KGF fame Yash and Abishek Bachchan were the first choices to play Vijay’s villain in Thalapathy 64!

Vijay is currently shooting for his new film with Lokesh Kanagraj, which has been tentatively titled as ‘Thalapathy 64’. The film boasts of an ensemble cast comprising of Vijay Sethupathi, Malavika Mohanan, Antony Varghese and Shanthanu Bhagyaraj. Lokesh has scripted the film with additional screenplay by Pon Parthiban and ‘Aadai’ director Rathna Kumar. It is said to be an action-packed gangster flick that will be totally different from Vijay’s regular mass-masala films.

While Vijay is said to be playing the lead role of a college professor, Vijay Sethupathi will be seen as the villain in this film. Interestingly, the makers had first approached couple of other big stars to essay the antagonist role. ‘KGF’ fame Yash and Abhishek Bachchan were the first choices to play Vijay’s villain. Though both the stars were impressed by the script, they could not allot immediate dates due to prior commitments.

It was only later that the makers approached Vijay Sethupathi. The actor squeezed in dates amidst his busy schedule as this was a huge project and he was also a hefty sum as remuneration. It is the first time Vijay and Vijay Sethupathi are acting together and that is one of the biggest attractions of this film.

After wrapping up the forst schedule in Chennai, the team is currently in Delhi for a month long shoot. Xavier Britto is producing the film, which is scheduled for a summer release in 2020.