Lokesh Kanagaraj reveals how Aamir Khan's secret role in Coolie was leaked; teases their upcoming superhero film: ‘It'll be the biggest actioner ever'

Indian Express

7 days ago

In all honesty, a collaboration between star Tamil filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj and Bollywood icon Aamir Khan was never something any of us dreamed of or imagined would actually happen, until the two began publicly speaking about each other. Once the possibility of their teaming up started to take shape, it became impossible to ignore. One of Tamil cinema's most acclaimed filmmakers and one of Bollywood's biggest actor-stars, famously known as Mr Perfectionist, joining forces for the first time? Who wouldn't want to bet on that project?
Even before their superhero film materialises, Lokesh and Aamir have already officially collaborated. The actor recently played a cameo in Lokesh's upcoming Rajinikanth-led actioner Coolie. Although Lokesh and his team tried to keep Aamir's involvement under wraps, the news was simply too big to contain. The makers eventually confirmed his role and even revealed his character poster.
Now, Lokesh has opened up about his experience working with the Bollywood legend, as well as about their upcoming project, which is already in development. 'We actually did not want to let the world know that Aamir sir is a part of Coolie. That's why we shot with him somewhere else and didn't let any news come out. But there were speculations and talks. Then Aamir sir called me and said, 'Lokesh, I can't keep lying in front of the camera. I've been doing it from morning for my film (Sitaare Zameen Par). Can I just say it?' Hearing this, I was like, 'Please say it, sir. It's not a world secret. I'll talk to the production house.' So, I told Sun Pictures, let's release a poster featuring Aamir sir and let the news out. Films are made for people, you can't keep them tightly under wraps all the time,' he shared during a chat with The Hollywood Reporter India.
Lokesh went on to say that working with Aamir Khan felt similar to his experience collaborating with Kamal Haasan in Vikram (2022). 'When working with Kamal sir, after a shot, if you approach him with a correction, he too will have one correction to give you. So, you'll be confused wondering which one you like the most. Hence, you need to fix on one thing, and if you want a little improvisation, you just need to show them what they actually did and ask for slight improvement instead of going for a completely different thing. That's one similarity I have noticed between the two of them. And they will ask for retakes even if I say okay (to a shot). Aamir sir worked on the movie for just 5-6 days, and he will always ask, 'Can I do it one more time just for my own satisfaction?' And I would agree since we all love to see them perform,' he added.
Speaking about his planned project with Aamir, Lokesh said, 'After Kaithi 2, we might most probably be doing a film with Aamir sir. It will be a Hindi film, but for the entire globe, not just for the Indian audience. It's a very nice idea, and we had a wonderful time discussing it. I love the way he approached the film. I think our collaboration will bring a new kind of genre. It'll be the biggest action film and can be called a superhero film as well. I wrote it very long ago.'