The Villain Audio Launch
The Villain Audio was held on Sunday.PR Handout

The audio launch function of Shivaraj Kumar and Kiccha Sudeep-starrer The Villain was held at White Orchid near Manyata Tech Park in Bengaluru on Sunday, August 19. The event was organised in association with Zee Kannada.

The music-release function was graced by Rebel Star Ambareesh, Telugu actor Srikanth along with the complete cast and crew of The Villain that include Sudeep and Shivaraj Kumar. Their presence took the entertainment quotient several notches higher, as fans were jubilant and beamed with excitement!

The stars took a trip down memory lane talking about their time filming together, the challenges they faced and how they overcame them. Expressing gratitude of being able to work with one another, the night was filled with acknowledgements and praises.

The audio launch event, which was hosted by Anushree, played host as a donation centre for the Kodagu flood relief as the city is hit by flood. Zee Kannada and The Villain collected funds to contribute to the relief fund.

Zee Kannada and The Villian team honoured the most popular and senior villians of the Kannada film industry by felicitating them for their impeccable roles over the years – Keerthi Raj, Lohitashwa, Nanda Kishore - son of Sudhir, Vidhya - daughter of Dheerendra Gopal, Nagendra Urs - son of Sundar Krishna Urs, and Giri - son of Dinesh.

Known for his extraordinary music, the concert saw Arjun Janya, Director Prem, Shivrajkumar and KicchaSudeep perform to some of the high-octane songs from Villian, along with a line-up of sizzling performances by Zee Kannada's Dance Karnataka Dance contestants, Aarav Gowda, Sonu Gowda, Bhavana Rao, Radhika Chetan, NabhaNatesh and fiction leads Dileep Shetty and Thandav Ram, heightening the entertainment factor for the night.

The Villain album comprises five songs, composed by Arjun Janya. There are a variety of tracks and so far four numbers have been released online. Shankar Mahadevan, Vijay Prakash, Siddharth Basrur, Armaan Malik, Shreya Ghoshal and director Prem have lent their voices for the numbers.

All the songs have been written by director Prem.

The four songs are Armaan Malik and Shreya Ghoshal sung Nodivalandava, 'I am Villain' sung by Shankar Mahadevan, 'Tick Tick Tick' sung by Kailash Kher, Vijay Prakash and director Prem and the last track Love Aagoythu Nin Mele is sung by Prem once again.

The jukebox will be out on the official YouTube page of Anand Audio, the music rights holder, on Monday, August 20. 

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  • The Villain Audio Launch
    Producer CR Manohar speaking at The Villain audio launch.Prem Twitter Page
  • The Villain Audio Launch
    A candid moment between Shivaraj Kumar and Sudeep at The Villain music-release function.Prem Twitter Page
  • The Villain Audio Launch
    Rakshita and Prem at The Villain audio launch function.Prem Twitter Page
  • The Villain Audio Launch
    Sudeep and Srikanth at The Villain audio launch.Prem Twitter Page

However, the celebration does not end here as the makers have planned one more event in Dubai. "Audio Launch in Bangalore on August 19th Sunday 6pm White orchid near manyata tech park blr and in Dubai on August 24th with #Rebel Star Ambareesh, Darling @KicchaSudeep, young & energetic #Shivanna and @iamAmyJackson! @ArjunJanya2 THE CELEBRATION BEGINS! [sic]," director Prem tweeted.

The Villain is one of the highest budget movies made in Sandalwood. CR Manohar is bankrolling the movie. Sudeep and Shivaraj Kumar, the two stars from Sandalwood, are teaming up for the first time.

Also, Bollywood actor Mithun Chakraborty and Telugu actor Srikanth will be seen in pivotal roles in the Kannada flick, which has Amy Jackson in the female lead. 

The movie was launched by former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah in December 2015. Initially, it was titled Kali and the shooting was supposed to begin shooting in the following months after the launch. But it was delayed for some reasons and later the film was rechristened The Villain.