S.J. Suryah

S. Justin Selvaraj, who goes by S.J. Suryah, basically hustled his way up from a small town in southern Tamil Nadu. He wrapped up his Physics degree at Loyola College, Chennai, but instead of following the usual science path, he stuck around the city, juggling random jobs like waiting tables just to pay rent while chasing his film dreams. The grind was real—eight hour hotel shifts, then off to meet directors, soaking up whatever knowledge he could about filmmaking. It took him six long years before he landed a gig as an apprentice under Bhagyaraja. After that, he worked as an assistant director on flicks like Aasai and Sundara Purushan. His big break came with Vaalee in 1999—a wild romantic psychological thriller starring Ajith Kumar, which really put him on the map. Then came Kushi, another hit, and he even directed its Hindi and Telugu remakes. Switching gears, he jumped in front of the camera for New in 2004, a sci-fi comedy, and started focusing more on acting for a bit, popping up in films like Kalvanin Kadhali and Vyabari. He made a directorial comeback with Komaram Puli in 2010 and later Isai, where he also starred. Suryah’s got a knack for playing baddies too—he bagged awards for roles in Spyder and Mersal. Recent years saw him in Monster, Nenjam Marappathillai, Maanaadu, and Don, nailing both hero and villain gigs. He even popped up in the series Vadhandhi. The guy’s career is basically a wild ride through Tamil cinema’s highs and lows.