Diesel | |
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![]() Theatrical release poster | |
Directed by | Shanmugam Muthusamy |
Written by | Shanmugam Muthusamy |
Produced by | Devarajulu Markandeyan SP Sankar Kishore. S |
Starring | Harish Kalyan Vinay Rai Athulya Ravi P. Sai Kumar |
Cinematography | M. S. Prabhu Richard M. Nathan |
Edited by | San Lokesh |
Music by | Dhibu Ninan Thomas |
Production companies | Third Eye Entertainment SP Cinemas |
Distributed by | SP Cinemas |
Release date |
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Running time | 144 minutes [1] |
Country | India |
Language | Tamil |
Diesel is a 2025 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film written and directed by Shanmugam Muthusamy in his directorial debut and produced by Third Eye Entertainment and SP Cinemas. The film stars Harish Kalyan and Athulya Ravi in the lead roles, while Vinay Rai as its antagonist with an ensemble cast consisting of P. Sai Kumar, Ananya, Karunas, Ramesh Thilak, Kaali Venkat, Vivek Prasanna, Sachin Khedekar, Zakir Hussain, Thangadurai, and KPY Dheena in pivotal roles.
The film was officially announced in June 2022 under the official title, Diesel. Principal photography commenced earlier in December 2021 and got wrapped in November 2023. The film's music is composed by Dhibu Ninan Thomas, with cinematography handled by M. S. Prabhu and Richard M. Nathan; and editing by San Lokesh.
Diesel was theatrically released on 17 October 2025, coinciding with Diwali and received mixed reviews from critics. [2]
![]() | This section needs expansionwith: October 2025. You can help by adding to it. (October 2025) |
Vasudevan "Vasu" from the fishermen community indulge in the diesel mafia network that his adopted father Manoharan started. Their operation is smuggling crude oil from the pipes that were laid by government along the shoreline rendering the fishermen community from doing their occupation. But when posed with certain challenges from the government, Vasu begins to play their game to them, leading to a cat-and-mouse chase.
By the end of June 2022, Harish Kalyan who was last seen in Oh Manapenne! (2021) was announced to collaborate with Shanmugam Muthusamy for his next film titled Diesel starring opposite to Athulya Ravi as the female lead playing the role of a lawyer. [3] The film is produced by Devarajulu Markandeyan, SP Sankar, Kishore. S under his Third Eye Entertainment and SP Cinemas, while the technical team consists of cinematographers Richard M. Nathan and M. S. Prabhu, editor San Lokesh [4] and action choreographers Stunt Silva and Rajasekhar. [5] Apart from the lead actors, the film stars Vinay Rai as its antagonist, alongside an ensemble cast consisting of P. Sai Kumar, Ananya, Karunas, Ramesh Thilak, Kaali Venkat, Vivek Prasanna, Sachin Khedekar, Sai Krishna, Zakir Husain, Thangadurai, KPY Dheena, Apoorva Singh and others in important roles. [6]
Principal photography began in December 2021 in locations like Chennai and Hyderabad. [7] During the announcement in June 2022, the filming was ongoing in Pondicherry. [8] In an interview, Athulya mentioned that the filming took place in Cuddalore for around 10 days. [9] By the mid-of November 2022, it was reported that the filming in nearing completion. [10] The pre-climax sequence showcasing a protest was shot with around 500 junior artists. [11] The entire filming got wrapped in mid-November 2023. [12]
Diesel | ||||
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Soundtrack album by | ||||
Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
Language | Tamil | |||
Label | Think Music | |||
Producer | Dhibu Ninan Thomas | |||
Dhibu Ninan Thomas chronology | ||||
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Singles from Diesel | ||||
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The film has music composed by Dhibu Ninan Thomas. [13] The first single titled "Beer Song" was released on 10 February 2023 to become an instant hit for its orchestration, lyrics and choreography. [14] The second single titled "Dillubaru Aaja" sung by Silambarasan [15] and Shweta Mohan was released on 18 February 2025. [16] The third single titled "Aaruyire" was released on 3 October 2025. [17]
No. | Title | Lyrics | Singer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Beer Song" | Rokesh | Gana Guna | 3:16 |
2. | "Dillubaru Aaja" | Rokesh, GKB | Silambarasan, Shweta Mohan | 4:38 |
3. | "Aaruyire" | Mohan Rajan | Ravi G |
Diesel was theatrically released on 17 October 2025, coinciding with Diwali, clashing with Bison & Dude. [18] Along with the original Tamil version, the film will also be released in the dubbed versions of Telugu and Hindi. [19]
Diesel received mixed reviews from critics.
Abhinav Subramanian of The Times of India gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "Except nothing ever catches fire. The film plods through its conflicts with a flatness that simply goes through the motions. [...] Harish Kalyan has the looks and the chops that help with screen presence. He's lively and really carries the movie. Vinay Rai plays a steely antagonist, and Karunas lends good support." [20] Akshay Kumar of Cinema Express gave 2.5/5 stars and wrote "Diesel is a movie that requires caution regarding its expectations, and it succeeds in parts. The genuine efforts to showcase the struggles in fishermen's livelihood and their living are also worth plaudits. But the poor writing choices create a disconnect between commercial appeal and the story's needs." [21] Janani K of India Today gave 1.5/5 stars and wrote "'Diesel' squanders a potentially explosive premise about fishing communities and crude oil theft by drowning it in borrowed ideas, shoddy execution, and technical incompetence." [22] Anusha Sundar of OTT Play gave 1.5/5 stars and wrote "Diesel unfortunately becomes a disappointing watch. With too many elements, and deviations in form of unwanted romance and comedy, the focus for Diesel is lost in translation." [23] Bhuvanesh Chandar of The Hindu wrote "Diesel is a forgettable outing for Harish Kalyan, but you can’t help but appreciate the actor for the effort he puts in this all-new space. [...] However, this engine needed more ignition and less imitation of a formula, and perhaps a convincing re-draft and some trust in the audience could have made Harish’s efforts worthwhile." [24]
In India, Diesel was released alongside Dude and Bison. It opened to ₹40 lakh (US$47,000) domestically, the lowest among the releases. [26]