Birthday Special: Top 5 Director Combos of Vikram
Chiyaan Vikram is an actor who is not afraid to experiment. In a long career filled with ups and downs, the actor has gone from pole to post in making one film different from the other, giving importance to his looks, voice modulation, attitude and physique. In this long journey, there have been five directors who have helped him bring out his best. Only Kollywood brings you the top five directors who have worked with Chiyaan to bring out interesting films.
[nextpage]Vikram and Bala
Bala was one of the directors who used Vikram’s talent to the zenith. Vikram, after facing the longest phase of trial and error from 1990, was roped in to play the protagonist in Sethu. This film had enough problems from the producer’s side in its production and development since director Bala was a newcomer and Vikram was yet to give a break. Crossing all hurdles, Sethu bagged the National Award for the Best Feature Film in Tamil, Filmfare Special Award (Vikram) and the Filmfare Award for the Best Director(Bala).Following Sethu’s humongous success, the Bala-Vikram combo struck again in 2003 with a unique attempt called ‘Pithamagan’ in which Vikram played the tough role of a gravedigger effortlessly. Vikram had no dialogues to speak but his eyes and actions spoke louder than words. Chiyaan won the National Award for the Best Actor, which he missed by a few votes in Sethu. Cinema lovers always want this pair to re-unite and let’s see if it happens any time sooner or later.
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Vikram and Shankar
When one looks back at Vikram’s career, the film which invariably first comes to mind is Anniyan. Playing three roles in the film and projecting each one in a different angle, Vikram came up with a phenomenal performance which shot up his career. Vikram helped Shankar portray his strong socially-concerned script on celluloid, making it a film to remember for the years to come. Come 2015, and the combo joined hands once again for the magnum opus I which turned out to be another blockbuster in Vikram’s diary. Though critics expected too much from the film and disappointed themselves in turn, nothing stopped I from becoming a member of the coveted 100 crore club in Tamil Cinema. Chiyaan’s fans are just waiting for the director to team up with Vikram once again, making it a hat trick success combo.
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Vikram and Mani Ratnam
Now here comes an intriguing combo in the history of Indian Cinema. Vikram and Mani Ratnam worked on the same script for a Hindi film and a Tamil film. There was a catch, and it was when Vikram played the title role in Tamil and a supporting actor in the Hindi version. Raavanan (Raavan in Hindi) showcased Vikram as an actor who is clear in the head, as he had to enact the two sides of the same story in two completely contrasting languages. Vikram stamped his class in the Tamil version as the menacing Raavanan, and his loud dialogues and powerful dance moves do flash in your mind till date. In the Hindi side of things, Vikram came back to play a matured role as the husband of Aishwariya Rai. Though Raavanan didn’t perform too well at the Box Office, it is remembered for Vikram’s diverse performance and the music of AR Rahman.
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Vikram and Dharani
Every actor, irrespective of the critical acclaims, needs big commercial successes to stay alive in the industry. Vikram was one lucky actor to get that commercial break at the right time. After having a major breakthrough with Sethu in 1999, he decided to collaborate with his college classmate Dharani for a commercial action entertainer. It was titled Dhil with Vikram playing the role of an ambitious young man aiming to be a police officer. The movie did exactly what was expected out of it. Yes, it was a huge commercial success and gave Vikram a place in Kollywood’s long list of commercial heroes.Vikram and Dharani came back for the second time in another commercial entertainer titled Dhool. The actor took up the role of an illiterate kind-hearted man who fights single-handedly for the basic rights of his village. Dhool was much more successful than Dhil, placing Vikram in the top league of actors. Full credits to Dharani for giving two memorable commercial flicks to his real-life friend.
[/nextpage] [nextpage]Vikram and Vijay
Vikram and AL Vijay are a combo best known to Kollywood cineastes for the fantastic rapport and comfort-ability level that they share. It is also worth mentioning that though all the other directors did similar films with Vikram, Vijay was the one who presented us with two different shades of the same actor. While Deivathirumagal was a film which demanded a herculean performance, Thaandavam gave us a debonair Vikram who transformed into a blind man with special senses. Both these films were average ventures but they did have a few good things to take home such as some heartwarming scenes, lovely music from GV Prakash, good looking female leads and most importantly – 10 out of 10 performances from ChiyaanVikram.
Vikram is one of the very few actors in Indian Cinema who can pull off any role given to him. Chiyaan has already set his standards high, and has now got his hands full with interesting projects in the pipeline such as 10 Enradhukulla and a film with Gautham Menon and Anand Shankar each. We at Only Kollywood wish the dashing star a very happy birthday, and all the very best for his future projects.
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