Thiagarajan

Thiagarajan was born on 21st June 1945 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. He is a very important figure in the Tamil film industry as well as other South Indian Film industries like Malayalam, Kannada and Telugu and has contributed to their boom and modernization in many ways. Initially, Thiagarajan started his career as an actor and later progressed to become a tycoon of filmmaking, having worked in most of the fields associated with film making such as writing, directing, producing, artwork, costume, and production managing. His first film was ‘Alaigal Oivathillai’ in 1981. He plays as an important supporting character and his realistic portrayal of the character gained him another chance in ‘Malaiyoor Mambattiyan’ in which he plays the character of a forest bandit.

His performance in the Malayalam film ‘New Delhi’ in 1987was a huge hit and it gave him the confidence to venture into the field of direction in the movie- ‘Salem Vishnu’ in 1990. In 1995, he directed another film titled ‘Anazhagan’ in which he cast his son in the lead role, as a male character who is required to dress up as a female. He took a short break from his film career after this movie during which time his son, Prashant, started developing as an actor in the film industry. After his break, Thiagarajan directed the movie ‘ Shock Click to look into! >> Read More... ’ in 2004, which was based on the Hindi movie ‘Bhoot’. The shock was a huge success, and Thiagarajan had performed in various roles in the film since apart from acting, he did the art and costume and also appeared in the cameo role of a police officer.

The movie was meticulously produced on the schedule, and it proved the planning and visualization ability that Thiagarajan possesses. In 2011, He made a remake of the 1983 film ‘Mambattiyan’ in which he cast his son in the lead role. Although the film wasn’t a commercial success, Thiagarajan was appreciated for his attempt to produce genuine art on screen.

Another version of the bio...

Thiagarajan is a well-known Tamil actor, director, and producer. Born in Chennai, he made his debut as an actor in the year 1980 through the film Alaigal Oivathillai(directed by P. Bharathiraja where Premkumar played the role of the elder brother of the lead actress Radha. Hence he made his debut as a supporting actor). The film was successful, and Thiagarajan’s acting came into notice. Therefore, he started receiving many offers. Meanwhile, he did many tiny roles in various films. But the film Malaiyoor Mambattiyan was a breakthrough in his career. He played the lead role of Mambattiyan in it and introduced the new name local Robinhood as he used to rob the wealth from the rich and distributed it among the poor. This portrayal of a jungle bandit suited him.

He came opposite to Saritha in the movie. This role touched the hearts of the audience, and Thiagarajan went to the top of the list. The film consisted of many other stars like Silk Smita, Jaishankar, etc. Infact, this film was remade by Rajashekhar in hindi, starring Rajinikanth and Shabana Azmi Shabana Azmi is a film actress of Indian origin an >> Read More... in lead role. Films like Neengal Kettavai, Paayum Puli Click to look into! >> Read More... , are milestones of his career. Another breakthrough in his career was the Malayalam thriller film New Delhi released in 1987. He played the role of a Malayali journalist in it who got imprisoned in a mental asylum after exposing corrupt politicians.Thiagarajan in this character was accepted well by the viewers, and it completely changed the image of Premkumar. Back to back, he gave successful movies to the industry.

This growth provoked him towards his directorial debut through the film Salem Vishnu, which was based on the character which Premkumar played in his film New Delhi. Luck was in his favour. This movie was also a hit. He married Shanthi(1972-Present), and she gave birth to a son, Prashanth(film actor known for his work in Tamil cinema since the year 1990) and, a daughter Preethi. Prashant is a handsome and talented actor of today's time. Thiagarajan then directed another film Aanazhagan in which he gave the lead role to his son. Though the movie had a good storyline and tremendous effort from both the father and the son yet it proved to be an average grosser. Premkumar's stardom and popularity were a little hurdle in Prashant's way. Hence Premkumar stayed a little away from this line from the year 1999 to 2003, so as to make way for his son Prashant.

Then he again came back in the role of Prashant's father in the film Jai. This deadly duo was well-accepted by the people. After this, he resumed his direction and directed the remake of film Bhoot (Hindi film). Not only did he directed the movie but also handled its costumes, art and did such an intelligent planning that the shoot of the film was over in just twenty-six days. It became a huge success, even more than the original Hindi film. The dedication and sincerity of the actors were visible on the screen. Then a massive idea struck him. He revived that movie again which had made him a star. He directed the remake of Mambattiyan with his son Prashant in the lead role. Though the idea and the execution both were good, yet the earning of the film could not recover the cost. It took a fantastic opening but then received mixed views. Thiagarajan continued to play small roles in films like Bodyguard(Malayalam romantic comedy), Drohi, Vaaimai, etc.