Mersal () is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film directed by Atlee and produced by Thenandal Studio Limited, in the studio's hundredth film production. The film stars Vijay in triple roles (father and twin sons), alongside S. J. Suryah, Kajal Aggarwal, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Nithya Menen, Vadivelu, Hareesh Peradi, Kovai Sarala, Sathyan and Sathyaraj. It is the second of three collaborations between Vijay and Atlee, before they began working with others. The film follows Maaran, a reputed doctor who charges meagre amounts from his patients and leads a double life as a vigilante magician fighting medical crimes. After he is arrested, his past is revealed.
The film was officially announced in October 2016; its principal photography commenced on 1 February 2017 in Chennai and was completed in June 2017 within 130 working days. Filming took place in Gdańsk, Poland and Jaisalmer, Rajasthan. The background score and soundtrack album were composed by A. R. Rahman, while the cinematography was done by G. K. Vishnu and edited by Ruben.
Mersal was released worldwide on 18 October 2017, coinciding with Diwali. The film received mostly positive reviews; critics praised the performances of the main cast, A. R. Rahman's soundtrack, the cinematography, the social message, and Atlee's direction, though they criticised the cliched plot and excessive length. Recipient of various accolades, the film was a commercial success, grossing – worldwide, becoming the highest-grossing film in Vijay's career at that time as well as one of the highest-grossing Tamil films. The film completed its 100-day theatrical run on 25 January 2018. The film was released on 6 December 2018 in China by HGC Entertainment. Due to high demand, the film was screened at the Grand Rex in France, the largest cinema theatre in Europe. The film was screened at the Hainan International Film Festival in Hainan, China and at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival in South Korea.
Plot
A series of abductions of medical staff occurs at dawn: an ambulance driver, a medical broker, a hospital worker, and a surgeon. The abductions are traced to Maaran. Maaran is arrested and interrogated by DCP Ratnavel "Randy".
A flashback reveals that Maaran is a doctor, who takes only 5 rupees for treatment, and has a huge following in his home city of Chennai, leading to him receiving an award in Paris from Dr. Arjun Zachariah.
During his days in Paris, Maaran is also shown to be a magician. He meets Pallavi, a doctor from India and Arjun Zachariah's assistant, and they soon fall in love. He soon conducts a magic show in Paris, in which he kills Arjun Zachariah. This case is being investigated by DCP Ratnavel "Randy". Daniel Arokiaraj, another corrupt doctor, arrives at the scene of the murder, threatening Randy to find who killed his friend. Maaran comes back to Chennai. He soon meets Tara, a news reporter, and they fall in love.
In the present, Maaran reveals the reasons for the abductions. Maaran explains that the four were responsible for the death of an auto driver's daughter and the suicide of his wife due to their greed for money and negligence in providing proper healthcare. He then gives Randy the locations of his hostages but asserts that if they reach the hospital in time, they will survive, like the auto driver's daughter. However, the police find them dead.
Back to the past, Daniel sees Maaran's inexpensive healthcare as a threat to his hospital business. He decides to kill Maaran using his goons. That night, Maaran is beaten up by goons, but is saved by his doppelgänger Vetri. It is then disclosed that the crimes were committed by Vetri, proving that the magician (Vetri) and the doctor (Maaran) are different people. In the present, the person arrested is Vetri, who had kidnapped Maaran after rescuing him. He escapes using his magic tricks, while Maaran is rescued at that same time.
Vetri and Pallavi soon reconcile. Meanwhile, Maaran's family and girlfriend Tara, are kidnapped by Daniel, who demands and asks him for Vetri. Randy and his assistant then interrogate Salim Ghosh, a famous magician, who is revealed to be Vetri's father. Soon that same night, Maaran finds Vetri's hideout and confronts both Vetri and Vadivu. He constantly demands to know who Vetri is, prompting Vadivu to intervene and tell Maaran about his real identity.
Past: Maaran and Vetri are the sons of Aishwarya "Aishu" and Vetrimaaran, an altruistic village wrestler and chieftain in the 1970s. Vetrimaaran builds a temple in his area and holds a grand festive event. However, a fire breaks out, injuring many and killing two children. On the advice of Aishu, Vetrimaaran establishes a hospital in his village, appointing Daniel and Arjun as the chief doctors under the assumption that they are good-hearted. However, it's soon revealed that Daniel and Arjun are money-minded misanthropists and perform a Caesarean section on Aishu when she is in labour with her second child (Vetri) to extract more money from Vetrimaaran, though the child could undergo a normal delivery
With an overdose of anaesthesia and loss of blood, Aishu dies while the child is declared stillborn. When Vetrimaaran learns about this, he is enraged that they deceived them and tries to confront Daniel. During the confrontation at the hospital, Maaran is struck by a glass bottle, falls unconscious, and loses his memory. Vetrimaaran, though under attack himself, manages to place Maaran safely in a truck before Daniel's men throw the seemingly stillborn Vetri into a dump. Vetrimaaran fights Daniel's henchmen while gravely injured but gets stabbed by Daniel who reveals that he only caused the fire accident and Vetrimaaran swears that he will pay for the misdeeds before dying. However, just before dying, he amputates the arm of Daniel's henchman, Kasi. Daniel and Arjun embezzle money from the medical services to consolidate their dictatorship over the years. Soon, Vetri miraculously survives, and their paternal uncle, Vadivu, takes care of him. Salim Ghosh then adopts Vetri and Vadivu who found them when he returned home after his magic show performance in Dindigul. Vetri soon learns all the magic tricks from Salim Ghosh to exact vengeance. Maaran is found by Sarala who adopted him.
