Some friendships in cinema are built on working together, while others develop through conversations away from the sets. Suriya and Fahadh Faasil appear to share the latter kind of equation. Their camaraderie has grown through conversations about cinema, careers and the struggles that came before their current positions in the industry.
Interestingly, Suriya's admiration for Fahadh extends beyond his performances. Fahadh's career has taken him across Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu cinema, with the actor frequently choosing projects that place him in very different spaces.
Speaking at a promotional event for Don't Trouble the Trouble, Suriya opened up abut his bond with Fahadh and said they have spent considerable time talking over the years. “We’ve talked until dawn and have so many memories together,” he said, adding that their conversations have covered their early career struggles and the difficulties they faced before finding their footing. Suriya also expressed his happiness that Fahadh addressed him as “Anna”, saying he hoped the actor would not eventually switch to calling him “Sir”.
Suriya said the two had discussed how neither of their journeys came easily, noting that they had to fall, get hurt and learn to stand on their own. He thanked Fahadh for openly sharing those memories with him, describing their conversations as something he values deeply.
It was while discussing Fahadh's approach to cinema that Suriya's praise became more specific. According to him, Fahadh does not approach a role with calculations about his image. Instead, he looks at whether the story and character work and whether the content can reach audiences. Suriya said this freedom is one of the reasons Fahadh has been able to deliver such varied films.
Suriya further observed that while actors often attempt to transform themselves into characters, Fahadh has a different process. He said Fahadh appears to completely inhabit the character rather than simply trying to “become” one for the camera. The Malayalam actor's willingness to put the character ahead of his star image, according to Suriya, is what makes his choices particularly interesting.
Fahadh's own recent comments offer an interesting parallel. Speaking about Don't Trouble the Trouble, he said he chose the film because its story felt unlike anything he had heard before. He also explained that his Malayalam films tend to be more subtle, and that he wanted to explore a different space with the Telugu project.
That willingness to experiment has also extended to the way Fahadh works. For Don't Trouble the Trouble, his first Telugu film as a solo lead, he learnt and performed his dialogues in Telugu and insisted on dubbing his own lines. He also brought the sync-sound discipline he was accustomed to in Malayalam cinema to the production.
Suriya and Fahadh's friendship also has a professional connection through their work in Tamil cinema. The two shared screen space in Vikram, where Fahadh played the pivotal character Amar, while Suriya made a special appearance as Rolex. Fahadh's performance in the Lokesh Kanagaraj directorial further introduced him to a wider Tamil audience.
Don't Trouble the Trouble is directed by Shashank Yeleti and is set to release on October 2 in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam.