Actor Harish Kalyan is over the moon as his film, Diesel, is set to hit screens for Deepavali. “This is the first festival release in my career, and that it’s releasing on a festival celebrated all over India makes it even more special,” says the actor. Like it is the case for most cinephiles, watching a film during Deepavali has been a customary tradition for Harish as well, and so, he understands how big a deal this is. “Usually, I would be the audience, all excited to catch the first show, but now there’s a bit of nervousness as well. That said, I am confident that the audience will receive it well.”
Diesel, directed by debutant Shanmugam Muthusamy, touches upon the mafia that operates behind the petroleum industry. Though it has been over three years since Shanmugam narrated the storyline to Harish, the actor says that he never felt detached from the core idea of the film. “In fact, I am more excited now, because while we would have heard the narration and seen a few rushes during the shoot and dubbing, only while watching the first copy will we know how the text has been translated to the screen. After looking at the first copy of Diesel, I felt more connected to the film.” Common fuel like petrol and diesel are integral to our day-to-day lives that the audience will instantly feel connected to the story, the actor notes. “They will understand that behind that one litre of fuel that they put in their vehicles, so much goes on. Moreover, we have also spoken about the lives of the fishing community,” he adds.
Harish Kalyan’s plans for Deepavali
“Year after year, I catch the Deepavali releases in theatres, but now knowing that my film will be playing on the big screen during this festival is quite something. So, of course, watching my film in theatres will be the first thing I do on Deepavali day, but I am yet to figure out my subsequent plans — for now, all my thoughts are about Diesel. I think maybe I will watch the other two films that are releasing for Deepavali.”
Diesel has been in the making for over three years. However, the early release of ‘Beer Song,’ the hit track that has since taken over social media, has fuelled the notion that the film has been long delayed, according to Harish. “Dhibu (composer Dhibu Ninan Thomas) came on board when we were 15 days into the shoot; he composed a tune for a situation, Rokesh wrote the lyrics swiftly, and it was all done so quickly.” When Shanmugam played the track to the team, they were so excited that it was decided that a lyrical video would be shot on the same schedule. “But yes, the post-production did take some time, and we also had to wait for the right release date,” he adds.
Speaking of the ‘Beer Song,’ Harish says that he seldom imagined the reception it got on social media. “We didn’t expect people from all over the world to be making reels out of it, and so the magnitude of its reach was quite surprising.” To his credit, the actor has been blessed to have so many chartbusters throughout his career — ‘Bodhai Kaname,’ ‘Kannamma, ’ ‘Dope Track,’ ‘High On Love,’ and ‘Chillanjirukkiye,’ to name a few. “I am glad that composers like Sam CS, Yuvan Shankar Raja, Vishal Chandrasekhar, Sean Roldan and Dhibu Ninan Thomas have all given me some terrific tracks and albums. I hope the streak continues,” says the actor, adding that perhaps it is just music that is reciprocating some love. Years ago, the actor had revealed that he had his own music programming setup at home. “So whenever I think of a tune, I will use a voice recorder to record it and then try to play it on my system. It’s just something I do out of passion, and I get such hit songs in my films because I love music so much, and so perhaps, music is loving me back.”
The song Harish Kalyan has been listening to on loop
“‘Guruvayurappa’. I have played it so many times at my place that if I play it one more time, I might get slapped (laughs). Be it Ilaiyaraaja’s chord progression or SP Balasubrahmanyam sir’s modulations…it’s magic. I wonder how they recorded it live in those times.”
Actor Harish Kalyan
| Photo Credit:
Johan Sathya Das Jai
Diesel — which features an ensemble cast that includes female lead Athulya Ravi, along with Sai Kumar, Sachin Khedekar, Zakir Husain, Karunas, Ramesh Thilak, Kaali Venkat, and Vivek Prasanna — will also be the first out-and-out action film for Harish. The actor admits that it took some time to get used to such action choreography. “In fact, after doing Diesel, my respect towards action heroes has increased multifold. To dance, to do action, to carry forward that emotion…you have to shoulder so many things. So that’s not an easy thing,” he says, adding that while it is physically and mentally exhausting, the process remains enjoyable. “I mean, I was conscious that I wanted to go down that path, so I don’t want to bicker about how difficult it is. If audiences accept Diesel, another 10 directors will bring new genres and sub-genres of films.”
Harish is happy that he is getting some diverse roles, like his previous release, the blockbuster Lubber Pandhu, which featured the actor in a near-close shave for the first time since he became a hero. He finds it amusing when I tell him that his strength is that he could pull off roles from 18 to 40. “Do I look that old?” he quips. “I haven’t thought about it, however, that reminds me that in one of my upcoming films, I play a character through three stages of life. Maybe if I pull that off and show three variations in one single film, it will be interesting. But I take it as a compliment because I don’t want to get typecast. It’s all in the hands of directors — about how they write and whether they see me as someone who could pull off those characters. So I wish more directors would mould me further,” he says. After Diesel, the actor has a film with director Vineeth Varaprasad, who previously directed the Kavin-starrer Lift. “I am also doing a love story with director V Vignarajan, who helmed Andhaghaaram,” he signs off.
Diesel releases in theatres on October 17
Published – October 13, 2025 05:20 pm IST
