Latest news with #Thalapathi
NDTV
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- NDTV
Rajinikanth Flies Economy With Daughter Aishwarya, Fans Cheer In Viral Video
New Delhi: Rajinikanth is once again trending on the Internet and the reason is not his upcoming film, Coolie. Instead, the superstar was recently spotted travelling in an economy class flight. The video was shared on X by a fan account on Thursday. The footage showed Rajinikanth and his daughter Aishwarya making their way through the flight. The actor obliged fans' requests and greeted them as they screamed in excitement. The father-daughter duo can be seen occupying the front row seats in economy class. When a fan yelled, "Thalaiva, face paakanum (Thalaiva, need to see your face)", Rajinikanth immediately got up and made his way to the aisle. He waved and greeted everyone with folded hands. Watch the full video here: When a Fan asked 'Thalaiva Face Paakanum' & see what Superstar #Rajinikanth does❤️???????? — AmuthaBharathi (@CinemaWithAB) August 7, 2025 On the work front, Rajinikanth's upcoming film Coolie will release in theatres on August 14. Earlier in May, the makers dropped a new teaser to mark the 100-day countdown to the film's release. The standout moment from the video is a recreation of an iconic scene from Rajinikanth's Thalapathi, where he's seen standing with the setting sun in the background. #Thalapathi x #Coolie My humble quick edit for Thalaivar❤️ Thank you Sun Pictures and Lokesh, Enna da life sad ah pogudhe nu nenaikkum bodhu, sema update erakki vitteenga. Thank you Thalaiva ???????? love you as always #Thalaivar #CoolieFromAug14 — Kousik Karthikeyan (@kousik23) May 6, 2025 Coolie is directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj. The film features Nagarjuna Akkineni, Sathyaraj, Shruti Haasan and Pooja Hegde in supporting roles. Aamir Khan will also make a cameo appearance in the movie. After Coolie, Rajinikanth has Jailer 2 in his lineup. The action drama went on floors in March 2025. The film will see the actor reprising his role of Muthuvel Pandian. Jailer 2 marks Nelson Dilipkumar's second collaboration with Rajinikanth. The film is produced by Kalanithi Maran's Sun Pictures. The cast of the movie has not been announced yet. The prequel, released in 2023, was a massive blockbuster and turned out to be one of the highest-grossing Tamil movies ever. It chronicled a former jail warden who is on a path of seeking revenge after his son goes missing and is assumed to be dead.
News18
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News18
Lokesh Kanagaraj Reveals Why Fahadh Faasil Didn't Join Rajinikanth's Coolie
In a recent conversation with The Hollywood Reporter India, Lokesh revealed that Soubin's character was originally written for Fahadh Faasil Rajinikanth's Coolie has been grabbing attention for a long time. Many actors, including Aamir Khan, are part of this action drama. However, in a recent revelation that has taken fans by surprise, director Lokesh Kanagaraj confirmed that acclaimed actor Fahadh Faasil was almost roped in for a key role in Coolie. However, despite initial discussions, the collaboration couldn't materialize. In a recent conversation with The Hollywood Reporter India, Lokesh revealed that Soubin's character was originally written for Fahadh Faasil, and also approached him. However, due to Fahadh's prior commitments, the collaboration couldn't happen. Lokesh mentioned that he had developed the character over six months before eventually casting Soubin in the role. Although Fahadh couldn't be part of Coolie, he previously worked with Rajinikanth in Vettaiyan. The action thriller is already being called one of the most anticipated Indian films of 2025. This marks the first-ever collaboration between Rajinikanth and Lokesh, and the cast is packed with big names—Nagarjuna, Upendra, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, and Shruti Haasan all feature, while Bollywood icon Aamir Khan makes a cameo. As Lokesh wraps up the final stages of post-production, he shared an emotional moment that followed a recent screening of the film with Rajinikanth. 'After watching the film in the dubbing studio, he (Rajinikanth) hugged me and said, 'It looked like Thalapathi for me!' That made my day, and that was the night I slept very peacefully after many months. That is what I was telling my friends, too. If at all, I am doing a film with Rajini sir, it has to be somewhere close to Thalapathi. I cannot write a film on par with Mani sir's quality, as his film and writing is unmatched… But I get a little satisfaction when we compare that film with this one. Listening to the same words from Rajini sir was an achievement," she shared during a chat with The Hollywood Reporter India. Lokesh said Thalapathi has always been his favourite Rajinikanth film, and he wanted Coolie to carry a similar balance of style and substance. He also spoke about the original idea he had pitched to Rajinikanth before Coolie took shape. Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- News18
