Vadivelu & Anandaraj Movies Together List — 13 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-06-04 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Vadivelu and Anandaraj appeared together in 13 Tamil films between 1995 and 2022. Their highest-rated collaboration was Pokkiri (2007 — 6.9/10). Films span Nandhavana Theru (1995) through Naai Sekar (2022).
The Vadivelu & Anandaraj partnership
After 13 years apart, they came back together for Naai Sekar (2022). They didn't share a set between 2009 and 2022. Their work runs across 3 decades of Tamil cinema.
From Nandhavana Theru (1995) to Naai Sekar (2022). It started with Nandhavana Theru (1995).
The shape of the work
The 2000s account for 62% of everything they made together. The 1990s belonged to Nandhavana Theru; the 2020s to Naai Sekar. Vadivelu acted in every film; Anandaraj acted in all of them. Strictly Tamil cinema — they never crossed industries together.
Partnership facts
- They first shared screen space in Nandhavana Theru (1995), but neither was the lead. Vadivelu played a sidekick, Anandaraj played the villain. The director, K. Subash, threw them together in a comedy track that ran longer than the main plot — and audiences loved it so much that producers started demanding the pair in every film.
- In Oruvan (1999), Vadivelu’s character was a bumbling informant and Anandaraj’s was a ruthless gangster. The trick: Vadivelu would deliberately flub his lines to make Anandaraj break character mid-scene. Anandaraj would then chase him around the set, and the director kept those takes because the anger looked real.
- Their comedy track in Pokkiri (2007) — where Vadivelu plays a terrified witness and Anandaraj plays a cop who keeps slapping him — became a template. Every mass-hero film for the next five years tried to copy that exact dynamic: a loud villain and a stammering sidekick. None matched the original.
- Anandaraj once said in an interview that Vadivelu would call him at 2 AM before every shoot to rehearse the next day’s comedy scene. They’d stay on the phone for an hour, Vadivelu trying out voices, Anandaraj timing the pauses. Neither of them told the directors they did this.
- “He made me look like a better actor than I am. I just had to stand there and look angry — he did all the work.” — Anandaraj, in a 2012 interview with Ananda Vikatan, on working with Vadivelu.
- In Villu (2009), their last film together, the director wanted a slapstick fight. Vadivelu insisted they do it in one continuous shot — no cuts. Anandaraj had to time his slaps to Vadivelu’s ducking. They rehearsed it 14 times. The final take made the crew laugh so hard the clapperboard operator missed the mark.
13 films across 3 decades
The 1990s accounted for 4 films, averaging 4.1/10.
The 2000s accounted for 8 films, averaging 5.8/10.
The 2020s accounted for 1 film, averaging 6.6/10.
- Nandhavana Theru
- Oruvan
- Pokkiri
- Giri
- Naai Sekar
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
13 films across 27 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 1 language, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
33% of Vadivelu's screen credits are with Anandaraj. By the time of Nandhavana Theru, both already had careers — Vadivelu with 23 films, Anandaraj with 25.
Before Nandhavana Theru, Vadivelu had starred in 23 films, including Kizhakku Cheemayile (1993) and Gokulam (1993).
After Naai Sekar, Vadivelu went on to appear in 4 more films, including Maareesan (2025) and Maamannan (2023).
Before Nandhavana Theru, Anandaraj had starred in 25 films, including Pattukku Naan Adimai (1990) and Thaimel Aanai (1988).
After Naai Sekar, Anandaraj went on to appear in 15 more films, including Chennai City Gangsters (2025) and 80's Buildup (2023).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Vadivelu & Anandaraj's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
Deva scored 4 of them. Devayani appears alongside them in 3 films — practically a third lead. They worked with the same 6 people again and again — a small repertory company.
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