Mahaan Trailer Talk: Irony Overload With Vikram ‘In And As’ A Dreaded Bootlegger Named “Gandhi Mahaan”

A week before the digital premiere of Karthik Subbaraj's Mahaan, the team released a two-minute trailer that takes us deeper into the world of a dreaded 'Gandhian' played by Vikram. Starting out in 1996 as a school teacher taking lessons in commerce, we see the regular, boring life of Gandhi Mahaan (Vikram) for whom even Rs.50 is a big deal. In first viewing, we get a glimpse of how this ordinary man takes to a life in crime after enjoying the pleasures of living without morals "for just one day".

The trailer shows us the striking image of a man who has to leave home with a bust of Gandhiji and onto a life of crime. Gandhi Mahaan's son, played by Dhruv, describes his dad as "King of liquor trade" and has serious issues with his father's immorality. His father, on the other hand, feels there's no point in living by the rules. This coming from a man whose forefathers pioneered the 'ban-liquor' movement in the State. Overall, an excellent trailer which promises a great looking gangster saga along with a solid father-son drama.

Watch the trailer here:

The team had released a teaser earlier this week that gave us a fair idea of the film's plot. Starting with a black and white flashback, the film starts with a father asking his son Gandhi Mahaan (Vikram) if he will fulfil the dreams of their ancestors. From a lineage that is said to have played a major role in banning the sale of alcohol in Tamil Nadu, the film traces the life of a failed "Gandhian" who becomes a bootlegger to make his own empire.

According to Amazon Prime Video,  Mahaan is about, "a man whose family leaves him when he strays from the path of ideological living in his search for personal freedom."

This is Karthik Subbaraj's first release after last year's Netflix film Jagame Thanthiram, starring Dhanush and also his first with actor Vikram. Vikram, though, hasn't had a release since 2019's Kadaram Kondan.

Apart from Karthik Subbaraj regular Bobby Simha, the film also stars Simran (after Petta), Vani Bhojan and Sananth. Santosh Narayanan scores the film's music and Shreyas Krishna is the cinematographer. SS Lalit Kumar (who is also producing Vikram's Cobra) is the producer of Mahaan. The father-son gangster drama gets a director Amazon Prime release on Thursday, February 10.