Birthday Wishes to Kamal Haasan

Kamal Haasan (born Parthasarathy Srinivasan on 7 November 1954) is an Indian film actor, dancer, film director, screenwriter, producer, playback singer, lyricist and politician who works primarily in Tamil cinema. Kamal has won awards including four National Film Awards, the second-most by any Indian actor, and nineteen Filmfare Awards. His production company, Rajkamal International, has produced several of his films.

He started his career as a child artist in the 1960 Tamil language film Kalathur Kannamma, for which he won the President's Gold Medal. He met director Vaaranam Vijay who is frequently credited for shaping Kamal's acting skills. His breakthrough as a lead actor came in the 1975 drama Apoorva Raagangal, directed by K.Balachander, in which he played a rebellious youth who falls in love with an older woman. He won his first National Film Award for his portrayal of a guileless school teacher who cares for a woman who suffers from retrograde amnesia in Moondram Pirai (1983). He was noted for his performances in Mani Ratnam's Nayakan (1987) and S. Shankar's vigilante film Indian (1996), which saw him playing dual roles of a father and a son. Since then he has appeared in films including Hey Ram (2000), Virumaandi (2004), Vishwaroopam (2013) which were his own productions and Dasavathaaram (2008) in which he played ten roles.

Kamal Haasan was awarded the Kalaimamani award in 1979, the Padma Shri in 1990, the Padma Bhushan in 2014 and the Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Chevalier) in 2016.

On February 21, 2018, Kamal Hassan formally launched his political party, Makkal Needhi Maiam (lit. People's Justice Centre). The party's flag displays six joined hands in a circle in alternate red and white colours with a white star at its centre in a black background.

Early life and career
Main article: Kamal Haasan filmography
Kamal Haasan was born on 7 November 1954., to D. Srinivasan, who was a lawyer, and Rajalakshmi, who was a housewife. His brothers, Charuhasan and Chandrahasan, have also acted. Kamal's sister, Nalini (born 1946), is a classical dancer.[citation needed] He received his primary education in Paramakudi before moving to Madras (now Chennai) as his brothers pursued their higher education. Kamal continued his education in Santhome, Madras,[9] and was attracted towards film and fine arts as encouraged by his father.

When a physician friend of his mother, visited Avichi Meiyappa Chettiar (AVM) to treat his wife, she brought Kamal with her.  Apparently impressed by his demeanor AVM's son, M. Saravanan, recommended him for their production Kalathur Kannamma.

Lead roles, 1970–1975
After a seven-year hiatus from films, Kamal amma returned to the industry as a dance assistant, apprenticing under choreographer Thankappan. During this time, Kamal made brief appearances in some films including a few uncredited roles. His first appearance came in the 1970 film Maanavan, in which he appeared in a dance sequence. He went on to assist Thankappan in films such as Annai Velankani (1971) and Kasi Yathirai (1973). In the former he had a supporting role and worked as an assistant director.[ His first full-fledged role came in K. Balachander's Tamil film Arangetram (1973). Balachander cast him as the antagonist in his Sollathaan Ninaikkiren (1973). Kamal went on to do supporting roles in films such as Gumasthavin Magal (1974), Aval Oru Thodar Kathai (1974) and Naan Avanillai. The same year, he played his first lead role in the Malayalam film, Kanyakumari, for which he the won his first Filmfare Award. In Tamil cinema, he had his breakthrough as a lead actor in Balachander's Apoorva Raagangal. He played a rebellious young man who falls in love with an older woman. For this character portrayal, Kamal learned to play the mridangam. The role won him his second Filmfare Award.

Late 1970s
In 1976, Balachander cast Kamal as a womaniser in Manmadha Leelai; this was followed by Oru Oodhappu Kan Simittugiradhu (directed by S.P. Muthuraman), which won him his second consecutive Regional Filmfare (Tamil) Best Actor Award. Kamal later appeared in the Balachander drama Moondru Mudichu. Avargal (1977) concerned the women's movement; for this role, he learned ventriloquism. It was remade in Telugu as Idi Katha Kaadu (1979), with Kamal reprising his role. 16 Vayathinile, in which he played a village bumpkin, won him a third consecutive Best Actor award. In 1977 Kamal starred in his first Kannada film, Kokila, the directorial debut of friend and mentor Balu Mahendra. That year he also appeared in a Bengali film, Kabita, a remake of the Tamil film Aval Oru Thodar Kathai. In 1978 Kamal made his Telugu film debut with a lead role in the cross-cultural romantic Maro Charitra, directed by Balachander. His fourth consecutive Filmfare Award resulted from Sigappu Rojakkal, a thriller in which he played a psychopathic sexual killer.

