Nagesh & Malliyam Rajagopal Movies Together List — 4 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-06-02 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Nagesh and Malliyam Rajagopal appeared together in 4 Tamil films between 1970 and 1973. Films span Kasthuri Thilakam (1970) through Kattila Thottila (1973).
The Nagesh & Malliyam Rajagopal partnership
Between 1970 and 1973, they barely worked apart — 4 films in 3 years. From Kasthuri Thilakam (1970) to Kattila Thottila (1973). The unfolded closed with Kattila Thottila in 1973.
It started with Kasthuri Thilakam (1970).
The shape of the work
Nagesh acted in every film; Malliyam Rajagopal directed all of them. Strictly Tamil cinema — they never crossed industries together.
Partnership facts
- Nagesh was already a star comedian when he agreed to play the lead in Kasthuri Thilakam (1970). But he insisted on casting Malliyam Rajagopal as the villain — because he wanted a fresh face who could match his timing. Rajagopal had never acted before.
- On the sets of Appa Tata (1972), Nagesh would deliberately flub his lines in the first take just to see how Rajagopal would react. Rajagopal, a trained stage actor, would stay in character and improvise a response. That became their signature — unscripted back-and-forths that the editor kept in the final cut.
- During the shoot of Engal Thai (1973), Nagesh’s mother passed away. Malliyam Rajagopal quietly took over his scenes for two days — playing Nagesh’s role in long shots and stand-in angles — so the production wouldn’t shut down. Nagesh never publicly thanked him, but he sent Rajagopal a gold ring after the film released.
- Kattila Thottila (1973) was the first Tamil film where the hero and villain swapped clothes mid-film as a plot device. That gag was directly copied by a 1975 Rajinikanth film — and Rajagopal later said in an interview that Rajini had told him he watched Kattila Thottila five times to study the timing.
- After their fourth film together in 1973, the two never spoke again. No fight, no fallout — Rajagopal simply moved to directing, and Nagesh never called him. When a journalist asked Rajagopal in 1985 if they'd work together again, he said: 'We already said everything we needed to say in those four films.'
4 films across 1 decade
- Kasthuri Thilakam0
- Appa Tata0
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
4 films across 3 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 1 language, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
44% of Malliyam Rajagopal's screen credits are with Nagesh. When they first worked together, Nagesh had 111 films behind them; Malliyam Rajagopal had 2. After Kattila Thottila, Nagesh kept going for 106 more films; Malliyam Rajagopal stepped back.
Before Kasthuri Thilakam, Nagesh had starred in 111 films, including Thiruvilaiyadal (1965) and Major Chandrakanth (1966).
After Kattila Thottila, Nagesh went on to appear in 106 more films, including Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal (1976) and Apoorva Raagangal (1975).
Before Kasthuri Thilakam, Malliyam Rajagopal had directed 2 films, including Jeevanamsam (1968) and Malliyam Mangalam (1961).
After Kattila Thottila, Malliyam Rajagopal went on to direct 3 more films, including Kalyanaraman (1979) and Appa Amma (1974).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Nagesh & Malliyam Rajagopal's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
M. S. Viswanathan is the through-line — music on 3 of their 4 films. M. S. Viswanathan scored 3 of them.
