(A/N):
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....
With the climax finally completed, only a few patchwork scenes and ending portions remained.
Compared to the massive action schedules and nonstop travel of the previous months, those scenes felt almost relaxing for the crew.
And before anyone properly realized it…
Aadhavan officially wrapped shooting.
The final shot ended with applause echoing across the set.
Assistant directors clapped loudly.
Technicians hugged each other.
Someone immediately brought cake onto the floor while Vadivelu loudly claimed he deserved extra payment for surviving South Africa's weather from the production side.
Even the usually strict K.S Ravikumar looked visibly satisfied.
Months of work had finally come together.
For Karuppu though… The feeling hit differently.
"...."
As the crew applauded after the final "cut," he stood there silently for a few seconds looking around the set.
The cameras.
The lights.
The crane equipment.
The people rushing around.
Just months ago he had entered all this as an outsider.
Now somehow…
This chaos already felt familiar. Almost like home.
Feeling he had done something full.
After Few Days...
A few days later, after the entire crew returned to India, the production side decided to organize a grand wrap-up celebration for everyone involved in the movie.
And because the film itself was a major production under Red Giant Movies, the arrangements naturally became huge.
The initial plan was exactly what everyone expected.
Luxury hotel catering.
Five-star chefs.
Imported menu items.
Fancy presentation to make everyone stare at it in awe.
Typical cinema industry celebration style.
But during the planning discussions, Karuppu unexpectedly interrupted Udhayanidhi.
"Why not hire local marriage or contract cooks instead?"
Udhayanidhi looked up from the planning papers.
"...."
"Hm?"
Karuppu leaned back casually with a lolipop in his mouth.
"The food will still be amazing."
Then he added more seriously.
"And the people getting the order will benefit properly too."
The room became quiet for a second.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Because honestly…
The suggestion itself felt surprisingly thoughtful.
Karuppu continued explaining naturally.
"These hotel people already get big orders regularly. But those local cooking teams…"
He shrugged lightly his shoulder.
"One successful cinema function itself can change their business."
Udhayanidhi remained thoughtful for several moments after hearing it.
"...."
To be honest…
He liked the idea immediately.
He himself had grown up seeing those massive Tamil wedding cooking crews creating food that honestly tasted better than many luxury hotels.
The only reason he initially planned five-star catering was because he wanted the crew to feel appreciated properly after months of hard work.
But now?
The hero of the movie project himself had suggested this.
And somehow it felt more genuine.
Finally Udhayanidhi smiled lightly.
"Okay."
Karuppu grinned immediately.
-Grin!
"Also make sure biriyani is proper."
"Your priorities are impressive."
"Cinema runs on food. No the world do..."
And just like that—The wrap celebration took a completely different flavor.
On the day of the function,
The venue itself looked alive from early morning.
Near one side of the grounds, gigantic cooking vessels had already been placed over roaring fires.
The hired cooking teams worked with frightening efficiency.
Men moved rapidly between:
cutting stations, masala preparation, giant biriyani vessels, and smoking grills.
The air itself smelled incredible of the aroma of the dishes being prepared.
Fresh spices. Fried onions.
Mutton cooking slowly over firewood.
Ghee. Pepper.
The atmosphere felt less like a luxury corporate event and more like a grand Tamil festival feast.
Huge trays of food slowly got prepared one after another:
mutton biriyani, chicken 65, mutton liver fry, blood gravy, kebabs, fish fry, parotta, and countless side dishes.
Even some of the production staff kept wandering toward the cooking area every ten minutes pretending to "inspect arrangements" while actually stealing early bites.
In the name of inspecting the taste of those dishes.
Meanwhile the invited guests slowly started arriving.
Actors.
Technicians.
Dance assistants.
Junior artists.
Lightmen.
Editors.
Fight masters.
Makeup teams.
And many brought along their families too.
The atmosphere carried genuine warmth because unlike many film functions that felt formal and artificial…
This one felt personal.
Months of travel and struggle had bonded the crew deeply.
Espically with the many beautiful moment they had.
All of them have high hope on this movie.
Near the entrance,
Karuppu himself stood casually greeting people as they arrived.
Whenever junior technicians came awkwardly greeting him respectfully, he spoke with them normally instead of maintaining star distance.
That alone slowly became a talking point among several crew members.