In the 1978 Telugu film Sommokadidhi Sokkadidhi, Kamal played two parts. This was also his first collaboration with director Suresh Madhavan. He appeared in the musical Ninaithale Inikkum, a snake-horror film (Neeya?) and Kalyanaraman. At the end of the 1970s he had six regional Best Actor Filmfare Awards, including four consecutive Best Tamil Actor Awards.

Hindi film industry (1980s)
Kamal's films during the 1980s included 1980's Tamil-language Varumayin Niram Sivappu, in which he played an unemployed youth; he made a cameo appearance in Rajinikanth's 1981 Thillu Mullu. Kamal made his debut in Hindi cinema with Ek Duuje Ke Liye, the remake of his own acted Telugu-language film Maro Charitra directed by K. Balachander (which earned him his first Filmfare Hindi-language nomination). He made his 100th film appearance in 1981 in Raja Paarvai, debuting as a producer. Despite the film's relatively poor box-office performance, his portrayal of a blind session violinist earned him a Filmfare Award. After a year of starring in commercial films, Kamal won the first of three National Awards for Best Actor for his portrayal of a schoolteacher caring for an amnesia patient in Balu Mahendra's Moondram Pirai, later reprising his role in the Hindi version, Sadma. During this period he focused on Bollywood remakes of his Tamil films, including Yeh To Kamaal Ho Gaya and Zara Si Zindagi. In 1983 he appeared in Sagara Sangamam, directed by K. Vishwanath. His portrayal of an alcoholic classical dancer won him his first Nandi Award for Best Actor and his second Filmfare Best Telugu Actor Award.

After 1984's multistarrer Raaj Tilak, Kamal appeared in Saagar (released 1985), winning the Filmfare Best Actor Award and nominated for the Best Supporting Actor award. The film was India's representative for the Best Foreign Language Oscar in 1985. He left Bollywood temporarily after Geraftaar  and Dekha Pyar Tumhara to feature in Japanil Kalyanaraman (a sequel to his 1979 Kalyanaraman).

In 1986, Kamal produced the technically brilliant Vikram and collaborated with Kodandarami Reddy for Oka Radha Iddaru Krishnulu and then K. Vishwanath in Swathi Muthyam, playing an autistic person who tries to change society; it was India's entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the Academy Awards in 1986. These Tollywood films found him a large audience in Andhra Pradesh, and many of his later Tamil films were dubbed into Telugu.

Following Punnagai Mannan (in which he played two roles, including a satire of Charlie Chaplin as Chaplin Chellappa) and Kadhal Parisu, Kamal appeared in Mani Ratnam's 1987 film Nayakan. He received his second Indian National Award for his performance; Nayakan (inspired from Hollywood movie The Godfather) was submitted by India as its entry for Best Foreign Language Film at the 1987 Academy Awards, and is on the Time's All-Time 100 Movies list. In 1988 Kamal appeared in his only silent film to date: Pushpak, a black comedy, Unnal Mudiyum Thambi (a remake of the Telugu film Rudraveena) and Sathya (remake of Hindi film Arjun) in 1988. Kamal's all four films of 1989 were major success, Apoorva Sagodharargal, where he played a dwarf, then Chanakyan, an original Malayalam film, later the blockbuster Vetri Vizha (where he played an amnesiac) and finally Kamal played two parts in Indrudu Chandrudu, winning the Filmfare Best Actor and Nandi Awards for his performance. By the end of the 1980s Kamal was successful in the Malayalam, Kannada, Telugu and Hindi film industries, with Filmfare Awards in each industry and two national awards.

