ராதே கிருஷ்ணா 25-10-2017

Vikram (actor)

Vikram
Vikram in 2014
Born	Kennedy John Victor April 17, 1966 (51 years) Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Other names	Kenny, Chiyaan
Occupation	Film actor, Film producer, Playback singer, Voice actor
Years active	1990–present
Spouse(s)	Shailaja Balakrishnan (1992–present)
Children	2 Daughter- akshita, Son- dhruv krishna, Son-in-law- manu ranjit
Awards	National Best Actor (2003) State Best Actor (1999, 2003) Kalaimamani (2004)
Website	www.instagram.com/the_real_chiyaan

Kennedy John Victor, known professionally as Vikram or Chiyaan Vikram, is an Indian film actor who predominantly appears in Tamil language films and has won seven Filmfare Awards as well as one National Film Awardand Tamil Nadu State Film Award amongst other recognitions and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the People's University of Milan in May 2011.

He made his debut in the 1990 film En Kadhal Kanmani, which was followed by a series of small-budget Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu films in the 1990s, many of which went unnoticed. However, the success of Bala's tragedy film Sethu (1999), in which Vikram appeared as a rogue turned lover, started Vikram's successful career as an actor. In the early 2000s, Vikram appeared in a series of masala films, with Dhill (2001), Gemini (2002), Dhool (2003) and Saamy (2003) becoming commercially successful ventures. During the period, Vikram also appeared in diverse roles and received critical acclaim for his performance as a blind villager in Kasi and a Robin Hood-esque figure in Samurai. In 2003, Vikram's performance as a gravedigger with autism spectrum disorders in Bala's Pithamagan saw him win the National Film Award for Best Actor, with his character only speaking a couple of lines of dialogue in the entire film.^[1] His appearance as an idealistic lawyer with multiple personality disorder in Shankar's blockbuster Anniyan (2005) also won critical acclaim, as did his appearance as a superhero in Kanthaswamy (2009). Vikram's portrayal of Veeraiya, a tribal leader inspired by the Ramayana character Ravana, in Mani Ratnam's Raavanan saw him secure further accolades, as did his appearance as a mentally challenged adult with the maturity of a six-year-old boy in Deiva Thirumagal (2011). He consequently appeared in multiple get-ups as a bodybuilder and a crippled hunchback, losing up to 35 kilograms for sequences, during the making of Shankar's romantic thriller I (2015) and won rave reviews from critics for his performance. It is currently the fourth highest-grossing Tamil film of all time.^[2][3]

Vikram has promoted various social causes and appeared as the Youth Envoy for the United Nations Human Settlements Programme in 2011. He has been a brand ambassador of Sanjeevani Trust and a school for special children, Vidya Sudha, which he stayed at during the making of Deiva Thirumagal as well as having long-term associations with the Kasi Eye Care and running his own welfare association through the Vikram Foundation.^[4] In 2016, he produced and directed the video to the flood relief anthem, Spirit of Chennai, as a tribute to the city's volunteers following the 2015 South Indian floods

Early life

Vikram was born as Kennedy to a Christian father and a Hindu mother in Madras, Tamil Nadu.^[5] His father, John Victor (alias Vinod Raj) was a native of Paramakudi and ran away from home to start a career in films. His father, however, did not fare successfully, and only managed to act in supporting roles in Tamil films and television serials and this inspired Vikram to take part in theatre lessons and become professionally trained in classical and cinema dance forms to ensure he became a leading actor.^[5][6] Rajeshwari, Vikram's mother, was a sub-collector and her brother, Thyagarajan is an established director-actor in the Tamil film industry; with his son, actor Prashanth, being Vikram's first cousin.^[7]

Vikram has a younger brother, Arvind who lives in Dubai, U.A.E. He was previously set to make his film debut as a Villain in the 2008 film Saroja but eventually did not feature. ^[8] Vikram also has a younger sister Anitha who is a Teacher. Vikram is used as a screen name as he disliked his original name, Kennedy; the name Vikram was composed by taking "Vi" from his father's name, "K" from Kennedy, "Ra" from his mother's name and "ram" from his sun sign, Aries.^[9]

Vikram was educated at Montfort School, Yercaud, a boarding school in a hill station near Salem and graduated in 1983. He has mentioned that he used his opportunities at school well by taking part in karate, horseback riding and swimming and noted that such early exposure to activities gave him confidence as a youngster. Vikram lurked in the fringes of the school's theatre club for a long period and often took part in backstage work before being handed the lead role in a school adaptation of Molière's The Doctor in Spite of Himself after the original lead had contracted chicken pox.^[9] Despite expressing his interest to join films after school, his father forced him to go through education with Vikram subsequently graduating in English literature from Loyola College, Chennai and working halfway through an MBA programme.^[10] Through the prolific dramatics club, Vikram appeared in stage productions including college adaptations of The Caine Mutiny Court-Martial and Peter Shaffer's Black Comedy, receiving best actor awards for his performances.^[9]After winning a Best Actor Award at a function held at IIT Madras, Vikram was hit by a truck during a while on his motorbike on the way home and suffered a serious leg injury. He remained hospital-ridden for three years during college and subsequently went through twenty three surgeries to prevent his leg from being amputated.^[10][11] Vikram then returned to finish the final year of his degree after his accident and secured permission to finish his dissertation at home, as he was only able to walk on crutches for a short period.^[12]

Film career

1990–2000

Vikram began his professional career by modelling in advert films for brands including Chola Tea, TVS Excel and Alwyn watches as well as appearing in a six episode television serial titled Galatta Kudumbam which aired between November and December 1988. During the final year of his M.B.A programme at Loyola College, he was recognised by the film industry, with veteran director C. V. Sridhar approaching him for a lead role in a film.^[13] Vikram made his film debut in 1990 by appearing in En Kadhal Kanmani, a small budget love story featuring him alongside Rekha Nambiar, with Sridhar's Thanthu Vitten Ennai opposite Rohini being his next release. He then signed on to be a part of cinematographer P. C. Sriram's college love story, Meera with high expectations, however the three films failed to launch his career.^[14] His appearances in Meera and in Kaaval Geetham, with another veteran director S. P. Muthuraman, helped him secure film offers from the Malayalam and Telugu film industries.^[13] In 1993, he almost signed on to appear in Mani Ratnam's Bombayand featured in the initial photo shoot alongside Manisha Koirala. However Mani Ratnam wanted Vikram to remove his beard for the role, and Vikram could not do so due to continuity problems with another film he had signed and hence was dropped from the project.^[15]

Between 1993 and 1994, Vikram appeared in a series of films where he portrayed supporting roles. He appeared in three successful Malayalam films by appearing with Mammooty, Suresh Gopi and Jayaram in Joshi's successful action film Dhruvam, before teaming up with Gopi again for Shaji Kailas's Mafia, which explored Bangalore's criminal underworld. Furthermore, Joshi cast him again alongside Mammooty in the action drama Sainyam in the role of an air cadet.^[16] During the period, Vikram also appeared in the small budget Telugu film Chirunavvula Varamistava in the lead role and as Akkineni Nageswara Rao's eldest son in the family drama Bangaru Kutumbam with both films failing commercially. A brief return to Tamil films also proved unsuccessful, with his role in Vikraman's multistarrer Pudhiya Mannargal with music composed by A. R. Rahman turning out to be a commercial failure.^[17]

