Vidaamuyarchi

Vidaamuyarchi (transl. Perseverance) is a 2025 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film written and directed by Magizh Thirumeni. Inspired by the 1997 American film Breakdown, it is produced by Allirajah Subaskaran under Lyca Productions. The film stars Ajith Kumar, Arjun, Trisha, Regena Cassandrra and Arav. In the film, a husband seeks to rescue his wife after she is captured by a mysterious group.

Initially, Vignesh Shivan was confirmed as the director of Ajith's 62nd film, before he was replaced by Magizh with a new script. After it was announced in May 2023 along with its official title, principal photography began that October. Shot mostly in Azerbaijan, with a short schedule in Thailand, filming wrapped by late December 2024. The film has music composed by Anirudh Ravichander, cinematography handled by Om Prakash and editing by N. B. Srikanth.

Vidaamuyarchi was initially scheduled to be released in January 2025, on the occasion of Pongal, but was postponed. The film was released in theatres on 6 February 2025 to mixed reviews from critics, who praised the lead cast's performance, visuals and action sequences, while the storyline and narration received criticism. Although underperformed at the box office, it became the highest-grossing Tamil film of 2025 by the end of its theatrical run, before being surpassed by Dragon (2025).

Plot

Arjun and Kayal, a Tamil couple in Baku, are on the brink of divorce after twelve years of marriage. A flashback reveals they met in Tbilisi, fell in love, and married, but their relationship deteriorated after Kayal suffered a miscarriage that left her infertile and depressed. As emotional distance grew, Kayal began an affair with a man named Prakash and asked for a divorce. Arjun, heartbroken but respectful, agrees and offers to drive her to her parents’ home in Tbilisi.

During their trip, the couple have a hostile encounter with a group of men in a Hummer. At a filling station, Kayal befriends another Tamil couple, Deepika and Rakshith, who claim to be truckers. Later, when Arjun's car breaks down, Kayal leaves with Rakshith to seek help, but she goes missing. Arjun discovers the car was sabotaged and, failing to find Kayal at the café, confronts Rakshith — who denies knowing her. Though a police search turns up nothing, a local man later claims Kayal was kidnapped.

Arjun is ambushed by Rakshith's gang, including Deepika, the Hummer driver Michael, and the fake mentally impaired man. They claim Kayal hired them to kill Arjun and offer to switch targets for more money. Arjun pretends to agree, retrieves a knife, and escapes after attacking Michael. He later saves a police officer and learns Kayal might still be alive.

Meanwhile, the gang tries to trick Kayal into thinking Arjun wanted her killed. She resists. Arjun finds the hideout and kills or incapacitates most of the gang. Deepika dies in an acid vat accident, and Rakshith kills himself by jumping into an industrial shredder after refusing to reveal Kayal’s location.

Arjun discovers a hidden bunker with mutilated bodies. The police reveal the gang had been trafficking women after killing their husbands and surgically altering the wives. Kayal is found alive and rescued. She learns she was targeted for her husband’s wealth, not her friend Anu.

Arjun drives Kayal to her parents. She asks why he risked everything despite her betrayal, and he replies, “Because I still love you.” They reconcile tearfully.

Cast

Adapted from the closing credits:

Production

Development

After the success of Valimai in early 2022, it was reported that Ajith Kumar would collaborate with director Vignesh Shivan for the actor's 62nd film as a leading actor. Nayanthara would reportedly reunite with Ajith after she was previously paired opposite the actor in Viswasam (2019). Tentatively titled AK62, the production was reported to begin after Ajith completed Thunivu (2023). That March, Vignesh confirmed the project, also revealing the inclusion of composer Anirudh Ravichander. The project was to be funded by Allirajah Subaskaran's Lyca Productions, which distributed Vignesh's Naanum Rowdy Dhaan (2015). The company made a public announcement on 19 March 2022, confirming the project. However, the following January, Vignesh was dropped from the project, reportedly because Ajith was not impressed with the script after the director had developed it during the pre-production for six months. Vignesh denied this reported reason in April 2023, saying he was dropped as only the producers, not Ajith, were not fully impressed with the script.

