Lokesh Kanagaraj gears up for Coolie, a high-stakes action thriller starring Rajinikanth and an ensemble cast. With a Rs 400 crore budget and record-breaking non-theatrical deals, the film is already making headlines ahead of its release
Lokesh Kanagaraj
Lokesh Kanagaraj is currently gearing up for the release of the Rajinikanth-starrer Coolie. Starring Rajinikanth, Nagarjuna, Shruti Haasan, Aamir Khan, and Upendra Rao, the film has generated immense buzz among audiences. The fees charged by the cast and crew have also become a major talking point, with director Lokesh reportedly earning as much as Rs 50 crore for the film.
Lokesh Kanagaraj on his whopping fee
However, Lokesh feels that his fee is justified, as the film comes with immense responsibility to perform at the box office. Talking to The Hollywood Reporter India, Lokesh said,“While I don’t want to talk about Rajini sir’s salary, I think I deserve the Rs 50 crore; I am going to pay tax on it, and two years of my life have gone into this project alone. It’s a Rs 400 crore film, and there is a lot of responsibility riding on my shoulders. I am very excited about it, and if the film does well and we earn a lot, all that money is going to help my family and friends, with whom I lost touch during the time I was working on Coolie.”
According to reports, Rajinikanth is being paid a sum of Rs 150 crore for the film. While Aamir Khan and Nagarjuna will appear in cameos, they are reportedly being paid handsomely for their roles.
Budget and pre-release business
The producers have set aside an additional Rs 25 crore for print and publicity, taking the total production budget to Rs 375 crore. Fortunately for Coolie, thanks to its immense pre-release buzz, the makers have already recovered a significant portion of the budget through non-theatrical avenues.
"Coolie has fetched Rs 130 crore from digital streaming rights, Rs 90 crore from satellite rights, and Rs 20 crore from music rights. This totals Rs 240 crore in non-theatrical revenue, leaving Rs 135 crore to be recovered through theatrical business,” a source added.
About Coolie
Coolie, expected to be an action-packed thriller, features an ensemble cast from across the Indian film industry. Apart from Rajinikanth, the film stars Telugu actor Nagarjuna, Kannada star Upendra, Malayalam actor Soubin Shahir, and Tamil veteran Sathyaraj. Bollywood icon Aamir Khan is also rumored to make a cameo appearance.
The cast also includes Shruti Haasan, Reba Monica John, and Junior MGR in significant roles.
The film is produced by Kalanithi Maran under the Sun Pictures banner. Anirudh Ravichander is composing the music, with cinematography by Girish Gangadharan and editing by Philomin Raj.
Coolie marks Rajinikanth’s 171st film and is centered around gold smuggling. Director Lokesh Kanagaraj has confirmed that the film will be a standalone project and not a part of his Lokesh Cinematic Universe (LCU).
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