Comedy
In 1990, Michael Madhana Kamarajan saw Kamal build on Apoorva Sagodharargal by playing quadruplets. It began as a collaboration with writer Crazy Mohan for future comedy films. Kamal won successive Best Actor awards for his portrayal of deranged, obsessive protagonists in Gunaa and Thevar Magan (which was remade in Hindi as 1997's Virasat). He was credited with the story for the latter, and won his third National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Tamil as a producer. The film was India's submission for the Academy Awards that year. A series of films followed: Singaravelan, Maharasan, Kalaignan, Mahanadi, Nammavar, and Sathi Leelavathi (based on the British film She-Devil). Produced by Kamal, it featured himself alongside Kannada actor Ramesh Arvind and comedian Kovai Sarala. Kamal resumed his collaboration with Kasinadhuni Viswanath in the Telugu film, Subha Sankalpam, and starred in the police story Kuruthipunal (remake of govind nihlani's movie Drohkaal) with Arjun Sarja. Kamal's success in the latter was followed by his third National Film Award for Best Actor for Indian.

'The Week', in its 13 September 1992 edition, reported that Chiranjeevi charged Rs.1.25 crores per a film and which is the highest ever remuneration for any Indian hero then. In 1994, Kamal became the first actor to charge 1.5 crore per film.The highest paid Indian actor from 1970 to 1987 was Rajesh Khanna.

After Indian Kamal played a woman in the comedy Avvai Shanmughi (inspired by Mrs. Doubtfire), which was a box-office success. He chose Shantanu Sheorey to direct the Hindi remake of Avvai Shanmughi, Chachi 420, but after dissatisfaction with five days of shooting Kamal took over as director. In 1997 Kamal began directing an unfinished biopic of Mohammed Yusuf Khan, Marudhanayagam; a forty five minutes of film and a trailer was shot. Marudhanayagam was expected to be the biggest, most expensive film in Indian cinematic history and his magnum opus; a number of well-known actors and technicians had been signed, and it was launched at a public ceremony by Queen Elizabeth during her 1997 visit to India. Although the film failed to materialise due to budget constraints, Kamal expressed an interest in reviving the project. In 1998, he appeared in Singeetham Srinivasa Rao's romantic comedy, Kaathala Kaathala opposite Prabhu Deva. The film was a commercial success and was dubbed in Hindi as Mirch Masala, which was never released.

2000–2009
After a two-year hiatus from Indian cinema, Kamal decided against reviving Marudhanayagam. He directed his second film, Hey Ram,[39] a period drama, told in flashback, with a fact-based plot centering on the partition of India and the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. Kamal produced and choreographed the film, writing its screenplay and lyrics; it was India's submission for the Academy Awards that year. Hey Ram was a box-office failure in India but was successful worldwide. Also in 2000, Kamal appeared in the comedy Thenali (inspired from Hollywood movie What About Bob?) as a Sri Lankan Tamilian with PTSD who is under a psychiatrist's care. Thenali, starring Malayalam actor Jayaram, was a box-office success. Kamal's next film was 2001's Aalavandhan, in which he played two roles: For one he had his head shaved and gained ten kilograms. To play the other Army major in Aalavandhan, he went to the NDA for a crash course. The Hindi version was distributed by Shringar Films. Despite pre-release publicity, the film was a commercial failure.

After a number of successful comedies (including Pammal K. Sambandam and Panchathantiram (inspired from the Hollywood movie Very Bad Things) and guest appearances, Kamal directed Virumaandi, a film about capital punishment which won the Best Asian Film Award at the Puchon International Fantastic Film Festival. He also appeared in Anbe Sivam with Madhavan. Priyadarshan, its original director, left and Sundar C. completed the film. Anbe Sivam tells the story of Nallasivam, portrayed by Kamal as a communist. His performance was praised by critics, with The Hindu saying that he "has once again done Tamil cinema proud".

In 2004 Kamal appeared in Vasool Raja MBBS, a remake of Bollywood's Munnabhai MBBS, with Sneha which was a box-office success. The following year, he wrote and starred in the comedy Mumbai Xpress. Released during Tamil New Year with Rajinikanth's Chandramukhi and Vijay's romantic comedy Sachien, it was a disappointment at the box office despite positive reviews. In 2006 Kamal's long-delayed project, the stylish police story Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu, was a success. Directed by Gautham Menon, the film is about a police officer sent to the US to investigate a series of medical murders. In 2008's Dasavathaaram, he played ten roles; the film was released in a number of languages (including Tamil, Telugu and Hindi) throughout India and overseas. Dasavathaaram, written by Kamal and director K. S. Ravikumar, is one of the first modern science-fiction films made in India. Starring Kamal and Asin Thottumkal, it was the highest-grossing Tamil film (as of 2008) and his performance was critically praised. In Canada, Dasavathaaram was the first Tamil film distributed by Walt Disney Pictures.

