India, Aug. 18 -- Rajinikanth, one of the biggest screen icons of all time, is the film's hero. Nagarjuna, one of the most popular superstars in Telugu cinema, is the villain. Lokesh Kanagaraj and Anirudh Ravinchander - both in their peak - have also contributed immensely. Yet, the breakout star of Coolie's success is an unassuming Malayali actor, who outshone, outacted, and even outdanced everyone in the film. Soubin Shahir is earning heavy praise for his performance in the film, with most calling him the film's breakout star.

To anyone familiar with Malayalam cinema, Soubin is not a new name or face. The actor-filmmaker was somewhat of a late bloomer, beginning as an assistant director to Fazil, Siddique, Rafi-Mecartin, P. Sukumar, San...