After grappling with ‘The Book’ for hundreds of years, the Catholic church in Tamil Nadu is going visual.

A period film on St Thomas, one of the apostles of Jesus Christ, who is believed to have landed in India in AD 52, was launched by Chief Minister M Karunanidhi in the presence of the senior clergy of the Catholic Church, here on Thursday.

If the apostles believed in living in penury, this screen version produced by the Catholic Archdiocese of Chennai-Mylapore is budgeted at a whopping Rs 50 crore, to be made with the involvement of renowned technicians and actors from Kollywood, Bollywood and Hollywood.

If the clergy win in their effort, superstar Rajnikanth may don the role of Tamil saint Thiruvalluvar in the movie, said sources. Efforts are also on to rope in top Kollywood stars like Vikram and Ajit to act in the movie.

The period film, a tragedy that ends with Saint Thomas being killed by those opposed to his preaching in Tamil Nadu, will begin shooting as soon as the main cast is fixed. James Caviezel, who did the role of Jesus Christ in the noted Hollywood movie, The Passion of Christ, is one of the candidates considered for portraying a repeat role in this movie.

The movie is to be made in English, Tamil and Malayalam, considering the significance accorded to the saint for spreading the religion in Tamil Nadu and Kerala.

According to the chief researcher and scriptwriter of the movie, Paulraj Lourdsamy, they were trying to cast actors who resemble the popularly accepted looks of the characters of this miracle genre movie.

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