of the film " . The critic from Rediff.com also gave the film a positive review stating that the director had succeeded in making a good debut , while another critic labelled the film as " meaningful cinema " though stated that some scenes were overdone . In comparison , a reviewer from Bizhat.com stated that " the message conveyed leaves you exhausted and stressed " , giving the film a below average review
Miss World 2000
Miss World 2000
Majith