Actors - Sathyaraj

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	Actors - Sathyaraj

Sathyaraj (born October 3, 1954) is a leading actor in the Tamil film industry (Kollywood).

Although he frequently plays the lead character in his films, Sathyaraj is perhaps best known for his roles as cultured, charming villains. It was who changed the grammar of villainy as far as Tamil films are concerned. Until his entry, the traditional type of villains were aggressive in their postures, actions and dialogue-delivery styles while portraying villainy on screen! It was only Sathyaraj, who shattered this tradition and introduced a casual way of depicting cruel villainy without indulging in dramatic gestures or in shouting-out-at the 'enemies'! His soft and casual way of enquiring "Yennammaa kannu saukkyammaa?" (how are you doing ?) and his unique style of expressing the word "Thagadu, Thagadu" enabled even small children turn his ardent fans. He is noted for his smooth baritone, as well as for delivering his lines with wit, irony, and flamboyance.

Personal life

Date of birth : 3 October 1954
Birth place : Coimbatore
Real Name : Rengaraj
Father : Dr Subbiah
Mother : Nathambal, daughter of the chieftain of Ooththukkuli Jameen
Siblings : Kalpana Arjun, Roopa Senathipathy
Wife : Mageswari (married on 1979), Maathampatty Sivakumar's niece
Daughter : Divya
Son : Sibi

Sathyaraj completed his primary school education in Tamil at St Mary's Convent,Coimbatore. He completed the equivalent of the tenth standard in a suburban high school, Ramnagar, Coimbatore. In primary school, he was a first rank holder. After completing the fifth class, he saw M. G. Ramachandran's Vaettaikkaaran and immediately became a fan.

As his enthusiasm for films grew, his interest in his studies diminished. He passed his SSLC (Class 10 boards), scoring first-rank marks in history and geography at his school level. He joined the Government Arts College,Coimbatore and completed a Bachelor of Science degree in botany. Tamil actor/director Manivannan was a co-student in PUC (Class 12 Junior college), and the two began a friendship while there.

At this time Sathyaraj's family faced sudden economic difficulties, which forced Sathyaraj, after he had finished his studies, to work in his uncle Mathampatty Sivakumar's money-lending shop.

Career

Entry into Films

One day Sathyaraj went to see the shooting of the film Annakkili, where he met actor Sivakumar. Sathyaraj later revealed his interest in film acting to his family, from whom he faced stiff opposition. He wrote a letter to his mother and put it into a post box opposite his house and left for Chennai.

In Chennai, he met actor Sivakumar and producer Thiruppur Manimaran and started pestering them to help fulfill his cinematic ambitions. Yet Sivakumar vehemently criticized his interest in acting and advised him to immediately return home. Nevertheless, Sathyaraj remained in Chennai, where he rented an inexpensive room at Usman Road. The producer of Thaainadu film, Maathampatty Sivakumar was sending him money every month. Annakkili Sivakumar made him join the drama troupe of Komal Swamynathan.

Early career

Sathyaraj began his acting career with small roles that span only for a short spell on the screen. Then his stature as an actor gradually metamorphosed to that of a villain artiste and finally to that of one of the leading heroes of Tamil film.

The movie in which Sathyaraj first acted was Kodugal Illaatha Kolangal. Then he worked as production manager for the film Kannan Oru Kaikkuzhanthai. In addition to his managerial role, he also had a small acting part in the film. On the title card of the film his name was shown on screen with the description: "Aluvalaga Nirvaagam (Official Management): S.N. Rangaraj, B.Sc." As he had also acted in it in a small role, his name had been depicted as 'Sathyaraj' in the list of actors that unfolded on the screen. It was stills Ravi who first captured him on film. Then cameraman-cum-director N.K. Viswanathan introduced him to T.N. Balu. This enabled him to act in Sattam Yen Kaiyil. Next, Sathyaraj acted in P. Madhavan's Yaenippadigal. In Kuruvikkoodu, Sathyaraj acted in the role of a negative hero.

Sathyaraj generally used to take part in story discussions that are held prior to film making. He went along with director R. Sunderrajan for participating in the discussion of the story that finally led to the birth of the film Saranaalayam. Then he took part in another story discussion and this story was later filmed as Nooraavathu Naal; in this film, Sathyaraj played a character with a shaven head. This earned him an image as an established actor. Subsequently and gradually, he started improving his career prospects by taking villain roles in films starring leading heroes. He wrote the story for a Telugu film Tharja Thongaa, co-acted by Suman and Vijayashanti.

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