Yesterday, the world was shocked by the news that the longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth breathed her last at 96. We all know that her journey as the Queen was not easy and that she has come a long way in these 70 years as a monarch. While we reminisce and remember her today, did you know that the Queen met actor Kamal Haasan and former Chief Minister Karunanidhi back in 1997?

In the filmography of Kamal Haasan, there is still one ambitious project that he started working on, but has still not gotten the opportunity to finish. The film is Marudhanayagam, a movie Kamal worked on along with Writer Sujatha in the early 1990s. It has a whopping budget of Rs 85-crore historical venture based on the life of India’s freedom struggle Marudhanayagam. Back in the day, the film made the biggest noise when Queen Elizabeth II attended the launch of the movie as chief guest.

The launch of the event took place on 16th October 1997 at the MGR film city. Queen Elizabeth reportedly spent a lot of time with Kamal Haasan, his ex-wife Sarika and the then CM M Karunanidhi.  The battle scene alone was reportedly shot at a budget of Rs 1.5 crore. It is sad that the movie failed to see light in spite of its whopping budget and the buzz it created back then.

#RIPQueenElizabeth#QueenElizabeth #Queen #restinpeace Madame.@ikamalhaasan #KamalHaasan𓃵 #Vikram pic.twitter.com/lJi2IyXJxC

— கடவுள் கமல்👈 (@ulaganayagan1) September 8, 2022

Queen Elizabeth II with @ikamalhaasan #KamalHaasan Great Memories of #Marudhanayagam #RIPQueenElizabeth @saloon_kada @SkCineUpdates @Hisrath95 @sri50 @rameshlaus @sekartweets @Chrissuccess @Karthikravivarm @Pro_Premkumar @MoviesSingapore @Dhananjayang @itisprashanth @madan3 pic.twitter.com/M0EpBqiiBx

— Doctor Kamal📽 (@KamalMovieTime) September 9, 2022

It was an ambitious project for Kamal Haasan as he was directing, producing Marudhanayagam, and also playing the role of 18th-century warrior Muhammed Yusuf Khan. It was made on a lavish budget of ₹85 crores at that time but got shelved as an international company funding the budget backed out. Even Kate Winslet was offered the lead female role of Marsha in the film but she refused, which also made Kamal go to Europe in search of a suitable star cast.

Meanwhile, Queen Elizabeth II passed away at the age of 96, on September 9. The news was confirmed by the royal family’s Twitter handle as the official statement read, “The Queen died peacefully at Balmoral this afternoon.” The statement continued, “The King and The Queen Consort will remain at Balmoral this evening and will return to London tomorrow.