Sudha Kongara reveals her initial plans to make ‘small’ love story with Dulquer Salmaan, but dropped it

Director Sudha Kongara is all set to hit the big screens soon with the movie Parasakthi, starring Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role. Ahead of the film’s release on January 10, 2026, coinciding with Pongal this year, the director has revealed how she initially wanted to make a love story with Dulquer Salmaan in the lead.

Sudha Kongara about her initial plans to make a ‘small’ romantic movie with Dulquer Salmaan

Speaking with Galatta Plus, director Sudha Kongara revealed that after Puranaanooru was shelved, she approached Dulquer Salmaan with a romantic story. Although she initially envisioned it as a small film, the scale eventually expanded visually.

Kongara said, “I remember, just before this film (Parasakthi), I went to DQ and told him, ‘Dulquer yaar, my movie isn’t happening. Now I have this small love story, let’s do that.’ I narrated the story to him; he was excited, I was excited, but the only thing he asked was… how is this small?”

“It wasn’t small, it didn’t turn out to be small. Somehow, that film just visually opened up. Then it became expensive. It had the ocean, it had water, and it involved two countries. It was that kind of love story,” she added.

Interestingly, Sudha Kongara and Dulquer were initially set to work together on the shelved project Puranaanooru, starring Suriya. The movie was bankrolled by Suriya himself and had Nazriya Nazim Fahadh as the co-lead. However, the project was later dropped, with the director reviving the concept as Parasakthi, this time with Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role.

More about Parasakthi

Parasakthi is a political historical drama starring Sivakarthikeyan in the lead role, alongside Ravi Mohan, who plays the main antagonist. The film revolves around two brothers living in 1960s Madras, one working in the Railways and the other a college student. As civil unrest escalates due to government interference, the brothers find themselves at odds, leading to chaos.

With Atharvaa Murali and Sreeleela as the co-leads, the film also features Kulappulli Leela, Prakash Belawadi, Dev Ramnath, Prithvi Rajan, Guru Somasundaram, Chetan, and others in key roles. Additionally, Basil Joseph and Rana Daggubati appear in cameo roles.

Dulquer Salmaan’s next

Dulquer Salmaan is currently involved in his next project, I’m Game. The upcoming Malayalam film is touted to be a high-stakes action thriller, featuring Kathir, Antony Varghese Pepe, Mysskin, Kayadu Lohar, and others in key roles. Directed by Nahas Hidayath, the movie is likely to release during Onam this year.