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One of the costliest films ever made in the country - Kamal Haassan's Dasavatharam, released this Friday. It, as the name suggests, features 10 characters - and each of them is played by Kamal Haassan.

With an ambitious storyline Dasavatharam mixes the past and the present, starting with Shaivite and Vaishnavite clashes in the 12th century.

Scriptwriter Kamal has sprinkled a generous dose of contemporary concerns such as the environment, science and faith. Dasavatharam has a lot of Al Gore in it, and also Ramanujar from the 12th century. Over one thousand prints of the film will be screened the world over.

Kamal Haassan's magnum opus directed by K S Ravi Kumar and produced by Oscar Ravichandran has brought audiences flocking to the screens for a first glance, and the movie opened to packed houses in almost all theatres down south.

When there is history and mythology involved, can controversy be far behind.

It was left to the Supreme Court to clear the screening on Thursday, with the apex court dismissing pleas by a sect that the film would hurt religious sentiments.

That scare may be over, but this ten-in-one is Kamal Haassan's biggest box office gamble so far, even for a star who revels in pushing boundaries all the time.