Throughout 1995 and 1996, Vikram appeared in further Telugu and Malayalam films to receive income, being kept away from Tamil films due to a lack of offers.^[14] He played the lead role in Malayalam film Mayoora Nritam directed by Vijayakrishnan's and even played villain in Street opposite Babu Antony and lead roles in the small budget Telugu films Adalla Mazaka and Sriraj Ginne's Akka! Bagunnava?. He collaborated again with Mammooty in Indraprastham and Suresh Gopi in Rajaputhran, before appearing in his first lead role in Malayalam with Itha Oru Snehagatha opposite Laila.^[16] Vikram signed Amitabh Bachchan's first Tamil language film production, Ullaasam, which also featured Ajith Kumar and Maheswari. The big budget film created anticipation prior to release but was ultimately panned and fared poorly at the box office.^[18] However, Vikram acknowledged the film for expanding his female fan base as a result of the soft-personality of his character.^[14] He followed it up with appearances in the unsuccessful films Kurralla Rajyam in Telugu and then in the Ilaiyaraaja musical Kangalin Vaarthaigal, before playing a short role in Parthiban's critically acclaimed film, Housefull.

During his struggling phase, Vikram dubbed for other heroes in films including voices for Prabhu Deva in Kaadhalan, Ajith Kumar in Amaravathi and Abbas in Kandukondain Kandukondain respectively. Vikram has mentioned that he did not look down on dubbing and saw it as a "dignity of labour".^[11] During the period he also attended dancing classes every day, and tried acting out different scenes, different characters with his small group of friends.^[19] He began to turn down chances to play supporting roles in films and was intent on making a breakthrough as a lead actor and notably turned down the role of Swarnamalya's fiancée in Mani Ratnam's Alaipayuthey.^[9] Vikram also rejected approaches from television serial producers, citing that working in television would reduce his chances of becoming a mainstream actor.^[20] He also refused opportunities to take part in film events as a backing dancer, with actor Sriman revealing that Vikram was "one amongst not many" who was not interested in travelling to Canada to participate in such shows.^[9]

1999–2001

In 1997, debutant director Bala offered him the role of the rogue, Sethu (Chiyaan), in the film Sethu. To prepare for the character, Vikram shaved his head, lost twenty-one kilograms and grew his nails long for the role.^[10][19] After beginning production in April 1997, the film went through development hell after industry strikes and lack of funds hampered progress. During this phase, he did not accept other acting offers in order to maintain the continuity of his looks. The film then struggled to find a distributor, who shunned it due to the tragic climax and the film remained unreleased.^[21] Vikram described the period of production as "the worst phase of his career" as he was financially strapped and "his fire was in danger of dying down".^[19] He turned down an opportunity from a friend to take up a job in technology and attempted to stay in the industry by directing a serial titled Mounam Pesiyadhey, with Ameer as his assistant director.^[9] Sethu finally released in December 1999 and initially began running at a single noon show at a suburban theater but gradually gained an audience through word-of-mouth publicity. Eventually it ran for over one hundred days at several cinema halls across Chennai. Vikram was constantly being mobbed by people on the streets as a result of the film's success.^[10][14] Critics praised Vikram's performance with a reviewer referring to Vikram as "a revelation" and that "he is very natural and his acting in last few scenes are just too good and could even be compared with the best we have seen".^[22] Similarly, a critic from the Malaysian daily, New Straits Times, described the film as an "unforgettable experience" and described Vikram's performance as "praise-worthy".^[23] The performance drew accolades with Vikram winning the Filmfare Special Award – South^[24] and the Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for his portrayal of the title character, while reports emerged that he missed out on the National Film Award for Best Actor by a single vote to Mohanlal.^[25] Post-Sethu, Vikram has described the film would have been close to him regardless of its commercial success and that it put him on the "right path", with Vikram choosing to adapt the prefix of Chiyaan to his screen name.^[19]

Vikram did not sign up to a film for sixty five days after the release of Sethu, to ensure that he made the right career move.^[10] Vikram spent time completing projects he had agreed to feature in before the release of Sethu and hence made a couple of appearances in the Malayalam films, Red Indians and the horror film Indriyam.^[26] He also played a leading role in Siragugal, a rare Tamil telefilm produced and featuring Radhika Sarathkumar, which was shot entirely in the suburbs of London.^[27][28] Furthermore, he also completed two Telugu films during the period; 9 Nelalu and Youth. 9 Nelalu featured Vikram as the husband of the character played by Soundarya, who faces the challenges of being a surrogate mother. The film won positive reviews, with a critic mentioning that Vikram gave a "controlled performance;^[29] while Vikram's newfound popularity in Tamil films saw the film dubbed into Tamil soon after as Kandane Seethayai, with an inserted comedy track by comedian Vivek.^[30] His next release was Rajakumaran's Vinnukum Mannukum, alongside Sarath Kumar, Kushboo and Devayani, which revolved around an ordinary boy falling in love with an actress. Vikram has since mentioned his displeasure at being a part of the film, claiming that he had arguments with the director for every single shot and that "everything in that film, right from the first shot was wrong"; the film became a failure commercially.^[31][32] His next film was Dhill where he played an aspiring police officer, Kanagavel, who tackles a corrupt policeman. To appear trim in the role of the aspiring police officer, Vikram went on a strict diet eating only fruits and drinking juice.^[33] The film opened to positive reviews with a critic from The Hindu claiming that "Vikram has the ability and potential" and that "Vikram has once again proved that his success in Sethu was not a fluke".^[34] Dhill subsequently went on to become Vikram's first success in the masala film genre and led the way for more such films in the same genre for him.^[35] Vikram's portrayal of a blind folk singer in Vinayan's Kasi won him the Filmfare Best Tamil Actor Award and the film also did well commercially.^[32] For the movie, he sunbathed on the terrace of his beachside home in Chennai for a sunburnt look and got dizzying headaches while practising to look blind.^[33] Again, Vikram's performance won positive reviews from critics with a reviewer describing it as an "extraordinarily detailed performance" and that "as the blind singer, he brings laughter, tears and a lump in one's throat".^[36]

