Parasakthi 2026

Parasakthi (2026 Film)

Parasakthi is an upcoming Tamil-language action drama, also releasing in Telugu as a dubbed version, directed by Sudha Kongara Prasad. Sivakarthikeyan plays the lead, with Sreeleela (in her first Tamil film), Atharvaa, Ravi Mohan, and a strong supporting cast that includes Murali Dev, Ramnath Prithvi, Pandiarajan, Basil Joseph, Guru Somasundaram, Chetan, and Abbas Rana Daggubati. Produced by Dawn Pictures, the film is inspired by real incidents from the 1965 Anti-Hindi Imposition Movement in Tamil Nadu, and follows students and activists as they fight for justice, language rights, social change, and political awareness.

Key Details

The film was first planned with a different cast, including Suriya, Dulquer Salmaan, Nazriya Nazim, and Vijay Varma. The project later moved ahead with a new ensemble, led by Sivakarthikeyan and the current line-up. The title Parasakthi briefly ran into a dispute with another production, Vijay Antony’s Sakthi Thirumagan, but the issue was settled peacefully, and Dawn Pictures kept the title rights for both the Tamil and Telugu versions.

In Tamil cinema, the name Parasakthi carries deep cultural and political weight. The original 1952 classic, headlined by Sivaji Ganesan and written by M. Karunanidhi, was not just a popular film; it was a fierce statement against caste inequality, religious double standards, and social injustice. It stirred huge debate, shaped political thought in Tamil Nadu, and even faced bans in some parts of India because of its open attack on Brahminical power.

Now, in 2026, Sudha Kongara brings back this powerful title and reshapes it as a charged political period drama centred on the 1965 Anti-Hindi Agitation. Sivakarthikeyan leads the cast, joined by Ravi Mohan as the main antagonist, Atharvaa, Sreeleela in her first Tamil role, Basil Joseph, Rana Daggubati, and strong supporting performances from Guru Somasundaram, Prithvi Pandiarajan, and Dev Ramnath. The film is not a simple tribute to the 1952 work; it stands as its own bold statement.

The story becomes a loud and clear defence of linguistic identity at a time of cultural standardisation, and is set to release on 14 January 2026 for Pongal, sharing the festival window with Vijay’s farewell film Jana Nayagan.

Sudha Kongara, known for films like Irudhi Suttru and Soorarai Pottru, blends emotional depth with sharp social commentary in her work. In Parasakthi, she turns her focus to the charged atmosphere of the 1960s. Drawing from real history, the film follows student leaders and young Tamils who stood up against the move to push Hindi as the sole national language, a policy many saw as a leftover of control that sidelined regional languages. The plot unfolds in the streets of Madras (now Chennai), against scenes of intense protests, police violence, self-immolations, and heated public debate.

The film is not without weak spots. At times, the writing leans into open preaching. Some scenes talk about Tamil pride in such absolute terms that they risk sounding exclusionary and may push away viewers who stand outside the politics.

This mirrors the old debates around the 1952 film, which was also accused of going too hard at its targetsOff-screenen, arguments around the title had already sparked fresh controversy. Fans of Sivaji Ganesan protested against the reuse of Parasakthi, and there were reported issues with Vijay Antony’s Telugu dubbed version. Even though Dawn Pictures acquired the rights from AVM, traces of these disputes show up in the film, which occasionally feels like it is defending itself.

Working alongside Arjun Nadesan on the screenplay, with dialogues by Madhan Karky and Shan Karuppusamy, Kongara shapes a story that feels both personal and political, a tribute to those silenced voices and a call to remember their fight in the present day.

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