The past week seems to have been an extremely hectic one for Indian actor Kamal Haasan and his production house Raaj Kamal Films International (RKFI). He kept fans abuzz with a slew of announcements on his upcoming slate, with one generating a lot of attention: detailing his next movie.
On November 7, on the occasion of the actor’s 72nd birthday, the production house took to social media to announce that the film Sandiyar has commenced shooting. Produced jointly by Haasan and his associate R Mahendran, Sandiyar will be directed SU Arun Kumar, who previously helmed the critically acclaimed flicks spanning genres such as Chithha, Sethupathi and Pannaiyarum Padminiyum.
The posters put out on the production house’s social media handles hinted at a gritty actioner based in the rural milieu. Sandiyar’s stunts will be handled by the stunt choreographer duo of Anbariv, who are also known for their work on hits such as Madras (2014), Kabali (2016), Kaithi (2019), Vikram (2022), Leo (2023), RDX (2023), Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire (2023) and Amaran (2024).
Anirudh Ravichander, who had previously worked with Haasan on the 2023 sleeper hit Vikram, will compose Sandiyar‘s music.
“6 ROUNDS, ZERO MERCY… Revenge does give satisfaction, but… Happy Birthday to our, Sandiyar!” RKFI captioned the post on X.
Eyebrows went up across social media over the film’s title, as it was the original name for his 2004 action-drama Virumaandi, which deploys the Rashomon effect to make a plea against violence. Protests erupted over it in the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu over its alleged casteist overtones.
Subsequently the actor changed the title, with the movie emerging a box office success and eventually becoming a cult classic. The word Sandiyar, however, was retained in one of the film’s songs. For Virumaandi, Haasan won the inaugural Best Asian Film Award as director at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival, South Korea.
Further details about Sandiyar, including its cast, release date and storyline, weren’t provided in the announcement.
‘Dharman’ gets a new face
There was much more keeping RKFI on its toes. Last week, the production house also announced that actress Sreeleela will be joining the cast of Dharman, the action-thriller headlined by superstar Rajinikanth. Directed by Ashwath Marimuthu, the film also has Ram Pothineni, Simran, Nayanthara, Raashii Khanna and Yogi Babu in supporting roles.
“She’s got the spark, she’s got the pataka. Welcoming the gorgeous @sreeleela14 to Dharman,” RKFI wrote in a post on X.
The highly anticipated Tamil film announced last month that actress Nayanthara had joined the project. Haasan, who is jointly producing Dharman along with Turmeric Media, is expected to play a cameo in it.
Anirudh is composing Dharman‘s music as well, while Niketh Bommireddy is its cinematographer. The Anbariv duo is in charge of its stunt choreography, too.
Earlier this year, Haasan and Rajinikanth announced that they will be reuniting for a film, tentatively titled KH*RK. It will be directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, with Red Giant Movies bankrolling the production. Anirudh Ravichander, Rajinikanth’s nephew who had composed for tentpoles such as Jawan, Devara, Coolie, Vikram and Jailer, will be its music director.
Source: Khaleej Times