2002–2003

The following year, Vikram went on to play the title role in Saran's Gemini produced by AVM Productions, his first big-budget film in the Tamil industry, which featured him in the role of a local rowdy.^[37] The action film won good reviews, with a critic citing that Vikram "delivers a convincing performance" and consequently became a box office triumph.^[32][38] Similarly, the film's soundtrack composed by Bharathwaj had become popular prior to release, with Vikram also singing a version of the hit song "O Podu!" for the album.^[39] Balaji Sakthivel's Samurai was his next release featuring him as a vigilante Robin Hood-esque figure who kidnapped corrupt politicians. Vikram had signed the film in early 2000 and the film was on hold during production leading to a two-year delay and the film finally opened to average reviews and collections. The critic from The Hindu drew praise for Vikram's "admirably well-maintained physique and powerful eyes", whilst another labelled that the film's single major positive was Vikram's convincing portrayal.^[40][41] His final release of the year was Prabhu Solomon's King, a drama film which featured him alongside Sneha and Nassar. Vikram played Raja, a magician, who is unaware that he has been diagnosed with multiple sclerosis with his family trying to keep the truth away from him. The film also met with an unfavorable response commercially but won positive acclaim from critics.^[42]

The success of Dharani's Dhill resulted in the film's team collaborating to make a film in a similar genre, Dhool, which also featured Jyothika, Reemma Sen and Vivek.^[35] The film saw Vikram play Aarumugham, a villager, who comes to the city seeking help in regard to a water crisis back home but subsequently ends up tackling the corrupt politicians who are behind the water scam. In regard to his performance, the Rediff.com review praised his enactment citing that "Vikram is at his peak" and that "he seems as much at home with comedy as with action, in romance as in emotional sequences", while the critic from The Hindu also praised his performance.^[43][44] The film became a blockbuster and his fifth success in two and a half years with Vikram being dubbed as "the matinee idol of our times" by a leading Indian newspaper.^[45] He also featured in the romantic film, Kadhal Sadugudu with Priyanka Trivedi which was a critical and commercial failure, with reviewers claiming that "there are times you wish Vikram were a little more brisk and dynamic" in regard to his performance.^[46] Post release, Vikram was critical of the film's failure confessed that the story "underwent a lot of changes after the initial narration", lamenting he was "taken for a royal ride" by the producers.^[47]

Vikram was then signed on by K. Balachander to appear in his banner's biggest production till date, Saamy, directed by Hari.^[48] Vikram played Aarusaamy, an honest cop working in Tirunelveli who solves the region's communal problems with his down-to-earth approach. Vikram worked on his body for the film, sporting a thick waist to show notable differences from his other police film, Dhill and also put on eight kilograms.^[19] The film took a large opening, grossing over Rs. 7 crores in 10 days in Tamil Nadu, while also taking the largest opening of the new millennium in Kerala, with the Telugu remake rights also sold for a record price. Due to the good opening, the film has proved to be profitable just 10 days after its release and consequently went on to become a blockbuster.^[49] Vikram's performance also was lapped up by critics earning him a nomination for Filmfare Best Tamil Actor Award, with the critic from Sify claiming Vikram had "succumbed to the superstar image trap", but is the "mainstay of the picture".^[50]

2003–2009

Later that year he starred in Bala's Pithamagan along with Suriya, Sangeetha and Laila, playing the role of Chitthan, a gravedigger with autism spectrum disorders. He did not have any dialogue in the film and the actor's acting muscles were stretched as he had to use body language and facial expressions to convey his feelings and thoughts, with Vikram also applying the make up for the character himself.^[19][33] The film won positive reviews with the critic from The Hindu calling it a "symphony on celluloid", while noting that it will be a "milestone in Vikram's career" and "he carves a niche for himself in the viewer's mind with his expressions and excellent body language".^[51] His portrayal won him both the Filmfare Best Tamil Actor Award and the National Film Award for Best Actor, with the latter accolade making him only the third Tamil actor to win the award.^[1][10] His next release, the revenge drama Arul directed by Hari, garnered poor reviews and box office collections.^[52]

Vikram signed on to feature in the action thriller, Anniyan directed by prominent director Shankar in March 2004.^[53] Vikram agreed to shoot for the film for 140 days, which was revealed to be amongst the longest contracts signed by an actor in a Tamil film.^[54] The film featured him as a character suffering from dissociative identity disorder with three distinct personae: a meek lawyer, a suave fashion model and a psychotic serial killer. Prior to release, the film was touted as the most expensive South Indian film ever, costing Rs 26.38 crores, and released across India with 400 prints.^[55] Anniyan took an "extraordinary opening",^[56] went on to become a blockbuster grossing more than Rs.100 crores through the original and two dubbed versions.^[57] Vikram's performance was unanimously praised, with a reviewer from Sify citing that "Anniyan truly belongs to Vikram and the film is unthinkable without him" and "it is a role that could have been reduced to a caricature by a lesser actor".^[58] The film won 8 out of the 15 awards possible at the 2005 Filmfare Awards South, with Vikram adjudged Best Actor.^[59] Later in the year, he signed and completed Shafi's comedy film with Asin, Majaa, in less than five months. The film which also featured Pasupathy as his brother, saw Vikram work as the assistant director under Shafi.^[60]Majaa faced a poor response at the box office and fetched average reviews with a reviewer citing that "you will surely find something missing".^[61]

Vikram then signed up for Bheema in October 2005, with the film facing severe delays and only releasing in January 2008.^[62] The film saw him portray Sekhar, who grows up idolizing the gangster played by Prakash Raj, and Vikram revealed that he approached the film like an actor even though the film's script was written "for a star".^[63] Upon release, the film gained mixed reviews though reviewers praised Vikram's performance with a critic claiming that "Vikram breathes life into the film", "he looks sensational with his toned body, killer looks unarguably delivers yet another outstanding performance of his career" and to "see the film only for him".^[64] Similarly the review from The Hindu was critical of the excessive violence and mentioned that "as narration gives way after a point, Vikram can only appear helpless".^[65] His next release, Kanthaswamy, directed by Susi Ganesan and also featuring Shriya Saran, became the first superhero film in Tamil cinema with Vikram being featured as a vigilante dressed as an anthropomorphic rooster, Kokorako and CBI Officer.^[66] Kanthaswamy became Vikram's most expensive production beating Anniyan, with the film boasting of high production values of having an innovative pre-launch trailer and with scenes shot in Italy and Mexico.^[67][68] The film earned a mixed response from critics with the reviewer from Sify claiming that the film "strikes a fine balance between style and substance" and proceeding to state that "Vikram is mesmerizing and has given an extra dimension to the characters he plays in the film and steers it to the winning post", suggesting that "there are very few people in Indian cinema who can do the larger-than-life fantasy character as easily as Vikram". Sudhish Kamath of The Hindu labelled the film as "slow death", claiming that "as an actor, Vikram has nothing to do". The film took a strong opening with a collection of Rs. 37 crore, including Rs. 16 crore in Tamil Nadu, at the box-office in the opening week of its international release. The film subsequently went on to become one of the most profitable films of the year and ran in theaters for over one hundred days.^[69][70]

