Vijay (actor)

1984–2002: Debut and transition to lead roles

Vijay made his debut as a child actor in the Tamil film Vetri, produced by P. S. Veerappa in 1984.^[13] He then acted as a child actor in films such as Kudumbam (1984), Naan Sigappu Manithan (1985), Vasantha Raagam (1986), Sattam Oru Vilayaattu (1987) and Ithu Engal Neethi (1988) all directed by his father S. A. Chandrasekhar.

Vijay played the lead role for the first time in Naalaiya Theerpu at the age of 18 in 1992.^[14] The film failed at the box office, with Vijay receiving bitter criticism for his looks and performance. SAC decided then to cast him alongside an established hero, and his frequent collaborator Vijayakanth agreed to do the project in Senthoorapandi (1993). The film ended up as a hit, helping Vijay get popular among the masses.^[15] In 1994, Rasigan ran for more than 175 days in theatres. Directed again by his father, Vijay became popular as “Ilaya Thalapathy” (young commander).^[16] In 1995, Chandrashekhar directed Deva with his son in the lead. It was a box office hit and completed the 100-day run in cinema halls.^[17] He had leading roles in films such Rajavin Parvaiyile in which he co-starred with actor Ajith Kumar^[18], followed by Vishnu and the romantic drama Chandralekha.

In early 1996, the romantic comedy film Coimbatore Mappillai was a hit at the box office.^[19] Followed by Poove Unakkaga, directed by Vikraman, which according to him, gave him his initial break and popularity.^[20] His subsequent films that year were Vasantha Vaasal, Maanbumigu Maanavan and Selvaa. In 1997, Vijay appeared in Kaalamellam Kaathiruppen, Love Today and Once More, the latter in which he shared the screen space with veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan.^[21][22] In Nerrukku Ner, he starred with actor Suriya’s marked debut in the industry.^[23] Then, Vijay attracted the family audience through Fazil’s Kadhalukku Mariyadhai.^[24] This film earned actor Vijay his first Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor.^[25] He was awarded Kalaimaamani by the Government of Tamil Nadu for his role.^[26] In 1998, he continued in starred in romantic films such as Ninaithen Vandhai, Priyamudan and Nilaave Vaa. In 1999, the film Thullatha Manamum Thullum was a blockbuster success.^[27][28] The romantic drama helped Vijay create a fan base in Kerala.^[29] Vijay won the MGR Honorary Award and the movie won the second prize Best Film. The next released was Endrendrum Kadhal, Nenjinile, and Minsara Kanna.^[30] In 2000, he appeared in his 25th film, Kannukkul Nilavu, alongside commercially successful romantic films, Kushi and Priyamaanavale.^[27] In 2001, he had in hat-trick box office successes; Friends, Badri and Shahjahan before starring in the action film Thamizhan alongside Priyanka Chopra in 2002.^[31] Later, he appeared in the romantic film Youth and the action film Bagavathi in the same year.^[32]

2003–2011: Established actor

Vijay began 2003 with Vaseegara and Pudhiya Geethai.^[33] The success of his masala film Thirumalai changed his on-screen persona into an action hero. Until then the actor was performing in roles that were charming and quite comical. Thirumalai was considered a turning point in Vijay's career.^[34] In 2004, after several delays, the film Udhaya was released.^[35] Then, Vijay was seen in Ghilli, directed by S. Dharani, alongside Trisha and Prakash Raj.^[36] The movie became a commercial success and became the first Tamil film to gross over ₹500 million at the domestic box office and also broke the record for the most people watching the movie within the first week of its release, previously held by M. G. Ramachandran's Adimai Penn (1969).^[37][38][39] Following the same, he acted in Madhurey.^[40] Director Perarasu made his directorial debut with the 2005 film Thirupaachi and he delivered a blockbuster hit with it.^[41] Then, Vijay plays an extended cameo as a lawyer in the action film, Sukran.^[42][43] Later, he starred in the commercially successful films Sachein and Sivakasi.^[40] He starred in the action thriller Aathi (2006). The film was an average grosser at the box office and it was a 2005 Telugu remake of Athanokkade.^[44] In 2007, Pokkiri became one of the highest-grossing films of his career at the time.^[45]

