‘Thalapathi’ to ‘Iruvar’: A look at multi-starrer films in Tamil cinema

Unlike other film industries, the multi-starrer films are a rarity in Tamil cinema. The reason for this shortcoming is best known to directors. However, very few filmmakers like K Balachander, Mani Ratnam and Shankar, to name a few have pulled off a great casting coup. After many years, Mani Ratnam has somehow managed to rope in some big names for his ‘Chekka Chivantha Vaanam’, which is gearing up for a release this year. Right from ‘Thalapathi’ to ‘Hey Ram’, Tamil cinema has seen some of the best multi-starrer films that have either been critically or commercially successful. Here’s a list of popular multi-starrer Tamil films that cajoled the audiences.

At a time when multi-starrer films were nearly non-existent, Mani Ratnam brought together the two biggest superstars -- Rajinikanth and Mammootty for ‘Thalapathi’, a fictitious take on the friendship between Duryodhana and Karna from the Mahabharata, with Mammootty and Rajinikanth essaying Deva and Surya respectively. ‘Thalapathi’ is often cited as one of Rajinikanth’s best performances in his career spanning several decades. Upon its release in 1991, ‘Thalapathi’ opened to rave reviews and was a blockbuster hit at the box office. The film was dubbed in Malayalam, which too, became equally successful. The scenes featuring Rajinikanth and Mammootty were the major highlight, which eventually became a pop-culture phenomenon. After the success of ‘Thalapathi’, several films based on a similar theme became a trend-setter.

Directed by Mani Ratnam, ‘Iruvar’ is a political drama that is based on the relationship between two famous politicians of Tamil Nadu -- MG Ramachandran and MK Karunanidhi. Starring Mohanlal and Prakash Raj in the lead, ‘Iruvar’ explores the close relationship between cinema and politics in Tamil Nadu. It follows the story of Anandan (Mohanlal), an aspiring actor who befriends Tamilselvan (Prakash Raj), a Dravidian loyalist. Apart from Mohanlal and Prakash Raj, the film also starred Tabu, Aishwarya Rai, Gautami, Revathi and Nasser in prominent roles. Notably, ‘Iruvar’ faced a lot of hurdles from political parties ahead of its release. Though ‘Iruvar’ is touted to be one of Mani Ratnam’s best works, the film tanked at the box office. However, it has now achieved a cult status and has been screened at several international film festivals.

‘Hey Ram’ is arguably one of the best films written and directed by Kamal Haasan. Set in pre-Independence India, the film follows a set of events that lead to the assassination of MK Gandhi with Kamal Haasan playing the role of Saketh Ram, who is initially assigned the task of eliminating Gandhi. Produced by Raaj Kamal Films International, Haasan successfully pulled off a casting coup that included some big names in Indian cinema such as Naseeruddin Shah, Shah Rukh Khan, Om Puri, Hema Malini, Rani Mukerji, Atul Kulkarni, Vaali, Nasser and Sowcar Janaki to name a few. Made on a lavish budget, ‘Hey Ram’ bombed at the box office and incurred a huge loss to Kamal Haasan. However, the film won multiple national awards and was selected as India’s official entry for the Academy Awards.

Directed by Rajiv Menon, the film starred big names such as Mammootty, Ajith Kumar, Aishwarya Rai and Tabu in lead roles. Partly inspired by ‘Sense and Sensibilities’, it tells the story of two sisters, played by Aishwarya Rai and Tabu, and their respective ambitions in life. On the other hand, Ajith Kumar played the role of an aspiring filmmaker Manohar in the film, while Mammootty played an army officer. Particularly, Ajith’s portion with Tabu won the hearts of the audience. When it released in 2000, the film opened to glowing reviews from critics and audiences alike. ‘Kandukondain Kandukondain’ became a blockbuster success at the box office and won several national and international awards. Even after all these years, the film is still remembered for its soulful songs by AR Rahman.

‘Friends’ brought together two big names in the Tamil film industry -- Vijay and Suriya, who once again teamed up following the commercial success of the family-drama ‘Nerukku Ner’, directed by Vasanth. Even after all these years, ‘Friends’ is popular for its hilarious comedy track featuring Vadivelu, Vijay and Suriya. In fact, the film is often touted to be one of the best comedies in Kollywood. The film, which released in 2001, opened to highly positive reviews and completed a 175-day run at the box office. In the film, Vijay plays a mischievous and equally possessive youngster Aravindan, who gets emotionally attached to his friend Chandru (Suriya). The rib-tickling humour won the hearts of the audiences and rightly so.

Ace filmmaker Bala brought in two of his favourite actors -- Suriya and Vikram for ‘Pithamagan’, which became one of the biggest hits in the director’s career. ‘Pithamagan’ is an emotionally-draining film that talks about two friends Chithan (Vikram), a socially outcast person and Sakthi (Suriya), a conman. What follows is how the lives of these two change after a series of events. Though Vikram’s performance was highly lauded by critics, Suriya, too, wooed the audiences with his effortless portrayal of the character. ‘Pithamagan’ became a profitable venture at the box office and was remade in several languages. Upon release, Vikram went on to win his first National Award for Best Actor. ‘PIthamagan’ remains to be the only collaboration between Vikram and Suriya.

Post the success of the war-drama ‘Kannathil Muthamittal’, veteran filmmaker Mani Ratnam roped in a bunch of youngsters -- Suriya, Madhavan and Siddharth to direct a political drama. Based on the concept of hyperlink cinema, ‘Aayutha Ezhuthu’, revolves around its three main leads-- Michael, Inba, and Arjun, whose lives intertwine at one point of time. The film is partly inspired by the Mexican drama ‘Amores Perros’, which had a similar narrative structure. ‘Aayutha Ezhuthu’ tells one story through three different perspectives. It was remade in Hindi as ‘Yuva’, which was co-written by Anurag Kashyap and performed well at the box office. Despite getting good reviews, the Tamil version made average business. Over the years, ‘Aayutha Ezhuthu’ has earned a cult following. Even today, the film is more remembered for its huge casting.

After taking a sabbatical, R Madhavan made a stunning comeback in 2016 with the sports-drama ‘Irudhi Suttru’, which was directed by Sudha Kongara. Following the blockbuster success, Madhavan teamed up with Vijay Sethupathi for ‘Vikram Vedha’, directed by the duo Pushkar-Gayathri. At a time when multi-starrer films have become a rarity in Kollywood, ‘Vikram Vedha’ became a huge hit at the box-office with most critics appreciating the makers for roping in Madhavan and Vijay Sethupathi for the project. Inspired by the tales of Vikram and Betaal, the film went on to become one of the highest grossing Tamil films last year. A Hindi remake of the same is currently under pre-production stage. Reports suggest that Shah Rukh Khan and Madhavan might star in the Hindi version.