Cinemagoers across India have been counting down the days to Rajinikanth’s Tamil film, Jailer 2, all year. For Malayali fans, the primary draw was seeing superstar Mohanlal return for a powerhouse extended cameo as Mathew. This excitement grew even more when promotional teasers and trailers showed that numerous actors from Kerala featured heavily in the ensemble. Nevertheless, following the movie's grand premiere yesterday, a lot of viewers have been left let down.


Big Disappointment for Mohanlal Fans


Malayali fans were deeply disappointed by Mohanlal’s highly anticipated extended cameo as Mathew — Tiger Muthuvel Pandian’s friend — as he appeared on screen for barely two minutes in the sequel. To make matters worse, a slow-motion walking sequence featured prominently in the trailer was cut from the final film, even though reports indicate he originally shot much more footage. Fans also felt let down after online rumours that his intro would feature the popular track Okela Okela from his 1997 film Varnappakittu turned out to be false. Instead of the grand showcase viewers expected, his screen time was reduced to a single scene in the first half and a final-act slow-motion walk alongside Rajinikanth.


Also read: Jailer 2 movie review: Superstar Rajinikanth-led sequel has rollicking start, dips briefly and then cruises along smoothly for a decent landing


Though reducing Mohanlal’s footage was an obvious move to prevent his screen presence from stealing the spotlight from Thalaivar, it sparked widespread disappointment among his fanbase and Malayalis on the whole. For many, this underutilisation stood out as the sole glaring disappointment in an otherwise exciting sequel. One can only hope that the Malayali audience's discontent serves as a wake-up call for the filmmakers, inspiring them to give Mohanlal's character the screen time he truly deserves in the next instalment.


Sidelined Malayali actors in Jailer 2


The pre-release hype heavily leaned on a prominent Malayalam supporting cast featuring big names like Suraj Venjaramoodu, Hakim Shajahan, Kottayam Nazeer, and Shamna Kasim. Sadly, save for Suraj and Hakim, the rest of the ensemble was completely sidelined with zero story weight. Their characters were so forgettable that even a novice actor could have handled them. And it goes without saying that the casting of Anna Rajan and Sujith Shankar made zero sense in the grand scheme of the plot.


This appears to be a calculated move to cast several Malayali actors simply to draw Kerala audiences into theatres. After all, non-Malayalam movies often perform exceptionally well at the local box office whenever there is strong buzz or involvement from prominent Kerala stars and technicians. 


Also read: Jailer 2: Why are Mohanlal fans incensed about the Rajinikanth-led Jailer sequel?


Meanwhile, Suraj Venjaramoodu as Dileep and Hakim Shajahan as Sharva Kalpak delivered truly impressive performances. Both actors effortlessly captured the sinister nature of their characters while sharing the screen with some of Indian cinema’s biggest icons. That being said, Shamna Kasim’s energetic dance number and an unexpected cameo by Vinayakan were also standout highlights that truly delighted viewers in the cinema, among other star appearances.


Jailer 2 garnering huge response in theatres


Thanks to immense buzz and enthusiastic reviews celebrating Rajinikanth's iconic star power, this Tamil blockbuster is projected to cross the ₹200 crore mark within its first week. Directed and written by Nelson, this high-octane sequel will be available to stream on both Sun NXT and Amazon Prime Video following its theatrical run.