Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui has started preparing for his first Tamil film. The Karthik Subbaraj directorial has Rajinikanth in the lead role and a host of other stars as part of the cast, including Vijay Sethupathi, Trisha, and Simran.
Nawazuddin Siddiqui is expected to play the role of the villain.
The actor, who is known for his gritty performances, posted a picture of himself rehearsing the lines for the film on Instagram, adding that he was excited to work with the "Superstar Thalaivar".
Earlier, reports suggested that Karthik Subbaraj had met Siddiqui and narrated the story to him when he was promoting his silent thriller Mercury in Mumbai. However, it was several weeks later that the news of Siddiqui being in the star cast was confirmed.
Although Siddiqui primarily works in Bollywood, he's a well-known name in metros in the south, particularly after the Netflix series Sacred Games. In the series, Siddiqui had played a gangster and the story revolved around him.
Meanwhile, Rajinikanth is gearing up for the release of Shankar's 2.0, the sequel to Enthiran. The actor's last two films, Kabali and Kaala, were with director Pa Ranjith and had strong political overtones. Not much is known about the subject of the Subbaraj film so far. Vijay Sethupathi's role is also under the wraps although it was speculated that he'll be playing a negative role.
Trisha has acted with Kamal Haasan earlier but this is for the first time that she will be sharing screen space with Rajinikanth. Simran, who'd taken a break from cinema, has made a return doing small roles in films. However, the Karthik Subbaraj film may offer her a chance to bounce back in a big way.
Karthik Subbaraj's Mercury received a mostly positive response in Tamil Nadu although it got mixed reviews outside the state. The young director is known for experimenting with themes and storytelling methods. The star cast for his new film has impressed cinema fans across the states, considering it's for the first time that we will be seeing such a combination on screen.
It's unknown as of now when the multi-starrer is likely to release.