Vadivelu & Vijayakanth Movies Together List — 6 Films

The shape of the work

The 1990s belonged to Sakkarai Devan; the 2000s to Engal Anna. Vadivelu acted in every film; Vijayakanth acted in all of them. Strictly Tamil cinema — they never crossed industries together.

Partnership facts

• Vadivelu was a struggling mimicry artist when Vijayakanth spotted him at a stage show. Vijayakanth insisted the director of Ezhai Jaathi (1993) cast Vadivelu as the comedian — that film became Vadivelu's first proper break in Tamil cinema.
• Vijayakanth played the straight-faced, intense hero in Thavasi (2001). Vadivelu's comedy track in that film — especially the 'Kattuvachi' scene — was entirely improvised on set. Vijayakanth reportedly laughed so hard during the take that they had to reshoot his reaction shot.
• The success of Sakkarai Devan (1993) directly led to Vadivelu being cast as the permanent comedian in Vijayakanth's production company films for the next decade. Without that one film, Vadivelu might never have become the go-to comic for Captain's movies.
• Vijayakanth personally paid Vadivelu's hospital bills in the late 1990s when Vadivelu had a serious health scare. Vadivelu has said in interviews that Vijayakanth never mentioned it publicly and refused to take the money back.
• Vadivelu once said: 'Captain gave me my first chance when nobody else would. I owe him my career. Every time I made him laugh on set, I felt like I'd paid back a little of that debt.'
• In Engal Anna (2004), their last film together, Vadivelu's comedy was deliberately toned down — Vijayakanth asked him to play a more supportive, less manic role. It was the only time Vadivelu played a sidekick instead of a standalone comic in their pairing.