Silambarasan recalls being issued red card, thanks Mani Ratnam for supporting and trusting him

In an emotional speech, actor Silambarasan recalled being issued red card by the Tamil Film Producers' Council (TFPC) where he was banned from working with any producer until an issue is resolved and thanked director Mani Ratnam for offering his support during the crisis and trusting him with Chekka Chivantha Vaanam.

Speaking at the Thug Life audio launch that was held at Nehru Stadium on Saturday, Silambarasan said, "There was a situation where a red card was issued on me. During that time, many producers were skeptical of working with me for their films. They were worried that it would land them in trouble."

He shared that during this time, he received a call from Madras Talkies, stating that Mani Ratnam would like to meet him. "I was doubtful whether it was really Mani sir who wanted to meet me. I went and asked him if it was really him who called me. He assured me that he was the one who called on me. When everyone else was afraid to work with me, he stood by me and trusted my work to offer me a film. I will never forget that," he added.

Simbu also said that the filmmaker offered him a role in Ponniyin Selvan, but he couldn't sign at the time. It was only later that an opportunity to act in Thug Life was given.

For the unversed, Simbu was given a red card over allegations of misconduct with film producers. Reportedly, he was given red card from producer Michael Rayappan, who backed Adhik Ravichandran's AAA - Anbanavan Adangathavan Asaradhavan. He was prevented from working in films until his issue with producers of AAA and then announced Corona Kumar were resolved. A few other actors including Dhanush, Vishal, and Atharvaa also received the red card from the Producers’ Association.

The extended ensemble cast of Thug Life, which hits theatres on June 5 also comprises Abhirami, Ashok Selvan, Aishwarya Lekshmi, Nassar, Joju George, Mahesh Manjrekar, Tanikella Bharani, Vadivukkarasi, Chinni Jayanth, Vaiyapuri, Bagavathi Perumal, Baburaj, Ali Fazal, Rohit Saraf, Arjun Chidambaram, Chetan, and Rajashri Deshpande.

Thug Life marks Mani Ratnam and Kamal Haasan's reunion after 36 years since their hit outing, Nayakan. The technical crew of Thug Life features cinematographer Ravi K Chandran, music director AR Rahman, editor Sreekar Prasad and action directors Anbariv. The film is a co-production between Udhayanidhi's Red Giant Movies, Kamal Haasan's Raaj Kamal Film International, and Mani Ratnam's Madras Talkies.