Vijay, Prabhas, Mohanlal, Vijay Deverakonda, Dhanush — meet the busiest heroes from down South

'Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham' film poster (Image: Twitter/@Mohanlal)

Akshay Kumar is considered to be the busiest superstar in Bollywood with three to four films releasing every year.

But there are some select stars down South who have multiple films in different stages of production. Of course, some top stars still choose to work in only one film at a time and even those turn out to be big successes. Let's list them all.

Vijay: Master

He has already delivered a flurry of successes with Bigil, Sarkar, Mersal and Theri. Now, he is busy shooting for Master. A thriller, which is being directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj, Master features Vijay in a never-seen-before role and is set to release on April 9. The film also features another Vijay — Vijay Sethupathi.

Vijay Deverakonda: Hero, Fighter

He became a star after Arjun Reddy. But the super success of Kabir Singh further made Vijay Deverakonda a known face across the country. His next film Hero is already being pitched as a biggie. After playing a romantic part in Dear Comrade, Vijay would now be seen as a biker in Hero. He is also shooting for Karan Johar's Fighter, which will be his Bollywood debut.

Prabhas’ 20th and 21st films

The long wait after the Baahubali series star was finally over in 2019 when Prabhas was seen in Saaho. The film ironically did better in Hindi than in the southern versions. He is currently shooting for his twentieth film, which is still untitled, with director KK Radhakrishna Kumar and co-star Pooja Hegde. He has also announced another (also untitled) film with filmmaker Nag Aswin.

Suriya: Soorarai Pottru

Recently seen in Kaappaan, Suriya would next feature in Soorarai Pottru. Kaappaan was a multi-starrer action affair where Suriya was seen with Mohanlal and Arya. As for Soorarai Pottru, it is said to be based on the life and times of Air Deccan founder Captain GR Gopinath. This film should be interesting.

Rajinikanth: Annaatthe

It had been ages since Rajinikanth played a cop and this is what made Darbar interesting. However, the film did not meet expectations. The superstar would be next seen in Annaatthe which is being directed by Siva. Not much has been revealed about the film which also features Keerthy Suresh, Prakarsh Raj and Khushbu Sundar in key roles.

Mohanlal — Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham, Ram

The man refuses to rest and while he set quite a few records with his recent hit Lucifer, Mohanlal already has close to half a dozen films in different stages of production. Those lined up for release in months to come are Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham and Ram. Billion Dollar Raja was also announced recently.

Dhanush: Jagame Thandhiram, Atrangi Re

After being seen in Maari 2, Dhanush was seen in Enai Noki Paayum Thota and Pattas. This is while he is also filming Jagame Thandhiram. Though Dhanush had done a couple of Hindi films (Raanjhanaa and Shamitabh), he surprisingly stayed away from Bollywood for long time. The drought would be over soon as he is reuniting with director Aanand L. Rai for Atrangi Re.

Vijay Sethupathi: Master, Laal Singh Chaddha, Thuglak, Kadaisi Vivasayi, Edaku 2018

The man has come on his own ever since the release of Vikram Vedha, which is already a hot property in Bollywood. He also saw good critical acclaim with last year's release Super Deluxe. Now he has a flurry of releases ahead with half a dozen movies lined up next. Among the big releases are Master with Vijay and his Bollywood debut Laal Singh Chaddha with Aamir Khan.

Yash: KGF 2

Yash surprised one and all when his Kannada release KGF turned out to be a pan-India success. While it stays on to be the biggest blockbuster coming from Kannada cinema, its sequel is being much awaited as well. Moreover, Sanjay Dutt has a major part to play as well in KGF 2, hence making the film all the more special.

Mahesh Babu: Announcement awaited

Every Mahesh Babu film is special, as seen from the kind of response they have generated of late (Maharshi and Bharat Ane Nenu). A few weeks ago, he was seen in Sarileru Neekevvaru, which was an action affair. A major schedule for the film was shot in Kashmir. Mahesh Babu’s fans are eagerly awaiting an announcement of his next film.

(Joginder Tuteja is a trade expert and film critic. Views are personal)