2010–2014

Vikram then featured in Mani Ratnam's bilingual films Raavanan and Raavan, inspired by the ancient Sanskrit epic Ramayana, with Vikram featuring as the tribal leader, Veeraiya, in the Tamil version and the cop, Dev Pratap Sharma, in the Hindi version of the films which were shot simultaneously.^[71] Vikram revealed that changes between the two characters during filming took up to 45 minutes, with Abhishek Bachchan playing the tribal leader in the Hindi version whilst Prithviraj played the cop in the Tamil version, with Aishwarya Rai also in the cast.^[11] Vikram was initially apprehensive because both roles were to be shot almost simultaneously but revealed he succeeded by showing differences in his body language and expressions.^[72][73] Vikram revealed that he and Abhishek Bachchan played the roles in the respective versions without inspiration from one another. Despite being a non-speaker and making his debut in Hindi, he dubbed his lines in the language remarking jovially it was the "most difficult thing in the world".^[74][75] After promotions at the Cannes Film Festival and a premiere at Leicester Square in London, the two versions and the dubbed Telugu version released simultaneously in 2,200 screens worldwide and took a big opening on day one earning 20 crores.^[76][77] The Tamil version, Raavanan won rave reviews from critics with The Hindu calling it a "masterstroke" and claiming Vikram "raises the bar higher with every venture". The critic cited that "emotions of love, animus, anguish and joy dance on his face in quick succession", concluding that "Vikram lifts the role to an admirable level".^[78] The critic from Sify labelled it as a "astonishing portrayal", while the critic from the Hindustan Times praised Vikram's "ability to get into Veeraiya's skin and emote with conviction".^[79] The Tamil version consequently went on to become a commercial success, with Vikram's performance leading to him winning the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor among other accolades.^[80] In contrast, the Hindi version fetched mixed reviews with critics agreeing that Vikram's performance as the tribal leader was more convincing than Bachchan's. Baradwaj Rangan, writing for The New Indian Express rated the film 4/5 and said "Raavan falls for Sita (and vice versa) in an intriguingly idiosyncratic take on the Ramayana – if you can get past the lead performances, that is"^[81] whereas Taran Adarsh, writing for Bollywood Hungama rated it 1.5/5 and said, "On the whole, Raavan is a king-sized disappointment, in terms of content" though mentioning that Vikram was "first-rate, although the role isn't substantial enough".^[82] Raavan subsequently went on to become a surprise flop at the Indian box office.^[83] The film was also screened at the Venice Film Festival and the Busan International Film Festival, with Vikram in attendance.^[84]

After two years of discussions, Vikram began a film under the direction of Selvaraghavan in a project dubbed by the media as Sindubad. The film began shoot and completed a schedule by early 2010 in the Himalayas with Swati Reddy appearing as the female lead. However, the film was reported to be momentarily shelved and subsequently never took off again after the producer Singanamala Ramesh walked out.^[85] Vikram then agreed terms to feature in Vikram Kumar's 24 produced by Mohan Natarajan, with Ileana D'Cruzsigned on to play the female lead role. The film progressed briefly with shots being canned in caves, before the director was ousted from the project, cancelling the film.^[86] Vikram then also shot briefly for a third successive shelved project directed by Boopathy Pandianfor the same producer, featuring him in the role of an investigative cop; however the film failed to progress and instead Natarajan financed Vikram's next.^[87] His 2011 release, Deiva Thirumagal directed by A. L. Vijay, saw Vikram portray a father with a developmental disability having the mental maturity of a seven-year-old. To prepare for the role, Vikram visited homes for the mentally challenged such as Vidya Sagar and Vidya Sudha for a month, watching their body language and taking notes.^[88] He also communicated with the patients, to pick up the nuances of people with impaired speech. Vikram has since gone on to describe his role as Krishna as the best character he has ever portrayed.^[89] The film which also featured Sara Arjun, Anushka Shetty and Amala Paul in supporting roles, opened to predominantly positive reviews from critics and enjoyed commercial success at the box office.^[90] The reviewer from The Deccan Chronicle described that the film was "Vikram's show all the way" and that "his rendition of a mentally-challenged man trying to cope with the everyday realities of raising a child is a work of art", praising his "fiery, complex performance as one of the more viciously honest depictions of mental illness cinema has seen".^[91] Similarly another critic described that the on-screen chemistry between Vikram and his daughter, played by Sara Arjun, is "magic" and their performances "are sure to leave a lump in your throat".^[92] The critic from The Hindu praised the film and Vikram's performance but analysed that "a problem arises only when you stop looking at Krishna as a character, and begin to see him as Vikram, the hero" and that Vikram should have "underplayed a little here and there and it would have worked better".^[93] However Vikram once again completed a sweep of the top acting awards that year, with further recognition at the Vijay and Filmfare Awards.^[94]

Vikram next featured in Rajapattai (2011) alongside Deeksha Seth under the direction of Suseenthiran where he played a henchman trying to get a break in the Tamil film industry.^[95] The film opened to mixed reviews from critics in December 2011 and performed below expectations at the box office. Vikram also completed half of a fantasy period film during 2011, Karikalan in which he played Karikala Chola, a Tamil king who ruled in 270 BC, opposite Zarine Khan under the direction of graphics director Kannan, but the film was later shelved owing to production troubles.^[96] He then appeared in his second project with director Vijay, portraying the lead role of a blinded RAW agent in the action-thriller, Thaandavam. The film, which also featured Anushka Shetty, Amy Jackson and Lakshmi Rai in pivotal roles, opened to mixed reviews in September 2012.^[97] For his role of a blind man, Vikram trained under noted human echolocation specialist Daniel Kish, with the latter also playing a cameo in the film.^[98] A critic from Sify.com noted that it was "Vikram and him alone who diverts your attention from the film's little logical script flaws and spellbinds you with an endearing act that is Thaandavam's biggest strength";^[99] subsequently the film did average business commercially. The actor was next seen portraying the title role in Bejoy Nambiar's bilingual David, which released with different cast members in Hindi and Tamil. Vikram remained the only common lead actor in the versions, with his segment playing out a love story between a careless drunkard fisherman and a mute girl played by Isha Sherwani. While the Tamil version opened to predominantly positive review,^[100] the Hindi film also won mixed reviews, with both films performing average business at the box office.

