Nagesh & M. Krishnan Movies Together List — 3 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-06-04 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Nagesh and M. Krishnan appeared together in 3 Tamil films between 1968 and 1973. Films span Muthuchippi (1968) through Thalai Prasavam (1973).
The Nagesh & M. Krishnan partnership
From Muthuchippi (1968) to Thalai Prasavam (1973). The played out closed with Thalai Prasavam in 1973. It started with Muthuchippi (1968).
The shape of the work
The 1960s belonged to Muthuchippi; the 1970s to Thalai Prasavam. Nagesh acted in every film; M. Krishnan directed all of them. Strictly Tamil cinema — they never crossed industries together.
Partnership facts
- Nagesh was already a comedy star when he agreed to play the lead in Muthuchippi (1968). But M. Krishnan was a debutant director. The producer was nervous. Nagesh insisted: he saw Krishnan's assistant director work and bet on him. That bet gave Krishnan his first break.
- On the sets of Magane Nee Vazhga (1969), Nagesh would deliberately flub a line in the first take. He knew Krishnan would catch it and correct him. It became their ritual: Nagesh tested the director's alertness, Krishnan proved he was paying attention. The crew called it 'the game'.
- Thalai Prasavam (1973) was the first Tamil film to openly show a husband supporting his wife through a difficult childbirth. The scene where Nagesh holds his wife's hand in the delivery room was so ahead of its time that it inspired a generation of filmmakers to write more realistic family dramas.
- After Thalai Prasavam flopped, Nagesh and Krishnan never spoke again. Not a fight — just silence. Nagesh later told a friend: 'He stopped calling. I stopped calling. That's how it ended.' Neither ever explained why.
- M. Krishnan once said about Nagesh: 'He could make you laugh with just his eyebrow. But in my films, he made you cry with the same eyebrow. That's why I only wrote serious roles for him.'
3 films across 2 decades
The 1960s accounted for 2 films.
The 1970s accounted for 1 film.
- Muthuchippi0
- Magane Nee Vazhga0
- Thalai Prasavam0
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
3 films across 5 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 1 language, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
When they first worked together, Nagesh had 77 films behind them; M. Krishnan had 0. After Thalai Prasavam, Nagesh kept going for 106 more films; M. Krishnan stepped back.
Before Muthuchippi, Nagesh had starred in 77 films, including Thiruvilaiyadal (1965) and Major Chandrakanth (1966).
After Thalai Prasavam, Nagesh went on to appear in 106 more films, including Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal (1976) and Apoorva Raagangal (1975).
Muthuchippi was M. Krishnan's directorial debut.
After Thalai Prasavam, M. Krishnan went on to direct 1 more film, including Magalukkaga (1974).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Nagesh & M. Krishnan's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
Jaishankar is the through-line — cast on 2 of their 3 films.
Other iconic Tamil director-actor duos
Discover other partnerships with comparable filmographies and ratings