Present: Upon learning about his past, Maaran reconciles with Vetri, and they swap places. Vetri (who is Maaran) is in custody, and Daniel meets him in prison and contemplates misusing the medical industry for his gains. Meanwhile, Daniel's nephew, Sesha, tries to make a deal with Maaran (revealed to be Vetri) to shut down his practice. However, when they both learn the truth, Vetri slits Sesha's hand. Daniel rushes to Vetri's hideout, where Vetri defeats his henchmen and injures Daniel. Though Vetri is critically wounded in the process and nearly dies, Maaran revives him via CPR. However, Maaran revives Vetri via CPR. In a fight, Maaran kills Kasi, and Vetri brutally electrocutes Daniel, killing him. Later, the police arrest Vetri for his role in the murders. Before leaving, Vetri gives a press conference justifying his actions by exposing corrupt medical practices and the embezzlement of money in the field. Maaran becomes the head of the Indian Medical Council. One day in prison, Vetri watches a news report in which, despite his efforts, another young girl dies from medical negligence. On hearing this, Vetri escapes using his magic tricks and continues his mission.
Cast
Production
Development Following the release of Atlee's Theri, with Vijay in the lead, the pair was signed by Sri Thenandal Films for another project together in September 2016. Initially, reports surfaced that Atlee will be directing Mahesh Babu after Theri, and was developing the script for the past seven months which did not happen; Similarly, Vijay too being signed for Sangamithra produced by Thenandal Films, but as the film demanded 250 days of the schedule which he could not afford, he politely declined the offer. It was reported that the film will begin production only after the release of Vijay's Bairavaa. In October 2016, Safwan Saleem, the chief executive officer of the production house, confirmed the project; and further announced that writer V. Vijayendra Prasad, who had earlier worked in films like the Baahubali series and Bajrangi Bhaijaan will be a part of the technical team.
The film featured Vijay playing triple role for the first time in his career, as a doctor, magician and a head of panchayat in the film. A report from Deccan Chronicle said that: "The actor’s comic timing will be brought on screen through the magician’s role. His portions are intended to evoke laughter and lighten up the mood." The report further denied claims that Vijay will play a Sikh in the film. Vijay learnt a few magic tricks in preparation for his role as the magician. He learnt the magic tricks from three magicians: Gogo Requiem from the Republic of Macedonia, Raman Sharma from Canada, and Dani Belev from Bulgaria.
Hema Rukmani, CEO of Sri Thenandal Films announced that the film would be the 100th production of the company, instead of Sangamithra; On 21 April 2017, the producers announced that the film would be launched under their newly renamed banner Thenandal Studio Limited and also announcing a release date of October 2017. At the first look launch of Sangamithra at the Cannes Film Festival, Hema Rukmani said that "Most people look at Vijay as a 'mass actor.' But, I've seen him perform. He's an outstanding actor". She added, "I've noticed a lot of things during shooting. His sense of continuity is brilliant. He will know even the minutest details like where and how he kept his hand or leg during a particular shot. Whether the assistant director remembers or not, he will know. I had the great joy of watching him improvise". The production of the film began without announcing a title; on 21 June 2017, the makers announced the title as Mersal and also released the first look poster of the film.
Casting In December 2016, actresses Jyothika, Kajal Aggarwal and Samantha Ruth Prabhu were announced as the female leads for the film. However, the production team later revealed that Jyothika opted out of the film due to unavoidable reasons and the role went to Nithya Menen in her first collaboration with Vijay. In January 2017, A. R. Rahman was reported to compose the film's background score and soundtrack album, collaborating with Vijay after ten years since Azhagiya Thamizh Magan (2007). Actors S. J. Suryah and Sathyaraj also joined the cast as supporting actors, the former in a negative role with two looks in the film. Vadivelu who eventually wanted to act with Vijay in Theri, missed the role due to unavoidable reasons.Vijay, Vadivelu team up for a cop act . The Times of India (16 January 2017). Retrieved on 4 October 2017. He was later announced as a part of this project. Other comedians Kovai Sarala, Sathyan and Rajendran also joined the film.
Atlee's usual cinematographer George C. Williams, who worked on Raja Rani and Theri, was supposed to work on this film too, but was unable to do so due to scheduling conflicts with another project. Later, newcomer G. K. Vishnu, an erstwhile assistant of Richard M. Nathan, was signed for the project.Kumar, Karthik (20 March 2017) No thalapathi title for Ilayathalapathy Vijay's film with Sri Thenandal Films! . Hindustan Times. Retrieved on 4 October 2017. The official cast and crew members working on the film, were announced by Thenandal Films in January 2017, with Anal Arasu as the action choreographer, Ruben who worked with Atlee in his previous projects as the film's editor; T. Muthuraj as the production designer; Shobi and Prem Rakshith as dance choreographers, Neeraja Kona and Komal Shahani as the costume designers. During the film's production, Hareesh Peradi, Yogi Babu and Cheenu Mohan joined the film's cast.
Filming