Tamil cinema in 2024: Where biggies failed to deliver and smaller films took centre stage

With the curtains drawing on 2024, Tamil cinema had its most tumultuous run post-pandemic this year. 2010 was the last time when Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan, Ajith, Vijay, Suriya and Vikram had a release in the same year and it was believed 2024 could be the year when it happens again. With Kamal and Ajith saving their works for 2025, almost all the biggies of Tamil cinema had a release in 2024. But when some of the biggest and most expected projects bit the dust, it’s the comparatively smaller films which excelled thanks to solid, intimate scripts accentuated by their able cast in which Tamil cinema-goers found their solace. Here are some trends that shaped Kollywood this year.

The rise of the young bloods!

In a year when some much-hyped collaborations between established filmmakers and veteran actors failed to live up to their hype, it was the next generation of actors who rose to the occasion to save the day (or year). Sivakarthikeyan’s Amaran (despite criticisms for bypassing political issues plaguing Kashmir where the film is set) and Vijay Sethupathi’s Maharaja (despite heated discussions around its portrayal of sexual violence as a plot device) turned out to be some of the biggest hits of 2024. Despite mixed reviews, Dhanush’s Raayan turned out to be a money-spinner and Jiiva tasted success with his intriguing thriller Black while Prashanth made a commendable comeback with Andhagan. Karthi and Arvind Swami’s Meiyazhagan hit us like a gentle breeze, while Arulnithi-Ajay Gnanamuthu’s Demonte Colony 2 joined the elite club of sequels that worked.

The younger crop of actors were the ones who pleasantly surprised us the most. Manikandan continues his phenomenal run with this year’s best romance, Lover. Though Kavin’s Star did not live up to the expectations, his dark-humour flick Bloody Beggar was a welcome change given the onslaught of thrillers we had this year. Soori’s Garudan is a personal favourite while Harish Kalyan and ‘Gethu’ Dinesh’s Lubber Pandhu became the people’s choice. Dhanush and Arun Matheswaran’s Captain Miller, RJ Balaji’s Sorgavaasal and Ashok Selvan and Shanthanu Bhagyaraj’s Blue Star are fascinating films that deserved more love than they received.

An expensive wake-up call

2024 will be one of those rare years where there was no well-rounded, satisfying big-star vehicle. Vijay’s penultimate outing The Greatest of All Time, Rajinikanth’s Vettaiyan, Sivakarthikeyan’s Ayalaan, Vikram and Pa Ranjith’s Thangalaan, Dhanush’s Raayan and Vetrimaaran’s long-expected Viduthalai Part 2 received mixed reviews. Director Gautham Vasudev Menon’s Joshua: Imai Pol Kaakha, director Hari and Vishal’s Rathnam, director Chimbu Deven’s Boat and director Rajesh -Jayam Ravi’s Brother sank without a trace. Director Aishwarya Rajinikanth’s Lal Salaam which featured the legendary Rajini in an extended cameo turned out to be a box-office bomb. But none of these films could match the disappointment the two most-awaited biggies gave this year; director Shankar and Kamal Haasan’s Indian 2 and director Siva and Suriya’s Kanguva. Arguably the biggest hit from Tamil cinema from an experienced filmmaker and a seasoned cast has to be Sundar C’s Aranmanai 4.

When success favoured the newest

Every year, a slew of new filmmakers pleasantly shock us with their debut ventures, and 2024 is no different. In a year where some of the most expected films failed to deliver, it’s these little gems that made the industry hold its head high among neighbouring industries that had a comparatively better run. It started with debutant S Jayakumar’s Blue Star in January and the very next month, newbie Prabhuram Vyas’ Lover was released. Suresh Mari’s J Baby — starring the veteran Urvashi in arguably the best performance by an actor in Tamil cinema this year — is an underrated gem. And so is John Glady’s film on pigeon racing in Nagercoil, Byri, Pascal Vedamuthu’s Veppam Kulir Mazhai, Pari Elavazhagan’s Jama, Ananth Ram’s Nanban Oruvan Vantha Piragu, Samyuktha Vijayan’s Neela Nira Sooriyan, Sriram Ananthashankar’s Rocket Driver and Micheal K. Raja’s Pogumidam Vegu Thooramillai starring Vemal and Karunas.

