Suriya urges fans: "Please don’t smoke" ahead of Retro release

Actor Suriya, who will be seen smoking in certain scenes of his upcoming film Retro, has urged his fans to avoid smoking in real life. During a pre-release event for the film, held at a mall in Trivandrum, Suriya clarified that his on-screen smoking was purely for the role and shared a word of caution: "I have smoked cigarettes for the sake of the film. Please don't smoke cigarettes in your life."

He went on to emphasise the dangers of starting the habit, stating, "If you start smoking, you will not be able to stop. You might think 'Just one puff or one cigarette,' but once you begin, it’s hard to quit. I will definitely not endorse that, so don’t do it."

Suriya also spoke about Retro being a different experience compared to his previous 45 films, expressing his excitement about working with director Karthik Subbaraj. "This is a Karthik Subbaraj film, and it’s something distinct from what you've seen of me before. I hope to have many more collaborations with Karthik in the future," Suriya added.

Scheduled for release on May 1, Retro has a runtime of 2 hours, 48 minutes, and 30 seconds. The film stars Suriya and Pooja Hegde, along with notable Malayalam actors Joju George and Jayaram, and Tamil actor Karunakaran. Directed by Karthik Subbaraj, the movie features music by Santhosh Narayanan, cinematography by Shreyaas Krishna, editing by Shafique Mohamed Ali, and art direction by Jacki and Mayapandi. The film is action-packed, with stunts choreographed by Kecha Khamphakdee. Interestingly, Suriya underwent special martial arts training in Thailand for his role.