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Sun Pictures

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Sun Pictures
TypeSubsidiary of Sun Network
Founded2008; 18 years ago (2008)
HeadquartersMurasoli Maran Towers,
Chennai, Tamil Nadu
,
India
Key people
Products
Services
ParentSun TV Network
Websitewww.sunpictures.in

Sun Pictures is an Indian film production and film distribution based in Chennai, India. Founded on 1999 It is a division of Sun TV Network a part of the Sun Group.[3] In 2009, it started producing films, the first film was Enthiran which was a huge blockbuster. Alongside, they have produced numerous blockbuster films such as Sarkar, Petta, Beast, Jailer and Coolie.

History

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Sun Pictures was established in 2008 as Sun TV Network's film distribution and production studio, with Hansraj Saxena appointed as its chief operating officer.[4] In February 2009, Sun Pictures took over production of Enthiran from Eros International and Ayngaran International, marking its first direct production venture.[5][6] Starring Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, the Tamil science-fiction film was reported at the time to be the most expensive Indian film yet made, with production costs of approximately $32 million.[7][8]

Between 2008 and 2010, Sun Pictures released close to 20 films.[9][8] Production and distribution activity subsequently slowed after the AIADMK government came to power in Tamil Nadu.[9][8][10][11][12][13]

Sun Pictures and its chief operating officer at the time, Hansraj Saxena, faced nine separate criminal complaints in June 2011 alleging cheating and intimidation.[14] Writing in the Economic and Political Weekly, journalist Paranjoy Guha Thakurta suggested the case filings were connected to a promise the AIADMK had made in its 2011 election manifesto, to break Sun Group's control over cable TV in Tamil Nadu.[14][13]

In July 2011, the chief operating officer, Hansraj Saxena, was arrested in Chennai on charges of criminal breach of trust and cheating, following a complaint by a film producer alleging non-payment for distribution rights to the film Theeradha Vilaiyattu Pillai (2010) . Saxena denied the charges and was remanded to judicial custody pending trial.[15]

In December 2017, Sun Pictures announced its next production, an untitled film starring Vijay and directed by A. R. Murugadoss, tentatively referred to as "Vijay 62". At the time, this marked the studio's first production since Enthiran in 2010, having concentrated primarily on distribution in the intervening years.[16]

Following Jailer's box-office success, Kalanithi Maran met Rajinikanth in August 2023 and presented him with a cheque and a choice of two luxury cars, from which the actor selected a BMW X7.[17][18] Maran separately presented director Nelson Dilipkumar with a cheque the following day.[18] On 14 January 2025, Sun Pictures officially announced Jailer 2, a sequel reuniting director Nelson Dilipkumar and composer Anirudh Ravichander with Rajinikanth.[19]

In April 2025, Sun Pictures announced a project pairing actor Allu Arjun with director Atlee, described by the studio as a visual-effects-heavy production aimed at a global theatrical release.[20]

Films produced

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Key
† Denotes films that have not yet been released
Year Title Cast Director Languages Notes
2010 Enthiran Rajinikanth, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa, SanthanamShankar Tamil Tamil film production debut[21]
2018 Sarkar Vijay, Keerthy Suresh, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, Radha Ravi A. R. Murugadoss [22]
2019 Petta Rajinikanth, Vijay Sethupathi, Simran, Trisha Krishnan Karthik Subbaraj [21]
Kanchana 3 Raghava Lawrence, Oviya, Vedhika, Kovai Sarala Raghava Lawrence
Namma Veettu Pillai Sivakarthikeyan, Aishwarya Rajesh, Anu Emmanuel, Soori Pandiraj
2021 Annaatthe Rajinikanth, Keerthy Suresh, Nayanthara, Prakash Raj Siva
2022 Etharkkum Thunindhavan Suriya, Priyanka Mohan, Vinay Rai, Sathyaraj Pandiraj
Beast Vijay, Pooja Hegde, Selvaraghavan, VTV Ganesh Nelson Dilipkumar
Thiruchitrambalam Dhanush, Nithya Menen, Raashii Khanna, Priya Bhavani Shankar Mithran Jawahar [23]
2023 Jailer Rajinikanth, Vinayakan, Ramya Krishnan, Vasanth Ravi, Mirnaa, Mohanlal, Shiva Rajkumar Nelson Dilipkumar
2024 Raayan Dhanush, S. J. Suryah, Sundeep Kishan Dhanush National Film Award for Best Tamil Film
2025 Coolie Rajinikanth, Nagarjuna, Upendra, Soubin Shahir, Sathyaraj, Shruthi Haasan Lokesh Kanagaraj
2026 DC Lokesh Kanagaraj, Wamiqa Gabbi Arun Matheswaran
Jailer 2 † Rajinikanth, S. J. Suryah, Ramya Krishnan, Mirnaa, Mithun Chakraborty Nelson Dilipkumar
2028 Raaka † Allu Arjun, Deepika Padukone, Atlee Telugu & English Telugu film production debut[24]

