Vijay Antony on directing Pichaikkaran 2: The story I wrote led to the decision; never aspired to direct a film

Music composer, actor and producer Vijay Antony, who is celebrating his 46th birthday today, is all set to don the director's hat for his next. It was announced earlier today that in addition to starring in the lead role, Vijay will also helm Pichaikkaran 2, the much-awaited sequel to his 2016 hit Pichaikkaran.

The news was announced by director AR Murugadoss on Twitter. Vijay's decision to foray into direction does come as a surprise to the fans, and Vijay too says that he never thought of venturing into film direction. "I was very sure that I didn't want to direct, but somehow I wrote a story. Eventually, I started to process that story in my mind. It's like giving birth to a child - you don't know who that child is until it grows up with you, and when you begin to understand that child, the bond grows as well. That's how it happened and I decided to direct this film." Vijay adds that he did approach other directors to helm the project but ultimately decided to make it himself.

Vijay adds that he wants to keep the plot details in suspense. "The first look poster itself will confuse the audience. That's the target. The teaser and trailer will reveal more about the film's plot," says Vijay.

It was previously announced that Pichaikkaran 2 would be helmed by director Priya Krishnaswamy (Baaram), who was later replayed by director Anand Krishnan of Metro-fame. "I am collaborating with both Priya and Anand on two of my upcoming projects. The film I am doing with Anand is in pre-production, and we will start shooting in January 2022," said Vijay.

Pichaikkaran 2 also stars John Vijay, Harish Peraddi, YG Mahendra, Ajay Ghosh, Yogi Babu and others. The director will also edit the film and compose music for the same.

The shoot of the film is set to begin on 26th this month. As of now, the team has planned to shoot the film in Georgia, Dubai, Chennai, and Kolkata.

Meanwhile, Vijay also has Kodiyil Oruvan, directed by Anand Krishnan, an untitled thriller film with CS Amudhan, an untitled film with Vidiyum Munn filmmaker Balaji Kumar, Thamezharasan, Agni Siragugal, and Khaki in various stages of production.