A Star Is Born, A Mentor Is Challenged: Dulquer Salmaan’s ‘Kaantha’ Trailer Unveils a Gripping Period Drama

The official trailer for Kaantha has arrived, and it promises a visually spectacular and emotionally charged cinematic experience. Launched today by pan-Indian superstar Prabhas, the trailer transports audiences to the glittering and gritty world of 1950s Madras, confirming the film’s grand scale and setting the stage for one of the year’s most anticipated performances from Dulquer Salmaan.

The trailer for the November 14 release dives straight into the heart of the film’s conflict: a fiery ego clash between a mentor and his protégé. Dulquer Salmaan stars as Chandran, a matinee idol at the peak of his stardom, while Samuthirakani plays “Ayya,” the director who discovered him. The drama ignites when Chandran, in an act of hubris, seizes control of his mentor’s film, Shaantha, renaming it Kaantha. The trailer showcases a stunning, high-stakes battle of wills, captured with rich, nostalgic cinematography by Dani Sanchez-Lopez and punctuated by a powerful score from Jhanu Chanthar.

Directed by Selvamani Selvaraj, celebrated for his gripping documentary The Hunt for Veerappan, Kaantha marks his ambitious feature film debut. The project is a major pan-Indian collaboration, jointly produced by Dulquer Salmaan’s Wayfarer Films and Rana Daggubati’s Spirit Media, with Rana himself appearing in a pivotal role. The film, which also stars Bhagyashri Borse, is reportedly inspired by the life of Tamil cinema’s first superstar, M. K. Thyagaraja Bhagavathar.

With a runtime of 2 hours and 43 minutes and a U/A certificate, Kaantha is set for a multi-language release in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada, and Hindi. The trailer solidifies its position as a powerful period drama, charting the explosive collision of art, ambition, and ego in the golden age of cinema.