CHENNAI: Ever since Kamal Haasan announced the music video of Inimel, it has caught a lot of attention. The video stars filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj in his debut lead role alongside musician-actor Shruti Haasan. Produced and with lyrics by Kamal Haasan, Inimel is composed and conceptualised by Shruti. The video was unveiled at an event in Chennai and went on to become an instant hit.

The song is about various stages of romance between a couple. Talking about his acting debut to DT Next, Lokesh Kanagaraj says, “We shot it for three days and I enjoyed the process. My assistants too were with me and they had a ball as well when I was shooting. Initially, I was a bit skeptical of doing this but the makers were constantly following up and I finally gave my dates in November 2023.”

Lokesh is currently working on Rajinikanth’s Thalaivar 171. He adds that shooting for this did not hinder his writing process. “When I went there, I was just an actor and I was in a good space.

I didn’t have to think about direction. Directors like Mysskin and Gautham Menon are actors too and are in a similar space.” Shruti opens up that she had some unlearning to do when it came to designing Inimel. “Two things. My earlier songs had a little distortion in sound and I was a little wary of that. Also, for Inimel, I finally did away with my ‘Goth Papa’ looks,” she says with a laugh.