Surya strikes with Aaru!

It took more than a decade, but so what?

With Ghajini's stupendous success, Surya, after a ten-year wait, has been catapulted into the big league and joins the Tamil topstar club, whose members are Vijay, Vikram and Ajith.

Somehow, it is action films that transform heroes to superheroes, and Surya was a victim of the same pattern. It was his role as a cool big cop in Gowtham Menon's Kakha Kaakha that made Surya a heartthrob for youngsters. With Ghajini, he has become a major Tamil hero.

For the last one year or so, Surya had been working relentlessly to tone up his body for Ghajini. He also needed a clean-shaven look in the second half of the film. To keep his new look a secret, the otherwise friendly Surya stopped appearing at public functions. All the hard work has finally paid off with critics and people raving about his performance and new avatar.

If he was a suave businessman in Ghajini, he is a street rowdy who speaks Madras Thamizh in his next film, Aaru, produced by director Saran, of Gemini fame. Aaru is Saran's first production under his Gemini Productions banner. The film is being directed by Hari, who has given the huge commercial hit, Saami, with Vikram.

Surya's heroine in the film is Trisha, also the heroine in Saami. Trisha has, of late been quite busy in Telugu cinema, and was not seen much in Tamil roles. The result: actresses like Nayanthara and Asin conquered her top spot. With Aaru, she is expected to take back her position in the Tamil industry as the number one heroine.