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AA 23: Allu Arjun teams up with Lokesh Kanagaraj as they seek to ‘strive for greatness’ in this western. Watch.

Allu Arjun, who is currently shooting for Atlee’s next, has announced a new film with Lokesh Kanagaraj, which is set to go on floors in 2026.

3 min readMumbaiJan 14, 2026 06:08 PM IST

Allu Arjun is teaming up with Lokesh Kanagaraj for his next.

After setting the box office on fire with Pushpa 2: The Rule, Allu Arjun has now joined hands with filmmaker Lokesh Kanagaraj for his next project, tentatively titled AA 23. On the occasion of Pongal, the makers, Mythri Movie Makers, who also backed the Pushpa franchise, officially announced the collaboration with a stylish animated teaser, serving as a festive gift for fans eagerly awaiting the union of the two powerhouses.

The animated announcement video carries a distinct Western vibe. It opens with a sunrise over vast fields, populated by several animated animals. The teaser then offers a glimpse of Allu Arjun walking past a fire in the woods, before cutting to a visual of him standing atop a hill alongside a horse, trying to rein it in. The title card, “Icon Star,” appears, followed by a close-up of Allu Arjun’s eyes. In a symbolic sequence, a pack of wolves attempts to attack a lion, which responds with a powerful roar. The video concludes with the declaration: “A Lokesh Kanagaraj film” and a line which says, “Strive for greatness.”

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The background score for the announcement video, titled 23, is composed by Anirudh Ravichander, who will also be scoring the music for the film. The track features lyrics by Heisenberg and vocals by Hector Salamanca. The animated teaser ends with the announcement that the film’s shoot will begin in 2026. Both Lokesh Kanagaraj and Allu Arjun took to their respective X (formerly Twitter) accounts to express their excitement. Lokesh wrote, “Blessed with the best @alluarjun Looking forward to kicking off this journey with you sir, Let’s make it a massive blast Once again with my brother @anirudhofficial.” Allu Arjun echoed the enthusiasm, writing, “Excited about the new journey with the Maverick @Dir_Lokesh garu, & at last with brother @anirudhofficial. Can’t wait for this on.”

Watch the AA 23 announcement video here:

Meanwhile, Allu Arjun is currently working on Atlee’s next directorial, which is reportedly a high-concept reincarnation drama and also stars Deepika Padukone. Lokesh Kanagaraj, on the other hand, is coming off Coolie starring Rajinikanth, which performed rather underwhelmingly at the box office, collecting approximately Rs 285.01 crore domestically.

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