The scheduled cricket match took place on 04-02-2006, Saturday at the Chepauk grounds. The teams competed were the young stars of the Tamil film industry (Kollywood) and the Telugu film industry (Tollywood).
Arokya milk and Jaya TV were the main sponsors of the fun cricket match between the 2 most popular film segments in India.
The stars who played for the Kollywood side were Abbas (Captain), Ramana (wicket keeper), Simbu, Jeeva, Ramesh, Vishal, Srikanth, Arun Kumar, Karunaas, Aarya, Shaam and Vikranth and the stars who played for the Tollywood side were Tarun (Captain), Ayyappa (Wicket Keeper), O.Kalyan, G.V.Sudhakar, Ravishankar, Saikumar, Taraka Ratna, Kalyanram, Aryan Rajesh, Dasari Arun, Raghu and Madalla Ravi.
The Tollywood side gave a hearty chase, scoring 227 runs for 8 wickets, but they were unable to beat the Kollywood side within the stipulated 30 overs – and the Kollywood side exulted over the 21-run victory!
Vishal took 3 wickets and Vikranth, Aarya, Abbas and Jeeva took a wicket each.
Man of the Match was declared as Ramana, who scored a whopping 108 runs for his team and was presented a cup by Arokya Milk.
Bonhomie was in the air, and this was no cut-throat competition, with the Telugu biggies turning out to be such good sports. It was great to see the 2 sides get along so well together!
The South Indian film industry has always been notoriously conservative with respect to events outside of movies and movie promotions. Not so with the young stars of today. Saturday’s cricket match showed that they too are loosening up, letting their hair down and being part of a fun-filled event which also showcased a star that has more fans that ALL the movie stars put together – the game of cricket!
We hope to see our South Indian film stars in more events where the public and fans feel closer to them!
