If my wife had not done this I would not have succeeded – Lokesh Kanagaraj

In a very short span of time Lokesh Kanagaraj has raced to the top as the most wanted filmmaker in not only Tamil cinema but in the entire South.  He was a former bank employee who carried a strong passion for cinema and without working as an assistant director he made his debut in ‘Maanagaram’ which was critically acclaimed.  

Lokesh had to wait a good two years for his next film ‘Kaithi’ to hit the screens and the Karthi starrer not only brought him critical acclaim but also a huge box office success.  The filmmaker in his early thirties got his big break directing Thalapathy Vijay and Vijay Sethupathi together in ‘Master’ which attained blockbuster status in spite of the COVID 19 pandemic.

Lokesh Kanagaraj then went to the next level by bagging the golden opportunity to direct his inspiration in cinema the Kamal Haasan himself in ‘Vikram’.  The action thriller was not only the biggest grosser in Kamal’s career but also the second in the history of Tamil cinema.  In the meantime the Lokesh Cinematic Universe came into existence with characters from each of his films crossing over to his other films and now the likes of Kamal Haasan, Vijay, Suriya, Karthi, Vijay Sethupathi, Fahadh Faasil and in all likelihood Superstar Rajinikanth and Chiyaan Vikram may all appear together in various combinations.

Though Lokesh Kanagaraj has got a clear vision and a sound team of writers and assistant directors in a throwback interview he has attributed his wife for his tremendous success.  In 2012 Lokesh married his long time lover Aishwarya and the couple have two daughters Advika and Arudhra.  The ace filmmaker has stated that the couple earned over Rs. 70 thousand at that time but when he quit his job to pursue cinema his wife supported him by continuing to work.  She even went to work when their first daughter was only a few months old.  The grateful husband after the success of his second film ‘Kaithi’ asked Aishwarya to quit her job and take much needed rest.