Lokesh Kanagaraj On Rajinikanth Comparing Coolie To Thalapathi: 'That Was The Night I…'
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.
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