Distributed films

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As distributor
Year Film Cast Director Notes
2008Kadhalil Vizhunthen Nakul, Sunaina, Sampath Raj, LivingstonP. Prasad[25]
Thenavattu Jiiva, Poonam Bajwa, Ganja Karuppu, Ravi KaleKathir[26]
Dindigul Sarathy Karunas, Karthika, Saranya Ponvannan, NassarSiva Sanmukam[27]
2009Padikathavan Dhanush, Tamannaah Bhatia, Vivek, Atul KulkarniSuraj[28][29]
Thee Sundar C, Namitha, Ramya Raj, VivekKicha[30]
Ayan Suriya, Prabhu, Tamannaah Bhatia, Akashdeep SaighalK. V. Anand[31]
Maasilamani Nakul, Sunaina, Pawan, SanthanamR. N. R. Manohar[32]
Ninaithale Inikkum Prithviraj Sukumaran, Shakthi Vasu, Karthik Kumar, PriyamaniG. N. R. Kumaravelan[33]
Kanden Kadhalai Bharath, Tamannaah Bhatia, Santhanam, Sapan SaranR. Kannan[34]
Vettaikaaran Vijay, Anushka Shetty, Sanchita Padukone, SathyanB. BabuSivan[22]
2010Theeradha Vilaiyattu Pillai Vishal, Sarah-Jane Dias, Tanushree Dutta, Neetu ChandraThiru[35]
Sura Vijay, Tamannaah Bhatia, Dev Gill, VadiveluS. P. Rajkumar[22]
Singam Suriya, Anushka Shetty, Prakash Raj, VivekHari[36]
Thillalangadi Jayam Ravi, Tamannaah Bhatia, Shaam, PrabhuMohan Raja[37]
Enthiran Rajinikanth, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Danny Denzongpa, SanthanamS. Shankar[21]
2011Aadukalam Dhanush, Tapsee Pannu, Kishore, V. I. S. JayapalanVetrimaran[29]
Mappillai Dhanush, Hansika Motwani, Manisha Koirala, VivekSuraj[29]
Engeyum Kaadhal Jayam Ravi, Hansika Motwani, Suman, Raju SundaramPrabhu Deva
Mankatha Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Lakshmi RaiVenkat Prabhu[38]
Vedi Vishal, Sameera Reddy, Poonam Kaur, VivekPrabhu Deva[39]
2013Kutti Puli Sasikumar, Lakshmi Menon, Saranya Ponvannan, Bala SaravananM. Muthaiya[39]
2014Inga Enna Solluthu VTV Ganesh, Meera Jasmine, Santhanam, PandiarajanVincent Selva[40]
2015Muni 3: Kanchana 2 Raghava Lawrence, Taapsee Pannu, Nithya Menen, Kovai SaralaRaghava Lawrence
2018 Sarkar Vijay, Keerthy Suresh, Varalaxmi Sarathkumar, Radha RaviAR Murugadoss[22]
2019Petta Rajinikanth, Vijay Sethupathi, Simran, Trisha KrishnanKarthik Subbaraj
Kanchana 3 Raghava Lawrence, Oviya, Vedhika, Nikki Tamboli Raghava Lawrence[41]
Namma Veettu Pillai Sivakarthikeyan, Aishwarya Rajesh, Anu Emmanuel, SooriPandiraj[42]
2021Annaatthe Rajinikanth, Keerthy Suresh, Nayanthara, KhushbuSiva[43]
2022 Etharkkum Thunindhavan Suriya, Vinay Rai, Priyanka Mohan, SathyarajPandiraj
Beast Vijay, Pooja Hegde, Selvaraghavan, VTV Ganesh Nelson Dilipkumar