2015–present

Vikram signed on to collaborate again with Shankar for I, a romantic thriller opposite Amy Jackson, in early 2012.^[101] Following hushed production developments, it was revealed that the actor would sport four significantly different looks in the film: a body builder, a beast, a model and a hunchback. He put on weight to portray the bodybuilder, sticking to a diet of protein and coffee, to ensure his muscles are defined on screen. Vikram subsequently lost weight to portray a model, before shaving his head and reducing his weight to 56 kilograms to portray the crippled hunchback.^[102] He changed his physique by eating small meals of egg whites and apples instead of regular food intakes, while engaging in an intensive weight loss regime to become thin. The cast and crew of the film reportedly struggled to recognise the actor at times, while he also stayed away from the media for close to a year when sporting the look.^[103] Taking almost three years for production, Vikram described the film "as the toughest he has ever done" and regularly suffered folliculitisas a result of the prosthetic make-up he had to wear.^[9] The film opened amidst much expectation in January 2015 to mixed reviews, though critics gave Vikram's portrayal of Lingesan, unanimously positive reviews. A critic from Times of India noted "Vikram bowls you over with a heart-wrenching performance whether he is handsome or disfigured", while The Hindu added his transformation was "laudable", and that "Vikram wins hearts as the earnest-to-boot gym rat and as the strapping new model on the block, he floors the audience with his performance as Koonan, the deformed hunchback".^[104][105] Similarly Rediff.com noted the actor "is truly impressive and deserves much applause", while Sify.com added he "lived the role".^[106][107] Despite mixed reviews, I performed well at the box office, as well as becoming the most successful Tamil film of all time in Kerala.^[108] He then worked on Vijay Milton's road-thriller, 10 Enradhukulla (2015), which featured him as an unnamed race driver who goes on a road trip through India. Paired opposite Samantha, the film opened to mixed reviews and did not perform well at the box office. A critic from Sify.com however noted Vikram "breathes life to his role and his energy level is highly infectious", adding that "the way he smiles, dances and fight is a treat for his fans".^[109]Likewise a critic from The Hindu criticised the film's script adding "it's hard to see Vikram in this fluff".^[110] Vikram later appeared in Iru Mugan, a science fiction action film directed by Anand Shankar, featuring him alongside Nayantara and Nithya Menen.^[111]

His forthcoming films are Gautham Menon's Dhruva Natchathiram, followed by a sequel to Saamy directed by Hari,^[112] and Sketch to be directed by Vijay Chander.^[113][114]

Other work

Film and television work

Apart from acting, Vikram has also been a part of other film-making processes with credits as a playback singer and as an assistant director. In 2000, Vikram and actress Meena launched a pop album titled Kadhalism, which the pair would sing and appear in music videos for, although the project was completed without much promotion.^[115] Following the success of Bharathwaj's music for Vikram's 2002 film Gemini, Vikram sang a version of the hit song "O Podu!" for the extended version of the album.^[39] During the making of Kanthaswamy in 2009, the music composer Devi Sri Prasad had asked Vikram to sing a few rough tracks during the film's song composition in Malaysia. The producers were impressed with his voice and Vikram ended up singing four songs in the film.^[116] Furthermore, Vikram also recorded all four tracks in the Telugu version of the album titled Mallana.^[117] He then went on to sing for a film he was unrelated to, by lending five different voices in "Meghame" for G. V. Prakash Kumar's album in Madrasapattinam.^[118] He sang two further songs under Prakash Kumar for his Deiva Thirumagal, singing in the voice of his character, an adult with the maturity of a six-year-old.^[119] In 2011, he sang the song "Laddu Laddu" for his film Rajapattai under composer Yuvan Shankar Raja's direction.^[120] Vikram announced his own production company Reel Life Entertainment in July 2009 and announced that Sasikumar would direct his first film, the action thriller Easan, featuring Samudrakani, Vaibhav, Abhinaya and Aparnaa Bajpai.^[121] However, after 90% of the shoot had been completed, Vikram pulled out of the venture citing that Sasikumar had overshot his budget and the director eventually bought and released the film.^[122] The actor however was later listed as one of the three producers for his 2013 bilingual film, David, thereby making his debut in film financing. Vikram has also worked as the assistant director under Shafi in Majaa, and has mentioned he would like to direct a film in the future.^[60]

Philanthropy

Vikram has promoted various social causes with several of his charity work being linked to characters he had portrayed in his films. He has been a brand ambassador of Sanjeevani Trust and a school for special children Vidya Sudha, which he stayed at during the making of Deiva Thirumagal.^[89] Moreover, he has had a long-term association since the making of his film Kasi with the Kasi Eye Care, which does free eye surgeries for the poor.^[123] Vikram has also set up The Vikram Foundation through his fan club to provide heart operations for the poor, educate poor children and rehabilitate victims from natural disasters. Every year Vikram has celebrated his birthday doing charity work across Tamil Nadu and in 2008, he organised a camp where a thousand of his fans pledged their eyes in an eye donation appeal.^[124]

He has lent his support for the Chennai-based charity, The Banyan, and appeared in the charity musical Netru, Indru, Naalai directed by Mani Ratnam for the cause.^[125] The actor also starred in the 2010 "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara" music video on national integration alongside a bevy of Indian actors and musicians, describing the experience as "phenomenal".^[126] In 2011, Vikram was selected as a Youth Envoy for the United Nations Human Settlements Programme with his aim being to spread awareness about the statutes of U.N Habitat which include urban stabilisation and to help formulate plans for effective water management, slum eradication and women and youth empowerment.^[127] Soon after he announced two further social projects, "Karka Kasadara" and "Patchai Puratchi", with the former being to identify school and college drop outs and help them to stand on their own feet, while the latter was about planting trees with an aim to make Chennai go green.^[4] In 2016, he produced and directed the video to the flood relief anthem, Spirit of Chennai, as a tribute to the city's volunteers following the 2015 South Indian floods.^[128]

In the media

Vikram pictured alongside Lakshmi Rai and Amy Jackson at the press conference of Thaandavam in London

Since the success of Sethu, Vikram's intense performances and variety of roles has received critical acclaim.^[129] His performances as a rogue turned mentally ill patient in Sethu, a gravedigger with autism spectrum disorder in Bala's Pithamagan, a Brahmin lawyer with multiple personality disorder in Anniyan and a mentally challenged adult with the maturity of a six-year-old boy in Deiva Thirumagal are all roles in which he played a mentally affected man, with Vikram mentioning he does such roles to reinvent himself on screen.^[130] Furthermore, Vikram has enjoyed a large fan following in Andhra Pradesh as a result of a series of successful dubbed Telugu films with Aparichitudu, dubbed from his Tamil film Anniyan, being among the most successful Telugu films of 2005. All his films are thus released in Telugu soon after their original release in Tamil, while Anniyan was also dubbed in Hindi as Aparichit.^[11] He has also enjoyed success in Kerala, where his films have demanded large box office openings akin to Malayalam film stars.^[9] In 2004, Vikram participated in a live stadium stage event organised by producer P. L. Thenappan titled "Vikram Mega Nite". The event, held in Singapore, attracted several hundreds of his South East Asian fans and was held in the form of a stage musical.^[131]

His pan-Indian popularity has also prompted him to be regularly considered for brand endorsements. In 2005, Vikram was signed as Coca-Cola's brand ambassador in Tamil Nadu.^[132] He has been the ambassador for Brooke Bond 3 Roses, Manappuram General Finance and Leasing Ltd and Josco Jewellers since 2010.^{[133][134][135]} In 2015, Vikram has endorsed Big Deal TV, a celebrity-driven home shopping channel.^[136]

