New Delhi, May 5 -- Southern film industries are moving beyond sequels to build expansive cinematic universes, with characters and storylines crossing over, mirroring a model long adopted by Hollywood and now increasingly by Bollywood.

Filmmakers like Lokesh Kanagaraj, Prashanth Neel, and Prasanth Varma are creating action and superhero films that remain connected but feature different characters, introducing southern cinema fans to the well-known model of cinematic universes.

The Lokesh Cinematic Universe, including Tamil-language action thriller films such as Kaithi, Vikram and Leo, will soon launch sequels to the existing movies, besides a new project starring Suriya titled Rolex, already introduced in Vikram. Prashanth Neel, on the ...