Vettaiyan

Vettaiyan is an upcoming Indian Tamil-language action drama film written and directed by T. J. Gnanavel. It is produced by Subaskaran Allirajah under Lyca Productions. The film stars Rajinikanth in the titular role, leading an ensemble cast that includes Amitabh Bachchan, Fahadh Faasil, Rana Daggubati, Manju Warrier, Ritika Singh and Dushara Vijayan.

The film was officially announced in March 2023 under the tentative title Thalaivar 170, as it is the 170th film of Rajinikanth as a lead actor, and the official title was announced in December 2023. Principal photography commenced in October 2023. It was shot sporadically in several legs. Filming locations included Thiruvananthapuram, Tirunelveli, Chennai, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. The film has music composed by Anirudh Ravichander, cinematography handled by S. R. Kathir and editing by Philomin Raj.

Vettaiyan is scheduled to release worldwide on October 2024 in theatres, coinciding with Diwali.

Development
In May 2022, it was reported that director T. J. Gnanavel would reunite with Suriya for his next directorial post the critically acclaimed Jai Bhim (2021). Then Suriya stated that if his film with Vetrimaaran, Vaadivaasal, got further delayed due to extensive pre-production works, they would collaborate again. Production was to begin after Suriya completed his commitments with Bala's Vanangaan at that time, but Suriya left Vanangaan due to reported creative differences with Bala. Gnanavel confirmed the reunion in November 2022 during an interview for the occasion. He further stated that he narrated the script to Suriya during the filming of Jai Bhim in 2021, and the actor approved it back then.

In July 2022, director Cibi Chakravarthy, was reported to begin work for his next, which would either star Vijay or Rajinikanth, with the latter being the top contender. In August, Chakravarthy confirmed that he indeed had begun work for his next directorial but the lead actor was not finalised. Throughout the year, speculations arose over the collaboration of the director and Rajinikanth and the film was temporarily titled Thalaivar 170. As Rajinikanth signed a two-film deal with Lyca Productions due to the success of 2.0 (2018), the venture was reported to be produced by Lyca. In January 2023, Chakravarthy reportedly confirmed the collaboration of him and Rajinikanth. However, the project failed to materialise and was dropped.

Pre-production
In January 2023, sources claimed that due to Suriya's commitments with Siva's Kanguva and Vetrimaran's Vaadivaasal, Gnanavel began work on another script. He reportedly narrated it to Rajinikanth, who was impressed by the director and immediately gave his nod. Lyca Productions announced the project on 2 March, tentatively titled Thalaivar 170. The project was planned to start after Rajinikanth wrapped up Jailer (2023) and Lal Salaam (2024). A muhurat puja was held on 4 October in Thiruvananthapuram in the presence of the cast and crew.

The film was made on a budget of inr 1600000000. Anirudh Ravichander would score the music, in his maiden collaboration with Gnanavel. On 4 October 2023, the technical crew including cinematographer S. R. Kathir, editor Philomin Raj and stunt choreography duo Anbariv were announced to have been retained by Gnanavel, after they previously worked in Jai Bhim. Art director K. Kathir, make-up artist Pattanam Rasheed and costume designer Anu Vardhan were chosen as crew. The official title Vettaiyan was announced on 12 December 2023, coinciding with Rajinikanth's 73rd birthday.

Casting
Rajinikanth was reported to star as a Muslim police officer. In June 2023, Amitabh Bachchan joined the cast, making his debut in Tamil cinema, as well as in his reunion with Rajinikanth after Hum (1991). Bachchan was initially set to make his Tamil debut with Uyarndha Manidhan; however due to issues between him and the producer, the film got shelved. Fahadh Faasil was signed as the main antagonist, in his fifth Tamil film.

Manju Warrier, Ritika Singh and Dushara Vijayan play the female leads, all collaborating with Rajinikanth for the first time,       and Rana Daggubati was chosen for a prominent role in the film. The actresses were announced on 2 October 2023, while Daggubati was announced the day after, by the production house. Rakshan and G. M. Sundar's presence at the muhurat puja confirmed their inclusion. Rohini, Rao Ramesh, and Ramesh Thilak were later announced by the production house to be a part of the cast.

Filming
Principal photography was scheduled to begin on the third week of September 2023 in Chennai, but ultimately began on 4 October in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala. Production moved to Tirunelveli on 11 October. In late October, the second schedule began filming in Mumbai, with Rajinikanth and Bachchan. The schedule concluded by 30 October. On 20 November, the filming began at Prasad Labs, Chennai. During this schedule, as Indian 2 was filming in the same studio, Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan met at the studio and posted videos and pictures to social media, which went viral. On 5 December, Singh, through her social media, stated that she would take a break from filming as she injured herself during the filming of her portions.

A leaked picture of Rajinikanth and Faasil, taken by paparazzi, was posted to X (formerly Twitter), where the film's social media security partner removed the picture from the social media and warned the users not to post or else they would lose their account. After a short break for Pongal, filming resumed in Puducherry. That schedule concluded by mid-January 2024. The final schedule began on 28 January in Kadapa, Andhra Pradesh. Rajinikanth, on 10 February, stated that 80% filming was done. In early March, production moved to Hyderabad, and Daggubati began filming his portions on 4 March. Filming of Rajinikanth's portions ended on 13 May 2024, while filming scenes of other actors continues as of June 2024.

Music
The music and background score is composed by Anirudh Ravichander, in his fourth collaboration with Rajinikanth after Petta (2019), Darbar (2020) and Jailer (2023); maiden with Gnanavel. The audio rights were acquired by Sony Music India. "Vettaiyan Birthday Teaser Music" is the song that was used on the title teaser that released on the occasion of Rajinikanth's birthday (12 December 2023).

Theatrical
Vettaiyan is scheduled to release worldwide in October 2024 in theatres, coinciding with Diwali.

Distribution
Red Giant Movies acquired the distribution rights of the film in Tamil Nadu. Lyca Productions will distribute themselves overseas.