Here’s what director Lokesh Kanagaraj said when Nagarjuna asked him, ‘can people be so evil?’

Nagarjuna, playing a villain in Coolie, recalls asking director Lokesh Kanagaraj if people could truly be so evil. Lokesh replied, “They are more evil,” reflecting the film’s dark themes.

Chennai: Actor Nagarjuna, who plays a villain for the first time in his career in director Lokesh Kanagaraj’s upcoming action extravaganza Coolie, featuring Superstar Rajinikanth in the lead, has now disclosed what the director told him when he wondered whether people could truly be so evil in real life.

At a pre-release event of Coolie, Nagarjuna said, “Our first shoot took place in Vizag. A scene shot during the second day of shooting was leaked on social media and went viral. We were all very sad about it. After watching that scene, I asked Lokesh, ‘Can people be this evil?’ He replied, ‘They are more evil than this.’”

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Nagarjuna, who was all praise for director Lokesh, said that shooting with him was like a dream. The star actor also complimented the director, saying he had empathy. “It is a fantastic quality, and people who work with him want to work with him again,” he added.

Coolie has already triggered huge expectations. Rumours doing the rounds in the industry suggest that director Lokesh Kanagaraj’s much-awaited action entertainer may reach audiences in over 100 countries when the film hits screens on August 14 this year.

Apart from Rajinikanth, the film also stars stalwarts from the Indian film industry like Nagarjuna, Sathyaraj, Aamir Khan, Upendra, Soubin Shahir, and Shruti Haasan.

Anirudh has composed the music for the film, marking his fourth consecutive collaboration with director Lokesh Kanagaraj. Cinematography is by Girish Gangadharan and editing is by Philomin Raj.

The film is also keenly awaited as it will feature actors Sathyaraj and Rajinikanth together after almost 38 years. The two were last seen together in the superhit Tamil film Mr. Bharath, released in 1986, in which Sathyaraj played Rajinikanth’s father. Interestingly, Sathyaraj had previously turned down offers to act in some of Rajinikanth’s earlier films like Enthiran and Sivaji.

Coolie, which marks Rajinikanth’s 171st film, revolves around gold smuggling. Interestingly, director Lokesh Kanagaraj has revealed that Coolie will be a standalone film and not a part of his Lokesh Cinematic Universe (LCU).