Kaala (2018 film)

Kaala (also marketed as Kaala Karikalan; transl. Black) is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language action drama film directed and co-written by Pa. Ranjith and produced by Wunderbar Films. The film stars Rajinikanth in the titular role, alongside Nana Patekar, Eswari Rao, Huma Qureshi, Samuthirakani, Anjali Patil, K. Manikandan, Dileepan, and late Nitish Veera. It follows Karikalan "Kaala", the leader of Dharavi, who tries save his land and people from getting seized and evicted by Haridev "Hari Dhadha", former gangster.

The film was officially announced in June 2016 under the tentative title Thalaivar 164, as it is Rajinikanth's 164th film as the lead actor, and the official title was announced in May 2017. Principal photography commenced the same month. It was predominantly shot in Mumbai; however, due to a few difficulties, the team had to shoot at Chennai a few times, and wrapped by mid-October. The film has music composed by Santhosh Narayanan, cinematography handled by Murali G. and editing by A. Sreekar Prasad.

Kaala was scheduled to release on 27 April 2018 in theatres, but was postponed due to the conflict between Nadigar Sangam and Digital Service Providers. The film premiered on 6 June 2018 in Malaysia, with the worldwide release on the following day, coinciding the week of Eid al-Fitr, to mixed reviews from critics who praised the cast performances, action sequences and soundtrack, but the screenwriting and pace received criticism. The film grossed ₹160 crore and was moderately successful at the box office.