Suriya's 48th film Scene locks Diwali release after Dubai event

Suriya laughed five minutes into the narration. That was the moment Jithu Madhavan knew he had his lead locked for Scene, the director's first Tamil outing after Aavesham and Romancham made Malayalam audiences sit up. The team — Suriya, Nazriya, Naslen and Jithu, landed in Dubai over the weekend for a pre-release event ahead of the November 6 worldwide theatrical drop.

Diwali weekend. The actor called it his 48th film in a 28-year career. He also called it a 'small, beautiful family entertainer' that happens to wear crime-thriller clothes. 'Everything will be overshadowed by Jithu Madhavan's humor,' Suriya said.

The director, for his part, refused to unpack 70 percent of the plot. 'I will be able to talk about it only after the film's release,' he told the Dubai crowd. Nazriya, returning to Tamil cinema after 12 years, plays Maya. She studied in Dubai once.