Lokesh Kanagaraj On Rajinikanth Comparing Coolie To Thalapathi: 'That Was The Night I…'
Rajinikanth compares Coolie to Thalapathi, leaving director Lokesh Kanagaraj emotional. The action film also stars Nagarjuna, Shruti Haasan, and Aamir Khan. Rajinikanth Coolie: With just a month to go until Coolie hits theatres worldwide, buzz around the film is building fast. Directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj and led by superstar Rajinikanth, the action thriller is already being called one of the most anticipated Indian films of 2025. This marks the first-ever collaboration between Rajinikanth and Lokesh, and the cast is packed with big names—Nagarjuna, Upendra, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, and Shruti Haasan all feature, while Bollywood icon Aamir Khan makes a cameo. As Lokesh wraps up the final stages of post-production, he shared an emotional moment that followed a recent screening of the film with Rajinikanth. 'After watching the film in the dubbing studio, he (Rajinikanth) hugged me and said, 'It looked like Thalapathi for me!' That made my day, and that was the night I slept very peacefully after many months. That is what I was telling my friends, too. If at all, I am doing a film with Rajini sir, it has to be somewhere close to Thalapathi. I cannot write a film on par with Mani sir's quality, as his film and writing is unmatched… But I get a little satisfaction when we compare that film with this one. Listening to the same words from Rajini sir was an achievement," she shared during a chat with The Hollywood Reporter India. Lokesh said Thalapathi has always been his favourite Rajinikanth film, and he wanted Coolie to carry a similar balance of style and substance. He also spoke about the original idea he had pitched to Rajinikanth before Coolie took shape. 'I loved writing for Rajini sir. I initially wrote a fantasy film for him, and he immediately said okay to it, but assembling it took so much time… it would've taken at least a year and a half to go ahead. You can write anything for the actor because he is larger than life. Even though I have tried a lot of new techniques and styles in the film, it will still be a Rajini sir film. I also don't want to change that." With praise coming directly from Rajinikanth, and a power-packed cast onboard, Coolie is shaping up to be a major release. Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
The Hindu
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Hindu
Rajinikanth compared ‘Coolie' with Mani Ratnam's ‘Thalapathi', reveals Lokesh Kanagaraj
Acclaimed Tamil filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj, who is awaiting the release of Coolie, his much-awaited action film with Rajinikanth, revealed on Monday (July 14) that the superstar compared Coolie with his iconic 1991 Mani Ratnam-directed film Thalapathi. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India, Lokesh, while speaking about how he didn't want to change the idea of a Rajinikanth film, said that he wished to emulate the delicate balance of star-filmmaking and flair that Mani Ratnam's film had. 'Out of all the films he has done, I love Thalapathi the most, and I have tried to maintain that balance with this film. That is what I have tried to achieve in writing Coolie.' Fascinatingly, after watching the film while dubbing, Rajinikanth too seems to have understood what Lokesh was going for in Coolie. 'He hugged me and said, 'It looks like Thalapathi to me.' And that made my day. That was the night I slept very peacefully after so many months. Because that's what I was trying to achieve. This is what I was telling my friends, 'If at all I am doing a film with Rajini sir, it has to be something at least near Thalapathi.' I can't say I have done a film that's on par with Mani Ratnam sir's quality; that is impossible. But I wanted that little satisfaction in my film being compared with that film. And listening to the same words from Rajini sir is something I consider an achievement,' added Lokesh. Earlier, the director had revealed that he had a different story pitched to and approved by Rajinikanth, but that he requested the superstar to consider a different script. Now, while recounting the same, Lokesh has revealed that the original film was a fantasy film. 