Jagame Thandhiram director Karthik Subbaraj: I always wanted to work with Dhanush

Jagame Thandhiram is all set to release on Netflix on 18^th June 2021. The Karthik Subbaraj directorial stars Dhanush in the lead role.

Recently, while talking to PTI, the filmmaker opened up about casting Dhanush in the movie. He stated, "I always wanted to work with Dhanush. He is an extraordinary performer and I have loved his work since his debut with Thulluvadho Ilamai. Pudhupettai is one of my favourite films. He brings a lot of detailing to his characters. He just reads the script and decides what all things the character is going to do. How is he going to walk, laugh, and even the minor things."

In the movie, Dhanush plays the role of a gangster named Surli. In his last film Karnan also the actor portrayed the character of a gangster, but Karthik says that both the characters are different.

He said, "I recently saw Karnan and the way he has differentiated between these two characters is amazing. His performance as Karnan is entirely different from what he is doing with Surli. I don't know how he does this. When you write something and then the actors elevate it to a different level, it brings pure joy to me.”

Jagame Thaandhiram stars British actor James Cosmo in a pivotal role. But Karthik reveals that he earlier wanted Hollywood actor Robert De Niro to play the role.

The filmmaker said, "Initially, we had set the film in New York and we were looking for Hollywood actors. I wanted to cast Robert De Niro for the film but after some time, we realised that it won't be possible. It wasn't affordable either to shoot in New York.” Later, he decided to shoot the film in London.

Karthik added, "We needed a British actor and James Cosmo was on the top of our list. The process was very professional. You have to send the script and they will read it. If they like it, they will get back to you. James Cosmo liked the script and his character. That's how he came aboard the film. It was a great experience."

The movie was earlier slated to release in theatres, however, due to the pandemic, the makers decided to release it on Netflix. Producer Sashikanth said, "Given the circumstances today, you realise there are no theatres. But instead of focusing on the negative side of things, you look at the positive. We have a great film and as directors, producers, and everyone involved in the process, we want it to reach the maximum number of people in the best way possible.”

"And what better platform than Netflix, which has over 200 million subscribers. It is a global release. People around the world who are watching Narcos and House of Cards will now see a Tamil movie of the same standard," he added.

Post the release of Jagame Thandhiram, Karthik will resume the shoot of his next film which stars Vikram in the lead role. Talking about it, he said, "I have finished 50 percent of the shoot. But we had to stop the filming for safety purposes. Once the lockdown is over, we will restart work.”