Hanuman Gear dropped for Fahadh Faasil, Vadivelu’s ‘realistic’ entertainer? Sudheesh Shankar opens up | Exclusive

Malayalam filmmaker Sudheesh Shankar will be helming Maamannan duo Fahadh Faasil and Vadivelu’s upcoming Tamil movie, which was announced recently. Incidentally, the filmmaker was set to direct Fahadh in another Malayalam movie – Hanuman Gear last year. This prompted speculations if the upcoming Tamil film was in fact what was announced in Malayalam in 2023.

In an exclusive chat with OTTplay, Sudheesh, who had previously helmed the Dileep-starrer Villali Veeran, tells us that both projects are different.

“We have not dropped Hanuman Gear. We have pushed it, so we can do the Tamil film first,” he says. “Hanuman Gear requires extensive VFX work. The plan is to shoot for three months and then work on the CGI for about six months. This is a project we can wrap up quickly and that’s why we have decided to go ahead with this.”

Also read: Exclusive! Hanuman Gear: Fahadh Faasil plays an off-road enthusiast in realistic thriller 

On the Tamil movie, which is yet to be titled, the director says, “It has humour but it’s not a comedy per se; it has a realistic mood. It will entertain the audience; they will be happy when they come out of the theatres. More than a road movie, it has several other elements that I don’t want to reveal right now.”

Ask him about the characters Fahadh and Vadivelu will be playing in the movie, which has Yuvan Shankar Raja as its composer, Sudheesh says, “In Maamannan, their characters were at loggerheads. In this film, they are both heroes, but I don’t want to give out their relationship dynamic yet.”

The movie will go on floors on January 22. Fahadh, who is currently shooting for Rajinikanth’s Vettaiyan, will join the team post the Pongal break. The movie, which will be shot and released in Tamil with no dubbed versions planned as of, is entirely set in Tamil Nadu with Chennai, Tiruvannamalai, Tirunelveli and Nagercoil being the main locations.

Also read: Maamannan on OTT: Netizens slam makers after social media glorifies Fahadh Faasil's toxic character 

Meanwhile, Fahadh’s next release in Malayalam will be Jithu Madhavan’s Aavesham, which will hit theatres in April. He has also wrapped up shooting for Pushpa 2: The Rule and is part of Althaf Salim’s Odum Kuthira Chaadum Kuthira.

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