Lyca Productions (/laɪkɑː/) is an Indian entertainment company founded by Subaskaran Allirajah in 2014. Subaskaran Allirajah is a British citizen of Sri Lanka Tamil ethnicity. A subsidiary of Lycamobile (part of the Lyca Group), the studio has been involved in the production and distribution of Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, and Sinhala[1] films. It has produced some of Tamil cinema's most expensive films, including 2.0 (2018), Ponniyin Selvan: I (2022), and Ponniyin Selvan: II (2023) and L2: Empuraan (2025).
Pirivom Santhippom (2008) was the first film produced by A. Subhaskaran under Gnanam films.[citation needed] Lyca Productions chose to collaborate with Ayngaran International to produce and signed on AR Murugadoss and Vijay to be a part of their debut project.[2] A social drama tackling the issue of farmers committing suicide due to corporate encroachment, Kaththi was shot throughout early 2014 with Samantha and Neil Nitin Mukesh signed on for other pivotal roles. As the film announced its release plans, several pro-Tamil pressure groups demanded all references to Lyca Productions to be removed from the title and other publicity material. The groups felt it was unacceptable that a business house, allegedly reported to be connected to Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, would be allowed to produce a Tamil movie in Tamil Nadu when the Tamil Nadu Assembly, citing human rights violations during the civil war in the island nation, had already passed a resolution seeking severance of business ties with Sri Lanka.[3] Unable to reach a compromise with the pressure groups, and fearing a boycott and violence, Lyca Productions chose to remove its name from the copies released in India.[4] Kaththi consequently managed to release in October 2014 to positive reviews, with Rediff.com stating that the film "entertains with a message", while Sify.com similarly stated that it was a "well made entertainer with a powerful message".[5][6] The film became a very profitable venture at the box office for Lyca Productions, grossing over 100 crore rupees within two weeks of release.[7][8]
In late 2015, Lyca Productions agreed a deal with Dhanush for the worldwide distribution rights of two of his productions, Naanum Rowdydhaan (2015) and Visaranai (2016). The movie was also met with protests, though Naanum Rowdydhaan released without any problems and also became a profitable venture for the studio.[9][10] Also throughout 2015, Lyca Productions worked on the pre-production of 2.0, a sequel to Shankar's earlier Enthiran (2010), and signed on Rajinikanth and Amy Jackson to feature in key roles. Believed to be the most expensive Indian production of all time, the team also negotiated for several months with Arnold Schwarzenegger for a role in the film, but eventually did not sign him.[11] The studio also launched another film titled Enakku Innoru Per Irukku with G. V. Prakash Kumar in the lead role during December 2015.[12]
| † | Denotes film or TV productions that have not yet been released |
In addition to the films produced by Lyca Productions since 2014, the following filmsfrom other banners were distributed by the company:
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Language | Director | Cast | Synopsis | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | Naanum Rowdy Dhaan | Tamil | Vignesh Shivan | Vijay Sethupathi, Nayanthara, RJ Balaji and Radhika Sarathkumar | Pandiyan, a policeman's son, falls in love with Kadhambari, a girl with hearing impairment. She agrees to have a relationship with him only if he helps her kill a gangster who murdered her parents. | [47] |
| 2016 | Visaranai | Vetrimaaran | Dinesh, Samuthirakani, Anandhi and Aadukalam Murugadoss | Four labourers are tortured by the police to confess to a theft they have not committed. Just when they feel relieved after being saved by an honest policeman, they find that the worst is yet to come. | [48] | |
