section_path: Abstract
section_name: Abstract
paragraph_text: Retro (taglined Love-Laughter-War) is a 2025 Indian Tamil -language romantic action drama film written and directed by Karthik Subbaraj. Produced by Stone Bench Creations and 2D Entertainment, the film stars Suriya and Pooja Hegde in the lead roles. In the film, Paarivel "Paari" Kannan, an orphan raised by a gangster, faces betrayal and a violent cult as he searches for his true origins, fulfils a prophecy, and tries to reunite with his lost love, Rukmini.
  
  The film was announced in March 2024 under the tentative title Suriya 44, along with the tagline Love, Laughter, War. The title was revealed in December 2024. Principal photography commenced in June 2024 and wrapped by early-October. Filming locations included the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Ooty, Kerala and Chennai. The film has music composed by Santhosh Narayanan, cinematography handled by Shreyaas Krishna and editing by Shafique Mohamed Ali.
  
  Retro was released on 1 May 2025 in standard and EPIQ formats. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Suriya and Pooja Hegde's performances, first half and technical aspects, but some noted issues with the pacing and overstuffed plot. It emerged as a major commercial success, grossing ₹ 97–250 crore worldwide against a budget of ₹ 60–65 crore, becoming one of the highest-grossing Tamil films of 2025 and Suriya's highest-grossing film in his career.
  
  Retro (taglined Love-Laughter-War) is a 2025 Indian Tamil -language romantic action drama film written and directed by Karthik Subbaraj. Produced by Stone Bench Creations and 2D Entertainment, the film stars Suriya and Pooja Hegde in the lead roles. In the film, Paarivel "Paari" Kannan, an orphan raised by a gangster, faces betrayal and a violent cult as he searches for his true origins, fulfils a prophecy, and tries to reunite with his lost love, Rukmini.
  
  The film was announced in March 2024 under the tentative title Suriya 44, along with the tagline Love, Laughter, War. The title was revealed in December 2024. Principal photography commenced in June 2024 and wrapped by early-October. Filming locations included the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Ooty, Kerala and Chennai. The film has music composed by Santhosh Narayanan, cinematography handled by Shreyaas Krishna and editing by Shafique Mohamed Ali.
  
  Retro was released on 1 May 2025 in standard and EPIQ formats. The film received generally positive reviews from critics, who praised Suriya and Pooja Hegde's performances, first half and technical aspects, but some noted issues with the pacing and overstuffed plot. It emerged as a major commercial success, grossing ₹ 97–250 crore worldwide against a budget of ₹ 60–65 crore, becoming one of the highest-grossing Tamil films of 2025 and Suriya's highest-grossing film in his career.