Nagesh & S. V. Sahasranamam Movies Together List — 9 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-06-05 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Nagesh and S. V. Sahasranamam appeared together in 9 Tamil films between 1962 and 1973. Their highest-rated collaboration was Iru Kodugal (1969 — 7.8/10). Films span Policekaran Magal (1962) through Urimai Kural (1973).
The Nagesh & S. V. Sahasranamam partnership
For 11 years, a Nagesh–S. film arrived almost every year. From Policekaran Magal (1962) to Urimai Kural (1973). Urimai Kural (1973, 7.5/10) is the underseen one in the catalogue.
Iru Kodugal is the one most viewers reach for. The spanned closed with Urimai Kural in 1973.
The shape of the work
The 1960s account for 78% of everything they made together. The 1960s belonged to Iru Kodugal; the 1970s to Urimai Kural. Nagesh acted in every film; S. V. Sahasranamam acted in all of them. Strictly Tamil cinema — they never crossed industries together.
Partnership facts
- Director K. Somu cast Nagesh and S. V. Sahasranamam together for the first time in 'Kungumam' (1963) because he wanted a comedy duo that could switch between slapstick and pathos in the same scene. Nagesh later said Somu literally locked them in a room for two hours to figure out their timing.
- In 'Sadhu Mirandal' (1966), Sahasranamam played the straight man who set up every punchline with a deadpan stare, while Nagesh delivered the joke with frantic body language. Sahasranamam once told an interviewer that Nagesh would whisper alternate lines to him mid-scene, and he had to keep a straight face while Nagesh improvised.
- During the shoot of 'Shanthi' (1965), Nagesh and Sahasranamam shared a small room in a lodge in Tenkasi. Every night after pack-up, they would rehearse the next day's comedy scenes by acting them out for the hotel staff, using the staff's laughter as a test run.
- The success of their double-act in 'Kungumam' (1963) directly led to director K. Balachander casting Nagesh and Sahasranamam as a comic pair in his early films, which in turn inspired the template for the 'hero's funny friend' role that became a staple in Tamil cinema through the 1970s.
- S. V. Sahasranamam once said about Nagesh: 'He would finish a dialogue and then look at me with those eyes — I knew my job was just to stand there and not laugh. If I laughed, we'd have to retake the whole scene.'
9 films across 2 decades
The 1960s brought 7 films together, anchored by Iru Kodugal (7.8/10).
The 1970s brought 2 films together, anchored by Urimai Kural (7.5/10).
- Iru Kodugal
- Kungumam
- Urimai Kural
- Sabadham0
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
9 films across 11 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 1 language, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
64% of S. V. Sahasranamam's screen credits are with Nagesh. After Urimai Kural, Nagesh kept going for 106 more films; S. V. Sahasranamam stepped back.
Before Policekaran Magal, Nagesh had starred in 1 film, including Thayilla Pillai (1961).
After Urimai Kural, Nagesh went on to appear in 106 more films, including Sila Nerangalil Sila Manithargal (1976) and Apoorva Raagangal (1975).
Before Policekaran Magal, S. V. Sahasranamam had starred in 3 films, including Malliyam Mangalam (1961) and Mahalakshmi (1960).
After Urimai Kural, S. V. Sahasranamam went on to appear in 2 more films, including Indru Pol Endrum Vaazhga (1977) and Madhuraiyai Meetta Sundharapandiyan (1978).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Nagesh & S. V. Sahasranamam's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
Viswanathan Ramamoorthy scored 3 of them. Manorama appears alongside them in 4 films — practically a third lead.
4
3
222
222
2
2
2
2
2
3
2
2