| Vetrivel | Vasantha Mani | Sasikumar, Miya, Prabhu and Nikhila Vimal | In a bid to help his younger brother unite with the girl he loves, Vetrivel and his friends decide to kidnap her. Things take an ugly turn when their plan goes wrong and results in messy situations. | [49] | ||
| 2017 | Spyder | A. R. Murugadoss | Mahesh Babu, Rakul Preet Singh and S. J. Surya | Shiva, an intelligence officer, develops a phone software that helps him track those in need of help. He sets out to save the people of Hyderabad when he realises that a serial killer is on the loose. | [50] | |
| 2018 | Kaala | Pa. Ranjith | Rajinikanth, Nana Patekar, Eswari Rao, Samuthirakani and Huma Qureshi | Karikaalan consistently fights to keep the people of Dharavi, a slum in Mumbai, safe from the clutches of mighty politicians and the land mafia don, Hari Dhadha. | [51] | |
| Irumbu Thirai | P. S. Mithran | Vishal, Arjun and Samantha Ruth Prabhu | A military officer borrows money from a bank using fake papers for his sister's marriage. However, when the money goes missing from his account, he begins an investigation that leads him to a hacker. | [52] | ||
| Sandakozhi 2 | N. Linguswamy | Vishal, Keerthy Suresh, Rajkiran and Varalaxmi Sarathkumar | Balu returns from New York and sets out to protect his family from an evil-minded man. Complications further arise as he falls in love with a woman, who reminds him of his ex-lover. | [53] | ||
| 2021 | Pushpa: The Rise | Tamil dubbed | Sukumar | Allu Arjun, Rashmika Mandanna, Fahadh Faasil, Jagadeesh Prathap Bandari, Rao Ramesh and Anasuya Bharadwaj | Violence erupts between red sandalwood smugglers and the police charged with bringing down their organisation in the Seshachalam Hills of Andhra Pradesh state. | [54] |
| 2022 | RRR | S. S. Rajamouli | N. T. Rama Rao Jr., Ram Charan, Ajay Devgn, Alia Bhatt, Shriya Saran, Olivia Morris, Samuthirakani, Alison Doody and Ray Stevenson | A tale of two legendary revolutionaries and their journey far away from home. After their journey they return home to start fighting back against British colonialists in the 1920s. | [55][56] | |
| Sita Ramam | Hanu Raghavapudi | Dulquer Salmaan, Mrunal Thakur, Rashmika Mandanna and Sumanth | To not get rusticated, a rebellious student leaves to India to fulfill her dead grandfather's wish, to deliver a letter the visit leads her to a love story between an orphan Indian Army soldier and a woman unbeknownst to him a rich heiress in the 60s. Will she deliver the letter to her? | |||
| Baba (Re-release) | Tamil | Suresh Krissna | Rajinikanth, Manisha Koirala and Goundamani | The film's story is about a carefree young non-believer of supreme power, Baba, who is a reincarnation of a great saint from the Himalayas. | [57][58] | |
| 2023 | Thunivu | H. Vinoth | Ajith Kumar | Radha, a dreaded gangster, and his men plot to rob "Your Bank", one of the biggest privately owned bank in Chennai, only to realise that another gang led a by mysterious person, nicknamed Dark Devil, has already hijacked the bank. The police, led by DGP Dayalan, is trying to figure out a way to capture Dark Devil, only to realize that his motive is to actually expose the privately owned banks involved in financial fraud. | ||
| Merry Christmas | Sriram Raghavan | Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi | The lives of a woman in an unhappy marriage and a man with a mysterious past are turned upside down on Christmas Eve. | [59] | ||
| 2024 | Captain Miller | Arun Matheswaran | Dhanush, Priyanka Mohan, Shivarajkumar | Set in pre-Independence era, the British are looking for ’Miller’ , a British soldier turned vigilante. The villagers are tired of the Analeesan's antics and ask him to stay away from them. Analeesan, who has become ‘Miller’ after joining the British army, has gone rouge. | [60] |
| Year | Title | Language | Music Director |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Enakku Innoru Per Irukku | Tamil | G. V. Prakash Kumar |
| 2018 | Yaman | Vijay Antony | |
| Ippadai Vellum | D. Imman | ||
| Diya | Sam C. S. | ||
| 2.0 | A. R. Rahman |
