1 dead, 3 injured in accident on SJ Suryah's film set

On-set accidents are becoming an increasingly worrying trend in the Tamil film industry, and the latest incident has claimed the life of a 25-year-old technician working on the sets of SJ Suryah's Killer.

The technician, Madhan (25), a native of Madurai who lived in Porur, was killed on the spot due to a carbon dioxide cylinder exploding while a bomb blast sequence was being filmed. The more from the crew — Sakthivel, Surya and Dinakaran — sustained injuries and are currently under treatment at the Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital.



On what happened, a source shares, "The team had been filming the pre-climax stunt scene — a bomb blast sequence — on a set at Binny Mills for the past three nights. While Stunt Silva was handling the action choreography, the victim, Madhan, was part of a team that was hired to work on the bomb blast. A mishap that happened while the team was working on the cylinders, which led to the explosion, at around 5.30am. SJ Suryah was also present at the spot when the accident happened."

A police source at the P2 Otteri Police Station told us they have arrested two individuals — Ramu, a production manager, and Arumugam, a special effects in-charge — in connection with this accident under BNS Section 106 (causing death by negligence). Further investigation is underway, they added.
When film sets turned killer!
This tragedy has brought the focus back on safety on film sets as such incidents seem to have become frequent of late; seven lives have been lost since 2020 due to on-set accidents.
May 14, 2026: A 28-year-old crew member, Karthikeyan, came into contact with a live wire and died of electrocution on the set of Rajinikanth's Jailer 2
July 13, 2025: Stuntman SM Raju died on the spot while performing a stunt for Pa Ranjith's multi-starrer Vettuvam
July 16, 2024: Stuntman Ezhumalai fell from a 20-foot rostrum during the shoot of Sardar 2 and succumbed to injuries
December 3, 2022: Stunt master Suresh died while demonstrating a stunt despite safety precautions on the set of Vetri Maaran's Viduthalai: Part 1
February 19, 2020: A crane carrying a heavy flashlight fell during the shoot of Indian 2, resulting in the deaths of three crew members and several others injured