In 1997, when Suriya, as a gawky youngster made his debut in director Vasanth’s Nerukku Ner, little did the audience knew that this young man is going to be an emphatic force to reckon with in Tamil cinema. The handsome man, who was chided by the director on the sets for want of better performance, has steadily metamorphosed into a hard working and successful star who commands a huge loyal fan following across the various states and strata.
Suriya’s ascent in the industry is dotted with dedication and sincerity. Early on, in his career, the actor was part of films that may not have helped him in his growth as an artist. But subsequently, the actor chose projects that brought his talents out. Poovellam Keettu Paar in 1999 directed by Vasanth saw a pleasant Suriya with his off-screen partner Jyothika for the first time. Things started looking better for him with Bala’s Nandha and later Ameer’s Mounam Pesiyadhae.
Gautham Menon’s Kaakka Kaakka is easily the milestone in Suriya's career graph that witnessed a power packed portrayal of an encounter cop Anbuchelvan. This film took Suriya to a different league and brought with him a large fan base. The word COP became hot and hotter after Suriya’s Anbuchelvan.
People started taking serious note of this amicable artist when he started associating himself with projects and directors of caliber like Mani Ratnam, A R Murugadoss, K S Ravikumar and Hari to name some.
The hard work that this hero can invest in any film became a talking point from Gautham Menon’s Vaaranam Aayiram where Suriya distinguished himself in three different looks. Perazhagan witnessed him travelling to the other extreme end of the spectrum of beauty and good looks. In KV Anand’s Maattrraan Suriya had a challenging role of conjoined twins which he sashayed with a lot of toil and sincerity. In terms of fitness, this Ghajini hero can undoubtedly be given the credit of pioneering the six pack abs trend in Tamil cinema. Even now, there are quite a few artists for whom Suriya is the inspiration behind achieving that much desired ‘sculpted’ body.
A wholesome actor is one who essays all kinds of roles, be it the serious one or the commercial types with effortlessness and perfection. This takes the star to all strata of audience which augments his popularity quotient. Liaison with director Hari helped Suriya achieve the stature of a mass commercial hero which began in Aaru that continued in Vel, Singam, Singam 2 and will now carry on in Singam 3. The Singam franchise is highly successful touching the shores of Bollywood too.
Suriya did not just stop getting satisfied with his success in front of the camera. His production venture 2D Entertainment started in the name of his children Dev and Diya had its first offering in the form of 36 Vayadhinile, an impactful film talking about women empowerment which was also the comeback vehicle of his wife Jyothika. As the owner of the production house, Suriya has promised that he would be helping and funding quality films, the example being Pandiraj’s Haiku on children that would be released soon.
There are many bright linings to this much loved star. His philanthropic act comes to the fore with the activities of his Agaram Foundation that takes care of education for deserving students, among other things.
The mere mention of Suriya immediately brings out dedication, devotion, commitment and many such allied adjectives to the mind. A little known fact about this affable hero is that he will not be a part of any projects that deride women or mouth creepy innuendoes or be a part of intimate scenes. At a time when such cheap women-bashing things are seen as the ‘cool’ stuff, here is Suriya who says a firm NO to such indecent gears. No wonder he is the much loved and respected star among women.
On this very special day, when the actor enters his 41st year, here is wishing the real STAR a very happy birthday and many more to come. May he continue to be a part of films that provide fodder to his creative hunger and also entertain his audience. Happy Birthday Suriya, continue to do the good work!
