22 January,2026 01:45 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Sudha Kongara
Parasakthi director Sudha Kongara recently opened up on the thought process behind her latest release. She also spoke about the cameros in the film, revealing that she first wanted Abhishek Bachchan and Vijay Deverakonda to feature in the film. Headlined by Sivakarthikeyan in the lead, the period drama includes special appearances by Basil Joseph, Rana Daggubati, and Dhananjaya, representing Malayalam, Telugu, and Kannada cinema, respectively.
Speaking to Cineulagam, Sudha Kongara revealed that her initial vision of the film involved actors from different language industries portraying key historical figures associated with the anti-Hindi movement shown in Parasakthi. Hence, she even reached out to Abhishek Bachchan for this. She shared, "Early on, I wanted actors of the respective languages to represent the historical figures in the film. Back then, we wanted to include a lot of such personalities who were part of the anti-Hindi movement. In fact, I even asked Abhishek Bachchan if he would be interested in playing one such cameo in the film."
However, as the script evolved, she reveals that the team realised that accommodating too many cameos could dilute the narrative. As a result, the idea was eventually streamlined to ensure the story remained the focus while still honouring the historical and linguistic diversity.
Apart from Abhishek, Sudha also revealed that Vijay Deverakonda was originally her first choice for a key cameo. However, the part eventually went to Rana Daggubati. Sudha shared, "Long back, I asked Vijay Deverakonda for Rana Daggubati's Michael Reddy cameo, but he was busy with the Kingdom shoot."
Nevertheless, Sudha expressed satisfaction with how the final cameos turned out despite the missed possibilities.
For the unaware, director Sudha Kongara's film 'Parasakthi', featuring Sivakarthikeyan and Sreeleela in the lead, revolves around the anti-Hindi agitation that rocked the state of Tamil Nadu in the 1960s. Apart from Sivakarthikeyan and Sree Leela, the film also features Ravi Mohan as the antagonist and Atharvaa in a pivotal role.
Parasakthi, which was tentatively being referred to as #SK25 as it is Sivakarthikeyan's 25th film, has music by G V Prakash and cinematography by experienced cameraman Ravi K Chandran. Stunts for the film are by Supreme Sundar. Parasakthi was earlier expected to clash with Vijay's Jana Nayagan during the Pongal season. However, after Jana Nayagan was delayed due to certification issues, Parasakthi was released solo on January 10.
(With inputs from IANS)
