Rajinikanth's film with Kamal Haasan gets new director after Sundar C's exit, Cibi Chakaravarthi to direct Thalaivar 173

After Sundar C and Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan parted ways last year, it was announced on Saturday that Cibi Chakravarthi will direct Thalaivar 173.

After Sundar C’s exit from the Rajinikanth-starrer produced by Kamal Haasan’s Raaj Kamal Films International, director Cibi Chakaravarthi has been roped in to helm the project. Tentatively titled Thalaivar 173, the film is expected to hit screens for Pongal 2027.

Rajinikanth's next film, Thalaivar 173, will be produced by Kamal Haasan and directed by Cibi Chakaravarthi.

Cibi Chakravarthi roped in for Thalaivar 173

On Saturday, Raaj Kamal Films International confirmed that Cibi would be directing the film, starring Rajinikanth, and produced by Kamal. Making the announcement, they wrote, “Every HERO has a FAMILY. #Arambikalama #Thalaivar173 #SuperStarPongal2027” This comes after the names of everyone from Nelson Dilipkumar to Lokesh Kanagraj were floated as contenders for the much-awaited film.

Cibi also announced the news, writing, “Once, a small-town boy’s big dream was to meet his favourite star “SUPER STAR” & take a picture with him, which drove his passion towards cinema — and the big dream happened one day. Then he had the biggest dream of directing his Superstar. He came so close, but got missed. Then he continued to believe it would happen one day — and today is that day. #Thalaivar173 Day.”

He added, “And I remember Thalaivar saying, “Dreams do come true. Miracles do happen.” At times, life goes beyond dreams and becomes even bigger, with legendary Ulaganayakan, Padma Shri @ikamalhaasan sir and #Mahendran sir as our producer. Grateful forever @rajinikanth sir, @ikamalhaasan sir & #Mahendran sir — and I promise to put my heart & soul to keep up the trust.”

About Cibi Chakaravarthi

For the unversed, Cibi debuted in Kollywood with the 2022 coming-of-age comedy Don, starring Sivakarthikeyan. He posted a picture with Rajinikanth after the release of his film, writing, “Met Superstar @rajinikanth sir, blessed with a conversation for an hour about #DON, life & cinema. His presence was divine, his words were Wisdom & We were on cloud9 When he said “What a film, What an emotion” All we could say is “What a Man” Love you Thalaiva.”

Cibi spoke in numerous interviews about being a fan of Rajinikanth and how he met with the Tamil star after Don’s release to discuss scripts.

Sundar C’s exit from the Rajinikanth-Kamal film

The production house announced on November 5 last year that actor-director Sundar C has been roped in to direct Thalaivar 173. The news was met with mixed reactions from people who had hoped for someone else. However, a few days after the announcement, on November 13, Sundar announced his exit from the film due to ‘unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances.’

After speculation that his script was turned down, his wife, actor-politician Khushbu Sundar, slammed these rumours as ‘hearsay’. She also posted pictures with Kamal and called him ‘encyclopedia of cinema’, putting rumours of a rift to rest. As for Kamal, “As an investor, I want a script that my star likes for the film. That is the healthy way to go about it,” is all he said about it.

Upcoming work

Both Rajinikanth and Kamal have been teasing their collaboration since before the release of the former’s Lokesh Kanagaraj film Coolie in 2025. Kamal was last seen in Mani Ratnam’s Thug Life and is now shooting for a yet-to-be-announced project. Rajinikanth will soon star in Nelson Dilipkumar’s Jailer 2.