The chameleon-like Kamal Hassan, 55, is a 
megastar who has been weaving magic on the silver screen for close to half a century with the sheer range and depth of his performances. He’s been there and done it times without number, but the multi-talented actor manages to keep his enthusiasm for the medium alive. He still goes where few dare to – and all in a day’s work. Being a maverick comes easy to Kamal Hassan.
His box-office draw is second to none, but he remains a thinking man’s thespian. In an industry where mass entertainment is the principal credo and an actor is as good as his last hit, he has raised the bar above the mundane and the middling, constantly daring to push into directions and zones where the medium receives an abiding fillip.
A one-man creative powerhouse, Kamal Hassan has over the years worn multiple hats: actor, writer, producer, director, choreographer, lyricist. No matter what role he has assumed behind the camera or before it, he has always had a way of stamping his authority on it.
From the film that made him a superstar – K. Balachander’s Apoorva Raagangal (1975), in which he played a young man who falls in love with an older woman – to his latest release, Unnaipol Oruvan, a remake of A Wednesday that sees him match wits with Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, Kamal’s career has been a constant voyage. His innate ability to keep stagnation at bay has helped him evade the image trap that many superstars falls into.
Kamal began his career as a child star in A. Bhimsingh’s Kalathur Kannamma (1960). He was only six years old. It was as if he was born for the movies. And with each step he has taken since then, he has strengthened that aura.
The 1970s saw him achieve a string of successes in socially-inflected films directed by mentor K. Balachander (Avargal, Moondru Mudichu, Manmadha Leelai, 16 Vayathinile), who often cast him alongside Rajnikanth and Sridevi. As the choreographer-turned-actor continued his ascent through the next decade, his star turns in Balu Mahendra’s Moondram Pirai (1982) and Mani Ratnam’s Nayagan (1987), in which he donned the garb of a real-life mafia don in Bombay, elevated Kamal to the ranks of Indian cinema's finest onscreen performers.
In Apoorva Sohadragal, which had him in a double role, he played a dwarf. In Michael Madhana Kamarajan, he played quadruplets. In films like Thevar Magan and Anbe Sivam, he continued to relentlessly push the boundaries of his craft. He even slipped into the guise of a woman in Avvai Shanmughi. Last year, he was seen in ten onscreen roles in Dasavatharam. Nothing seems to be beyond this man.
As a director, too, Kamal Hassan has chosen to plough a lonely furrow, making his debut in 2000 with Hey Ram, a provocative fictionalised account of the events that led to India’s Partition and the subsequent assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. He then wielded the megaphone with success yet again in Virumandi, a film that revolved around the theme of capital punishment.
Kamal is approaching his 50th year in the business. Is he jaded? Not by a long chalk. His fans can expect a fresh start from the man who never repeats himself.
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Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009
megastar who has been weaving magic on the silver screen for close to half a century with the sheer range and depth of his performances. He’s been there and done it times without number, but the multi-talented actor manages to keep his enthusiasm for the medium alive. He still goes where few dare to – and all in a day’s work. Being a maverick comes easy to Kamal Hassan.His box-office draw is second to none, but he remains a thinking man’s thespian. In an industry where mass entertainment is the principal credo and an actor is as good as his last hit, he has raised the bar above the mundane and the middling, constantly daring to push into directions and zones where the medium receives an abiding fillip.
A one-man creative powerhouse, Kamal Hassan has over the years worn multiple hats: actor, writer, producer, director, choreographer, lyricist. No matter what role he has assumed behind the camera or before it, he has always had a way of stamping his authority on it.
From the film that made him a superstar – K. Balachander’s Apoorva Raagangal (1975), in which he played a young man who falls in love with an older woman – to his latest release, Unnaipol Oruvan, a remake of A Wednesday that sees him match wits with Malayalam superstar Mohanlal, Kamal’s career has been a constant voyage. His innate ability to keep stagnation at bay has helped him evade the image trap that many superstars falls into.
Kamal began his career as a child star in A. Bhimsingh’s Kalathur Kannamma (1960). He was only six years old. It was as if he was born for the movies. And with each step he has taken since then, he has strengthened that aura.
The 1970s saw him achieve a string of successes in socially-inflected films directed by mentor K. Balachander (Avargal, Moondru Mudichu, Manmadha Leelai, 16 Vayathinile), who often cast him alongside Rajnikanth and Sridevi. As the choreographer-turned-actor continued his ascent through the next decade, his star turns in Balu Mahendra’s Moondram Pirai (1982) and Mani Ratnam’s Nayagan (1987), in which he donned the garb of a real-life mafia don in Bombay, elevated Kamal to the ranks of Indian cinema's finest onscreen performers.
In Apoorva Sohadragal, which had him in a double role, he played a dwarf. In Michael Madhana Kamarajan, he played quadruplets. In films like Thevar Magan and Anbe Sivam, he continued to relentlessly push the boundaries of his craft. He even slipped into the guise of a woman in Avvai Shanmughi. Last year, he was seen in ten onscreen roles in Dasavatharam. Nothing seems to be beyond this man.
As a director, too, Kamal Hassan has chosen to plough a lonely furrow, making his debut in 2000 with Hey Ram, a provocative fictionalised account of the events that led to India’s Partition and the subsequent assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. He then wielded the megaphone with success yet again in Virumandi, a film that revolved around the theme of capital punishment.
Kamal is approaching his 50th year in the business. Is he jaded? Not by a long chalk. His fans can expect a fresh start from the man who never repeats himself.
For Complete IIPM Article, Click on IIPM Article
Source : IIPM Editorial, 2009
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