Ravi Mariya & S. J. Surya Movies Together List — 4 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-07-18 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Ravi Mariya and S. J. Surya appeared together in 4 Tamil films between 2000 and 2005. Their highest-rated collaboration was New (2004 — 6.8/10). Films span Kushi (2000) through Anbe Aaruyire (2005).
The Ravi Mariya & S. J. Surya partnership
Between 2000 and 2005, they barely worked apart — 4 films in 5 years. They saved their best for last — New (6.8/10) came 4 years in. From Kushi (2000) to Anbe Aaruyire (2005).
The unfolded closed with Anbe Aaruyire in 2005. It started with Kushi (2000).
The shape of the work
Ravi Mariya acted in every film; S. J. Surya directed all of them. Mostly Tamil, with 1 film in Telugu.
Partnership facts
- S. J. Suryah was a struggling lyricist and dialogue writer when Ravi Mariya cast him as the lead in 'Kushi' (2000). That film made Suryah a star overnight — and launched one of Tamil cinema's most unexpected actor-director partnerships.
- On the sets of 'New' (2004), Ravi Mariya let S. J. Suryah rewrite entire scenes on the spot. Suryah’s hyper-energetic dialogue style clashed with Mariya’s methodical framing — but the tension gave the film its manic, unpredictable rhythm.
- The success of 'Kushi' (2000) directly led to S. J. Suryah getting his first directorial break with 'Khushi' (2001) — which he also starred in. Without Ravi Mariya trusting him as an actor first, Suryah might never have become a director.
- Ravi Mariya and S. J. Suryah had a falling out after 'Anbe Aaruyire' (2005) underperformed. They didn't speak for years. Suryah later admitted in a 2018 interview that he regretted letting ego come between them — and that Mariya was the first person who believed in him as a lead.
- "Ravi Mariya is the reason I exist as an actor. He saw something in me when no one else did." — S. J. Suryah, in a 2018 interview with Behindwoods.
4 films across 1 decade
- New
- Anbe Aaruyire
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
4 films across 5 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 2 languages, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
Kushi was Ravi Mariya's acting debut.
After Anbe Aaruyire, Ravi Mariya went on to appear in 44 more films, including Veyil (2006) and Naan Sirithal (2020).
Before Kushi, S. J. Surya had directed 3 films, including Vaali (1999) and Aasai (1995).
After Anbe Aaruyire, S. J. Surya went on to direct 38 more films, including Jigarthanda Double X (2023) and Jigarthanda Double X (2023).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Ravi Mariya & S. J. Surya's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
Mumtaj is the through-line — cast on 2 of their 4 films.
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