1978 to 1989: Early career In 1978, Vijayakanth engaged in a
photo shoot in Rasi Studios in Madurai with the aim of acting in films, which helped him garner attention. He later gave credit to the chief photographer R. Asaithambi, indicating that the photographs eventually helped him earn a spot in the film industry. Vijayakanth travelled to Chennai to pursue his passion in acting, even though he did not have any cinematic background. However, he was later replaced by
Ceylon Manohar after the director was unimpressed with Vijayakanth's acting. He claimed to have lost several film opportunities during the early stages of his acting career largely due to his darker complexion. In 1979, Vijayakanth made his first film appearance in M. A. Kaja's
Inikkum Ilamai (1979), when he was first credited with his screen name "Vijayakanth". The film was a critical and commercial failure. Though his subsequent films
Agal Vilakku (1979),
Neerottam (1980) and
Samanthipoo (1980) also did not perform well at the
box office, his film
Doorathu Idi Muzhakkam was screened at the
International Film Festival of India. The later film was lauded by viewers and became a turning point in his career. In the next few years, Vijayakanth often portrayed the character of an angry young man in films with revolutionary story lines such as
Sivappu Malli (1981) and
Jadhikkoru Needhi (1981). The film became a hit and was remade in several other Indian languages. He played the
villain in
Om Shakti (1982), which was his last antagonist part in a film. His subsequent commercial films included
Dowry Kalyanam (1983),
Nooravathu Naal (1984) and
Vaidhegi Kaathirunthaal (1984), which became successes. He acted in
Annai Bhoomi (1985), the first
3D film made in the Tamil film industry, alongside
Radha Ravi and
Tiger Prabhakar. He acted in the commercially successful romantic comedy
Naane Raja Naane Mandhiri (1985) and co-starred with
Vishnuvardhan in
Eetti (1985) and . He went on to act in
Amman Kovil Kizhakale (1986), which earned him a
Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil; the film ran for 150 days in theatres. In 1986, he appeared in
Manakanakku, the only film in which he worked alongside
Kamal Haasan. Vijayakanth's next film was
Oomai Vizhigal (1986), which became a cult classic and was lauded as a film way ahead of its time. It portrayed him in a role of an aged cop and made him one of the popular actors of the time alongside Rajinikanth, and Kamal Haasan. In 1987, he co-starred with
Sivaji Ganesan in
Veerapandiyan, and acted in
Ninaive Oru Sangeetham. He was given the epithet "Puratchi Kalaigner" by film's producer
Kalaipuli S. Thanu after his performance in
Cooliekkaran. On 21 October 1987, Vijayakanth had two theatrical releases as both
Uzhavan Magan and
Sattam Oru Vilayaattu, both of which were commercially successful.
Uzhavan Magan also marked the first collaboration between Vijayakanth and his longtime friend
Ibrahim Rowther, who produced the film. In 1988, he worked in films such as
Therkathi Kallan,
Nallavan and
Poonthotta Kaavalkaaran. He won a
Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in
Senthoora Poove. In 1989, he starred in the commercially successful films
Paattukku Oru Thalaivan, and
Ponmana Selvan. This was followed by the crime thriller
Rajanadai and devotional film
Meenakshi Thiruvilayadal.
1990 to 1999: Action roles M. Karunanidhi and director
K. Balachandar in a function in 1997. In the 1990s, Vijayakanth established himself as an action icon with a consistent box-office appeal. He was best known for low-budget films that often featured gravity-defying stunts in which he would single-handedly dispatch his enemies. Rowther produced many of his films and played an instrumental role in Vijayakanth's rise as an actor in the early 1990s. He also assisted Vijayakanth in choosing the film scripts. Rowther and Vijayakanth combined for many of the films including
Pulan Visaranai (1990),
Captain Prabhakaran (1991),
Bharathan (1992),
Rajadurai (1993),
Sakkarai Devan (1993),
En Aasai Machan (1994),
Gandhi Pirantha Mann (1995),
Karuppu Nila (1995),
Ulavuthurai (1998),
Dharma (1998) and
Simmasanam (2000).