Sun Pictures Music

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Film soundtracks released
Year Film Notes
2008Dindigul Sarathy Also distributor
2009Thee
2019Kanchana 3Also producer
Namma Veettu Pillai
2021Annaatthe
Etharkkum Thunindhavan
2022Beast
Thiruchitrambalam
2023Jailer
2024 Raayan
2025 Coolie
2026 Raaka

References

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  1. ↑ "Sun Group". india.mom-rsf.org. Archived from the original on 18 January 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  2. ↑ "Kalanithi Maran". india.mom-rsf.org. Archived from the original on 18 January 2021. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  3. ↑ "Sun TV bails out Endhiran - Behindwoods.com - Eros International Ayngaran International Sun Pictures Sun TV Bollywood flicks Drona Yuvvraj Rajini shankar aishwarya rai Tamil movie news images picture gallery images". www.behindwoods.com.
  4. ↑ Rajendran, Dhanya (8 June 2015). "Maran and friends: The rise and fall of a camaraderie which built Sun empire". The News Minute. Retrieved 2 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "Why did Enthiran shift to Sun Pictures?". The New Indian Express. 15 May 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
  6. ↑ archive, From our online (16 May 2012). "'Enthiran' – A film that everybody rejected". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
  7. ↑ Karmali, Naazneen. "Strong Signal". Forbes. Retrieved 2 August 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 Ravindranath, Sushila (2026). Surge: Tamil Nadu’s Growth Story. Westland Business (published May 2026). ISBN 978-93-7197-268-0.
  9. 1 2 "As Sun Pictures collaborates with Rajinikanth for Thalaivar 168, a look at how the banner is maintaining its market supremacy". Firstpost (in fp-IN). 12 October 2019. Archived from the original on 7 December 2025. Retrieved 3 August 2026.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unrecognized language (link)
  10. ↑ Thakurta, Paranjoy Guha (29 August 2015). "The Business of Politics: Sun TV and the Maran Brothers". Economic and political weekly. 50 (2015).
  11. ↑ Rajanayagam, S. (12 June 2015). Popular Cinema and Politics in South India: The Films of MGR and Rajinikanth. Routledge. ISBN 978-1-317-58772-9.
  12. ↑ Sundaram, Vaasanthi (8 April 2020). The Lone Empress: A Portrait of Jayalalithaa. Penguin Random House India Private Limited. ISBN 978-93-5305-663-6.
  13. 1 2 "New regime,new equations in Tamil cinema". The Indian Express. 16 May 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2026.
  14. 1 2 Thakurta, Paranjoy Guha (2015). "The Business of Politics: Sun TV and the Maran Brothers". Economic and Political Weekly. 50 (35): 30–35. ISSN 0012-9976.
  15. ↑ Bhushan, Nyay (4 July 2011). "India's Sun Pictures COO Hansraj Saxena Arrested for Breach of Trust". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  16. ↑ "Vijay 62: Sun Pictures to produce Ilayathalapathy's next film with AR Murugadoss". The Indian Express. 5 December 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2026.
  17. ↑ "Kalanithi Maran gifts Rajinikanth a luxury car for the success of 'Jailer'". The Hindu. 1 September 2023. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  18. 1 2 "Superstar Rajinikanth presented with bonus cheque after Jailer's historic success, asked to pick from two luxury cars". The Indian Express. 1 September 2023. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  19. ↑ "Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 officially announced: Nelson and Anirudh Ravichander bring the fun in fiery promo". The Indian Express. 14 January 2025. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
  20. ↑ Ramachandran, Naman (8 April 2025). "Allu Arjun Confirms Untitled Feature With Director Atlee, Sun Pictures (EXCLUSIVE)". Variety. Retrieved 8 August 2026.
