Jailer 2: Aaryan heartbroken over Mohanlal’s screen time

Jailer 2 may be a Rajinikanth celebration, but not every fan is walking out equally happy. Malayalam actor Aaryan posted an Instagram review of director Nelson Dilipkumar’s sequel and said the film left his inner Mohanlal fan with “a broken heart.”

Two fandoms, one review

Aaryan made clear his disappointment is not with the film itself. As a Rajinikanth fan he was happy; as a Nelson fan he was “pretty much satisfied.” But the balance that defined the first film, he argued, felt missing.

He recalled that Jailer 1 gave Mohanlal, “Shivanna” Shiva Rajkumar and Jackie Shroff their own powerful mass moments, even inside a Thalaivar film. This time, he wrote, the spotlight leaned heavily toward Rajinikanth alone. He even tagged Nelson with a fan’s plea: couldn’t the trailer’s Lalettan shots have made the final cut?

Who is in Jailer 2

Jailer 2 brings back Rajinikanth as retired jailer “Tiger” Muthuvel Pandian, with Ramya Krishnan, Mirnaa and Yogi Babu among the returning cast. The sequel expands its villain side with SJ Suryah as Bodhi Kalpak, Mithun Chakraborty as Chakri Kalpak, Vidya Balan as Kantha and Suraj Venjaramoodu as Dileep.

• Mohanlal, Shiva Rajkumar and Jackie Shroff return as extended cameos
• SJ Suryah plays Bodhi Kalpak, the primary antagonist
• Hrithik Roshan makes his Tamil debut as Roddy in a rescue sequence
• Jailer 2 released theatrically on October 15, 2026

The Hrithik crossover

Beyond the returning cameos, Hrithik Roshan appears as Roddy, a suave operator who arrives in a high-octane rescue sequence to assist Pandian. The appearance marks his official Tamil debut and puts him on screen with Rajinikanth four decades after Bhagwaan Dada (1986).

For Hindi film fans, Jailer 2 is also a crossover moment. Vidya Balan and Mithun Chakraborty add familiar faces on the villain side, while Hrithik’s Roddy is built as a mass entry. That star power makes the screen-time choices matter beyond Tamil audiences: every viewer walks in with a favourite.

Why the cameo balance matters

For multi-star films, a well-placed extended cameo can feel like an event; a thin one can feel like a missed opportunity. Aaryan’s note is an early signal that Jailer 2 is a more single-star experience than the original. He still calls the film worth watching, but his advice to Mohanlal fans is blunt: leave expectations outside the theatre.

That makes the sequel no less a Rajini show. Just go in knowing which star the spotlight is on, and you are less likely to leave heartbroken yourself.

Source: India Today