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Annaatthe () is a 2021 Indian Tamil language-language action thriller film directed by Siva and produced by Kalanithi Maran under the banner Sun Pictures. The film stars Rajinikanth in the titular role, alongside Khushbu, Meena, Nayanthara, and Keerthy Suresh, Jagapathi Babu, Prakash Raj, Soori, Pandiarajan, Sathyan and Sathish. D. Imman composed the film's music, Vetri handled the cinematography, Dhilip Subbarayan arranged stunts and Ruben edited the film. The movie's plot revolves around Kaalaiyan, a sarpanch (decision maker) in Thanjavur, who strives to protect his sister from a businessman and his elder brother.
The film was officially announced in October 2019, marking Rajinikanth's first collaboration with Siva. Principal photography began on 11 December 2019 and was completed in September 2021. The COVID-19 lockdown in India and Rajinikanth's health issues in late-December 2020 delayed the film's production. Filming was primarily done in Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad, and a few sequences were shot in Chennai.
Annaatthe was released on 4 November 2021, coinciding with the Deepavali festival. The movie received mostly negative reviews from critics. During its theatrical run, Annaatthe grossed an estimated revenue of ₹140-240 crores worldwide against a budget of 180 crores, making it a box-office failure.
The Embassy of India announced the release of the film in Argentina to promote culture and tourism.
Torn by his love for his sister, Kaalaiyan allows Meenatchi to leave and deflects demands from relatives for an honour killing. Meenatchi and her husband move to Kolkata, and she loses contact with Kaalaiyan. Kaalaiyan and Pattammal travel to Kolkata. Kaalaiyan discovers his sister has serious financial troubles; he secretly follows her and discovers that she has borrowed money from a gangster. When the gangster tries to assault Meenatchi, Kaalaiyan secretly assaults him and moves Meenatchi to Pattammal's apartment, where he can safely watch her. Thugs threaten Meenatchi, and she falls ill. When Pattammal leaves the house to get her medicine, the thugs attack her. Kaalaiyan rescues Meenatchi and interrogates her attackers.
When Meenatchi and her husband started a business in Kolkata, a wealthy businessman and underworld don Manoj Parekar approached them. Manoj wanted to purchase half of their shares, but Meenatchi's husband refused. Over the following weeks, Meenatchi's factory caught fire, they were forced to close it, and her husband was arrested on invented charges and tortured in police custody. Meenatchi had begged Manoj to get her husband released and signed over her company. Manoj had refused to get him released and had everyone who agreed to help her murdered.
In the present, Meenatchi is still trying to get her husband released with Pattammal's help and realises that she is pregnant. Kaalaiyan is very happy to hear this; he and Pattammal organise a baby shower for her. After learning about Meenatchi's misfortune, Kaalaiyan wants to kill the gangsters using his sister as bait and swears to destroy Manoj Parekar. Using the pseudonym Annaatthe, Kaalaiyan and his village friends storm Manoj's office and issue an ultimatum. After more drama, Annaatthe corners Manoj and forces him to sign papers saying he will return the companies he stole to their former owners. Kaalaiyan decides to spare Manoj's life. Enraged and humiliated, Manoj visits his estranged brother Udhav Parekar, where he demands the death of Annaatthe and then kills himself. Udhav finds Meenatchi and takes men to attack her. Pattammal, instructed by Kaalaiyan, hides Meenatchi. Udhav's men chase Pattammal and Meenatchi, who become separated by a crashing auto-rickshaw. Kaalaiyan arrives, assaults all of Udhav's men, and kills Udhav. Kaalaiyan reveals himself to Meenatchi, who tearfully apologizes for the trouble she put him through.
Keerthy Suresh, speaking in 2021, said: "I shot for a few days with Rajini sir before lockdown and I was starstruck throughout the shoot. I am sure it is going to be the same until I complete the film. Annaatthe is going to be special."
On 31 January 2020, Sun Pictures announced Nayanthara had been cast as a lawyer in the film. Vela Ramamoorthy also joined the cast in a crucial role. Telugu actor Gopichand was reported to have been cast as the film's antagonist, but the actor refuted such claims. Jackie Shroff was hired for the role but was replaced by Jagapathi Babu in March 2021. Abhimanyu Singh was cast in a pivotal role in August 2021. Thavasi, who earlier appeared in Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam (2013) and Rajinimurugan (2015), died in November 2020, making this his final film.
