Jigarthanda DoubleX written and directed by Karthik Subbaraj is an upcoming gangster action comedy that is all set to release in theaters on November 10, 2023. The movie is a spiritual sequel to Karthik Subbaraj's 2014 hit Jigarthanda which has since been remade in Kannada under the same title (2016), in Telugu as Gaddalakonda Ganesh (2019), and most recently Bollywood made Bachchan Paandey (2022) inspired from it.
A unique story of a silver-screen-ambitious dreaded gangster employing an upcoming filmmaker for their cinema debut is what the Jigarthanda world is all about. While in the prequel a gangster and an aspiring filmmaker cross paths, in the spiritual successor of the Tamil version, director Karthik Subbaraj has paid homage to Rajinikanth by telling the tale of cine industry's first dark-skinned hero.
Jigarthanda DoubleX trailer released in Tamil, Telugu (dubbed) and Kannada (dubbed) on November 4, 2023 [Saturday] and the Hindi dubbed version was unveiled today by Varun Dhawan. A first impression report of the Jigarthanda DoubleX trailer follows:
Signature Karthik Subbaraj
A director of repute in the Tamil film industry, Karthik Subbaraj's last two feature films intended for theatrical release ended up premiering directly on OTT. But the filmmaker is returning to theaters with all things his signature in Jigarthanda DoubleX. Or that's what the trailer promises.
Be it turning heads with uniquely detailed characterizations of his lead actors (a gangster cum ardent Clint Eastwood fan and renowned director Satyajit Ray's assistan), leaving an impression even with lesser known faces, bringing back the OG-genre shift (Karthik Subbaraj's debut movie Pizza (2012) was probably the first Tamil film to popularize genre-shifts between first and second halves), and taking the Rajini idolization in him to a whole different level [Jigarthanda DoubleX is set in 1975, the same year* Rajinikanth made his debut, the lead character's one line is based on Rajini's real-life story which is becoming India's first dark-skinned cine lead], Karthik Subbaraj has done it all, says film's trailer.
* - Karthik Subbaraj has said that Jigarthanda DoubleX takes place before the advent of the Rajinikanth phenomenon. He has also confirmed that the year 1975 was deliberate choice.
Same Same but Different
The core of Jigarthanda which revolves around a movie-buff gangster and a budding filmmaker has been retained, but the sequel is far from being a reminder of its predecessor. Music composer Santhosh Narayanan who has returned along with Karthik Subbaraj for Jigarthanda DoubleX, has also ensured to give a completely different flavour while managing to impress.
Bobby Simha won a National Award for playing second lead in Jigarthanda. In Jigarthanda DoubleX, this gangster is the main lead, performed terrifically by Raghava Lawrence. SJ Suryah in his period look is his usual brilliant self, and the cop villain played by Telugu actor Naveen Chandra leaves an impression.
Bottomline
Jigarthanda DoubleX certainly piques interest and promises to come with as many layers one expects in a Karthik Subbaraj film. Since the video has been marketed and well received beyond just the Tamil demographic, it wouldn't be a surprise if the film end up bringing all the Karthik Subbaraj fans to the theater yard.