Actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan has officially announced the title of his upcoming film, tentatively known as KH237. Titled Sandiyar, the film is directed by SU Arun Kumar and is scheduled for release next year.
Sharing the title announcement, Raaj Kamal Films International wrote, “Sandiyar.”
Interestingly, Sandiyar was also the original title of Kamal Haasan’s 2004 film Virumaandi. The Tamil word loosely translates to a rowdy or troublemaker. However, the title sparked controversy in 2003, with Dalit political outfit Puthiya Tamizhagam, led by K Krishnasamy, alleging that it glorified caste-based violence and could fuel tensions in southern Tamil Nadu. Following the protests, Kamal eventually renamed the film Virumaandi.
SANDIYAR
சண்டியர் 🔥#KamalHaasan #SUArunkumar
#Sandiyar #சண்டியர்
#SandiyarSambavam #HappyBirthdayKamalHaasan #HBDKamalHaasan #CelebratingKamalHaasan
@ikamalhaasan #Mahendran @anirudhofficial @anbariv #SunilKS @amritharam2 #CSBalachandar @AKunjamma @RohanShrestha @RKFI @turmericmediaTM @magizhmandram @APIfilms @homescreenent
— Raaj Kamal Films International (@RKFI) November 6, 2026
Sandiyar also marks an important collaboration for stunt choreographer duo AnbAriv, who had earlier expressed their excitement about working with Kamal Haasan. In 2024, they wrote, “We saw cinema through our eyes all these days! Now cinema itself has seen us through its eyes! For us Cinema is Kamal Haasan! Kamal sir. This is our lifetime achievement! We promise to give the best.”
Kamal Haasan was last seen in the 2025 film Thug Life, which turned out to be a major box office disappointment. Made on a reported budget of over Rs 180 crore, the film managed to collect just Rs 97 crore at the box office.
Earlier, speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, Kamal Haasan’s daughter and actor Shruti Haasan had opened up about her father’s approach to box office failures, revealing that commercial numbers do not affect him in the way people might expect.
She said, “My dad comes from a time and a mindset where he put all of his own money back into cinema. He didn’t spend it on a second property or a third car, it all went back to the cinema. I don’t think that the numbers game affects him in the way that people perceive it. It’s more of a nouveau riche problem.”
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