It was reported the team would film some sequences in Chennai after lockdown because they would find difficulty travelling to Hyderabad for the shoot. After the government gave permission to resume film and television production following the pandemic, Rajinikanth was reported to have joined the sets in October 2020. The producers postponed filming until November, citing the team's safety. In mid-November 2020, the producers stated filming would resume on 15 December with Rajinikanth joining the schedule, and was expected to be completed within a single session to quickly complete filming. Rajinikanth travelled to Hyderabad on 14 December and started filming before the scheduled date, and Nayanthara was present on the film's sets. Sources said Rajinikanth worked for more than 14 hours to complete the film before his entry into politics. Filming was halted on 23 December 2020 after eight crew members were diagnosed with COVID-19 although Rajinikanth tested negative and underwent self-quarantine in Hyderabad. Rajinikanth was hospitalised on 25 December due to fluctuating blood pressure and was discharged on 27 December.
Following Rajinikanth's health issues, the filmmakers planned to resume filming in Chennai on 15 March 2021 with a single schedule within 30 days. In April, after the Tamil Nadu state legislative assembly election, Rajinikanth went to Hyderabad for the next scheduled shoot. Filming happened quickly despite a night-time curfew and other restrictions. The team filmed a few stunt sequences with Rajinikanth; the team sought permission from the government and Hyderabad police to film the night scenes. The team ensured safety at the sets while filming at a brisk pace. Nayanthara joined the film's team in late April 2021, and scenes featuring Rajinikanth and Nayanthara were filmed within three days.
The soundtrack album would reportedly have five songs and a theme, and lyrics would be written by Thamarai, Viveka, Yugabharathi, Arun Bharathi, Mani Amuthavan and Arivu. Imman said the songs would be of varied genres; a mass track that is the film's opening song, melody, dance and festive numbers. Sun Pictures had planned to withhold the audio, satellite and digital rights of the film, and had planned to release the entire soundtrack itself. Veteran singer S. P. Balasubrahmanyam recorded an introduction song, which was later titled "Annaatthe Annaatthe", for Rajinikanth in the film, which marked his last song before his death on 25 September 2020.
Other singers on album are K. S. Chithra, Sid Sriram, Shreya Ghoshal, Anirudh Ravichander, Diwakar, and the composer Imman. Deciding not to tie-up with music labels, Sun Pictures released the album through its production house; lyric videos were released on the official YouTube channel of Sun TV. The lyrics of all the songs are in Tamil language rather than English. The opening track "Annaatthe Annaatthe" was the first to be released.
Considering it as a heartfelt tribute to the deceased singer S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Rajinikanth wrote an emotional note about the singer, saying he will "live forever through his voice". Another two singles, "Saara Kaatrae" and "Marudhaani", were released on 6 and 11 October 2021, respectively. The song "Vaa Saamy" was released on 25 October 2021, along with the audio jukebox on YouTube. The songs were later released through music streaming platforms. a week later, on 1 November 2021, without any promotional event due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic restrictions. The soundtrack, including the earlier released singles, received a positive response from audiences and topped the charts online.
During its theatrical run, Annaatthe grossed an estimated revenue between 227-239 crores worldwide and became the second highest-grossing Tamil film of 2021.
If Petta felt like a pastiche of Rajinikanth's films, Annaatthe seems like a collage made out of the weaker moments from director Siva's filmography. We have the villains from Siruthai, the 'saviour who cannot reveal his identity' angle from Veeram, the brother-sister sentiment from Vedalam, and the rural backdrop from Viswasam. The result is a movie whose emotional beats feel blatantly calculated and manipulative. D. Imman's use of a sentimental score hardly adds an emotional punch to the action scenes, which are shot in a generic manner.
Sify gave two-and-a-half stars out of five and wrote: "The bottom line about Annaatthe is that, although the old Rajini formula is back, the entertainment we had witnessed in those days is missing in this 2021 film".