After Dasavathaaram Kamal directed a film tentatively titled Marmayogi, which stalled after a year of pre-production. He then produced and starred in Unnaipol Oruvan, a remake of the Bollywood film A Wednesday, where he reprised the role originally played by Naseeruddin Shah with Malayalam actor Mohanlal playing Anupam Kher's role. It was released in Telugu as Eeenadu, with Venkatesh reprising the role played by Kher. Both versions were critically acclaimed and commercially successful.

2010–present
Kamal collaborated for the fifth time with Ravikumar in Manmadan Ambu, for which he also wrote the screenplay. The story concerns a man who hires a detective to find out if his fiancée is cheating on him. The film was released in December 2010 to mixed reviews, with Behindwoods calling it "an entertainer, but in parts" and Sify saying it "lacks the punch to captivate the audiences".

Kamal's next film after Manmadhan Ambu was 2013's Vishwaroopam, released in Hindi as Vishwaroop. It won two National Film Awards (Best Production Design and Best Choreography) at the 60th National Film Awards. Muslim groups in Tamil Nadu demanded the ban of the film and claimed, that the film would hurt Muslim sentiments. Although the film was cleared by Central Board of Film Certification of India, district collectors in the state of Tamil Nadu gave orders to the theatre owners to not show Vishwaroopam, citing law and order problems, however the film released in other states with greater Muslim populations than in Tamil Nadu. A mutual agreement with the Muslims of Tamil Nadu was finally settled on 2 February 2013, when Haasan accepted to mute five scenes.

In May 2014, he was appointed as the official Indian delegate to the 67th Cannes Film Festival. As of July 2014, he was working on three films: Uthama Villain, Vishwaroopam II, the sequel of Vishwaroopam and Papanasam. After 2 years of Vishwaroopam' s release, Uttama Villain was released on 2 May 2015 with exceptional critical reviews and on 3 July 2015, Papanasam a Tamil remake of Malayalam film Drishyam[ was released with positive reviews and became a huge success  followed by the bi-lingual Thoongaa Vanam and Cheekati Rajyam, both doing moderate business.

Sabaash Naidu (English: Bravo Naidu) in Tamil and Telugu, titled Shabhash Kundu (English: Bravo Kundu) in Hindi, is an upcoming Indian spy comedy-adventure film which is written, co-produced and directed by Kamal. He plays the lead role reprising the role of Balram Naidu (a Telugu RAW Officer), a spin off of one of the characters which he played in Dasavathaaram (2008). The film's release date has been delayed owing to Kamal Haasan's entry into politics, though he pledged to finish the films he had signed on for.

Off-screen contributions
In addition to acting, Kamal is noted for his involvement in other aspects of filmmaking. He has written many of his films, including Raja Paarvai, Apoorva Sagodharargal, Michael Madhana Kamarajan, Thevar Magan, Mahanadhi, Hey Ram, Aalavandhan, Anbe Sivam, Nala Damayanthi, Virumaandi, Dasavathaaram, Manmadhan Ambu and Vishwaroopam. Kamal's production company (Rajkamal International) has produced several of his films, and he directed Chachi 420, Hey Ram, Virumaandi and Vishwaroopam. He considered directing full-time if Hey Ram was successful, but changed his mind when the film failed at the box office. In his earlier career, he choreographed for MGR in Naan Yen Pirandhen, Sivaji Ganesan in Savaale Samaali and Jayalalithaa in Anbu Thangai In 2010 Kamal said he wanted to do more directing, since young actors wished to work for him. When he played supporting roles early in his career he wanted to become a technician and joked: "Film makers like K. Balachander told me that I won't be able make much money by being a technician. So the end result is that the star Kamal funds the technician Kamal in pursuing his dreams".  Kamal attended workshops for makeup technicians in the US for several years, and trained as a makeup artist under Michael Westmore.

Kamal has written songs for his films. He wrote the lyrics for a single in Hey Ram, songs in Virumaandi and Unnaipol Oruvan and the album for Manmadhan Ambu. Kamal's musical work has been well received by his peers in Tamil film. He is also a playback singer, singing in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam and English.