Rise of the multi-starrers

While Tamil cinema has long forgotten its ‘double-hero’ subject films featuring top stars which were a mainstay a couple of decades ago, the pan-Indian trend has made way for a slew of multi-starrers and this year the count went up considerably. Captain Miller featured Dhanush alongside Priyanka Mohan, Shiva Rajkumar and Sundeep Kishan while the same month gave us Blue Star with Ashok Selvan and Shanthanu Bhagyaraj. Ashok Selvan also teamed up with Vasanth Ravi and Aishwarya Lekshmi for the underwhelming Pon Ondru Kanden. Garudan featured a strong cast which includes Soori, Sasikumar, Unni Mukundan, Roshini Haripriyan and Sshivada.

Indian 2 featured Kamal alongside Siddharth, S J Suryah, Rakul Preet Singh and Priya Bhavani Shankar. Suryah was also a part of Dhanush’s Raayan which starred Sundeep Kishan, Kalidas Jayaram, Dushara Vijayan and Aparna Balamurali. Vijay’s The Greatest of All Time had an ensemble of talents like Prashanth, Prabhu Deva, Sneha, Mohan, Laila and Meenakshi Chaudhary. A similar biggie with a stellar cast is Rajini’s Vettaiyan co-starrring Fahadh Faasil, Rana Daggubati, Manju Warrier, Ritika Singh, Dushara Vijayan and the legendary Amitabh Bachchan in his Tamil debut. Lubber Pandhu and Meiyazhagan were based on the story of two men

The 2 in 2024

The year turned out to be great for a few filmmakers whose sophomore ventures ended up becoming hits and interestingly, a few actors also had two notable releases this year. Nithilan Saminathan’s Maharaja and Rajkumar Periasamy’s Amaran are two of Tamil cinema’s highest grossers of this year. Interestingly, the stars of the two films, Vijay Sethupathi and Sivakarthikeyan, also had Viduthalai Part 2 and Ayalaan this year. After the beautiful Pa Paandi, Raayan became Dhanush’s second directorial and the actor, apart from Raayan, also starred in Captain Miller. Rajinikanth, after 2018, was seen in two films — Lal Salaam and Vettaiyan. Post Koozhangal which was selected as the Indian entry for the Best International Feature Film at the 94th Academy Awards, PS Vinothraj came this year with the fantastic Kottukkaali. Actors like Jayam Ravi, Keerthy Suresh, Kavin, RJ Balaji, Rakul Preet Singh, Priyanka Mohan, Hiphop Tamizha Aadhi, Meenakshi Chaudhary, Prashanth, Manju Warrier, Siddharth, Sasikumar, Santhanam, Megha Akash, Bharath, Attakathi Dinesh, Keerthi Pandian and Vemal starred in two Tamil films this year.

Bowled over

Films on cricket are anything but new to Indian cinema. But fascinatingly, this year, Tamil cinema had 3 films centred around the bat-and-ball game and interestingly, all three of them were about two men from different teams; foes who end up as friends. Blue Star featured its leading men as angsty youngsters from rival communities and explored caste dynamics. Lal Salaam was about two men from different religions and the film was backed by a strong social message. Lubber Pandhu was a whole new ballgame as it focussed on the ego between two players from different generations with a good dose but with a lot happening beneath.

Where are the women?

It was quite an underwhelming year for women in Tamil cinema. Women-fronted films that had a huge rise during the pandemic saw its biggest drop this season. Keerthy Suresh’s Raghu Thatha made for a decent entry to the list but many women-led films, including Hansika’s Guardian, ended up as damp squibs. 2024 also marked Nayanthara’s first year after 2012 when she did not have a single film release — though she had her fascinating documentary, Nayanthara: Beyond the Fairytale, come out this year — while Trisha was only seen in a special appearance in The Greatest of All Time.

Though not a pound-for-pound comparison, there were quite a few well-written women’s roles this year and some terrific performances. Malayalam actor Anna Ben, who made her Telugu debut with a quirky role in Kalki 2898 AD this year also made her Tamil debut with the fantastic Kottukkaali. As mentioned earlier, Urvashi was phenomenal in J Baby and speaking about seniors, Simran had a meaty role in Andhagan which she pulled off very well. Parvathy Thiruvothu made her presence felt in Thangalaan and if Sivakarthikeyan was the beating heart of Amaran, Sai Pallavi was its soul.