'And Rajini sir was immediately on board with that idea. The problem was that even assembling it took so much time. Moreover, to prepare, make everyone available and then go on the floors, it would have taken one and a half years.' But Lokesh didn't want to waste Rajinikanth's time. 'I had worked for two months on that film, and then one day I called him and asked to meet. I told him, 'Let's not do this film; let's do another story.' That's when I told this idea (Coolie),' said Lokesh, explaining how he had originally given the idea of Coolie to a director friend of his. 'This is an idea I had thought of 5-6 years ago. In fact, I had given this story to one of my friends to direct, and he was trying to make it, but he couldn't do it. Later, when I decided not to do that original film with Rajini sir, I asked my friend, 'Hey, give the story back. I will give you something else. Let me work on this,' and he agreed to it, and that's how this film started.' Slated to release in theatres on August 14, Rajinikanth's Coolie features an ensemble star cast that includes Upendra, Nagarjuna Akkineni, Pooja Hegde, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, and Shruti Haasan. While Pooja Hegde is set to appear in a special role, teased in the recently released track 'Monica', Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan will feature in a special cameo in the film. Anirudh Ravichander is composing music for the movie, while Girish Gangadharan is the cinematographer. Anbariv is in charge of the stunt choreography. Produced by Kalanithi Maran of Sun Pictures, Coolie will face off with the spy action drama War 2, starring Jr NTR and Hrithik Roshan, at the box office. Meanwhile, Rajinikanth is currently shooting for Jailer 2. Directed by Nelson, the movie is a sequel to the hit 2023 movie. Anirudh is the music composer for Jailer 2, which will also feature Kannada star Shivarajkumar in an important role.
Time of India
14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Lokesh Kanagaraj recalls Rajinikanth's reaction after watching Coolie: ‘It looked like Thalapathi for me!'
With exactly one month left for the global release of Lokesh Kanagaraj 's highly-anticipated action thriller Coolie, starring the one and only Rajinikanth , excitement surrounding the film is at an all-time high. The film, which marks Lokesh's maiden collaboration with 'Thalaivar', is shaping up to be one of the biggest cinematic events of the year. Adding to the buzz, Coolie boasts an ensemble cast that includes Nagarjuna, Upendra , Soubin Shahir , Sathyaraj and Shruti Haasan , with a special cameo by Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan . 'It looked like Thalapathi for me!' While Lokesh is busy giving the final touches to the film, it was Rajinikanth's reaction after watching a cut of Coolie that has left the director overwhelmed with emotion. The superstar, who rarely doles out such high praise, hugged Lokesh and told him, 'It looked like Thalapathi for me!'—a moment that Lokesh describes as the most peaceful night of his recent life. 'That made my day, and that was the night I slept very peacefully after many months,' Lokesh told The Hollywood Reporter India. He further revealed that Thalapathi (1991), directed by Mani Ratnam, remains his favourite Rajinikanth film, and it was this blend of commercial entertainment and artistic depth that he set out to emulate in Coolie. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Introducing the Carens Clavis Kia India Read More Undo 'If at all I am doing a film with Rajini sir, it has to be somewhere close to Thalapathi. I cannot write a film on par with Mani sir's quality, as his film and writing is unmatched... but I get a little satisfaction when we compare that film with this one. Listening to those words from Rajini sir was an achievement,' he shared. Shruti Haasan Praises Rajinikanth in 'Coolie': 'Shrewd, Sharp… and So Warm' A fantasy film that turned into Coolie Lokesh also opened up about the early stages of the project, revealing that Coolie wasn't the first idea he pitched to Rajinikanth. 'I initially wrote a fantasy film for him, and he immediately said okay to it, but assembling it would've taken at least a year and a half. You can write anything for the actor because he is larger than life,' he said, highlighting Rajinikanth's adaptability and trust in his directors. Despite experimenting with new styles and techniques in Coolie, Lokesh assures fans that the film stays true to its central hero. 'It will still be a Rajini sir film. I also don't want to change that,' he affirmed.
