Mysskin calls Karthik Subbaraj's Retro a lame film at Dorothy success meet

Filmmaker Mysskin openly criticized Karthik Subbaraj's previous movie Retro as a lame film while speaking at the success meet for Dorothy. Retro starred Suriya, Pooja Hegde and Joju George, and earned ₹ 97.35 crore worldwide after its release in May 2025 as a romantic action drama about a gangster trying to leave his past behind. In contrast, Karthik Subbaraj's newer film Dorothy received a much better reception from audiences and critics.

Dorothy Climax Defended

Dorothy faced criticism and queerphobia over its polarising ending, but Mysskin defended the climax during his speech. He pointed out that audiences readily accept violent scenes of men killing each other on screen, so watching men kiss should not be an issue. Dorothy tells the story of childhood friends dealing with toxic masculinity, casteism and violence in the 90s, and it features Sananth, Rishikanth and Keerthy Suresh in lead roles.

Box Office And Producers

Dorothy has collected ₹ 12.25 crore worldwide after its September 25 release, which had a limited theatrical run compared to Retro. The film was produced by Guneet Monga Kapoor, Achin Jain and Jyoti Deshpande, and it even received a standing ovation when it premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival earlier in September.

Context

Success meets for films often become platforms for industry figures to share unfiltered opinions about past and present projects in the movie industry. Tamil cinema frequently sees prominent directors openly discussing the box office performance and creative choices of their peers' works.