Public Conference) is a 2021 Indian Tamil-language science fiction political action thriller film directed by Venkat Prabhu and produced by Suresh Kamatchi.

The film stars Silambarasan, leading an ensemble cast which includes S. J. Suryah, Kalyani Priyadarshan, S. A. Chandrasekhar, Y. G. Mahendran, Karunakaran, Premgi Amaren, Aravind Akash and Anjena Kirti.

However, due to Silambarasan's unprofessional behaviour, which caused an extensive pre-production work, the producer ousted the actor in August 2019.

Khaliq confronts Dhanushkodi and laments that Arivazhagan's assassination would lead to a dangerous religious riot and cause further societal conflict.

Later, Seethalakshmi, having been convinced by Khaliq that he is a RAW agent, helps his friends in kidnapping Zarina and they all arrive at the hospital while being chased by Mansoor and his men.

The bus stand portrait of late actor Manivannan is featured in the film as Kalaiselvanar, the predecessor of Arivazhagan in his political party.

[25] In January 2020, the makers announced the complete cast and crew, which includes S. A. Chandrasekhar, Bharathiraja, Premgi Amaren and Karunakaran,[26] along with cinematographer Richard M. Nathan, editor Praveen K. L., action director Stunt Silva and costume designer Vasuki Bhaskar, being a part of the project.

[29][30] Prabhu initially wanted Arvind Swamy to play the DCP Dhanushkodi, but he could not allot dates, resulting in Suryah being cast.

[35] Principal photography commenced on 19 February 2020 with a puja being held on Chennai,[36] where the team planned to few scenes in the venue and move to Hyderabad for a 40-day schedule.

[41] On 27 February 2020, the team moved to VGP Golden Beach at Chennai,[42] for a song shoot featuring Silambarasan which was choreographed by Raju Sundaram, was being filmed at a huge set with around 200 dancers from Mumbai and Bangalore.

[51][52] A huge set was erected at the EVP Film City in Chennai, resembling a political gathering, and several lead stars were part of this schedule.

[54] He further added that the team planned to shoot this sequence in a quick time, citing the rise of COVID-19 infections in Chennai following the hot weather in the city.

[55] The shooting of the schedule was wrapped up on 5 April 2021,[56] and then planned for another sequence to be filmed in Maldives airport, but was delayed further since the government had imposed ban on passengers from India arriving in the country due to surge in COVID-19 cases.

[65] Suresh Kamatchi, assured Silambarasan to pay him ₹2 crore (US$230,000) as the remainder, which convinced the actor, and had completed dubbing for the remaining portions of his film, within a day.

[87] Suresh Kamatchi said that the extensive visual effects work delayed the post-production process, thereby resulting in the film being scheduled for release on that date.

[94][93] Allu Aravind's Geetha Arts had acquired the rights of the film to be presented in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana regions, which was called off in favour of a Telugu remake.

[107] They also warned that they might stage protests outside the office of Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. K. Stalin, if the perpetuators stop the film's release.

[108] At the pre-release event held in November 2021,[109] Silambarasan gave an emotional speech referring to his controversies concerning both his personal and professional life, as many producers in the past few months, have filed complaints against the actor at the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce over multiple issues.

[112] The night of the same day, DMK MLA Udhayanidhi Stalin, had arranged a meeting with the producers and financiers to clear the dues, which was eventually solved quick and the film was released as scheduled.

In his complaint, it has been stated that he was involved in sorting out the release issues of the film and had apparently signed a guarantee letter to take responsibility for the amount that needed to be paid to Chand.

Both the parties have agreed upon Rajendar taking responsibilities for the remainder to be paid after negotiating deals for satellite and digital streaming rights.

[117] The Bharatiya Janata Party's minority wing opposed the film claiming that it portrays Muslims in bad light and asked the Chief Minister to ban it.

[129] Sudhir Srinivasan of Cinema Express wrote "Maanaadu has two stars—TR Silambarasan and SJ Suryah—and no duets, love stories, punch dialogues, or why, even fight sequences that threaten your suspension of disbelief.

Another interesting perspective is that the time loop is told from the hero's point of view in the first half and from the villain's standpoint post interval.

"[132] Manoj Kumar of The Indian Express gave 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "Director Venkat Prabhu has several catchy ideas and has engagingly strung them together.

"[134] Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute gave 4 out of 5 stars and wrote "The film's willingness to respect the audience's intelligence is charming.

"[136] Bharat Kumar of News Today called the film, "Touted as a political thriller, the movie has enough elements to engage the audience.

With Silambarasan back in the scheme of things and a strong antagonist in SJ Suryah, Venkat Prabhu has won the battle before it begins.

With the fast-paced screenplay you will forgive and forget the logic loopholes and enjoy the film which is the actor's best since Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa (2010) and Venkat Prabhu's best since Mankatha (2011).

"[140] Ashwin Ram of Moviecrow rated 3.5 out of 5 stars and wrote "Trendy director Venkat Prabhu proves his mettle again by coming up with an experimental high concept entertainer that's delivered in a simplified manner.