Vettaiyan

Vettaiyan (/veɪttəjən/ transl. Hunter) is a 2024 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film directed by T. J. Gnanavel and produced by Subaskaran Allirajah's Lyca Productions. The film stars an ensemble cast of Rajinikanth, Amitabh Bachchan (in his Tamil debut), Fahadh Faasil, Rana Daggubati, Manju Warrier, Ritika Singh, Dushara Vijayan, Rohini, Rao Ramesh, Abhirami and Ramesh Thilak. The film follows a senior police officer who accidentally shoots an innocent person during an encounter killing, while investigating the murder of a teacher.

The film was officially announced in March 2023 under the tentative title Thalaivar 170, as it is the 170th film with Rajinikanth as lead actor, and the official title was announced in December 2023. Principal photography commenced in October 2023 and ended in August 2024. It was shot in several locations including Thiruvananthapuram, Tirunelveli, Chennai, Mumbai, and Hyderabad. The film has music composed by Anirudh Ravichander, cinematography handled by S. R. Kathir and editing by Philomin Raj.

Vettaiyan released worldwide on 10 October 2024 in theatres, coinciding with Vijayadashami, to mixed reviews from critics who praised Rajinikanth, Amitabh Bachchan, Fahadh Faasil and Rana Daggubati’s performance and technical aspects while the storyline and pacing received criticism. Although emerging as the third highest-grossing Tamil film of 2024 and the seventeenth highest-grossing Tamil film of all time, it did not perform well at the box-office.