In late, Vijay starred in the romantic thriller film Azhagiya Tamil Magan, where he portrayed a dual role for the first time in his career. He played the roles of both protagonist and antagonist.^[46] The film was commercially successful outside India.^[47][48] In 2008, the action comedy Kuruvi was released.^[49][50] In 2009, Villu and Vettaikaaran were average successes at domestic box office while continuing to be more successful overseas.^[51][52][53] Vijay continued to be one of the highest paid actors despite the moderate success of then recently released movies.^[54] In 2010, he acted in the action film Sura, which was his 50th film as an actor.^[55][56] Vijay starred in the romantic comedy Kaavalan (2011), directed by Siddique which received positive response and a box office collection of ₹102 crore worldwide.^[57][58] The film was screened at the Shanghai International Film Festival in China.^[59] Kaavalan was a commercial success in China.^[60] His next film was the action film Velayudham, directed by M. Raja which released during Diwali and became one of the top-grossing films of 2011.^[37] The movie was also a critical success overseas.^[61]

2012–2022: Commercial success and stardom

In 2012, Vijay was seen the commercially successful Nanban, a remake of successful Hindi film 3 Idiots.^[62][63] Later, he acted in the action thriller Thuppakki, directed by A. R. Murugadoss.^[64] The film became the third Tamil film to gross more than ₹100 crore domestically and became the most successful film of Vijay's career at the time, grossing over ₹121 crore.^[65] His next film Thalaivaa, directed by A. L. Vijay, was released in August 2013 to mixed reviews.^[66][37] In 2014, he acted in Jilla which ended up as a box office hit.^[67][68] Vijay then starred in the action thriller Kaththi, where he portrayed another dual role. The film received positive reviews and collected ₹130 crore at the box office, becoming one of the highest-grossing Tamil films in 2014.^[69]

In 2015, he starred in the fantasy film Puli, directed by Chimbu Deven, which received mixed to poor reviews from critics.^[70][71] Despite the reviews, the film was one of the highest-grossing films of 2015.^[72][73][74] In April 2016, the action-thriller Theri directed by Atlee released to mixed reviews.^[75] It became the second-highest-grossing Tamil film of 2016, grossing over ₹170 crore.^[37] In 2017, the masala film Bairavaa was released, again to mixed reviews.^[76] In 2017, the action thriller Mersal released, which became a commercial success, becoming the first of Vijay's films to gross over ₹250 crore.^[69][77] The film won the Best Foreign Language Film award at the National Film Awards UK in 2018 with Vijay earning a nomination for the best supporting actor.^[78] The film was amongst the few films of Vijay to be released in Japan and China with further screening at the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival in South Korea.^[79][80][81]

In 2018, Vijay acted in the political film Sarkar, which entered the 100 Crore Club within two days.^[82] The film was released in 80 countries and became his second ever film to gross over ₹250 crore.^[83][84][85] Vijay acted in a football action film Bigil, which released in 2019.^[86] While the film received mixed reviews from critics, Vijay was praised for the portrayal of his character and the film was a commercial success, earning more than ₹300 crore.^[87][88] It was also the first Tamil film to be released in Egypt and Jordan.^[89] In 2021, his next film Master, directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj was released.^[90][91] Upon release, it received mixed to positive reviews from the critics.^[92][93] The film collected over ₹300 crore worldwide and was declared a box office success.^[94] His next film was the dark comedy action film Beast, which received mixed reviews from critics.^[95][96][97] The film performed well in overseas box office and was commercially successful, collecting more than ₹300 crore worldwide.^{[98][99][100][101]} It became one of the most viewed films on Netflix globally in 2022.^[102][103]

