Advance bookings for Thug Life, starring Kamal Haasan and directed by Mani Ratnam, opened on Sunday ahead of the film’s theatrical release on June 5. The film marks the return of the actor-director duo nearly four decades after their 1987 collaboration Nayakan.

Jointly produced by Raaj Kamal Films International and Madras Talkies, Thug Life revolves around Rangaraya Sakthivel Naickar (Haasan), a mafia kingpin.

The story follows Sakthivel after he rescues a boy named Amaran from a police shootout and raises him as his own. Years later, when Sakthivel survives an assassination attempt, suspicion falls on the now-grown Amaran (played by Silambarasan), prompting a showdown.

Thug Life has been co-written by Kamal Haasan and Mani Ratnam, and features Trisha Krishnan, Ashok Selvan, Joju George, Nasser, Abhirami and Aishwarya Lekshmi in key roles. A.R. Rahman, who has collaborated with Ratnam on several previous projects, has composed the music.

Thug Life was recently mired in controversy after pro-Kannada groups called for boycotting the movie in light of recent remarks made by Kamal Haasan. At a promotional event for the film, Haasan had remarked that “Kannada is born out of Tamil”.

Earlier, the film faced flak for intimate scenes featuring 70-year-old Haasan and 42-year-old Krishnan in the trailer. Later, the film’s second song Sugar Baby, featuring the actress, landed in the crosshairs of netizens, for its title.