The flashback sequence in its entirety, was eventually said to be cost around ₹10 crore, particularly for the technology used in the film. For the flashback portions, Lokesh Kanagaraj reported to use de-aging technology for the film. He was reported to sport a thick beard in the film. In the film, Kamal Haasan was reported to play a retired police officer and media reports stated that he will don a 'khaki uniform' for this film, after 15 years since the Gautham Vasudev Menon-directorial Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu (2006). Initially, it was planned as a single shooting schedule for 60 days, with a new technology, that would shorten the days of film production, being undisclosed, did not happen as plan. Since Haasan decided to shoot for the film only after the election results, since he contested in the Coimbatore South constituency, he demanded Lokesh to make changes in the script, however, that was delayed due to the pandemic. Īfter Kamal Haasan's commitments during the 2021 Tamil Nadu legislative assembly elections, on 7 April, a post was shared by Lokesh Kanagaraj through his social media handles, anticipating that the pre-production works for the film had begun.

Coinciding with the actor's 66th birthday, 7 November 2020, the makers unveiled the title teaser of the film, featuring Kamal Haasan, in which the title of the film was revealed to be Vikram, a repeat of an earlier film of the same name, starring the actor which was released in 1986. The team shot for a promotional teaser of the film during October 2020 in Chennai, adhering to the COVID-19 safety regulations suggested by the Indian government. The film's official poster was released on 16 September 2020, which came under the tentative titles as Kamal Haasan 232, a 232nd film to Kamal Haasan and Evanendru Ninaithaai, a titular song from his film Vishwaroopam (2013), and it features Anirudh Ravichander scoring music for the film, collaborating with Kamal Haasan and Lokesh for the second time after Indian 2 and Master. In September 2020, Lokesh announced a different project, that would feature Kamal Haasan in the lead role. Despite the progress of discussions, the COVID-19 pandemic delayed the launch of the film. The project which was tentatively titled as Thalaivar 169, was scheduled to be launched in March 2020. Lokesh narrated the script of the proposed film to Rajinikanth during December 2019. Despite agreeing terms, both the director and the studio opted to prioritise commitments, for other films before beginning production work. For which he had previously mentioned his admiration of Kamal Haasan's work, noting that two of the actor's films, Sathya (1988) and Virumaandi (2004), had influenced him to become a film director. Lokesh Kanagaraj was signed by Kamal Haasan's production house Raaj Kamal Films International to direct a film for the studio during November 2019.

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