Meanwhile near the cooking section—
Fight master Kanal Kannan had already entered battle mode with the biriyani team.
"This batch needs more spice!"
One cook immediately defended himself emotionally.
"Master taste first!"
Nearby, Vadivelu had unofficially started his own food inspection committee.
Nobody trusted him because he was clearly eating more than inspecting.
Which really started to annoy certain cook who was the one was responsible for chicken 65.
At another side, Nayanthara arrived quietly wearing a simple salwar instead of glamorous public-event styling.
The moment she entered, several crew members greeted her warmly.
But her eyes instinctively searched the crowd.
"...."
And almost immediately found Karuppu near the entrance laughing loudly with the lighting crew.
For a brief second—She simply watched him.
How naturally he blended with everyone.
No fake superiority. No forced "hero" attitude.
Just… easy presence.
Then suddenly Karuppu noticed her too.
His face immediately brightened seeing she had arrived.
"...."
And within seconds he was already walking toward her carrying two juice glasses.
One for him.
One obviously for her.
Because some things in life apparently had become routine now.
The celebration slowly became louder as the evening progressed.
Music played near the stage while different corners of the venue were filled with laughter, cinema gossip, and nonstop eating.
Near the food area, assistant directors argued over who deserved extra mutton pieces.
Vadivelu had somehow already become surrounded by junior artists listening to his stories.
And the biriyani section looked like an active battlefield.
Away from most of the noise, Karuppu and Nayanthara eventually found a quieter corner near the garden seating area.
Karuppu handed her one of the juice glasses he had brought.
She took it with a small smile.
For a few moments both simply sat there comfortably watching the celebration around them.
Months ago, their conversations carried formality.
Now things had become much easier between them.
Natural.
Nayanthara took a sip from the juice before glancing toward him.
"So… What next?"
Karuppu leaned back against the chair lazily.
"For life or career?"
"Both seem confused for you."
He laughed softly hearing that.
"-Haha!!!"
Then surprisingly, he answered honestly.
"There's the Under-19 World Cup camp next month."
That immediately got her attention.
"You got selected? Wait you are playing professional cricket."
Karuppu nodded casually.
-Nod!
"I got confirmation yesterday."
For a second she genuinely looked shocked.
Because throughout the shooting schedules she obviously knew he loved cricket seriously.
But somewhere along the way…
Cinema had become so natural around him that she forgot he was balancing both worlds simultaneously.
"That's huge,"
She said immediately. A genuine smile appeared on her face.
"Congratulations."
Karuppu lifted his juice glass dramatically.
"Thank you."
Then he added proudly the next line.
"Your hero is internationally multi-talented."
Nayanthara rolled her eyes.
"There it is. The confidence."
"It's called self-awareness."
Still… She looked impressed.
Because getting selected at that level wasn't simple.
Especially while simultaneously shooting a major film.
Then Karuppu looked toward her.
"What about you?"
She sighed lightly.
-Sigh!
"Tollywood schedule next."
"A new film?"
"Hm."
She nodded while slowly turning the juice glass in her hand.
-Nod!
"I just hope it goes as smoothly as Adhavan."
A small smile appeared afterwards.
And honestly… She meant it.
Because despite the exhausting schedules and constant travel, this movie had strangely become one of her most comfortable shooting experiences in years.
Mostly because the atmosphere never became toxic.
And a large part of that strangely traced back to the idiot currently sitting beside her.
Meanwhile Karuppu quietly observed her for a second.
"...."
Then suddenly leaned slightly closer.
Nayanthara froze caught off guard.
"...."
Her heartbeat unexpectedly sped up.
Their distance reduced enough that she could clearly smell:
The faint cologne on him, the smoke from nearby grills, and the lingering coolness of the juice.
For one brief dangerous second—Her mind completely betrayed her.
'Wait… Is he actually going to kiss me?'
Her fingers unconsciously tightened around the glass.
Then—Karuppu paused.
"...."
Saw her expression. Saw the faint redness spreading across her face.
And immediately understood.
The shameless grin that slowly appeared on his face made her realize the truth instantly.
-Grin!
This fellow.
This useless fellow was teasing her again.
Karuppu chuckled softly before speaking near her ear.
-Chuckle!
"It would be an honor…"
A dramatic pause.
"…if you cheer for me from the stands during the World Cup."
Nayanthara blinked once.
