Bollywood bound directors of Tamil films

With director Vishnuvardhan all set to foray into Bollywood with Sidharth Malhotra-starrer biopic on Kargil war hero Vikram Batra, the spotlight has again turned to Kollywood and its talent. While the cross-border movie-making culture has been prevalent for quite some years, we take a look at the current set of directors who went on to wield the megaphone in Bollywood.
Kamal Haasan
This multi-faceted artiste directed his first Hindi movie in 1997 — Chachi 420.His Vishwaroopam was titled Vishwaroop in Hindi and he is also ready with the sequel to the movie both in Tamil and Hindi. His ongoing directorial, Sabaash Naidu, is also being made in Hindi with the title Shabhash Kundu.
Mani Ratnam
The maverick director is one of those who established himself as a successful filmmaker in Hindi as early as 1998. While his Roja and Bombay were dubbed in Hindi, he directed Dil Se with Shah Rukh Khan and Manisha Koirala in the lead. Later, he directed Yuva, Guru and Raavan. However for OK Jaanu, the remake of his O Kadhal Kanmani, he handled the screenplay while the direction was by Shaad Ali.
Prabhudheva
He’s a man who wears many hats. After establishing himself as a dancer, choreographer and actor, Prabhudheva tried his hands at direction in Tamil and Telugu. And soon, he moved on to Bollywood and directed Wanted, remake of Pokkiri, starring Salman Khan. Wanted’s success ensured he got a slew of movies post that: Rowdy Rathore, Ramaiya Vastavaiya, R...Rajkumar, Action Jackson and Singh Is Bliing in Hindi. Prabhudheva will again get back to direction with Dabangg 3 starring Salman Khan.
AR Murugadoss
Described as the man with the Midas touch, AR Murugadoss debuted in Hindi with the remake of his Tamil film, Ghajini. Aamir Khan played the lead role in the Hindi version and the movie catapulted ARM, as he is fondly called, to the top spot — he became one of the most sought-after directors in Bollywood. Ghajini went on to become the first Indian movie to reach the 100-crore-collection-mark at the domestic box office. ARM has also directed Holiday (Thuppakki remake) with Akshay Kumar, and Akira, a remake of the Tamil film Mouna Guru, with Sonakshi Sinha playing the titular role.
Gautham Menon
Known for his cop stories and romantic films, Gautham Menon made his Bollywood debut with the remake of his own Minnale. Titled Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein, the film had Madhavan reprising his role, with Diya Mirza and Saif Ali Khan forming the rest of the cast. He also remade his Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa as Ekk Deewana Tha with Prateik and Amy Jackson.
Shankar
He started his directorial career with Gentleman in Kollywood. Later, Shankar forayed into Bollywood with the remake of his Arjun-starrer Mudhalvan — Nayak: The Real Hero. The film had Anil Kapoor playing the lead.
KS Ravikumar
In his career spanning 25 years, KS Ravikumar has directed some of the most popular films in Tamil. His versatility is such that he has handled films from comedy to action and thrillers. He made his Bollywood debut with Policegiri, the remake of the Tamil film Saamy, which was directed by Hari. The Hindi film starred Sanjay Dutt in the lead, but failed to create the expected impact at the box office.
RS Prasanna
He remade his romantic comedy Kalyana Samayal Saadham in Hindi as Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, and is said to be getting ready for its sequel, too.
Susi Ganeshan
Susi Ganeshan entered Bollwood with Shortcut Romeo, a remake of his Tamil film, Thiruttu Payale.