Shankar To Begin Filming Velpari With Tight Budget Limit: Reports

The filmmaker has called the upcoming film the biggest and most ambitious project of his career.

Team THR India
By Team THR India
LAST UPDATED: JAN 29, 2026, 13:08 IST|4 min read
Director Shankar
Director Shankar

Tamil filmmaker Shankar's upcoming film Velpari, which he has called the biggest and most ambitious project of his career, will go on floors soon, but with a tight budget, according to reports. Valai Pechu has reported that a popular production house is ready to back the film. But according to reports, the producers have come in with tight budget limits to make sure the production costs don't exceed the budget. Shankar's last two films, Game Changer and Indian 2, made on towering budgets, opened to mixed reviews and failed to meet box office expectations.

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Speaking at a public event last year, celebrating the sale of one lakh copies of the historical Tamil novel Veera Yuga Nayagan Velpari, Shankar shared his vision for the film adaptation and described it as his most ideal movie. “Once, my dream project was Enthiran. Now, my dream project is Velpari,” the director said at the event, where superstar Rajinikanth was also present as the chief guest. “As far as I believe, this film could be one of the biggest ventures ever made, owing to the elements of costume, art, and the level of production it will require. However, the scope of technology makes me say that Velpari would be a global-standard movie, on par with the likes of Game of Thrones or Avatar.”

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Based on CPI(M) MP Su Venkatesan’s novel, Velpari traces the life of the legendary Tamil ruler Vel Paari and his resistance against the Chera, Chola, and Pandya dynasties. The film is planned as a three-part saga, with script work reportedly completed. Shankar has confirmed that pre-production is underway.

In September 2024, the director had warned of potential legal action after claiming to have seen scenes from Velpari appear in another film’s trailer. He expressed concern about the unauthorised use of content from the novel and reminded filmmakers to respect creative boundaries.

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