Mani Rathnam's next with Simbu?

There is no need of any introduction when it come to Mani Rathnam, because his very name pulls crowds to theatres. The veteran director is currently busy with his big budget bilingual tentatively titled Raavana in Tamil and Raavan in Hindi.Meanwhile, there are rumours that the ace director has approached Silambarasan for his next project which is expected to start by November. Simbu has walked out of K.V. Anand's Ko, and was completely bowled over by the offer of Mani Rathnam. The movie is expected to be a bilingual film featuring an emerging star of B-town in the Hindi version.Raavana, said to be the modern adaptation of the epic Ramayana, revolves around Raavana, the ruler of Lanka, who kidnapped Sita. The story culminates with Sita supporting Raavana instead of Rama, who suspects her chastity after having spent so much time in Raavana's custody.Vikram plays the villain. Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai are the lead pair in Hindi, while Vikram will play the lead opposite Aishwarya in Tamil. Music is by Oscar winner A.R. Rahman . Raavana is produced by Mani Rathnam's sister Sharda under Rathnam's banner Madras Talkies.Meanwhile Gautham Menon's Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa (VTV) will grace screens on February 19. The film stars Simbu and Trisha in lead roles. Udayanidhi Stalin's Red Giant Movies has bagged the release rights of VTV. Kollywood enthusiasts are eagerly awaiting VTV for its hype, breezy posters and chart-buster songs. This romantic musical revolves around the love between an aspiring film maker Karthik, who wants to make it big in his profession, and a Christian girl Jessie. Music by A.R. Rahman is already rocking the charts.