Suriya’s upcoming Tamil film Soorarai Pottru will skip the theatrical release and go directly to the OTT platform Amazon Prime Video on 30 October 2020.

Suriya released a statement today in which he said he took the decision as a producer and not as a leading man and asked for support from his fans and the film industry.

Suriya also said he will try and complete two more films by the time the COVID-19 pandemic recedes and complete normalcy returns.

The statement added that Suriya would donate Rs5 crore to help those affected by the coronavirus pandemic, especially the frontline COVID-19 warriors, and film technicians who have lost their livelihoods.

Soorarai Pottru is a film based on the life of Captain GR Gopinath, founder of the budget airline Air Deccan. The film was earlier slated to be released in April.

The project, which marks Suriya’s maiden collaboration with a woman director, has been directed by Sudha Kongara and also stars Aparna Balamurali, Paresh Rawal and veteran Telugu actor Mohan Babu.

Produced by Suriya’s 2D Entertainment, the film also marks the South debut of well-known indie producer Guneet Monga, who is a co-producer on this project. The film has music by GV Prakash Kumar.

Meanwhile, Suriya has two more projects in his kitty. One is a film titled Vaadivasal with filmmaker Vetrimaaran. The project, based on a popular Tamil novel of the same name, marks the maiden collaboration of Suriya and Vetrimaaran, best known for films such as Visaranai (2016), Vada Chennai (2019) and Asuran (2019).

Vaadivasal, written by CS Chellapa, is the story about a bull and the one who captures it. The film will unfold against the backdrop of Jallikkattu, the ancient sport practised in parts of Tamil Nadu in which a bull has to be captured.

The other is a project titled Aruvaa with filmmaker Hari. However, some recent rumours have suggested that Suriya has opted out of the film and been replaced by actor Arun Vijay.