2023–present: Continued success

In 2023, Vijay was seen in the action drama film Varisu directed by Vamshi Paidipally.^[104][105] The film was a commercial success, grossing over ₹300 crore at the box office.^[106][107] His next release of 2023 was the action thriller Leo.^[108][109] It received mixed reviews from critics, but went on to become a commercially successful film and emerged as one of the highest grossing Indian films of the year with a gross more than ₹600 crore.^[110][111] His action thriller film The Greatest of All Time opened to mixed reviews, but had a theatrical revenue of more than ₹450 crore.^{[112][113][114]} In February 2024, Vijay announced that he would do only one more film, which will be his 69th and last as a lead actor, titled as Jana Nayagan.^{[115][116][117]}

Marriage, relationships, and friendships

Vijay married Sankgeetha Sornalingam, a Sri Lankan-born British Tamil who was born to an affluent business family, on 25 August 1999.^[136][137] Their marriage was arranged after Sangeetha met Vijay as a fan on the sets of Kaalamellam Kaathiruppen (1997) and their families became acquainted. They have two children: a son (Jason Sanjay) and a daughter (Dhivya Sasha).^[138][139] Jason Sanjay is an upcoming film director who will be making his debut in the film Sigma and previously appeared in the film Vettaikkaaran alongside his father, while Dhivya Sasha also appeared alongside her father in the film Theri.^[140]

In 2025, Sankgeetha filed for divorce.^{[141][142][2]} In 2026, she filed a petition alleging that Vijay had denied her entry to their matrimonial home and infidelity with an unnamed actress.^{[143][144][145]} The petition attracted media attention after Vijay appeared at an event with actress Trisha Krishnan.^{[144][146][147]}

Supporting actors Sanjeev Venkat, Sriman, and Srinath have been close friends with Vijay since college and have appeared in several of his films. Playback singer S. N. Surendar is a maternal uncle of Vijay, while actor and cricketer Vikranth is one of Vijay's cousins, though the latter has never collaborated in any films together with Vijay. Tamil Nadu deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, who produced Vijay's film Kuruvi, described Vijay as "a close friend" since childhood.^[148] The two would eventually become political rivals after Vijay's Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam contested and campaigned against Udhayanithi's father and incumbent Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, M. K. Stalin.

Wealth and earnings

Vijay is among the highest paid actors in Tamil cinema.^[149][150] As of 2021^[update], Vijay's net worth was above ₹4.2 billion (US$50 million).^[151] He earned a ₹1 billion (US$12 million) salary for Beast and also earned an estimated ₹1.2 billion (US$14 million) to ₹1.5 billion (US$18 million) salary for Varisu.^[152][153] In 2023, he reportedly received a ₹2 billion (US$24 million) salary for The Greatest Of All Time, becoming one of the top paid actors in India.^[154]

Tax litigation

In 2015, the Income Tax Department conducted a search at actor Vijay’s premises, leading to the disclosure of an additional ₹15 crore in income for the financial year 2015–16 including the payments related to the movie Puli. Although Vijay paid tax on the disclosed amount, the department later imposed a penalty of ₹1.5 crore under Section 271AAB(1) of the Income Tax Act, stating the disclosure was made only after the search. Vijay challenged the penalty before the Madras High Court in 2022, arguing that the penalty proceedings were time-barred. The Income Tax Department opposed the petition, maintaining the penalty was valid. As of 2025, the matter remains pending, with interim protection granted against recovery of the penalty.^{[155][156][157]}

On 5 February 2020, the Income Tax Department raided Vijay's residence in Chennai on potential tax evasion and his investments in immovable properties.^[158][159] Later, the officials stated that nothing significant was found during the raid.^[160] On 13 July 2021, the Madras High Court dismissed a writ petition filed by Vijay in 2012 seeking exemption of the Entry Tax for his Rolls-Royce Ghost car that was imported from the United Kingdom and imposed a fine of ₹0.1 million (US$1,200).^[161] On 27 July 2021, a two-judge bench of Madras High court stayed the earlier order.^[162] On 25 January 2022, the court dismissed the critical statements made by the earlier judge and on 15 July 2022, the court declared that no fine shall be imposed.^{[163][164][165]}