Allu Arjun replaces Salman Khan in Atlee’s next

Director Atlee dumped Bollywood superstar Salman Khan. The filmmaker believed Salman Khan’s present market would be insufficient for the multi-starrer film Atlee envisioned. Sun Pictures reportedly declined to spend Rs 500 crore on Salman Khan.

So Atlee went back to Allu Arjun and made him consent to it. After the enormous success of “Pushpa 2,” which generated Rs 1800 crore globally, the production studio thought that any amount of budget for Allu Arjun was acceptable.

600 crore initial budget

The production studio initially allocated Rs 600 crore for the period saga. Allu Arjun’s next film is expected to begin pre-production this summer. Allu Arjun has also deferred director Trivikram’s film until next year. He will immediately begin shooting Atlee’s feature this year.

Three heroines

The male lead opposite Allu in the two-hero film remains undetermined. According to reports, the film will feature three major ladies, with Janhvi Kapoor being considered for one of the roles.

Atlee’s 100 percent success rate

Atlee is well-known for hits such as Theri (2016), Mersal (2017), and Bigil (2019), all starring Vijay. These films were huge box-office successes, confirming Atlee’s status as a leading filmmaker in Tamil cinema.

In 2023, he made his Bollywood debut with Jawan, which starred Shah Rukh Khan. The film became a box-office smash, cementing Atlee’s pan-Indian appeal.