Santhanam is an Indian actor and producer who mainly works in Tamil cinema. Beginning his career as a comedian on television, he rose to fame through his performances in STAR Vijay's Lollu Sabha enacting the lead role in spoofs of Tamil films. He was subsequently given a chance by actor Silambarasan to feature in a supporting role in Manmadhan (2004) and then was signed on to appear in a host of films, notably winning good reviews for his work in Sachien (2005) and Polladhavan (2007). He appeared in a one-off leading role in Shankar's production Arai En 305-il Kadavul (2008) and became a staple feature as a comedian in successful Tamil films during the period, with his market popularity helping stuck films find distributors.
Kireedam (transl. Crown) is a 2007 Indian Tamil-language action drama film directed by A. L. Vijay in his directorial debut. The film is a remake of the 1989 Malayalam film of the same name. It stars Ajith Kumar, Trisha and Rajkiran, while Vivek, Saranya, Ajay, and Santhanam appear in supporting roles. The film's score and soundtrack are composed by G. V. Prakash Kumar, while Tirru was the cinematographer. The film opened on 20 July 2007 to positive reviews and became a hit at the box office. It was dubbed into Telugu as Poorna Market.
Billa is a 2007 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film directed by Vishnuvardhan. It is a remake of the 1980 film of the same name starring Rajnikanth, which itself is a remake of 1978 Hindi film Don, starring Amithabh Bachchan. The film stars Ajith Kumar who plays a double role as an underworld don and his friendly look-alike alongside Nayanthara and Namitha, while Prabhu, Rahman, Adithya Menon, and Santhanam playing supporting roles. It is produced by L. Suresh and Abdurrahman M while featuring a score and soundtrack by Yuvan Shankar Raja, cinematography by Nirav Shah and editing by A. Sreekar Prasad.
Velli Thirai is a 2008 Indian Tamil-language satirical drama film directed by debutant Viji, the dialogue writer for Radha Mohan's films, and produced by Prakash Raj. It is a remake of the 2005 Malayalam film Udayananu Tharam. The film stars Prithviraj and Gopika, along with Prakash Raj in a prominent role.
Malai Malai is a 2009 Indian Tamil-language masala film written and directed by A. Venkatesh. The film stars Arun Vijay, Prabhu, Vedhika, and Kasthuri in lead roles, while Prakash Raj, Santhanam, Ganja Karuppu, Vijayakumar, and S. N. Lakshmi play supporting roles. The music was composed by Mani Sharma with editing by V. T. Vijayan. The film released on 31 July 2009 and turned out to be a surprise hit at the box office. This film ran for 100 days in theaters.
Boopathy Pandian is a Tamil film director.
Udhayanidhi Stalin is an Indian film producer, politician and former actor who prominently works in Tamil cinema. He was appointed as Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development, Special act implementation Department of Tamil Nadu in the ministry by his father the chief minister of Tamil Nadu, M. K. Stalin in December 2022. He is a member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, representing the Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni Assembly constituency.
Kaavalan (transl. Bodyguard) is a 2011 Indian Tamil-language romantic action film written and directed by Siddique. A remake of his Malayalam film Bodyguard, the film stars Vijay with Asin and Mithra Kurian. Rajkiran, Roja Selvamani and Vadivelu play supporting roles. The story revolves around Meera, who develops feelings in her bodyguard Bhoominathan and begins calling him as an anonymous caller named Ammukutty. The musical score is composed by Vidyasagar, and cinematography is handled by N. K. Ekambaram.
Oru Kal Oru Kannadi abbreviated as OKOK is a 2012 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by M. Rajesh. It stars producer Udhayanidhi Stalin in his acting debut, Hansika Motwani, and Santhanam, while Saranya Ponvannan and Azhagam Perumal play supporting roles. The film's music was composed by Harris Jayaraj with cinematography by Balasubramaniem and editing by Vivek Harshan. The film was named after the song of the same name from Rajesh's film Siva Manasula Sakthi (2009).
Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal is a 2012 Indian Tamil-language romantic thriller film directed by Elred Kumar starring Atharvaa and Amala Paul, while Jayaprakash, Anupama Kumar, Santhanam, Yashika and Nassar played supporting roles. The music was scored by G. V. Prakash Kumar. The film opened to mixed reviews, but had a successful 100-day run. The film was later also screened at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival in a non-award ceremony, winning acclaim.
Aadu Puli is a 2011 Indian Tamil language action drama film written and directed by newcomer Vijay Prakash and produced by S. Michael Rayappan. The film stars Aadhi, Poorna, and Prabhu, while Suresh, Ravichandran, K. R. Vijaya, Anupama Kumar, and Yuvarani play supporting roles. The music was composed by Sundar C. Babu with editing by Kishore Te and cinematography by Rajavel Olhiveeran. The film was released on 18 February 2011. It opened to negative reviews and was a flop at the box office. The film was dubbed into Telugu as Chelgatam.
M. Saravanan is an Indian film director, best known for directing the film Engeyum Eppodhum (2011).
Vathikuchi (transl. Matchstick) is a 2013 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film written and directed by newcomer P. Kinslin and produced by A. R. Murugadoss in association with Fox Star Studios. The film stars Dileepan, the younger brother of Murugadoss, in his acting debut and Anjali, while Jayaprakash, Sampath Raj and Jagan appear in supporting roles. The film, which has music composed by Ghibran, opened in March 2013 to a positive response from critics and performed well at the box office.
Pattathu Yaanai is a 2013 Indian Tamil-language masala film written and directed by Boopathy Pandian and produced by Michael Rayappan.
Moodar Koodam is a 2013 Tamil language black comedy film written, produced and directed by Naveen. The film stars the director himself alongside Sendrayan, Kuberan, and Rajaji in lead roles. Oviya, Anupama Kumar, Jayaprakash, Five Star Krishna, and Uday Mahesh play other pivotal roles. The film was produced by director Naveen himself under the "White Shadows Productions" banner with Pandiraj releasing the movie through his Pasanga Productions. The music is by Natarajan Sankaran. This film received positive reviews.
Seeman is an Indian film director and actor, who has worked in Tamil cinema. He made his directorial debut in 1996, with the Tamil film Panchalankurichi. Since then, he has directed four more films and also appeared in acting roles in films of other directors.
George Maryan is an Indian actor and comedian, who has appeared in Tamil cinema. He started his career in theatre, before working in Tamil cinema and has often collaborated with film-makers A. L. Vijay, Siva, M. Manikandan, Lokesh Kanagaraj, Thangar Bachchan, Sundar C and Priyadarshan.
Vanjagar Ulagam is a 2018 Indian Tamil-language crime thriller film directed by Manoj Beedha in his directorial debut with dialogues written by Beedha and Vinayak. The film stars Guru Somasundaram, Ciby Bhuvana Chandran, Vishagan Vanangamudi, and Anisha Ambrose, with Chandini Tamilarasan, Hareesh Peradi, John Vijay, and Azhagam Perumal in supporting roles. The music is composed by Sam C. S. while cinematography is handled by Rodrigo Del Rio Herrara and Saravanan Ramasamy. The film was released in India on 7 September 2018.
Pirappu is a 2007 Tamil language romantic drama film directed by L. V. Ilangovan. The film stars newcomer Prabha, Karthika and newcomer Priya Mohan, with Mahadevan, Saranya Ponvannan, Vijay Krishnaraj, Sulakshana, Shanmugarajan, Anjali Devi, Ganja Karuppu and George Maryan playing supporting roles. It was released on 1 June 2007.
A1: Accused No. 1 is a 2019 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Johnson K in his directorial debut. The film stars Santhanam and Tara Alisha Berry. Producer S. Raj Narayanan of CircleBox Entertainment has produced this movie. The music for the film is composed by Santhosh Narayanan and cinematography is handled by Gopi Jagadeeswaran. The movie was edited by Leo John Paul, song lyrics were penned by Rokesh, art direction was executed by A. Raja, dance choreography by Kalyan and Sandy, and stunts by Hari Dinesh. Principal photography commenced around October 2018. The film was released on 26 July 2019. A1 received positive reviews from critics and became a box-office success.
