Coolie: Was Soubin Shahir's character Dayal originally written for Fahadh Faasil? Lokesh Kanagaraj reveals
Who did Lokesh Kanagaraj approach first for Coolie?
In his conversation with The Hollywood Reporter, Lokesh Kanagaraj revealed that he initially wanted another actor for the character Dayal instead of Soubin Shahir.
In response, Loki said, 'Initially, I didn't write the character for Soubin sir, but it was written for someone else, some other star. I don't want to mention the name, but I couldn't work with him for various reasons. I didn't know where else to go after that because I really wrote it for him.'
The director continued, how his second choice was Fahadh Faasil and said, 'I want to work with Fahadh sir again, but sir was also not available, and I didn't want him to do the same thing he had done in Vikram. So I was searching for a lot of other actors, and finally, I've signed on Soubin sir.'
Soubin Shahir as Dayal
Soubin Shahir was one of the first cast announcements from Coolie that was made back in the day. As he plays the role of Dayal, the Manjummel Boys actor was seen shaking his legs alongside Pooja Hegde in the song Monica.
About Coolie
Coolie is an upcoming Tamil-language actioner starring Superstar Rajinikanth in the lead role. The film is said to revolve around a harbour and the lives of labourers, with Nagarjuna Akkineni and Upendra Rao playing key roles.
Apart from the veteran stars, Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan will be making a cameo appearance in the movie. Moreover, an ensemble cast of actors like Shruti Haasan, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, Pooja Hegde (dance number), and more are also part of the movie.
In the recent interview itself, Lokesh Kanagaraj confirmed that Coolie's trailer will be released on August 2, 2025. The director does not want to reveal much about the plot ahead of its release.
On the other hand, Fahadh Faasil is soon set to appear in the Tamil film Maareesan. The movie directed by Sudheesh Sankar is slated to release on July 25, 2025, with Vadivelu as the co-lead.
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