Uthama Villain - Kamal denies

There were reports in a section of press that the first look of Kamal Haasan's Uttama Villain was inspired by an image taken by French photographer Eric Lafforgue.

Kamal Haasan was quick to deny the allegations.

'Theyyam is a more than a 1,000-year-old art. The make-up was done by a good artist, who is probably a third generation practitioner of this art. The lighting might have been similar,' he said.

Talking to a news channel, Kamal Haasan said, 'My film has a Theyyam dance fusion with Tamil Nadu' s Kooththu tradition. Painting his face for the look was not easy. That is not a mask. It is painted on my face. It took 4 hours to paint my face. It is a tradition passed on from many generations. Uttama Villan chronicles the life of a superstar who decides to make a period comedy called Uttama Villan'.