9 years since he first made Jigarthanda - a Tamil film that popularized genre-shifting in between first and second halves in Kollywood, writer, director Karthik Subbaraj is gearing up for the release of Jigarthanda's spiritual sequel titled Jigarthanda DoubleX. The period action comedy film starring Raghava Lawrence and SJ Suryah in the lead, releases in theaters tomorrow i.e. November 10, 2023 [Friday]. Here are 5 interesting reasons to catch the movie on the big screen: 

• A Filmmakers Party: The trio of Karthik Subbaraj who is the writer, director and producer on Jigarthanda DoubleX and his lead actors both Raghava Lawrence and SJ Suryah are all filmmakers at heart. An interesting combination of directors coming together to present a film under different hats may not be not uncommon, but is enough to tickle a movie-buff's bones.

• Franchise: Jigarthanda's reputation precedes the movie. The soul of the franchise which is a gangster wanting to make a film with a director, and realizing the power of art is just as unique 9 years later. Besides the storyline difference which Karthik Subbaraj promises will be felt into 10 minutes of Jigarthanda DoubleX, what is new is probably the overall grandeur given the prequel was made with a budget of Rs. 20 Cr. and its 2023 sequel with 5 times more. 

• Hat-Tips & Odes: Jigarthanda DoubleX is set in 1975 Madurai, and by the filmmaker's admission specifically in a time-line before the real-life Rajinikanth, who is considered India's first dark-skinned hero debuted. A gangster named Pandayan (Raghava Lawrence) wanting to attain this title before the advent of Rajini is one of the USPs of the film. 1975 was also a time when renowned Bengali filmmaker Satyajit Ray was at the top of his game. Ray Daasan (SJ Suryah)'s character is a whole tribute to this Indian legend. Clint Eastwood who popularized Western troupes in movies is another named hat-tipped to in Jigarthanda DoubleX (Jigarthanda franchise in general). Karthik Subbaraj calls this movie his 'closest tribute' to the Hollywood actor-director.

• Technicals: Be it Karthik Subbaraj's style of filmmaking or Santhosh Narayanan's music for his direction, Cinematographer Tirru's dark frames for the director or Subbaraj's niche in handling gansgter subjects, Jigarthanda DoubleX promises to be an out and out technical fest. Brand Subbaraj's attention to detail is reflected even in the promotional materials like posters and BTS videos.  

• Holiday Fest: Diwali is one of the biggest holiday seasons in India and a time when the family audience is looking to invest towards the whole theater experience. Being a period action comedy albeit a bit black (no pun intended), Jigarthanda DoubleX comes across as the perfect outing to relax with.