He is amongst the most decorated actors in terms of awards in the history of Tamil cinema. He holds a National Film Award for Best Actor; a feat only matched by four other actors in Tamil films. Moreover, Vikram holds seven Filmfare Awards South, with the tally being only second to Kamal Haasan who has ten wins. In 2010 his film, Raavan was promoted at the Cannes Film Festival and then screened at Venice Film Festival and the Busan International Film Festival.^[84] Within weeks of release, Deiva Thirumagal was sent to the Asia Pacific Screen Awards after it was nominated by the Film Federation of India and the National Film Development Corporation.^[137]Vikram is also a recipient of the Kalaimamani Award from the Government of Tamil Nadu in 2004. Other recognitions includes a string of Cinema Express Awards, Vijay Awards and Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, including recognition in three different categories. In 2011, Vikram was awarded an honorary doctorate from Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano (People's University of Milan) in the field of Fine Arts. Vikram accepted the title on 29 May 2011 and in his next release, Deiva Thirumagal, he was credited as Dr. Chiyaan Vikram.^{[138][139][140]}

Personal life 

Vikram met Shailaja Balakrishnan in the late 1980s. Vikram got married to Shailaja in 1992 at Guruvayoor in an event which saw dozens of other couples get married at the same time at the same place.^[15] The pair also then had a low-key wedding ceremony conducted at the church at Loyola College, Chennai.^[9] She originates from Thalassery, Kerala and now works as a psychology teacher at a leading Chennai school.^[141] Shailaja also worked with the team of Deiva Thirumagal by giving professional advice on how people with special needs are treated and helping develop the character played by Vikram.^[142] The couple has a daughter, Akshita and a son Dhruv, with Vikram suggesting that his son is a keen actor.^[130][143] He resides near the beach in Besant Nagar, Chennai and has stated that he would remain based in Chennai regardless of any offers in other regional films.^[144]

Filmography and awards

Filmography

Main article: Vikram filmography

Awards and nominations

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Vikram

Vikram filmography

Vikram pictured in Mumbai during the media interaction of David

Vikram (often credited Chiyaan Vikram)^[1][2] is an Indian actor, producer, playback singer and former dubbing artiste known for his work in Tamil language films. He has featured in over 52 motion pictures, three television programs, and several music videos and commercials.^[3][4] An aspiring actor since childhood, Vikram modelled for television commercials and appeared in a short film, hoping to get noticed by casting directors.^[4][5] He made his television debut with the Doordarshan series Galatta Kudumbam (1988), following which his first feature film role came with the experimental film En Kadhal Kanmani (1990).^[6] His early career in Tamil cinema saw consecutive box-office failures, after which he attempted a transition to Telugu and Malayalam cinema.^[7] Vikram mostly played the lead roles in Telugu films, many of which were financial failures.^[4][8] In Malayalam films, he usually appeared in ensemble films, playing "second fiddle" to established actors like Mammootty and Suresh Gopi, which failed to help his career.^[7][9] Meanwhile, the few sporadic appearances he made in Tamil cinema also proved unsuccessful.^[6]

Vikram landed his breakthrough role of a college student who suffers a brain injury in filmmaker Bala's directorial debut, the tragedy film Sethu (1999).^[7] It was a sleeper hit and earned Vikram a Special Jury award at the Filmfare and Tamil Nadu State Film Award ceremonies.^[10][11][12] In 2001, he played an aspiring policeman in the action film Dhill, the directorial debut of Dharani; the film grossed over ₹100 million (equivalent to ₹280 million or US$4.3 million in 2016) establishing Vikram's career in Tamil cinema.^[13][14] In 2002, Vikram was awarded his first Filmfare Award for Best Actor for portraying a blind village singer in the Vinayan-directed tragedy Kasi(2001), a remake of the director's Malayalam film Vasanthiyum Lakshmiyum Pinne Njaanum (1999).^[7][15][16] Vikram went on to play the quintessential Tamil action hero in a series of successful masala films, Gemini (2002), Dhool (2003) and Saamy (2003), which catapulted him to stardom.^[17][18][19] He then played an undertaker with autism in Bala's tragedy drama Pithamagan (2003) co-starring Suriya. His portrayal attracted positive reviews and garnered him his third Filmfare award, and Best Actor trophies at the Tamil Nadu State Film Award and National Film Award ceremonies.^{[7][20][21][22]}

Vikram underwent a professional setback between 2004 and 2008 when a series of films—Arul (2004), Majaa (2005) and Bheemaa (2008)—received mixed reviews and under-performed commercially.^{[18][23][24][25]} Vikram's sole box-office success during this period was S. Shankar's ₹570 million (equivalent to ₹1.4 billion or US$21 million in 2016)-grossing psychological thriller Anniyan (2005), in which he played a utopian lawyer suffering from multiple personality disorder. The film earned him critical acclaim and his fourth Filmfare award.^[7][26][27] Meanwhile, Vikram ventured into film production by joining a production company, Reel Life Entertainment, as one of its directors.^[28] In Susi Ganesan's vigilante film Kanthaswamy (2009), he played a CBI officer who moonlights as a costumed superhero.^[29][30] In 2010, Vikram was introduced in Bollywood by Mani Ratnam through his Hindi-Tamil bilingual Raavan and Raavanan, a contemporary retelling of the Hindu epic Ramayana, in which Vikram played the antagonist and protagonist in the respective versions.^[31] Vikram earned mixed reviews for his poor characterisation in the former;^[32][33][34]however, his performance in the latter earned him rave reviews and his fifth Filmfare award.^[35][36][37] In 2011, Vikram played a man with developmental disability fighting over his daughter's custody in A. L. Vijay's courtroom drama Deiva Thirumagal, an adaptation of the American film I Am Sam (2001). Vikram's performance was praised and won him the Critics Award for Best Actor at Filmfare.^[38][39][40] However, his next role of an aspiring screen villain in Rajapattai (2011) was poorly received.^[7][41][42]

In 2012, Vikram appeared alongside Jagapathi Babu in A. L. Vijay's revenge-thriller Thaandavam, playing a blind RAW agent who uses human echolocation to track down his betrayer.^[43] In Bejoy Nambiar's three-story-arc anthology film David (2013), he played one of the three eponymous lead characters, an alcoholic fisherman in love with his friend's fiancée; the film and its Tamil version won him praise.^[44][45][46] Shankar's romantic-thriller I (2015) featured Vikram as a supermodel-turned-hunchback who exacts revenge on his conspirators. The film's critical reception was mixed, though Vikram's performance was universally acclaimed.^[47][48][49]

