Kamal Haasan

Kamal Haasan (born November 7, 1954, Paramakudi (now in Tamil Nadu), India) is an Indian actor, writer, filmmaker, and politician, admired for his varied accomplishments in South Indian cinema. He is known for his versatility and productivity, with appearances in more than 230 films. Haasan is one of the few Indian stars to have transcended the north-south divide, having made films in languages spoken across southern India—Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam—as well as in Hindi and other northern Indian languages. In July 2025 he took oath as a member of the Rajya Sabha (the upper house of India’s Parliament).

Child stardom and breakout role

Parthasarathy Srinivasan was born to D. Srinivasan, a lawyer, and Rajalakshmi Srinivasan, a homemaker. For reasons unknown, his name was changed to Kamal Haasan when he was very young. He made his film debut as a child star in Kalathur Kannamma (1960; the plot centers on a woman named Kannamma from the village of Kalathur) and was an instant success, winning the Rashtrapati Award (or President’s Award) for best child artist in 1961. Haasan later credited his parents’ progressive views and involvement in the arts for the direction his own professional life took. Despite the early encouragement of his creative development, the teenage Haasan underwent some rebellious years and took a job as a barber to defy his mother.

After appearing in other films such as Kannum Karalum (1962; Malayalam: “Eyes and the Liver”) as a child actor, Haasan progressed to lead roles with the Malayalam film Kanyakumari (1974) and the Tamil-language Apoorva Raagangal (1975; “Rare Melodies”). The latter film is regarded as Haasan’s breakout role and is one of several collaborations with director K. Balachander, whom Haasan has acknowledged as his mentor and guiding spirit. Both Kanyakumari and Apoorva Ragangal earned Haasan Filmfare Awards (Malayalam and Tamil) for best actor.

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Collaborations with Rajinikanth and Sridevi

Apoorva Raagangal also marked the beginning of Haasan’s storied screen partnership with Tamil superstar Rajinikanth, who is noted for having played a series of negative roles early in his career before transitioning to romantic and action leads. Haasan and Rajinikanth were paired in more than a dozen films, most often as hero and villain. Notable on this list are the films Moondru Mudichu (1976; “The Three Knots”), Avargal (1977; “They”), Pathinaru Vayathinile (1977; “At Age 16”), Aadu Puli Attam (1977 “Lambs and Tigers Game”), and the Hindi film Geraftaar (1985; “Arrest”).

Haasan and actress Sridevi costarred as romantic leads in more than 20 films together, such as Moondru Mudichu, Pathinaru Vayathinile, Meendum Kokila (1981; “Kokila, Again”), and Shankarlal (1981; Haasan played the dual roles of father and son). Their best-known collaboration is perhaps Moondram Pirai (1982; “The Third Crescent”), in which a woman recovering from head trauma, played by Sridevi, is rescued from a brothel by a school teacher, played by Haasan. Moondram Pirai earned Haasan his first National Film Award for best actor. The film was remade in Hindi as Sadma (“Trauma”) the following year, with Sridevi and Haasan reprising their roles.

Superstardom

By the 1980s Kamal Haasan had established himself as one of Tamil cinema’s two dominant male stars (the other being Rajinikanth). He became known for his versatility, playing a classical dancer in Sagara Sangamam (1983; Telugu: “Confluence with the Ocean”), a crime boss in the Mani Ratnam-directed Nayakan (1987; “Hero”), and an unemployed youth who takes over a rich man’s identity in the silent film Pushpaka Vimana (1987; “The Flower Chariot”). Haasan won a second National Film Award for best actor for Nayakan. He played twins, one of whom is a dwarf, in Apoorva Sagodharargal (1989; “Unique Brothers”). He was cast in a dual role again in the Telugu-language black comedy Indrudu Chandrudu (1989), playing a corrupt mayor and his lookalike.

Haasan continued transcending genres through the 1990s and into the 2000s. He won a third National Film Award for best actor for his performance in the dual roles of a former freedom fighter and his son in Indian (1996). That same year he starred in Avvai Shanmugi (1996; avvai is used to address elderly women), a Tamil adaptation of the Hollywood hit Mrs. Doubtfire (1993), in which he played a divorced father who disguises himself as a female housekeeper to be near his child. Haasan also starred in the Hindi version of the film, Chachi 420 (1997; “The Trickster Aunt”). Notable films from the 2000s and the 2010s include the sci-fi thriller Dasavatharam (2008; “The 10 Avatars”), in which he played 10 roles, the spy film Vishwaroopam (2013; “The Universal Form”) and its sequel Vishwaroopam II (2018), and the comedy drama Uttama Villain (2015; “The Righteous Villain”).

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Haasan has writing credits on more than 30 films, including early releases such as Guru (1980) and Raaja Paarvai (1981; “Royal Gaze”) as well as later hits such as Anbe Sivam (2003; “Love Is God”), Dasavatharam, and Vishwaroopam. He has also produced many of his own films, among them Apoorva Sagodharargal and the Vishwaroopam films.

Bollywood films

In addition to appearing in many Malayalam, Telugu, and Kannada films, Haasan flourished in Bollywood as well, gaining success with his Hindi film debut Ek Duuje Ke Liye (“Made for Each Other”) in 1981, directed by K. Balachander. The film was based on the director’s Telugu film Maro Charithra (1978; “Another History”), a tragic tale of love across cultures, which also starred Haasan. Several of the Hindi films he starred in were remakes of his Tamil releases: in addition to Sadma and Chachi 420, the list includes Ek Nai Paheli (1984; “A New Riddle”), a remake of Apoorva Raagangal. He also appeared in original Hindi films such as the critical and commercial hit Saagar (1985; “Sea”). Haasan wrote, directed, produced, and starred in Hey Ram (2000), which was released in several languages simultaneously.

The 2020s

Kamal Haasan played Agent Vikram, a masked vigilante confronting the drug mafia, in Vikram (2022) and reprised the character in a voice-acted role in Leo (2023). In 2024 he appeared in a supporting role in the sci-fi dystopian drama Kalki 2898 AD, appearing with actors Amitabh Bachchan, Prabhas, and Deepika Padukone. The film was a blockbuster hit and became one of the highest-grossing Indian films worldwide with earnings of 1,042 crore rupees (about $124 million in 2024). He starred in Indian 2 in 2024 and reunited with director Mani Ratnam for Thug Life in 2025.

While promoting Thug Life, Haasan controversially said that “Tamil gave birth to Kannada.” The remark infuriated Kannada speakers (the language is mainly spoken in Karnataka state), prompting massive backlash and protests. Haasan refused to apologize despite the threat of a ban on Thug Life from the Karnataka Film Chamber of Commerce. Thug Life released on June 5 but was not screened in Karnataka theaters despite the Supreme Court’s observation that any ban on a film that had been certified by the Indian censor board was extrajudicial.

Political career

Haasan is one of several South Indian stars who have converted their fandom into a political constituency, among them former Tamil Nadu chief ministers M.G. Ramachandran and Jayaram Jayalalithaa. Haasan launched the political party Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM; “People’s Justice Center”) in February 2018. The MNM claims a centrist ideology and positions itself as anti-corruption and pro-accountability. He was elected to the Rajya Sabha in June 2025 and began his term the following month.

Family

Haasan’s accomplished family includes two brothers—actors Charuhasan and Chandrahasan—and a sister, dancer Nalini Raghu. Haasan was married to dancer Vani Ganapathy during 1978–88. He then married actress Sarika; their daughters, Shruti Haasan and Akshara Haasan, are also actresses. Haasan and Sarika’s marriage ended in 2002, and they divorced in 2004.