-Blink!
"...."
Then realization fully hit.
The playful look in his eyes confirmed everything.
He was absolutely enjoying this.
Immediately snapping out of her thoughts, she punched his shoulder lightly.
"You idiot!"
Karuppu started laughing openly now.
"-Hahaha!!!"
"Aiyo1, you should've seen your face."
"You leaned like some cinema hero!"
"I am cinema hero."
"You're impossible to deal with."
Meanwhile he sat there looking unbearably pleased with himself.
Nayanthara shook her head helplessly while trying to hide her embarrassment by drinking juice again.
But unfortunately for her…
The slight redness on her cheeks still remained.
And Karuppu absolutely noticed it.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the function, Sivakumar was slowly losing patience.
"...."
A full ten minutes ago, he had asked Karuppu to bring him a glass of juice.
Just one glass.
Not harvest sugarcane personally.
Yet the boy had vanished completely.
Lakshmi, who was seated nearby speaking with some family friends, noticed him looking around repeatedly.
"What happened?"
"That fellow went to bring juice and disappeared."
Karthi immediately laughed from nearby.
"-Hehe!!!"
"Then he definitely found someone to talk to."
Sivakumar sighed deeply.
-Sigh!
"That itself is the problem."
Finally deciding to search himself, he got up and walked across the venue.
As he moved through the celebration area, several crew members respectfully greeted him.
Some praised the movie shooting experience.
Some complimented Karuppu openly.
One lighting technician even said with respect.
"Sir, your son treats everyone equally on set."
That made Sivakumar pause slightly.
"...."
Despite all the headaches Karuppu caused… Hearing things like that still gave him quiet satisfaction.
Soon he walked toward the garden seating area near the quieter side of the venue.
And there—He froze seeing what's happening before him.
"...."
Because before him sat: his youngest son, and Nayanthara.
Very close. Very comfortably.
And at that exact moment…
Karuppu was leaning toward her with a teasing grin while Nayanthara's face had turned visibly red.
For several long seconds, Sivakumar simply stared blankly at the scene.
"...."
Internally:
'Aiyo1 Muruga2…'
The old actor suddenly realized something terrifying.
His youngest son was not dangerous only to his mental peace anymore.
Now he had become danger to heroines too.
Meanwhile completely unaware of the approaching parental disaster,
Karuppu continued looking extremely pleased with himself after successfully teasing Nayanthara.
That's when—
"Ahem."
Sivakumar coughed loudly to get their attention as he succeeded.
Both immediately turned.
"...."
"...."
The moment Nayanthara saw him standing there…
Her soul nearly left her body.
She straightened instantly.
"sir—"
Meanwhile Karuppu's grin disappeared as realization slowly dawned on him.
"....."
Sivakumar looked at him silently.
Then slowly looked toward the juice glass in Nayanthara's hand.
Then back at Karuppu.
Only now did the idiot finally remember.
The juice.
That was supposed to be for his father.
Not the heroine.
Karuppu blinked once.
-Blink!
Then looked toward the now half-finished juice glass in Nayanthara's hand.
Then toward Sivakumar again.
"…small confusion happened appa1."
Nayanthara wanted the earth itself to open and swallow her alive.
Meanwhile Sivakumar simply stared at his son with the exhausted expression of a man who had survived three children and now deserved spiritual compensation.
Nayanthara hurriedly stood up.
"I'll just…"
She didn't even finish the sentence properly before escaping from there almost immediately.
Karuppu watched her leave.
"...."
Then slowly turned back toward his father.
Silence. A dangerous silence.
"...."
"...."
"...."
Finally Sivakumar spoke.
"For god's sake... I asked for one juice."
Karuppu nodded carefully.
-Nod!
"Yes."
"You gave it to heroine."
"Technically she was thirsty."
"Karuppu."
"Hm?"
"You are testing my blood pressure daily."
Karuppu suddenly grinned again shamelessly.
-Grin1
"Aadhavan team bonding, appa1."
Sivakumar closed his eyes briefly.
Somewhere nearby, Karthi noticed the scene from a distance and immediately started laughing uncontrollably while calling Suriya to watch.
And under the warm celebration lights of the wrap-up party…
The legend of Karuppu continued causing damage peacefully.
*******************************
(Author note:)
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Damn!
Damn
Karthikeya
Father
Father