3 min readHyderabadMay 3, 2026 12:06 PM IST
Director Sundar C has spoken for the first time about why he stepped away from Thalaivar 173, the Rajinikanth-starrer produced by Kamal Haasan’s Raaj Kamal Films International.
In a candid interview with Behindwoods, Sundar C addressed his exit, “To be honest, it was too much pressure for me. For the past 16 years, I’ve made films the way I wanted, based on what I felt would work with the audience. But I don’t have the capacity to make people understand this during production. I don’t know how to narrate a film effectively, and at the same time, I get compromised easily without putting up a fight. So if I do a big film like this, it won’t be just my decisions. I felt the pressure and realised I couldn’t stay true to the project or the people involved. That’s why I stepped away at the very beginning stage itself,” he said.
He also addressed how he handled his exit publicly. Rather than acting unilaterally, he said he sought permission from both Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan before posting anything online. “I asked both Rajini and Kamal’s permission to give my statement on social media and then only posted,” he said.
The project was announced in early November 2025, just ahead of Kamal Haasan’s birthday on November 7. The announcement reunited Sundar C with Rajinikanth after nearly three decades, their last collaboration being the 1997 blockbuster Arunachalam. It also marked the first time Rajinikanth would be working under Kamal Haasan’s production banner, making it a landmark association in Tamil cinema.
The film was being targeted for a Pongal 2027 release. However, within days of the announcement, Sundar C put out a statement on social media confirming he was stepping back. At the time, he cited “unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances” without going into specifics.
In that earlier statement he had written: “Due to unforeseen and unavoidable circumstances, I have made the difficult decision to step back from the prestigious project, Thalaivar 173. This venture, featuring the legendary Superstar Thiru. Rajinikanth Avl and to be produced by the illustrious Ulaghanayagan Thiru. Kamal Haasan Avi, was indeed a dream come true for me.”
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He had also acknowledged what the opportunity meant to him personally: “In life, there are moments when we must follow the path laid out for us, even if it diverges from our dreams. My association with these two icons goes back a long way, and I will always hold them in the highest regard. The special moments we have shared over the past few days will be cherished forever by me.”
What came after
Following Sundar C’s exit, Raaj Kamal Films International announced director Cibi Chakaravarthi as his replacement in January 2026. Cibi, known for the 2022 Sivakarthikeyan-starrer Don, took over the project with the Pongal 2027 target still in place. The film’s music will be composed by Anirudh Ravichander.
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