R. Pandiarajan is an Indian

actor An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

and

comedian A comedian (feminine comedienne) or comic is a person who seeks to entertainment, entertain an audience by making them laughter, laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting foolishly (as in slapstick), or employing prop c ...

who has played leading roles in many humorous Tamil films and plays supporting and comedy roles.

Personal life

Pandiarajan was born to Sulochana in

Saidapet Saidapet, also known as Saidai, is a neighbourhood in Chennai, India, situated in the northern banks of the Adyar River and serves as an entry point to Central Chennai. It is surrounded by West Mambalam in the North, C.I.T Nagar in the North-Ea ...

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

in a lower-middle-class family. He has two sisters, Maheshwari and Geetha. In 1986, he married Vasuki, daughter of the director, producer, and poet Avinasi Mani. They have three sons, Prithvi Rajan, Pallava Rajan and Prem Rajan.

Career

During his early career, Pandiarajan aspired to become an actor but faced challenges due to his height and appearance. As a result, he decided to start his journey in the film industry as an assistant director. His interest in music led him to earn a diploma as “Isai Selvam” in 1977 from Thamizisai College. While working as an office assistant for writer Thooyavan, he crossed paths with director K. Bhagyaraj and eventually became his associate director. His journey led him in three of his film, '' Andha 7 Naatkal'' (1981), '' Thooral Ninnu Pochu'' (1982) and '' Darling, Darling, Darling'' (1982). His first venture as a director and lead actor '' Aan Paavam'' (1985) was a massive success at the box office. He has co-starred with

Sivaji Ganesan Villupuram. Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001), better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, was an Indian actor and film producer. He was mainly active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th centur ...

in '' Thaaiku Oru Thaalaattu'' (1986) and '' Muthukkal Moondru'' (1987). Actors Seetha, S. J. Suryah,

Mayilsamy Mayilsamy (2 October 1965 – 19 February 2023) was an Indian actor and comedian who primarily played supporting roles. Appearing in many Tamil films, he was also a regular guest judge for ''Asathapovathu Yaaru'' on Sun TV in Chennai. He was ...

, Kollangudi Karuppayee and Bengali actress

Debashree Roy Debashree Roy (born 8 August 1962) also known as Debasree Roy, is an Indian actress, dancer, choreographer, politician and animal rights activist. She was a bankable star of Bengali cinema during 1980s, 1990s and early 2000s. She received mo ...

were introduced by him to Tamil cinema and so was Srikanth Deva as music director. Pandiarajan is also an accomplished director and has directed several hit films including '' Subramaniya Swamy'' (1994), '' Gopala Gopala'' (1996), '' Doubles'' (2000), and '' Kai Vandha Kalai'' (2006). He played leading roles like '' Thaikulame Thaikulame'' (1995), '' Kaalam Maari Pochu'' (1996) and '' Purushan Pondatti'' (1996) were hits. He acted in the TV serial '' Mama Maaple'' on Sun TV. He directed his first short film, ''Magan'' in 2004. It was selected for screening at the International Children Film Festival held in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

. The film dealt with the issues of child labour. In 2006, he directed another short film, ''Iru Thuligal'', on polio awareness. Two years later, in 2009, he made one more film on organ donation. Titled ''Azhagu'', acclaimed cinematographer

Ravi Varman S. Ravi Varman ISC is an Indian cinematographer, filmmaker, producer and writer. He predominantly works in Tamil, Malayalam, and Hindi film industries. Varman began his career in Malayalam cinema. He directed a romantic film in Tamil titled ' ...

produced the film and also cranked the camera. His short film in English, ''

Help Help may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * Help (2010 film), ''Help'' (2010 film), a Bollywood horror film * Help (2021 theatrical film), ''Help'' (2021 theatrical film), a British psychological thriller film * Help (2021 TV ...

'', was nominated at the ArtDeco Film Festival 2011, at

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Filmography

Actor

As director

Feature films

Short films

Television

References

External links

* {{authority control Tamil male actors Male actors in Tamil cinema Male actors from Chennai Living people Tamil comedians 1959 births Tamil film directors Indian male comedians Male actors in Malayalam cinema 20th-century Indian male actors 21st-century Indian male actors Indian male film actors