  21. 1 2 3 "Rajinikanth on Petta: Karthik Subbaraj's film is an action-packed entertainer, perfect for Pongal - Entertainment News , Firstpost". Firstpost. 10 December 2018. Archived from the original on 31 August 2020. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  22. 1 2 3 4 "Vijay's next film Thalapathy 65, directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, announced by Sun Pictures-Entertainment News , Firstpost". Firstpost. 10 December 2020. Archived from the original on 8 August 2022. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  23. ↑ "'D50': Dhanush's 50th film is with Sun Pictures". The Hindu. 18 January 2023. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  24. ↑ "Official! Allu Arjun and Atlee team up for Landmark Cinematic Event tentatively titled 'AA22xA6'". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 8 April 2025.
  25. ↑ "KADHALIL VIZHUNDHEN MOVIE REVIEW - Behindwoods.com Starring Nakul Sunaina Hariraj Livingston Sampath Pasi Sathya Direction P V Prasath Music Vijay Antony Production S Umapathy hot images Tamil picture gallery images". behindwoods.com.
  26. ↑ "Thenavattu Review - Behindwoods.com - Actor Jeeva Actress Poonam Bajwa Direction V V Kathir Production ELK Productions Antony Music Srikanth Deva images Tamil picture gallery images". behindwoods.com.
  27. ↑ "DINDIGUL SARATHY MOVIE REVIEW - Behindwoods.com - Dindigul Sarathy Movie Review Dindigul Sarathy Movie Gallery Dindigul Sarathy Images Stills Tamil Actor Karunas Karthika Direction Subramaniam Pilai Karunas Acted Movies Nandha Jana Villain Kadhal Azhivathillai Geethai Iyarkai Pithamagan Vasool Raja MBBS Baba Attagasam Mercury Pookal Prathi Gnayiru 9.30 to 10.00 E Thiruvilayadal Arambam Pori Sadhu Miranda Images Gallery Stills". behindwoods.com.
  28. ↑ "Padikathavan Movie Review - Behindwoods.com Dhanush Tamanna Suraaj Sun TV Cool Suresh Movie Stills Images Tamil Movie Gallery Stills Images hot images Tamil picture gallery images". www.behindwoods.com.
  29. 1 2 3 Staff, T. N. M. (16 December 2019). "Dhanush and Sun Pictures to team up for the fourth time". The News Minute. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  30. ↑ Srinivasan, Pavithra. "This Tamil movie makes no sense". Rediff. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  31. ↑ archive, From our online (15 May 2012). "Candid about Ayan". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  32. ↑ "Popular Tamil actor-director RNR Manohar passes away". The New Indian Express. 17 November 2021. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  33. ↑ archive, From our online (16 May 2012). "Ninaithale Inikkum". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  34. ↑ Srinivasan, Pavithra. "Kanden Kadhalai lacks Jab We Met's magic". Rediff. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  35. ↑ "Hansraj Saxena files petition for bail". The Hindu. 13 July 2011. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  36. ↑ Srinivasan, Pavithra. "Singam, the mother of all masala films". Rediff. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  37. ↑ "Thillalangadi – Sun Pictures". www.sunpictures.in. Archived from the original on 13 March 2026. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  38. ↑ "Mankatha, Ajith Kumar-Arjun Sarja film, to rerelease on this date". Cinema Express. 4 January 2026. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  39. 1 2 "Sun Pictures bags Kutti Puli rights!". The Times of India. 15 January 2017. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  40. ↑ "Sun Pictures bags Inga Enna Solludhu!". The Times of India. 15 January 2017. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  41. ↑ archive, From our online (20 December 2018). "Sun Pictures reveals interesting update about Raghava Lawrence-starrer 'Kanchana 3'". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  42. ↑ "Sivakarthikeyan's film with Pandiraj titled 'Namma Veettu Pillai'". The Times of India. 12 August 2019. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
  43. ↑ "Rajinikanth-starrer Annaatthe's shoot suspended after 4 crew members test Covid positive". The Indian Express. 23 December 2020. Retrieved 5 August 2026.
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