Vikram Ravichandran, who made his debut with Trivikrama did take time to sign his second film, and he has finally signed his next. The actor will be part of a gangster drama that will mark the debut of writer-director Karthik Rajan.

The project was officially launched on Sunday and speaking to CE, Vikram shared that the team wanted to launch the film on the occasion of his brother Manuranjan's birthday, who sounded the clapboard.

A teaser along with the title will be launched in January 2023. The producers of Mugilpete (Raksha and Vijay Kumar) will be bankrolling the project, which will also be backed by Vikram Ravichandran. "I finally got to be part of a script of my liking, which will be cult and raw. The film will also have me relaunch our home banner, Eswari Productions," says Vikram, who plans to begin shooting for the project on this New Year's eve in Shivamogga. "It is time to raise the bar, and this project will be a good beginning for the year 2023. I'm not thinking too far about the film's result, but we definitely hope to make a statement in the industry in 2023."

Karthik, who has previously worked with Tamil director Vijay Chander, has also written the Telugu film, Raju Gari Gadi 2, which starred Nagarjuna and Samantha. Having helmed the Tamil web series, Nisha, Karthik has also worked as a co-director in Head Bush. Karthik could tap into his experience of working in gangster films to conceptualise his next.

According to the director, Vikram is a perfect fit for the role. The film's shooting, which will begin in Shivamogga, will follow up in Bengaluru, and the team is finalising another location too.

The team has roped in fresh technicians for the project, including debut composer Yuvaraj, and editor PK. The rest of the cast and crew are being finalised by the makers.