Priyamani set to turn Kangana Ranaut's close aide; will she play Sasikala in Thalaivi?

Priyamani, who won National Film Award in Best Actress category for Paruthiveeran in 2006, will reportedly play the controversial role of Sasikala in Kangana Ranaut's Thalaivi, directed by AL Vijay.

Thalaivi is a biopic on former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, who breathed her last under suspicious conditions. Kangana Ranaut is playing the title role in the biographical movie. Sasikala was a close friend of Jaya and played a key role in her life. Ever since the movie was announced, several people have been speculating about the actress who would play the former Tamil Nadu CM's close aide.

The buzz in the media is that actress Priyamani has been brought on board to play the role of Sasikala in AL Vijay's Thalaivi. The National Award-winning actress is well aware of the interpersonal relationships of Jayalalithaa and Sasikala and would be a perfect choice to play the part. The director reportedly thought that she will do justice to the role.

"Producer Vishnu Induri is making the film in three languages (Telugu, Tamil and Hindi), so he needed an actress with a pan-Indian appeal. Priyamani fits the bill perfectly. Moreover, the director is confident that the actress will bring in her own style to the part," Deccan Chronicle quoted a source as saying.

The role of Sasikala is expected to be key to the narration of Thalaivi, as she impacted Jayalalithaa's personal life hugely. The character is going to be very challenging and Priyamani was excited to play it when the makers approached her for the role in the movie, which is produced by Vishnu Vardhan Induri and Shailesh R Singh.

Priyamani, who married event organizer Mustafa Raj on August 23, 2017, had two releases - Pathinettam Padi (Malayalam) and Nanna Prakara (Kannada) - in 2019. She is currently busy with the shooting of Amazon Prime Originals' web series The Family Man, which has the new, exciting and gripping intense story.