Why did Mani Ratnam drop first version of Ponniyin Selvan starring Thalapathy Vijay and Mahesh Babu?

Pink Villa

12-06-2025

The Ponniyin Selvan franchise by Mani Ratnam, starring Chiyaan Vikram, Ravi Mohan, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Trisha Krishnan, has been considered super-successful for several reasons. The epic historical drama was a two-part film series released between 2022 and 2023.
However, did you know that the filmmaker had a completely different cast in mind initially when he had planned out the movie back in 2010? Yes, you read that right.
Ponniyin Selvan was supposed to be made in 2010
In an old Tamil interview, Mani Ratnam's assistant and director Dhana had revealed that the former had plans to make Ponniyin Selvan as far back as 2010. He said that the filmmaker had already begun the pre-production work for the project, and several discussions had taken place.
Most importantly, Dhana mentioned that Mani Ratnam had an altogether different idea about the cast of the film in mind, which did not include any of the names with whom Ponniyin Selvan was eventually made.
Were Mahesh Babu, Thalapathy Vijay first choice for Ponniyin Selvan?
Well, yes, Mahesh Babu and Thalapathy Vijay were the first ones to be signed to play the leads in Ponniyin Selvan. The two of them had signed the project, and a brief shooting had also taken place.
However, it was Mani Ratnam who decided to stall the project, since he believed the availability of advanced VFX was not so readily abundant back then. It was dropped and then taken up almost a decade later.
When Mahesh Babu confirmed brief stint with Thalapathy Vijay for Ponniyin Selvan
Later on, Mahesh Babu also confirmed the same, speaking about the brief period he spent working with Thalapathy Vijay on a small photoshoot for the Mani Ratnam film.
He said, 'Before seven days of the principal shoot, there was a photo shoot session with Vijay in Chennai, but unfortunately, the project got shelved. Even now, I share a close rapport with Vijay; he is a good friend."