Chennai, Sep 169 (IANS) Actor Vijay Sethupathi, who plays the lead in director Balaji Tharaneetharan's eagerly awaited Tamil film 'Baththa', has said that he wishes to be as dedicated in his work as Superstar Rajinikanth was.
Participating in the audio launch event of the film, which was held at the Sathyabama Engineering college in the city, the actor, among other things said, "The one person who I've looked up to with fascination and have been totally in awe of is Superstar Rajinikanth."
He went on to explain, "I had recently acted in a scene in 'Jailer 2'. I had gone to the sets. It was just a small shot. He (Rajinikanth) and I were supposed to talk about something. Director Nelson came in with betel nuts, leaves and cloves and told Rajinikanth, 'Please use it if you need it.' For the kind of experience Rajinikanth sir has, he did not have to rehearse. But he took a piece of clove, some betal nuts and started chewing on them, even as he began folding the betal leaves. I realised he was checking the time I took to speak the dialogues and if they were synchronised to the time he took to fold the betal leaf. He rehearsed it some five to six times."
Vijay Sethupathi said, "If there is one thing that I wholeheartedly long and wish for, it is that till the time I die, if I am an actor, I have to be like that. I wish to be as dedicated in my work as he is."
For the unaware, the makers had recently released a glimpse video from the film titled 'The world of Baththa.'
The glimpse video opens with all those close to Baththa eagerly awaiting his return. It is evident that the film is set in the eighties. While Baththa's daughter says she is scared and wants her dad to return, his brother is seen exuding confidence that his brother will return. A small kid is seen saying, "Everybody is scared of him but he isn't scared of anything." The glimpse video also goes on to show that people expect a big crime to happen and the police are seen asking people if they suspect anybody.
All through the glimpse video, Baththa comes across as a ruffian who keeps bashing people. The glimpse video also gives the impression that he is not the ideal husband. There is a scene where he is seen spitting out food served to him by his wife. In another sequence, we see his wife (played by Lijomol Jose) asking him where he was and that they were searching for him. He replies to her in an arrogant tone, "You shouldn't search for me. I will be found by myself."
Starring Vijay Sethupathi and Lijomol Jose in the lead roles, ‘Baththa’ has been directed by Balaji Tharaneetharan, who is best known for having delivered the superhit film 'Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom', and presented by well known director Atlee.
On the technical front, Baththa has music by Sai Abhyankkar and cinematography by Selvakumar S.K. R. Kalaivanan has taken care of the film's editing while T Muthuraj has served as its Production Designer.
The film is slated for a worldwide theatrical release on October 1, 2026.
--IANS
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