I Don’t Make My Actors Sit For 3 Years Like RRR

Star director Lokesh Kanagaraj is undoubtedly a major force in Kollywood. The talented director has not delivered a single flop to date, and all his movies have been massive hits at the box office. For the first time in his career, Lokesh has joined hands with Superstar Rajinikanth for the keenly awaited gangster drama, Coolie, which releases on August 14, 2025.

Coolie, even though it started off as a Rajini-starrer, quickly blew up into a mega multistarrer, featuring celebrated actors from all the major film industries. Nagarjuna, Aamir Khan, Upendra, Soubin Shahir, Shruti Hassan, and others will be seen in lead roles in this high budget pan-India film.

In a recent interview, Lokesh revealed an interesting tidbit. He said that Malayalam actor Soubin Shahir had to cancel 6 to 7 films during 8 months of Coolie’s production. “Even though I am making a huge multistarrer, I am not making movies like RRR which makes actors sit for 3 years. I wrap up my films in 6-8 months. So I insist that my actors are entirely dedicated to my project and not disturb their getups throughout the making,” Lokesh said.

Working with a successful director like Lokesh is a win for all his actors. Even though an actor of Soubin’s caliber had to turn down a handful of projects to prioritise Lokesh’s project, the reach and fanbase he will enjoy once Coolie hits theaters will be unparalleled. Actors are well aware of this fact, and they gladly dedicate whatever time Lokesh demands from them.