Praising his "Thug Life" star Kamal Haasan, veteran filmmaker Mani Ratnam on Friday said the superstar is not just a brilliant actor but someone whose enthusiasm for cinema has not changed.
Haasan and Ratnam are reuniting for the film after a gap of over 35 years in what would be the Tamil superstar's 234th film. They earlier worked on the 1987 critical hit "Nayakan".
"It is not just that he's a brilliant actor. The whole world knows that. It is the fact that he still loves cinema and has this unique talent of balancing between mainstream cinema and still breaking barriers on the other side," Ratnam said at the song launch event of the gangster drama.
The "Ponniyin Selvan" director said having an actor of Haasan's calibre was a real advantage for him as the actor takes off "50 per cent of the burden" on the filmmaker.
"He takes care of a lot of things. Not only himself, but people around him, all actors around him, so it makes it believable and very real... What surprises me is that the enthusiasm has not changed at all. The passion for it and the search has not changed. It's still there. And (he's) not willing to settle for the easier option."
The music of the film is composed by A R Rahman. The makers unveiled the first song of the movie "Jinguchaa" at an event here.
"Thug Life" will also feature Trisha Krishnan and Silambarasan TR, who said it was a surreal experience to work with Haasan, Ratnam and Rahman in one movie.
"Thug Life" is jointly produced by Udhayanidhi Stalin’s Red Giant Movies, Raaj Kamal Films International and Ratnam’s Madras Talkies.
The film, which is scheduled to be released in theatres countrywide on June 5, will also feature Ashok Selvan, Abhirami, Nassar, Joju George, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Sanya Malhotra and Ali Fazal.
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