Sathyaraj reunites with Rajinikanth after 38 years in Coolie; first look revealed

    Filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj has unveiled the first look of seasoned actor Sathyaraj from the much-anticipated movie Coolie.

    Sathyaraj in Coolie.

    Sathyaraj in Coolie.

    Filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj on Saturday unveiled the character look of seasoned actor Sathyaraj from the upcoming movie Coolie. Sathyaraj plays a character named Rajasekar in the movie, which stars Rajinikanth in the lead role.

    "Kicked to have #Sathyaraj sir joining the cast of #Coolie as #Rajasekar," tweeted Lokesh, while unveiling the poster. In the poster, Sathyaraj is seen looking intensely at an electric wire, adding a bit of intrigue.

    Coolie marks the onscreen reunion of Sathyaraj and Rajinikanth after a gap of 38 years. Sathyaraj began his career playing supporting roles and later established himself as a skilled actor in villain roles. He soon transitioned to playing heroic roles in movies, leaving behind the onscreen villainy for other actors. Early in his career, he shared screen space with Rajinikanth, with their performance in Mr. Bharath remaining iconic among fans of Tamil cinema.

    It was widely believed that Sathyaraj had a fallout with Rajinikanth, and they were not on talking terms. However, Sathyaraj recently addressed this concern and issued a clarification on why he didn't work with Rajinikanth for such a long time . "After I started playing lead roles, I was only offered two Rajinikanth films, Sivaji and Enthiran. But I felt both characters were unsatisfactory. Otherwise, I have no issues with Rajinikanth," he said earlier.

    Lokesh has put together a dream star cast for his maiden movie with Rajinikanth. Besides Sathyaraj, the movie also stars Malayalam actor Soubin Shahir as Dayal, Telugu star Nagarjuna Akkineni as Simon, and Shruti Haasan as Preethi. Recently, Kannada star Upendra also joined the cast, marking his first onscreen appearance with Rajinikanth.

    The shooting of Coolie is going on in Hyderabad in full swing. The film is expected to hit the screens early next year.