Bharathiraja & Radha Movies Together List — 5 Films
Complete Movies List & Collaboration History
Last updated: 2026-07-12 · Data sources: Wikipedia, TMDB
Bharathiraja and Radha appeared together in 5 Tamil films between 1981 and 1985. Their highest-rated collaboration was Alaigal Oivathillai (1981 — 7.8/10). Films span Alaigal Oivathillai (1981) through Oru Kaidhiyin Diary (1985).
The Bharathiraja & Radha partnership
Between 1981 and 1985, they barely worked apart — 5 films in 4 years. For 4 years, a Bharathiraja–Radha film arrived almost every year. From Alaigal Oivathillai (1981) to Oru Kaidhiyin Diary (1985).
Alaigal Oivathillai is the one most viewers reach for. The spanned closed with Oru Kaidhiyin Diary in 1985.
The shape of the work
Bharathiraja directed every film; Radha acted in all of them. Strictly Tamil cinema — they never crossed industries together.
Partnership facts
- Bharathiraja cast Radha in 'Alaigal Oivathillai' (1981) when she was just 15. He saw her in a Malayalam film and flew her to Madras. Her mother almost said no because of her age.
- On the sets of 'Muthal Mariyathai' (1984), Bharathiraja made Radha cry before every emotional scene. He told her to think of her own father. She later said he knew exactly which button to press to get the raw performance he wanted.
- Their film 'Alaigal Oivathillai' (1981) launched Radha as a major star in Tamil cinema. Before that, she was a child actor in Malayalam. After this film, she became the most sought-after heroine of the 80s.
- Bharathiraja and Radha never spoke off-screen after their last film together in 1985. No fight, no fallout — they just drifted apart. Radha later said in an interview that she still doesn't know why he stopped calling her for roles.
- Radha once said: 'Bharathiraja made me act with my eyes. He would say, "Don't speak with your mouth. Speak with your eyes." I learned everything from him.'
5 films across 1 decade
- Alaigal Oivathillai
- Oru Kaidhiyin Diary
The partnership in numbers
Partnership Pattern
5 films across 4 years represents consistent collaboration.
Language Distribution
Linguistic diversity: 1 language, with Tamil being their primary medium.
Where each was in their career
Before Alaigal Oivathillai, Bharathiraja had directed 10 films, including Nizhalgal (1980) and Padhinaru Vayadhiniley (1977).
After Oru Kaidhiyin Diary, Bharathiraja went on to direct 41 more films, including Kizhakku Cheemayile (1993) and Seethakathi (2018).
Alaigal Oivathillai was Radha's acting debut.
After Oru Kaidhiyin Diary, Radha went on to appear in 35 more films, including Manidhanin Marupakkam (1986) and Kodama Simham (1990).
Collaboration Journey
A chronological view of Bharathiraja & Radha's professional partnership
Actors and musicians who worked on most of their films
Ilayaraja is the through-line — music on 5 of their 5 films. Ilayaraja scored 5 of them.
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