Shankar's Nanban is in news for a different reason now. It is because its Telugu version, titled as Snehithudu, will be released by Dil Raju, the producer widely believed to have that rare midas touch. With Sri Venkateshwara Creations bagging the Telugu release rights of the movie, the Vijay-Illeana-Jiiva starrer has acquired new image in Telugu.

Dil Raju, it is clear, believes in the market potential of a Shankar film. "After Robot, we all know what Shankar's stature as a director is. I am thankful that he has given me the opportunity to release Snehithudu in Telugu. This is a very entertaining film, with comedy and heart-touching sentiment blended in the right proportions. Harris Jayraj's music will be released on Jan. 8 and we are planning to release the movie in January itself," a happy Raju said.

The movie is a remake of 3 Idiots. The Tamil version is slated to release on Jan. 14. Raju has decided not to go for a simultaneous release for obvious reasons. The Sankranthi season is choc-a-bloc with two big releases – The Businessman and Bodyguard. And then there is Poola Rangadu.

Expected to hit the marquee in the third week of Jan, this is the first time that a Vijay-starrer is attracting so much attention in Andhra Pradesh. The credit, of course, goes to Shankar.