SJ Suryah joins the cast of Vetrimaaran's Viduthalai 2

Actor-filmmaker SJ Suryah is the latest to join the cast of director Vetrimaaran's upcoming movie Viduthalai Part 2. According to industry sources, Suryah was roped in to play an extended cameo in the last leg of the film's production. An official confirmation on this is, however, awaited.

The production of Viduthalai Part 2 is taking longer than expected. Vetrimaaran initially envisioned Viduthalai as a single movie with Soori playing the main lead. Vijay Sethupathi's role in the movie was supposed to be key but with a brief runtime. However, the narrative changed drastically once Vetrimaaran started shooting.

Vijay Sethupathi's character, Perumal Vaathiyaar, became the nucleus of the narrative. Subsequently, the director decided to split the movie into two parts and release it in cinemas in 2023. The second part was also expected to hit the screens soon, but production seems to have dragged on for various reasons.

Vetrimaaran is notorious for continuing to shoot and edit his movies until the eve of their release.

Viduthalai was inspired by writer B. Jeyamohan's short story. The film is a gritty depiction of the dehumanizing consequences of unchecked police power. It mainly follows the experiences of a young cop who is deployed in high-security risk areas on the borders of Tamil Nadu. The low-ranking cop, Kumaresan (Soori), finds himself in a moral dilemma when he is asked to inflict pain on innocent people. The special task force, which is tasked with the capture of Perumal Vaathiyaar, is given unlimited powers, and the government has turned a blind eye to their degrading methods, leaving common people the most vulnerable to all kinds of abuse.

Viduthalai opened in cinemas to glowing reviews and became a huge hit at the box office, creating a lot of anticipation for Part 2.