Rajinikanth & Kamal Haasan Movies Together List — 16 Films

The shape of the work

The 1970s account for 75% of everything they made together. The 1970s belonged to Padhinaru Vayadhiniley; the 1980s to Geraftaar. Rajinikanth acted in every film; Kamal Haasan acted in all of them.

Partnership facts

• They first shared screen space in K. Balachander's 'Apoorva Raagangal' (1975) because Balachander deliberately cast them together — he wanted two young actors who could handle complex, layered roles. Neither was a star yet. That film put both on the map.
• In 'Moondru Mudichu' (1976), Kamal played a manipulative villain and Rajini played a simpleton. Kamal later said Rajini's raw energy forced him to raise his own game — they pushed each other to extremes in every scene.
• Their 1978 film 'Ilamai Oonjal Aadukirathu' was remade in Hindi as 'Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak' — the film that launched Aamir Khan. So a Rajini-Kamal collaboration indirectly kick-started a Bollywood legend's career.
• During the shoot of 'Aval Appadithan' (1978), Kamal and Rajini would stay back after pack-up to argue about acting techniques for hours. They were competitive but also each other's toughest critics — no one else could tell them they were wrong.
• Kamal once said: 'Rajini and I never had a fight. We had disagreements. But we always knew the other was trying to make the scene better.' He said this in a 2013 interview with The Hindu.
• In 'Ninaithale Inikkum' (1979), a musical hit, Rajini played the comic sidekick while Kamal played the romantic lead. They swapped usual roles — Rajini got the laughs, Kamal got the songs. That role reversal is why the film still feels fresh.