Haricharan Pudipeddi of Hindustan Times wrote: "Annaatthe is unarguably the weakest film in Siva's filmography. For all those who complained Darbar was Rajinikanth's lamest film in recent years, they'll change their opinion as they step out of Annaatthe." Behindwoods gave the film two-and-a-half stars out of five, writing:
Overall, it's a template driven formulaic film that's high on brother-sister sentiment. One unique aspect is that the film doesn't want to entirely depend on Rajinikanth. The director wants the sentiment to work out, with Rajini being a medium for it. Whether it's successful or not is a question for another day. But for a festival film, this might be a good option to celebrate with your family members.
Moviecrow gave the film two out of five, writing: "Expected a cracker of a festival entertainer, but turns out as a disappointing formulaic outing majorly due to its bland storytelling".
Janani. K India Today gave two stars out of five and wrote: "Overall, Annaatthe did have the potential to be a moving family drama. However, it is the screenplay that tests everyone's patience." Aditya Srikrishna of The Quint wrote: " Annaatthe has Rajinikanth in probably his worst film since Baba and in a performance that displays the weariness of a hitchhiker air dropped in the middle of a desert and left with an empty water bottle". Indo-Asian News Service (IANS) gave two-and-a-half stars out of five and wrote: "despite some original dialogues and Imman's foot-tapping music, on the whole, Annaatthe ends up being a sentimental drama that has very little to offer in terms of entertainment". Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV gave Annaatthe two stars out of five and wrote:
The moniker is absolutely apt and not for him alone. What does the superstar do in this lumbering movie to help its stale cocktail of sentimentality, swag and silliness gather momentum? He parrots lines that we have heard before. That, in short, is Annaatthe: a moth-eaten mess whose mustiness even Rajinikanth at full tilt cannot mitigate.
Ashameera Aiyappan of Firstpost gave two stars out of five and wrote:
in a Rajinikanth film, the craft is secondary. One goes to the theatres purely for the man's electrifying screen presence. In Annaatthe, the Thalaivar looks good. He does what he usually does. The energy, the charisma—it is all there. But what used to look effortless, now seems arduous. Even though he tries hard to not let it show, you can sense the tiredness. His past few releases have been attempts to recreate the vintage Rajini, but the Superstar has so much more to offer. Will we get to see that though? I am not sure."
Indiaglitz gave the film two-and-a-half stars out of five, stating: " Annaatthe settles as a routine entertainer that works in parts. It brings back the vintage Rajini film formula but fails to amaze the audience." Sudhir Srinivasan of The New Indian Express stated:
As we seem to slowly near the end of his filmography (there are constantly rumours about what might be his last film), there's the temptation to lap up whatever we get. That's perhaps why Siva went all the way back to the 90s in search of a winning recipe. And that's also perhaps why Annaatthe might have been better served with a final scene that establishes happiness and joy among the characters, as opposed to its rather downing end. After all, when Rajinikanth laughs, it makes everyone happy.
Ananda Vikatan rated the film 39 out of 100. Only Kollywood gave two-and-three-quarters stars out of five and wrote:
It's been years since we have seen the Superstar in such a rural outing, and he rules the roost from the very first scene in his own style. The mischief and the frolic that we usually associate with his earlier films such as Padayappa and Muthu is back and roaring here, as we get to see him performing the right 'Rajinisms'. Overall, Annaatthe works out as a templated family entertainer that has nothing special going for it except for Superstar Rajinikanth's screen presence and energy levels.
Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute gave the film one star out of five and wrote:
Meena and Khushbu appear in a completely jarring comedy track, and it's sad to see the actors being reduced to this. Rajinikanth reels off punch dialogues faster than a jet plane but you can see that the man is tired. The affection you have for the actor makes you forgive the obvious stiffness in his body, the glaring age difference between him and the woman he's romancing, the pasty make-up and much else. But even his biggest fan would admit that this film is a colossal mess. I know you want to ask the question—is it worse than Lingaa, worse than Darbar? PACHAKILI, what do I tell you? Absolutely.
Mirchi9 gave the film one-and-three-quarters stars out of five and wrote: "Overall, Peddanna is a very formulaic and routine mass sentiment fare that is predictable and outdated from the word go. The biggest of names go through the motions providing no fun and vigour. It will be a favour to every Superstar fan if they forget the movie exists." Manoj Kumar R. of The Indian Express gave one star out of five and wrote: " Annaatthe features one of the biggest stars of India, and all it has to offer is a bunch of questionable wisdom on affection and relationships. There is something really wrong with what we consider big movies."
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