Numerous directors, including A. R. Murugadoss, Atlee and Magizh Thirumeni, were reported to be in consideration for replacing Vignesh, with Magizh being the front-runner. In February 2023, it was reported that Magizh had flown to London, where Ajith was at the time, and narrated a script which impressed the actor. On 1 May, Ajith's 52nd birthday, the production house officially announced Magizh as the director. The film's official title Vidaamuyarchi was revealed the same day. In July 2024, the film was reported to be an adaptation of 1997 American film Breakdown, directed by Jonathan Mostow, as there were previous reports of the film being so and many similarities in the promotional posters. The film's status as a remake was not confirmed until December 2024. During the promotions of the film, Magizh stated that Ajith suggested using the core idea of the source material, making Vidaamuyarchi his first directorial based on another person's story.

Pre-production

Pre-production began in April 2023. During the process, the makers scouted for locations and chose either Abu Dhabi or Azerbaijan. However, due to unavoidable circumstances, they choose the latter location. According to Magizh, the film was initially planned to be a quick-project, with filming being held from October 2023 and being completed by January 2024, and it being released either in April or on 1 May 2024, coinciding with Ajith's birthday.

In mid-February 2023, Nirav Shah was announced as the cinematographer, in his first film with Magizh and fifth with Ajith after Billa (2007), Nerkonda Paarvai (2019), Valimai (2022) and Thunivu (2023). However, due to personal reasons, he opted out during the film's shoot and was replaced with Om Prakash. Anirudh Ravichander would score the music, in his first film with the director, whilst Magizh's norm editor N. B. Srikanth was retained.

Casting

In addition to his usual salt-and-pepper look, Ajith would sport a full-black hairstyle for his character in flashback portions, with certain scenes shot after his weight loss regime due to his involvement in the 24H Series. Sanjay Dutt was initially reported to play the main antagonist in his second Tamil film after Leo (2023). However, Arjun was instead confirmed, marking his reunion with Ajith after Mankatha (2011). Arjun Das was initially reported to be considered for the secondary antagonist, but as he was allegedly unable to allocate dates for the film, he was reportedly replaced by Arav, who previously collaborated with Magizh on Kalaga Thalaivan (2022). Arun Vijay was reported to play an important role in the film but declined due to his busy schedule.

Tamannaah Bhatia was initially reported to play the female lead; however, Trisha, who would pair opposite Ajith for the fifth time following Ji (2005), Kireedam (2007), Mankatha and Yennai Arindhaal (2015), was instead announced. Huma Qureshi, who earlier acted with Ajith in Valimai (2022), was reportedly considered for an important role. However, Regena Cassandrra was eventually cast in that role. In July 2024, Azerbaijani media reported that several local actors were a part of the film including Vidadi Hasanov and Javanshir Hadiyev. In August 2024, the production house announced the involvement of actors Nikhil Nair, Ganesh Saravanan and Dasarathi in prominent roles. Later, that December, Ramya Subramanian confirmed her presence in the film.

Filming

Principal photography began with the first schedule on 4 October 2023 in Azerbaijan. Initially, filming was intended to begin in the first week of September 2023 but was delayed due to Ajith's commitments to his world tour. The makers' decision to shoot in Azerbaijan received negative responses from netizens as the country was then under civil unrest, particularly regarding the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict (2023 Azerbaijani offensive in Nagorno-Karabakh). However, according to trade analyst Ramesh Bala, the conflict was already over and the makers were filming in Baku, far from the Nagorno-Karabakh region where the conflict happened. Furthermore, it was also reported that the production would be put on hold due to the ongoing Gaza war, but despite such reports, production continued. Art director Milan died during the film's preliminary shooting due to a heart attack. Later that month Ajith urged to set up a medical camp in case of any similar emergencies. In early November, it was reported that the schedule had been completed.