Actor Shanthnu Bhagyaraj is currently busy promoting his upcoming film, Balti, which is all set to hit theatres next week. In an exclusive interview with Cinema Express for the film, Shanthnu opened up about his role in the upcoming Sony LIV series The Madras Mystery: Fall of a Superstar, as well as his other upcoming projects.

While there were speculations that Shanthnu was set to play late actor Thyagaraja Bhagavathar in the series, he denied the same through a tweet a week ago. On his real look in the series, he said, “I can’t reveal much about my role, but I will be seen in a completely different look in the series—not as Thiagaraja Bhagavathar. That character is played by a theatre actor. My look is set in the 1940s, and Vijay sir, who is the creative director and producer, has designed something very unique for me. While the series is a biopic, there’s also a fictional layer that Nazriya and I will explore."

The series marks the return of Malayalam actor Nazriya Nazim to the Tamil film industry after 11 years. Set in the 1940s in British India, the series is slated to premiere on Sony LIV in November. Apart from Nazriya and Shanthnu, the series will also star Nasser, YG Mahendran and Natty. Directed by debutant Ashif Pavapettadayil, The Madras Mystery is produced by Netru Indru in association with Getto Entertainment.

Further, Shanthnu also spilt the beans on other projects in his pipeline. "Apart from this, I’m shooting for Magenta, directed by Bharath Mohan of Igloo fame, co-starring Anjali Nair. I’ve also finished work on a multi-starrer with Jai, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, Vani Bhojan, and another actor whose name I can’t reveal yet. Directed by Thiru, it’s a fun-filled project and is currently in post-production.”

In Balti, Shanthnu stars as a kabbadi player with a speciality move known as 'dash'. He also plays the close friend of the protagonist, Shane Nigam, in the Unni Sivalingam directorial.