P. Samuthirakani

Early life

Samuthirakani was born on 26 April 1973 in Seithur, Rajapalayam, Tamil Nadu. He did his B.Sc. in mathematics from the Rajapalayam Rajus College and he also earned a Bachelor of Law from Ambedkar Law College. However, he aimed to become an actor. He has said that people used to tell him that he did not have the physical appearance or necessary talent to be an actor.

Career

In 1997, he joined as an assistant director under Sundar K. Vijayan. He was then noticed by K. Balachander and was recruited as assistant director for Balachander's 100th film Paarthale Paravasam. He also assisted Balachander in the mega-serial Anni telecasted by Jaya TV. Samuthirakani recalled that the work experience he gained under Balachander helped him in many ways while shooting Arasi and Selvi, the mega-serial telecasted in Sun TV, which were massive hits among housewives.

In the early 2000s, Samuthirakani began his career as a director. He notably launched a shelved film titled Uyir Nanbanukku starring Cheran, before making Unnai Charanadaindhen (2003) for S. P. B. Charan.

He worked as an assistant director for K. Balachander in Parthale Paravasam (2001) and Poi (2006) and for Ameer in Paruthiveeran (2007).

However, it was the success of Naadodigal (2009) that established Samuthirakani as a director. Since then he has directed films such as Poraali (2011), Nimirndhu Nil (2014) and Appa (2016). All these films have been remade in Telugu and Kannada. He gained appreciation for his acting in Velaiilla Pattadhari (2014) as Dhanush's father and in Visaranai (2016) as a police inspector.

He also played important role in Rajinikanth's film Kaala (2018).

In 2020, he appeared in Telugu film, Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo. Samuthirakani's returned to directing with Naadodigal 2, a film that takes up the topic of equality. He played the main role in the Telugu film, Aakashavaani (2021). He also directed two fantasy comedy Vinodhaya Sitham (2021) and Bro (2023).

He also played the role of Vibhishana in the Telugu superhero film Hanu-Man (2024).

Filmography

Tamil films

Telugu films

Malayalam films

Television

Dubbing artist

As a director

;Films

;Television

Singer

Narrator

• Eye of the Leopard (2006) - Tamil version - National Geographic
• Sundarapandian (2012)
• Roar of the Royals (2020) - Tamil version - National Geographic
• Serndhu Polama (2015)
• Anandham Vilayadum Veedu (2021)
• The Way Of The Cheetah (2021) Tamil version - National Geographic

References

References

1. Rao, Subha J.. (16 October 2018). "Cinema must be useful to society, says Samuthirakani". The Hindu.
2. M, Ramakrishnan. (8 April 2017). "Samuthirakani: The angry director". The Hindu.
3. "SAMUTHIRAKANI P.".
4. Anantharam, Chitra Deepa. (21 November 2017). "Hunger makes you stronger: Samuthirakani". The Hindu.
5. (26 November 2011). "Rebel with a pause". The Hindu.
6. (12 October 2003). "முறுக்கு விற்றேன்!".
7. (7 April 2018). "Success didn't come easy to me: Samuthirakani".
8. (15 November 2004). "09-08-03".
9. (15 April 2005). "08-07-03".
10. Srinivasan, Latha. (2 April 2016). "I couldn't sleep when I was shooting 'Visaranai', says National Award-winner Samuthirakani". [[DNA (newspaper).
11. (26 April 2017). "Happy Birthday Samuthirakani - Tamil News".
12. (23 October 2017). "Kalidas Jayaram requests people not to let down 'simple' movies like Aakashamittayee".
13. Manoj Kumar R. (11 August 2020). "South Stream: Dhanush's Velaiyilla Pattathari". [[Indian Express]].
14. (22 September 2016). "Tamil film 'Visaranai' is India's official entry for Oscars 2017". [[The Economic Times]].
15. (2 February 2018). "Samuthirakani talks about his experiences with Rajinikanth on Kaala sets".
16. (21 October 2021). "Samuthirakani interview: 'I aspire to be as pure as my characters'".
17. "Naadodigal 2 review: Skip it".
18. (23 September 2021). "'Aakashavaani' movie review: Definitely an original gem". The Hindu.
19. "Vinodhaya Sitham -A feel-good fantasy drama".
20. "Bro Movie Review : Banks more on Pawan Kalyan's fame than the story". The Times of India.
21. "Thiru.Manickam teaser: Samuthirakani gets stuck in the middle of chaos".
22. Kumar, Akshay. (2024-12-09). "Vanangaan audio launch to be held on this date".
23. Kumar, Akshay. (2025-05-27). "Maargan Trailer: Vijay Antony plays a cop who is after a supernatural killer".
24. Kumar, Akshay. (2025-08-15). "Samuthirakani-Bharath's Veeravanakkam gets a release date".
25. Desk, Cinema Express. (2025-10-06). "Idli Kadai box office Day 5: Dhanush's entertainer nears Rs 40 crore, weekend collections boost numbers".
26. (2025-07-28). "Kaantha teaser: Dulquer Salmaan revives golden age cinema in tense period drama".
27. (2023-05-19). "Vimanam Teaser {{!}} Samuthirakani {{!}} Anasuya Bharadwaj {{!}} Meera Jasmine".
28. Kumar, Akshay. (2025-01-29). "Samuthirakani's Ramam Raghavam gets a release date".
29. Desk, Cinema Express. (2026-01-12). "The Raja Saab Box Office Day 3: The Prabhas-starrer collects Rs 100 crores in India".
30. (2024-10-27). "Oru Anweshanathinte Thudakkam trailer promises a gripping investigative thriller".
31. (February 2022). "- YouTube".
32. "Kadavulukku Kobam Vanthathu - Episode 1". Youtube.
33. (26 February 2013). "Edhuvum Nadakkum — Marma Desam — Episode 1". YouTube}}{{cbignore}}{{Dead YouTube link.
34. (2 January 2020). "Ramani vs Ramani 2 - Episode 11". Youtube.
35. (2 January 2020). "Ramani vs Ramani 2 - Episode 31". Youtube.
36. (2 January 2020). "Ramani vs Ramani 2 - Episode 51". Youtube.
37. (29 March 2013). "Guhan Tamil TV Serial Episode - 8". YouTube}}{{cbignore}}{{Dead YouTube link.
38. (2 September 2021). "Oru Kadhavu Thirakirathu". YouTube.
39. (2023-03-24). "'PKSDT' set to hit theatres: Pawan Kalyan and Sai Dharam Tej fans rejoice". The Times of India.
40. (14 January 2021). "Paasa Paasangugal". YouTube.
41. (25 May 2021). "Gunangalum Ranangalum". YouTube.
42. (18 November 2020). "Idho Boopalam". YouTube.
43. (4 September 2020). "Theadathey Tholainthu Povai". YouTube.
44. (22 February 2021). "Addi Ennadi Asattu Pennea". YouTube.
45. (31 October 2020). "Kodi Rubai Kealvi". YouTube.