Arun Vijay, Prasanna and others attend Mafia press meet

The press meet of Mafia, directed by Karthick Naren of Dhruvangal 16 fame, was held on Monday in Chennai. Touted to be a cat-and-mouse thriller, Mafia has Arun Vijay, Prasanna and Priya Bhavani Shankar in important roles.

Mafia has music by Jakes Bejoy, cinematography by Gokul Benoy and editing by Sreejith Sarang. The gangster drama, produced by Subaskaran of Lyca Productions, will hit screens on February 21.

Arun Vijay: I completed 25 years in the film industry and this wouldn't have happened without the support of family, friends, the press and fans. Karthick Naren is incredibly talented, and Mafia belongs to him. It is an intense film and has a phenomenal plot. Prasanna has got an interesting role to play. He is a wonderful person and a friend to me. Also, I am glad I got to work with Priya Bhavani Shankar. These days, it is hard to find a Tamil-speaking heroine who has great acting skills. Priya has done a neat job, pulling off a performance-oriented role. I asked Karthick Naren if I could watch some video rushes. He insisted that I watch the final theatrical version on Friday. As a team, we are looking forward to watching the audience's reception in theaters.

Prasanna: Karthick Naren is a producer's delight, and I was blown away by the script. In fact, he has elevated the entire premise. Thanks to his making style. I have a song in the film written by lyricist Vivek. After writing for Superstar and Vijay, it's an honour to have him collaborate with us on Mafia.

Priya Bhavani Shankar: Arun Vijay is a positive person, and so is Prasanna. I don't play this yet another girl-next-door role in Mafia. Karthick Naren surprised me with a different role, and I must say I quite enjoyed playing it.

Karthick Naren: Directing Mafia was a satisfying creative experience. I promise that the film will offer something new to the audience, if not something out of the world. Don Ashok’s stunts, Gokul Benoy’s cinematography and Jakes Bejoy’s music are going to be the film's biggest pillars.

Gokul Benoy: Karthick Naren has an amazing level of clarity, and we filmed Mafia in 33 days.

Jakes Bejoy: I have majorly worked only in the Telugu and Malayalam film industries. I believe in Karthick Naren completely. He is a thorough professional and displays a wonderful sense of discipline and commitment towards work.