Santhanam & Cheran Movies Together List — 3 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-06-02 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Santhanam and Cheran appeared together in 3 Telugu films between 2013 and 2016. Their highest-rated collaboration was JK Enum Nanbanin Vaazhkai (2015 — 6.7/10). Films span Yemito Ee Maaya (2013) through Raja Dhi Raja (2016).
The Santhanam & Cheran partnership
From Yemito Ee Maaya (2013) to Raja Dhi Raja (2016). It started with Yemito Ee Maaya (2013).
Partnership facts
- Cheran was the one who brought Santhanam into Telugu cinema. He cast Santhanam in 'Yemito Ee Maaya' (2013) after seeing his comic timing in Tamil films — that film became Santhanam's Telugu debut.
- In 'JK Enum Nanbanin Vaazhkai' (2015), Cheran played the straight-laced, serious lead while Santhanam bounced off him with rapid-fire one-liners. Cheran deliberately slowed his own delivery to let Santhanam's punchlines land harder.
- Cheran and Santhanam became close friends during the shoot of 'Yemito Ee Maaya'. Santhanam later said Cheran would call him at 2 AM to discuss comedy scenes — and they'd laugh on the phone for an hour before writing a single line.
- Santhanam once said in an interview: 'Cheran sir is the only director who made me act serious in a comedy role. He told me, "Don't try to be funny. Just react to me." That changed my whole approach.'
- Their third film 'Raja Dhi Raja' (2016) was a rare Telugu-Tamil bilingual comedy. Because of their pairing, the film got a simultaneous release in both states — something small-budget comedies rarely managed back then.
3 films across 1 decade
- JK Enum Nanbanin Vaazhkai
- Yemito Ee Maaya0
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
3 films across 3 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 2 languages, with Telugu being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
When they first worked together, Santhanam had 69 films behind them; Cheran had 20.
Before Yemito Ee Maaya, Santhanam had starred in 69 films, including Deiva Thirumagal (2011) and Arai En 305-il Kadavul (2008).
After Raja Dhi Raja, Santhanam went on to appear in 23 more films, including Server Sundaram (2020) and Kalavaadiya Pozhuthugal (2017).
Before Yemito Ee Maaya, Cheran had directed 20 films, including Autograph (2004) and Autograph (2004).
After Raja Dhi Raja, Cheran went on to direct 15 more films, including Vimanam (2023) and D3 (2023).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Santhanam & Cheran's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
Nithya Menen is the through-line — cast on 3 of their 3 films. Nithya Menen appears alongside them in 3 films — practically a third lead.
Other iconic Telugu director-actor duos
Discover other partnerships with comparable filmographies and ratings