Films

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

As an actor

Title	Year	Role(s)	Director(s)	Language	Notes	Ref.
En Kadhal Kanmani	1990	Vinod	T. J. Joy	Tamil		[22] [50]
Thanthu Vitten Ennai	1991	Raju	C. V. Sridhar	Tamil		[4]
Kaaval Geetham	1992	Ashok	S. P. Muthuraman	Tamil		[22]
Meera	1992	Jeeva	P. C. Sreeram	Tamil		[4] [51]
Dhruvam	1993	Bhadran	Joshiy	Malayalam		[7]
Chirunavvula Varamistava	1993	Vicky	Nandam Harishchandra Rao	Telugu		[4]
Mafia	1993	Harishankar	Shaji Kailas	Malayalam		[9]
Sainyam	1994	Cadet Jiji	Joshiy	Malayalam		[52]
Bangaru Kutumbam	1994	Suryam	Dasari Narayana Rao	Telugu		[4]
Pudhiya Mannargal	1994	Sathyamoorthy	Vikraman	Tamil		[53]
Street	1995	Sajeev	Anil—Babu	Malayalam		[54] [55]
Adalla Majaka	1995	Vikram	Muthyala Subbaiah	Telugu		[7] [56]
Ooha	1996	Mohan	Sivala Prabhakar	Telugu		[57]
Mayoora Nritham	1996	Rajeev	Vijayakrishnan	Malayalam		[54] [58]
Akka Bagunnava	1996	Unknown	T. S. B. K. Moulee	Telugu		[7]
Indraprastham	1996	Peter	Haridas	Malayalam		[59] [60]
Merupu	1996	Guru	S. Gopichand	Telugu		[8]
Rajaputhran	1996	Manu	Shajoon Kariyal	Malayalam		[9]
Itha Oru Snehagatha	1997	Roy	Captain Raju	Malayalam		[61] [62]
Ullaasam	1997	Dev	J. D.- Jerry	Tamil		[63] [64]
Kurralla Rajyam	1997	Unknown	Boyapati Kameswara Rao	Telugu		[4]
Kangalin Vaarthaigal	1998	Unknown	Muktha S. Sundar	Tamil		[54] [65]
Housefull	1999	Hameed	R. Parthiepan	Tamil		[14]
Sethu	1999	Sethu	Bala	Tamil	Filmfare Special Jury Award Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize	[10] [66] [11] [12]
Red Indians	2000	Rahul	Sunil	Malayalam		[54]
Indriyam	2000	Udhaya	George Kithu	Malayalam		[14] [67]
9 Nelalu	2000	Virendra	Kranthi Kumar	Telugu		[8] [68]
Youth	2001	Babu	Jitendra	Telugu		[8]
Vinnukum Mannukum	2001	Selvam	Rajakumaran	Tamil		[69]
Dhill	2001	Kanagavel	Dharani	Tamil		[70] [71]
Kasi	2001	Kasi	Vinayan	Tamil	Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil Cinema Express Award for Best Actor – Tamil	[72] [73] [15]
Gemini	2002	Gemini	Saran	Tamil	ITFA Best Actor Award	[74]
Samurai	2002	Thyagarajan	Balaji Sakthivel	Tamil		[75] [56]
King	2002	Raja	Prabhu Solomon	Tamil		[76]
Dhool	2003	Aarumugam	Dharani	Tamil		[77]
Kadhal Sadugudu	2003	Suresh	V. Z. Durai	Tamil		[78] [79]
Saamy	2003	Aarusaamy	Hari	Tamil	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil	[80] [81]
Pithamagan	2003	Chithan	Bala	Tamil	Dubbed into Telugu as Sivaputhrudu National Film Award for Best Actor Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor	[82] [83] [84] [20] [21]
Arul	2004	Arulkumaran	Hari	Tamil		[85] [86]
Anniyan	2005	Ramanujam alias Ambi / Remo / Anniyan[a]	S. Shankar	Tamil	Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil	[88] [89] [90] [27]
Majaa	2005	Arivumathi	Shafi	Tamil	Also assistant director	[91] [92] [93]
Bheemaa	2008	Sekar	N. Lingusamy	Tamil	Nominated, Vijay Award for Favourite Hero	[94] [95]
Kanthaswamy	2009	Kanthaswamy	Susi Ganeshan	Tamil	Nominated, Vijay Award for Favourite Hero	[96] [97]
Raavanan	2010	Veeraiya	Mani Ratnam	Tamil	Tamilnadu State Award 2010 - Best Actor [98] Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil Vijay Award for Best Actor	[35] [36] [37]
Raavan	2010	Dev Pratap Sharma	Mani Ratnam	Hindi		[99]
Deiva Thirumagal	2011	Krishna	A. L. Vijay	Tamil	Vijay Award for Best Actor Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor – South Nominated, Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil Nominated, Vijay Award for Favourite Hero	[100] [101] [102] [103]
Rajapattai	2011	"Annal" Murugan	Suseenthiran	Tamil		[42] [104]
Thaandavam	2012	Shivakumar (Kenny Thomas)	A. L. Vijay	Tamil	Edison Award for Best Actor Nominated, Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil Nominated, Vijay Award for Best Actor	[105] [106] [107]
David (Hindi) David (Tamil)	2013	David	Bejoy Nambiar	Hindi Tamil	Bilingual[b] Also co-producer	[108] [109] [110]
I	2015	Lingesan (Lee)	S. Shankar	Tamil	Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil SIIMA Award for Best Actor	[111]
10 Endrathukulla	2015	Unnamed driving instructor	Vijay Milton	Tamil		[112]
Iru Mugan	2016	Akhilan Vinod and Love	Anand Shankar	Tamil	Nominated, Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil Nominated, SIIMA Award for Best Actor	[113]
Dhruva Natchathiram	2017	John / Joshua / Dhruv	Gautham Menon	Tamil	Filming	[114]
Sketch	2017		Vijay Chander	Tamil	Filming	[115] [116]
Saamy 2	TBA	TBA	Hari	Tamil	Filming	[117][118]

As an actor

As a playback singer

Title	Year	Language	Song(s)	Composer	Co-singer(s)	Ref.
Shree	2002	Tamil	"Yaamirukka Bayamein"	T. S. Muralidharan	Shankar Mahadevan, Tippu	[13] [119]
Gemini	2002	Tamil	"O Podu"	Bharathwaj	Anuradha Sriram	[120]
Kanthaswamy / Mallanna	2009	Tamil / Telugu	"Excuse Me" "Ithellam Dupe" / "Ivannee Dupe" "Mambo Mamiya" "Meow Meow"	Devi Sri Prasad	Suchitra Devi Sri Prasad Rita Priya Himesh	[121] [122]
Madrasapattinam	2010	Tamil	"Meghame O Meghame"	G. V. Prakash Kumar	M. S. Viswanathan, Nassar	[123]
Deiva Thirumagal / Nanna	2011	Tamil / Telugu	"Kadha Solla Poren" / "Katha Cheputhane" "Pa Pa Pappa"	G. V. Prakash Kumar	Shringa Solo	[124]
Rajapattai / Veedinthe	2011	Tamil / Telugu	"Laddu Laddu"	Yuvan Shankar Raja	Suchitra, Priyadarshini	[125] [126]
David	2013	Tamil	"Maria Pitache"	Remo Fernandes	Remo Fernandes	[127]

