Premium27 years of Virasat! Stream Anil Kapoor and Tabu-starring epic tale of family and feud on OTT
Virasat remains a classic Bollywood drama that has stood the test of time.
Last Updated: 02.28 PM, May 30, 2024
Since its release 27 years ago, critics have hailed Virasat as one of the best Bollywood films in nearly three decades. Indeed, Kamal Haasan, who starred in the 1992 film Thevar Magan alongside Sivaji Ganesan, crafted the story for Virasat. In the film, Priyadarshan adapted the actor-filmmaker's story, casting Anil Kapoor and Amrish Puri as the father-son duo. Virasat also featured Tabu, Pooja Batra, Milind Gunaji, and Govind Namdeo in pivotal roles. Now is the time to revisit the film on OTT, as it's streaming on Prime Video and ZEE5 (also on OTTplay Premium).
Plot summary of Virasat
In Virasat, once Shakti Thakur (Kapoor) finishes his studies in London, he goes back to his village. He quickly learns that the whole hamlet is in the midst of tremendous misery due to the long-running grudge between his uncle (Namdeo) and father (Puri). Bali (Gunaji), Shakti's cousin, does a horrific deed in retaliation against Shakti and his family, which makes matters worse.
With this film, Priyadarshan made a triumphant return to Hindi cinema.
The Virasat songs are still memorable because both Anu Malik and S. P. Venkatesh contributed to the musical compositions; Malik composed the songs, and Venkatesh composed the score. Malik used a few of Thevar Magan's original Ilaiyaraaja songs in new contexts. For the song Payale Chunmun, Tabu performed beatboxing in the film. For the song, K. S. Chithra won the National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer.
ALSO READ: 30 years of Thevar Magan: PC Sreeram remembers the Kamal Haasan film, and calls it a classic
Tabu's casting experience and role preparation in Virasat
Back in 2019, during an interview with the Mumbai Mirror, Tabu spoke about bagging a role in Virasat. She stated that she received a call from Priyadarshan one day informing her that he was casting for a film in which she would play a supporting role. In retrospect, Tabu recalls that she had no knowledge about the film, her part, or her co-stars until she arrived in Pollachi. She had consented immediately, without any questions asked, and had taken the first flight out to the location after returning from shooting a Telugu film with Nagarjuna in the Seychelles.
When discussing the beatboxing in the movie, Tabu revealed that she simply followed Priyan's instructions; she was unaware at the time that it was known as beatboxing. Rehearsals were not conducted. Given that this was the last scene of the day, she hoped we could complete it quickly, as it was almost 2 a.m. The fact that they were able to do it all at once was a relief.
In terms of box office receipts, the film was phenomenal.