Rocketry: The Nambi Effect actor-director Madhavan says he deserves to be trolled, details inside

R Madhavan's directorial debut Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, which had a world premiere at the 75th edition of the Cannes Film Festival, will release in theatres on July 1.

R Madhavan; a still from Rocketry/Twitter

On social media, R Madhavan was viciously trolled for making claims about the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO). The actor-director said that ISRO used panchang to launch rockets into space and reach Mars orbit. Madhavan admitted on Twitter that it was quite ignorant of him to say those words.

During a promotional event last week for Rocketry: The Nambi Effect, Madhavan said the panchang contains calculations on the positions of planets, how their gravitational forces act, their effects, solar flares, etc. which was used to insert the Mars Orbiter Spacecraft into orbit in 2014. The actor was called out for his role in a video that went viral on social media over the weekend.

In 2013, the ISRO launched a low-cost Mars spacecraft on its PSLV rocket from Sriharikota, Andhra Pradesh, to study the Red Planet's surface and mineral composition, and to look for methane, an indicator of life.

In 2014, India successfully orbited Mars with its first spacecraft, joining a select club of countries with expertise in space technology.

Madhavan's debut film, Rocketry, is a biopic about Nambi Narayanan, a former scientist and aerospace engineer of the Indian Space Research Organization who was falsely accused of espionage. The film will be released in theatres on July 1.

Madhavan told OTTplay, “It was with a very shallow James Bond-style idea that I met him (Nambi). I heard about a rocket scientist from ISRO who had an affair with a Maldivian woman and was later arrested, tortured in jail, and then proved innocent.”

Since his Tamil debut more than two decades ago, Madhavan has been featured in many notable character-driven roles, including outings on OTT. Which subjects does he choose now? “I'm not the kind of actor who has the charm or panache to carry off my films in terms of songs and fights. I have to look for stories, which led me to Breathe, Decoupled, and Maara. I must resonate with those stories, for me to accept them.”

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