As a dubbing artiste

Title	Year	Voiced for	Notes	Ref.
Amaravathi	1993	Ajith Kumar		[128]
Pudhiya Mugam	1993	Vineeth		[4]
Paasamalargal	1994	Ajith Kumar		[129]
Kadhalan	1994	Prabhu Deva		[130]
Kuruthipunal	1995	John Edathattil		[131]
Kadhal Desam	1996	Abbas		[132]
Karuppu Roja	1996	Amar Siddique		[133]
Minsara Kanavu	1997	Prabhu Deva		[131]
VIP	1997	Abbas
Satya	1998	J. D. Chakravarthy	Lent his voice for the Tamil-dubbed version	[6]
Gandhi	1998	Ben Kingsley	Lent his voice for the Tamil-dubbed version	[6] [134]
Kandukondain Kandukondain	2000	Abbas		[135]

Television

Title	Year	Role	Director	Notes	Ref.
Galatta Kudumbam	1988	Unknown	Unknown	Six-episode TV series	[6]
Vishwanath	Unknown	Unknown	Unknown	TV series	[136]
Siragugal	2000	Chandrasekhar	Manobala	Television film	[6] [137] [138]

Commercials

Organization	Year	Director(s)	Role	Ref.
Coca-Cola	2005	Rajiv Menon	Various	[139] [140]
Brooke Bond	2010	Karthik Kotamraju	Himself	[141] [142]
Manappuram General Finance and Leasing	2010	Priyadarshan V. A. Shrikumar	Himself	[143] [144] [145]
Josco Jewellers	2011	Rathish Ambat	Himself	[146] [147]

Music video appearances

Title	Year	Composer	Director	Role	Notes	Ref.
"Phir Mile Sur Mera Tumhara"	2010	Louis Banks	Kailash Surendranath	Himself	non-album single	[148] [149]
"One – The Unity Song"	2012	George Peter	Sumesh Lal	Himself	non-album single	[150]
"Vanakkam Chennai"	2012	Girishh G	Pandiraj	Himself	Promotional video for the film Marina	[151] [152]
"Spirit of Chennai"	2016	C. Girinandh	Vikram	Himself	non-album single	[153]

List of awards and nominations received by Vikram

Vikram awards and nominations

[hide]Awards and nominations Award Wins Nominations
Totals
Awards won	26
Nominations	38

Vikram is an Indian Tamil film actor. After making his cinematic debut in the 1990 film En Kadhal Kanmani, he acted in a series of small-budget Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films. It was Bala's tragedy film Sethu (1999) that established Vikram in the Tamil film industry. In the early 2000s Vikram appeared in a series of masala films—Dhill, Gemini, Dhool and Saamy all becoming commercially successful. During this period, Vikram performed diverse roles and received critical acclaim for his performances in Kasi and Samurai. In 2003, Vikram's performance as an autistic gravedigger in Pithamagan won a lot of acclaim and secured his first National Film Award for Best Actor. His portrayal as an innocent man with multiple personality disorder in Shankar's Anniyan was commercially successful. The film also fetched him a Filmfare Best Actor Award. Vikram's portrayal as a tribal leader in Mani Ratnam's Raavanan saw him secure further acclaim. He is only the third actor to receive a National Film Award for Best Actor in the Tamil film industry.^[1] Vikram is known for his intense performances, with his work often fetching critical acclaim and commercial success.^[2] He has won a National Film Award and seven Filmfare Awards South, of which five are Best Actor awardsAsianet Film Awards

The Asianet Film Awards are presented annually by Asianet, a television network based in Kerala.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2005	Anniyan	Special Jury	Won[3]

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2015	I	Popular Tamil Actor	Won[3]

CineMAA Awards

The CineMAA Awards are presented annually by Movie Artists Association Group, a television network based in Hyderabad.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2003	Sivaputrudu	South India's Best Actor	Won[4]

Amrita Film Awards

The Amrita Film Awards are presented by Amrita TV to honor artistic excellence in Malayalam and Tamil films.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2010	Raavanan	Best Actor – Tamil	Won[5]

Cinema Express Awards

The Cinema Express Awards are presented by the Indian Express Group to honour artistic excellence of professionals in the south Indian film industry which comprises Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam film industries.

Year	Film(s)	Category	Outcome
2001	Kasi	Best Actor	Won[6]

Filmfare Awards South

The Filmfare Awards South is given by the Filmfare Magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards. The awards are presented separately for the Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam films.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
1999	Sethu	Special Award	Won[7]
2001	Kasi	Best Actor	Won[8]
2003	Pithamagan		Won[9]
2003	Saamy		Nominated
2005	Anniyan		Won[10]
2010	Raavanan		Won[11]
2011	Deiva Thirumagal		Nominated[12]
		Critics Award for Best Actor – South	Won
2012	Thaandavam	Best Actor	Nominated
2015	I		Won
2016	Iru Mugan	Best Actor	Nominated

Honorary Doctorate

Year	University
2011	University of Milan[13]

International Tamil Film Awards

The International Tamil Film Awards (ITFA) is an award ceremony that honours artistic excellence in Tamil films. The awards were first presented in 2003.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2002	Gemini	Best Actor	Won[14]

Jaya Awards

The Jaya Awards have been presented by the Tamil television channel Jaya TV since 2011 to honour excellence in Tamil cinema.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2011	Deivathirumagal	Jury awards- Best Actor	Won[15]

Edison Awards

The Edison Awards have been presented by the Tamil television channel MyTamilMovie.com since 2009 to honour excellence in Tamil cinema.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2012	Thaandavam	Best Actor	Won[16]
2015	I	Mass Hero	Nominated[17]

National Film Awards

The National Film Award for Best Actor is a part of the National Film Awards presented annually to an actor who has delivered the best performance in a leading role within the Indian film industry.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2003	Pithamagan	Best Actor	Won[18]

South Indian International Movie Awards

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2011	Deiva Thirumagal	Best Actor (Special appreciation)	Won[19]
2011	Deiva Thirumagal	Best Actor	Nominated[20]
2015	I	Best Actor	Won[21]
2016	Iru Mugan	Best Actor	Nominated

Star Screen Awards

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2010	Raavan	Best Supporting Actor	Nominated[22]

Tamil Nadu State Film Awards

The Tamil Nadu State Film Awards are presented annually by the Government of Tamil Nadu.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
1999	Sethu	Special Jury Award	Won[3][23]
2003	Pithamagan	Best Actor	Won[24]
2006	Sivaji Ganesan Award		Won[24]
2010	Raavanan	Best Actor	Won[25]

Vijay Awards

The Vijay Awards have been presented by the Tamil television channel STAR Vijay since 2006 to honour excellence in Tamil cinema.

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2006	Icon of the Year		Won[26]
2008	Bheema	Favourite Hero	Nominated[3]
2009	Kanthaswamy	Favourite Hero	Nominated[3]
2010	Raavanan	Best Actor	Won[27]
2011	Deiva Thirumagal	Best Actor	Won
2011	Deiva Thirumagal	Favourite Hero	Nominated
2012	Thaandavam	Best Actor	Nominated

Vikatan Award

Ananda Vikatan, one of the leading weeklies of Tamil Nadu has been awarding the films, actors and technicians on various criteria.^[28]

Year	Film	Category	Outcome
2011	Deiva Thirumagal	Best Actor	Won[29]