Tamannaah showed why she’s more than just the ‘Kaavaalaa’ and ‘Aaj Ki Raat’ girl when she made a fitting comeback to Tamil cinema with Aranmanai 4 and left us wishing we saw more of her acting prowess. Sri Gouri Priya in Lover was a lovely fit as someone with a lot to offer stuck in a toxic relationship and Preity Mukhudhan — if you have not seen one of the countless dancing reels of her on Instagram — showed she’s more than just a pretty face in Star. Transwoman Samyuktha Vijayan helmed and starred in the poignant Neela Nira Sooriyan, a wonderful addition to Tamil queer cinema. Other notable performances include Sri Ismath Banu in Veppam Kulir Mazhai and Raghu Thatha, Reshma Venkatesh and Tanya Ravichandran in Rasavathi, Sshivada and Roshini Haripriyan in Garudan, Dushara Vijayan in Raayan and Swasika nabbed the role that redefined her career with Lubber Pandhu.

Politically correct

With Pushpa 2: The Rule grossing more than ₹1700 crore, there was a lot of ludicrous chitchat on social media on how Tamil cinema is leaning more towards politically charged films that are taking a toll on its commercial viability. While the films only held up a mirror to our society and reflected what’s still unfortunately the state of the oppressed in our nation, what the absurd argument did not put forth is the dip in quality of these much-needed message-driven films.

The best of the lot from this year’s list has to be Mari Selvaraj’s Vaazhai — a film that explores themes like caste, exploitation, and capitalism — which was his most personal, intimate outing to date followed by PS Vinothraj’s Kottukkaali which focussed on the plight of women in a caste-ridden patriarchal society. On the flip side, Vetrimaaran’s much-awaited Viduthalai, despite going against systemic oppression head-on, turned out to be the filmmaker’s weakest film. Similarly, Pa Ranjith’s most ambitious project, Thangalaan, despite its unapologetically pertinent political takes and fantastic performances, could not match with the maker’s previous hits.

Arun Matheswaran-Dhanush’s Captain Miller also discussed contemporary issues in a period set up while Blue Star explored how intermediary castes, just like Dalits, are not given an easy way out by the oppressors. Lal Salaam advocated for religious tolerance while Rajini’s other film this year, Vettaiyan was a social drama. Slivers of much-needed political discourse that unfortunately did not translate well to film medium were seen in multiple cases this year with some examples being Rebel, Election, Boat, Nandhan and Sir.

Out of tune

2024 will also be infamous for its lack of quality earworms as there was a considerable drop in the number of chartbusters Tamil cinema produced this year. GV Prakash arguably gave the best of the lot with neat work in films like Captain Miller, Thangalaan and Amaran, especially with the background score. His ‘Golden Sparrow’ from the yet-to-be-released Nilavuku En Mel Ennadi Kobam became a crowd favourite. AR Rahman who had an amazing year with Amar Singh Chamkila in Hindi and Aadujeevitham in Malayalam had a rather underwhelming year in Tamil. While his work in Raayan was appreciated, his songs ‘Ther Thiruvizha’ and ‘Ae Pulla’ in Lal Salaam are underrated gems that went unnoticed because of the film’s run. The master’s ‘Yennai Izhukkuthadi’ from next year’s release Kadhalikka Neramillai turned out to be a chartbuster though.

Anirudh, on the other hand, could not match his previous years’ works with what he delivered for this year’s Indian 2 and Vettaiyan, even though ‘Manasilayo’ became a huge hit. He’s sure to have a better year in 2025 with ‘Dheema’ which is the first single from Love Insurance Kompany and ‘Chikitu Vibe’ from Rajini’s Coolie which are scheduled to release next year turning out to be hits already. But his first single from Vidaamuyarchi, ‘Sawadeeka’, sounded more like the wannabe version of ‘Aaluma Doluma’ from the composer’s first collaboration with Ajith in Vedalam. Similarly, Yuvan Shankar Raja and Devi Sri Prasad’s work in their big-ticket films The Greatest of All Time and Kanguva was not up to the mark. Thankfully, Yuvan delivered with Star and his ‘Panjavarna Kiliye’ from Garudan is a personal favourite.

