Nayanthara Beyond the Fairy Tale review: Not a wedding video

On Nayanthara's 40th birthday, Netflix unveiled a documentary series, Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairy Tale, chronicling her journey in the film industry. The series opens with her disappointment over not securing permission to hold her dream wedding at the Tirupati temple and transitions to her eventual wedding at a picturesque beachside glasshouse, attended by the who’s who of Indian cinema.

However, just before the documentary’s release, Nayanthara made headlines by issuing a strongly worded letter addressing Tamil star Dhanush . She accused him of holding a grudge against her and her husband, Vignesh Shivan, and alleged that he denied permission to use footage and songs from the movie Naanum Rowdy Dhaan.

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Dhanush has reportedly sent a legal notice to the couple, asking them not to use any material related to the film, including behind-the-scenes footage. He is said to have demanded Rs. 10 crore in damages. This legal standoff seems to have been the result of prolonged negotiations that delayed the documentary’s release by two years. After failing to resolve the issue, the couple took the matter public.

In her letter, Nayanthara pointedly addressed Dhanush as "the son of Kasthuri Raja and brother of Selvaraghavan," emphasizing his film family background as a "nepo kid." In contrast, she portrayed herself as an outsider—a self-made woman who has achieved significant success in Indian cinema. Interestingly, this outsider-to-icon narrative forms the central theme of the documentary Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairy Tale.

Nayanthara also revealed that she had to re-edit the series after Dhanush refused to issue a no-objection certificate (NOC) for the footage, songs, and lyrics from Naanum Rowdy Dhaan. It was on the sets of Naanum Rowdy Dhaan, produced by Dhanush, that Nayanthara and Vignesh Shivan fell in love, making it a significant part of their shared story. The original version's focus remains a matter of speculation.

The streaming version traces Nayanthara’s humble beginnings, starting with her accidental entry into cinema when director Sathyan Anthikad noticed her photograph on the cover of a Malayalam magazine. It's a fairytale-like story of a young woman abandoning her aspirations to become a chartered accountant and diving headfirst into acting.

While Nayanthara’s professional achievements are well-documented, the series delves into her well-guarded personal life. It plays out as a relationship drama, highlighting her struggles with finding love and eventually finding the right partner in Vignesh Shivan. Her romantic relationships once dominated gossip columns in Tamil Nadu, including a controversial one that ended bitterly. At one point, Nayanthara reveals that she quit acting because her then-partner didn’t want her to work. “I was never given an option,” she says.

Yet, there’s no trace of regret or self-pity in her narrative—only nostalgia and wisdom gleaned from life lessons. She speaks with the peace of someone who has made peace with the past and found contentment in the present.

Contrary to popular belief, the wedding is not the documentary’s primary focus. While it touches on the grandeur and scale of the event, the heart of the series lies in Nayanthara’s journey as an outsider who triumphed in the film industry. For her, true fulfilment came only when she found a partner to share her blessings with.

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