Chennai | The trailer of the much anticipated sequel to Ponniyin Selvan (PS-1) was released here late on Wednesday, as expectations have grown high about the Mani Ratnam-helmed ensemble.

With the director dishing out a gripping first part of author Kalki's Tamil work by the same name that was well-received by film buffs, the sequel is expected to be a riveting finale to a plot having all the ingredients for a blockbuster.

At a jam-packed Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium here, PS-2 trailer and audio were released, even as PS-1 ended with news of Arunmozhi Varman's death and a mysterious character shown in the climax to up the suspense quotient.

The leadinga actors of Mani Ratnam's magnum opus--Vikram and Karthi in the lead roles, besides Aishwarya Rai, Trisha and Jayam Ravi who play pivotal characters attended the trailer and music release event held on Wednesday. Subashkaran, producer of the movie released the trailer for PS-2.

Top star Kamal Haasan and actor Silamabarasan were the chief guests of the launch and the stadium was packed with celebrities from Tamil industry.

Haasan praised Mani Ratnam with doing the impossible and "I wish PS-2 will exceed the success of PS-1."

"Huge movies like this would really put directors into a more tense situation to show even the minutest of the details to make it believable," the veteran said.

Being tense and to live withot fear is almost impossible in a movie like PS- 2 and it was like his famous dialogue from the critically aclaimed 'Kuruthi Punal' where he said "Veeram na enna nu theriuma? Bayam illatha mathiri nadikkarthu' (You know what bravery means? Pretending to be fearless).

Silambarasan, whose 'Pathu Thala' was released on Thursday was asked by the anchor whether he likes Kundavai or Nandhini, played by Trisha and Aishwarya Rai, respectively.

The actor quipped "both eyes are important." PS-2 will be released on April 28 and the crew expects it to rake in bigger moolah than the earlier part did.

A R Rahman, who has partnered with Ratnam's every venture since his debut in the latter's Roja (1992) said "Mani Ratnam has given me work for more than 30 years."

"With Ponniyan Selvan he has taken our cinema to the international stage," Rahman added.

Lead actor of the movie Vikram, said much like Aditha Karikalam cannot forget Nandini, "I can't forget Aditha Karikalan," the role he dons in the film.

"I have many dream roles and this role is one such. The courage, compassion and love that Mani Ratnam has is something I loved," he said.

Aishwarya Rai said, "thank you for appreciating our work so much in PS-1. We thank the people here in Tamil Nadu, in our country and the world. We have received such enthusiasm for Ponniyin Selvan 2," she said at the event. (PTI)