Rashmika Mandanna will play M.S. Subbulakshmi on screen, and the film she's doing it for got its formal send-off this evening at The Music Academy in Chennai, with Kamal Haasan turning the clapperboard.

Wednesday's launch, according to Track Tollywood, was timed to the 110th birth anniversary of the legendary Carnatic vocalist, and it came with the ceremony trimmings you'd expect from a biopic this ambitious. Guests followed an "MS Blue" dress code, and the Indian Choral Ensemble performed a live set of her most-loved compositions.

Gowtam Tinnanuri, who made Jersey, is directing. Anirudh Ravichander is composing the score. Track Tollywood reported the film carries the title M.S. — A Legacy On Screen, produced jointly by Allu Aravind, Bunny Vas and Rockline Venkatesh across their banners Geetha Arts, BV Works and Rockline Entertainments. Telugu360 had earlier reported the project has been in pre-production for close to a year, with the shoot itself expected to start soon.

Rashmika, dressed in a saree for the occasion, thanked the team for handing her the part, calling it a rare opportunity. Kamal Haasan's presence did what it usually does at these things, turning a studio event into an occasion. Clips of him working the clapperboard were doing the rounds within the hour.

The casting question nobody's settled

Online chatter has been running for weeks over whether Rashmika, known mostly for commercial entertainers, can carry a film built entirely around one of Indian classical music's most recognisable voices. Some fans floated Vidya Balan as the more obvious fit for the part. Whether that debate cools down or gets louder once the first look drops will depend on how the makers choose to present her.

Telugu360 reports the film is expected to release next year, though neither outlet has confirmed a firm release window or an exact shooting start date beyond "soon." What is clear is the scale of intent behind it, a Bharat Ratna subject, a director fresh off Jersey, an Anirudh score, and three heavyweight producers backing it.

The first look and further casting details, per Track Tollywood, are expected in the coming days. For a biopic built around a life as scrutinised and as loved as Subbulakshmi's, that first image will do a lot of talking before a single frame gets shot.