Thankfully, it was once again the comparatively smaller films that stood tall to save the day. Sean Roldan’s Lover featured some soothing tracks and ‘Chillanjirukkiye’ from Lubber Pandhu is a constant on radio channels. Santhosh Narayan, who was busy with other language films this year, did a fantastic job on his 50th film, Kalki 2898 AD. Closer home, his music in Vaazhai is a clear winner with ‘Thenkizhakku’ being our pick of the lot. Govind Vasantha served two treats in the form of Blue Star (Railin Oligal turned out to be the film’s calling card) and Meiyazhagan (watch out for Kamal Haasan’s soul-stirring ‘Poraen Naa Poraen’ with Vijay Narain and his solo, ‘Yaaro Ivan Yaaro’). Hiphop Tamizha’s ‘Achacho’ from Aranmanai 4 is a crowd favourite while Thaman’s ‘Thai Thai’ from Rasavathi is another personal favourite. The legendary Ilaiyaraaja’s work in Jama is supremely underrated while his score in Viduthalai Part 2 is one of the film’s highlights.

Despite a bunch of abovementioned tracks making the cut, it’s a far cry from the usual number of tracks that would end up as yearly chartbusters given how yesteryear Tamil cult classics like ‘Kanmani Anbodu’ from Gunaa and ‘Azhagiya Laila’ from Ullathai Allitha were used this year in Malayalam films Manjummel Boys and Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil respectively. The parallel independent music space, thankfully, saw some respite thanks to the younger crop of performers. Independent performer Paal Dabba’s ‘Makkamishi’ from Jayam Ravi’s Brother can be cited as the only USP of the disappointing film. Asal Kolaar who made his acting debut with Vettaiyan delivered the insanely addictive ‘Paiya Dei’ track this year. But it’s safe to say the year in this space belongs to Sai Abhyankkar who, apart from giving the catchy ‘Katchi Sera’ and ‘Aasa Kooda’ signed his film debut in style with Benz which is a part of LCU and Suriya’s upcoming film with RJ Balaji.

Spill the tea, OTT

If you thought the music scene in the Tamil film world was bad this year, wait till you see what the smaller screen had to offer. The OTT space which peaked during the pandemic to be a parallel medium to the cinema culture and gave a slew of binge-watchable content had its worst year to date thanks to a lack of quality content. Our picks from the world of OTT would be Prime Video’s horror crime drama Inspector Rishi by JS Nandhini, Disney+ Hotstar’s Chutney Sambar by Radha Mohan and Marmadesam Naga’s Tamil remake of Panchayat, Thalaivettiyaan Paalayam.

While Naga also made ZEE5’s Aindham Vedham and Disney+ Hotstar’s Parachute garnered favourable reviews, several established filmmakers’ works, such as Vasanthabalan’s Thalaimai Seyalagam, late director Thamira’s My Perfectt Husband, Vijay Milton’s Goli Soda Rising and Cheran’s Journey by director Cheran were underwhelming ventures. Well-marketed series such as Prime Video’s Snakes and Ladders and Disney+ Hotstar’s Uppu Puli Kaaram and Heart Beat turned out to be damp squibs.

The end…. or is it?

Another trend — which we hope is a fad — that tormented not just Tamil cinema audiences but also those from neighbouring industries was the idea of sequels and the impending inclusion of an open ending that doubled as a segue to a sequel which, in most cases, is highly unlikely to happen. The trend, which started with Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Vikram featuring Suriya as Rolex, was also seen in Suriya’s Kanguva this year. The film — spoiler alert for those who care — ends with a cameo of the actor’s brother Karthi which came as a rude shock to those who were otherwise expecting them to share screen space in a future LCU film.

Indian 2, during production, was split into two parts with another film expected to hit theatres in 2025. The Greatest of All Time teased a sequel at the end even though Vijay has announced his political plunge with his next film being his last. Sivakarthikeyan’s Ayalaan sequel has already been announced while Arun Matheswaran earlier revealed he has plans on a trilogy based on Captain Miller. A sequel for Hot Spot is on the way and films like Demonte Colony 2, Kadaisi Ulaga Por, Teenz, Black and Weapon also indulge in sequel baiting.

2024 has been quite a year for those within the Tamil film industry as well as its audience. In a year riddled with disappointing biggies and heartwarming surprises that reinstated belief in the saying ‘good things come in small packages’, it’s been a mixed bag that offered something for every type of audience but not many that can be confidently recommended to the masses. From the looks of it, 2025 already has a slew of promising films lined up that are sure to make us forget the debacle 2024 turned out to be for Tamil film lovers and that’s something to look forward to!

Happy New Year 2025!