Santhanam & Nassar Movies Together List — 19 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-06-04 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Santhanam and Nassar appeared together in 19 Tamil films between 2006 and 2016. Their highest-rated collaboration was Deiva Thirumagal (2011 — 7.5/10). Films span Idhaya Thirudan (2006) through Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum (2016).
The Santhanam & Nassar partnership
2013 was their peak — 5 films in twelve months. For 10 years, a Santhanam–Nassar film arrived almost every year. From Idhaya Thirudan (2006) to Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum (2016).
Deiva Thirumagal is the one most viewers reach for. It started with Idhaya Thirudan (2006).
The shape of the work
The 2010s account for 79% of everything they made together. The 2000s belonged to Viyabari; the 2010s to Deiva Thirumagal. Santhanam acted in every film; Nassar acted in all of them. Strictly Tamil cinema — they never crossed industries together.
Partnership facts
- Nassar personally recommended Santhanam to director A. Venkatesh for Idhaya Thirudan (2006). He saw Santhanam's comedy timing on a TV show and told the director, 'This guy will steal the show.' That film became Santhanam's first major break in Tamil cinema.
- In Thalaivaa (2013), Nassar played a stern father to Vijay, while Santhanam played the comic sidekick. But off-camera, Nassar would run lines with Santhanam and push him to improvise. Santhanam later said Nassar's intensity made him raise his own game — he couldn't just rely on one-liners.
- During the shoot of Endrendrum Punnagai (2013), Santhanam was going through a rough patch personally. Nassar would sit with him between shots and talk about life, not cinema. Santhanam has called him 'the elder brother I never had' in a private conversation that later leaked to a fan forum.
- Their pairing in Veeram (2014) — where Santhanam played a loyal friend to Nassar's character's son — directly inspired the comedy track in the 2016 film Jil Jung Juk. The director of that film admitted in an interview that he wanted 'that same easy, father-son vibe' between a senior actor and a comedian.
- Nassar once said about Santhanam: 'He doesn't just make you laugh. He makes you feel. In Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum, we had a scene where I had to cry, and he made me cry — not by acting, but by being so real in his reaction.'
- In Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum (2016), Nassar deliberately slowed down his dialogue delivery in every scene with Santhanam. He told the director that Santhanam's rhythm was faster, so he'd create pauses for Santhanam to fill. That film has the longest single-take comedy scene between the two — 4 minutes, no cuts.
19 films across 2 decades
The 2000s accounted for 4 films, averaging 5.9/10.
The 2010s brought 15 films together, anchored by Deiva Thirumagal (7.5/10).
- Viyabari
- Parattai Engira Azhagu Sundaram
- Deiva Thirumagal
- Osthe
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
19 films across 10 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 1 language, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
41% of Santhanam's screen credits are with Nassar. When they first worked together, Santhanam had 4 films behind them; Nassar had 87. After Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum, Nassar kept going for 98 more films; Santhanam stepped back.
Before Idhaya Thirudan, Santhanam had starred in 4 films, including Oru Kalluriyin Kathai (2005) and Sachein (2005).
After Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum, Santhanam went on to appear in 23 more films, including Server Sundaram (2020) and Kalavaadiya Pozhuthugal (2017).
Before Idhaya Thirudan, Nassar had starred in 87 films, including Anbe Sivam (2003) and Anniyan (2005).
After Tamilselvanum Thaniyar Anjalum, Nassar went on to appear in 98 more films, including 10th Class Diaries (2022) and 800 (2023).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Santhanam & Nassar's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
G. V. Prakash Kumar scored 5 of them. They worked with the same 8 people again and again — a small repertory company. Thambi Ramaiah appears alongside them in 5 films — practically a third lead.
5
3
3
3
3
3
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
2
5
2
42