Pulan Visaranai, which was directed by
R. K. Selvamani and featured
R. Sarathkumar as the antagonist, became one of the most popular crime thrillers of the time. He later starred as an honest cop in the hit flick
Sathriyan, produced by
Mani Ratnam. The film became one of the highest grossing films in 1991 and ran for over 250 days in theatres. He got the sobriquet "captain" after the success of the film. Vijayakanth acted in the movies
Maanagara Kaaval and
Moondrezhuthil En Moochirukkum in the same year. In 1992, he appeared in the role of a village chief in the film
Chinna Gounder, which turned out to be an experimental film and a cult classic in the later years. The song "Antha Vaanatha Pola" from the movie became popular, and eventually became a popular
meme in the later years. He later appeared in films such as
Koyil Kaalai (1993),
Ezhai Jaathi (1993),
Sakkarai Devan (1993),
Rajadurai (1993) and
Enga Muthalali (1993). He co-starred with
Vijay in
Senthoorapandi (1993), where he plays the role of elder brother. He played an extended cameo role in this film for which he did not take any remuneration. In 1994, he appeared in
Sethupathi IPS,
Honest Raj,
Pathavi Pramanam,
En Aasai Machan and
Periya Marudhu. His later films included
Karuppu Nila (1995),
Thirumoorthy (1995) and
Gandhi Pirantha Mann (1995). He won a
Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for his performance in the action film
Thayagam (1996). In 1997, he appeared in the film
Dharma Chakkaram which was directed by
K. S. Ravikumar. He acted in his 125th film
Ulavuthurai in 1998, followed by
Dharma (1998) and
Veeram Vilanja Mannu in the same year. In 1999, he acted in
Kallazhagar, and
Periyanna, in which he acted alongside
Suriya. He later starred in
R. B. Choudary's production,
Kannupada Poguthaiya.
2000 to 2009: Experienced roles In 2000, Vijayakanth played a dual role in
Vaanathai Pola, a rural family drama directed by
Vikraman, which won two awards; a
Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Film of the year and
National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. His acting in
Vallarasu received widespread attention, in which he played a cop who took on a terrorist group. He acted in action films
Vaanchinathan (2001) directed by
Shaji Kailas and
Narasimha (2001). Though the later failed at the box office, Vijayakanth was praised for his action, and the film became a unique component in Tamil pop culture.
Narasimha was considered as a
spiritual sequel to
Vallarasu. His next film
Raajjiyam (2002) failed to deliver in the box office and it turned out to be a
box office bomb. In 2002, he acted in guest appearance in
Devan, directed by
Arun Pandian. Vijayakanth collaborated with director
AR Murugadoss in
Ramanaa, in which he underplayed an action hero and anti-corruption crusader. The film won a Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Film of the year and the film became commercially successful. In 2003, he had two releases,
Chokka Thangam, a family drama and
Thennavan, a political film. In 2004, he appeared in a
comedy-drama,
Engal Anna which was a commercial success. However, his next films
Gajendra and
Neranja Manasu, which were released in the same year, received negative reviews. Later, he did a special appearance in Suriya's film
Maayavi (2005). In 2006, he acted in three action films,
Sudesi,
Perarasu and
Dharmapuri, all of which failed to deliver at the box office and received negative reviews from critics. The following year, he starred in
Sabari (2007) and his 150th film was
Arasangam (2008), which was about a police officer who discovers and unravels the mystery behind a terrorist plot. He acted in the drama
Mariyadhai (2009), in his second collaboration with director Vikraman, followed by the action film
Engal Aasan (2009), in which he co-starred with
Vikranth.
2010 to 2015: Later projects In 2010, Vijayakanth acted and directed the film,
Virudhagiri, a remake of the French film
Taken. After a hiatus of five years, he made a cameo appearance in his son Shanmuga Pandian's first film
Sagaptham in 2015. In November 2015, he started acting in Arun Ponnambalam's
Thamizhan Endru Sol, alongside his son. The film was later suspended due to Vijayakanth's political commitments and his deteriorating health. In 2022, director
Vijay Milton attempted to rope in Vijayakanth in a short role for his film
Mazhai Pidikatha Manithan alongside
Vijay Antony. The film later went ahead without Vijayakanth due to his health issues. In a film career spanning more than 30 years, he acted in 154 movies. == Political career ==