On Mohan Raja's birthday today, here’s wishing the ingenious director a very happy birthday from our side. If top actors are queuing up for a chance with him, it's his hard work, imagination and vision, that has brought him where he is.

Jayam Raja did not have the easiest of starts despite belonging to a film background. Starting off with remaking scripts of other writers, he began to be called “Remake Raja.” But one thing that stands out in his films are, most of them were hits. Maybe the story was not his, but the direction was, and the way the ace director has handled the script requires a lot of appreciation. Out of 7 such films, at least 6 were big hits. The director obviously has a big stake in this success. The movie Jayam performed so well at the box office that it earned the director and his brother, the title ‘Jayam’, one that is apt for the successful filmmaker. His next three films with his brother not only proved his capabilities as a director but also gave Jayam Ravi the scope to display his potential on screen. Till date, the movies, ‘M. Kumaran S/O Mahalakshmi’, ‘Something Something... Unakkum Enakkum’ and ‘Santosh Subramaniam’ are considered as some of Jayam Ravi’s best performances.

Looking at the director's talent, take 'Santosh Subramaniam' for instance. The way Mohan Raja brought the various characters to life ensures that this film will always be remembered in the history of Tamil Cinema. So it was no surprise that the film crossed a 100 days, a feat which is barely possible these days. It also won a well-deserved Tamil Nadu State Film Award. Looks like the brothers bring out the best in each other, which is all the more reason to hope that Thani Oruvan 2 releases soon.

'Velayudham', a remake of Telugu film ‘Azad’ was another one of his films that the audience was completely entertained by. While the films were doing well on one side, the media began to zero in on the remake aspect. But in fact, looking at it another way, if his remake films were a hit without him writing the story, then when he did actually write the story, maybe the film would be even better. And that’s exactly what happened. Looks like his remake films were just him warming up because when he launched his own ideas, he stole the show without a doubt.

The first film which credited Mohan Raja as director and writer was 'Thani Oruvan'. That film was not just a hit. It was a phenomenal response that the movie opened to, and why not? With a superb plot and several hard-hitting dialogues, the director had sculpted a masterpiece that was portrayed aptly by Jayam Ravi and Arvind Swamy. Tamil Cinema now had a director who could go beyond physical violence and fights as the resolution of conflicts between a hero and villain. The battle of minds which was shown in the film was logical, intelligent and a welcome change, without losing out on being as engaging as any other climax. Following this, actor Sivakarthikeyan impressed by his work, asked to do his next movie ‘Velaikkaran’ with the director. Again, Mohan Raja proved that he relies more on reason, logic and intellect rather than masala and meaningless sensation. The movie which dealt with several important themes such as the commercialization of a basic need food, the responsibility of workers and consumers and income disparity in society, was completely relatable and not only won hearts but also acted as a prompt for people to reflect on themselves.

Raja’s latest project after 'Thani Oruvan 2', is possibly with Thalapathy Vijay. After a hit with 'Velayudham', fans will be eagerly awaiting their combination. With every movie that he tries to make a difference to society, his social responsibility as a filmmaker can also be seen. Wishing Jayam Raja, a director who has shown that he is not only capable of hard work and smart work but also good work, more and more success with every project on this special day!