Actors who broke the stereotypes in various ways

Allowing mockery on oneself is a very rare quality found in human beings and it is even more rare in celebrities especially the film industry in which people are required to maintain a ‘super’ human status. But it is an interesting development in recent years that this trait has helped celebrities achieve a better recognition within the film industry as well as the audience. This is a kind of breaking stereotype as an artist and there are many other actors who have come out of the mould as an actor in different ways. Let's have a look at some of them.

M.R.Radha

Nadigavel M.R.Radha continued staging plays even after becoming busy in the film industry. Not just that. His plays often had controversial themes criticising Hindu gods, religious practices and long-held beliefs. Most of his dramas were either banned or strictly monitored by Police officers. We have seen many actors joining political parties but Radha was for the most part of his life, loyal to the Dravidar Kazhagam found by EVR Periyar and did not join the political outfit DMK that emerged by splitting from DK.

Cho.Ramasamy

Cho Ramasamy was a leading comedy cum supporting actor and had a good relationship with the stalwarts MGR and Sivaji Ganesan. But that never stopped him from staunchly criticising MGR’s Government or other actor turned politicians with whom he had a good friendship. You can appreciate this trait only when you compare it with the actors of the current generation who are always keen on remaining apolitical and pro-establishment.

Radharavi

M.R.Radha’s son Radharavi has been a much sought-after character artist for decades and he got to enact some memorable roles of his career in the recent years. He has also been a long-standing member and a stalwart of Nadigar Sangam for many years. Unlike many of his colleagues who always indulge in the sweet talk, Radharavi has never hesitated to express his candid views which have dragged him into controversies. His comments about Ajith Kumar, Vishal and G.V.Prakash have incurred him the ire of their fans but he has a never mind attitude for such repercussions.Radharavi continues to be candid as ever and even in the audio launch function of his recent film ‘Iraivi’ he did not mince a word to express his anger towards the female anchor for not mentioning his name while introducing the film.

Visu

Actors generally prefer to maintain their on-screen age, much lesser than their real age. But Visu is exceptional in this regard. He started acting as a middle-aged or old person right from the beginning. He would have been in his thirties when he flamboyantly enacted characters of 50-60 age group.

Ranga Rao and Balaiah

Visu had some predecessors in the industry. S.V.Ranga Rao and T. S. Balaiah always acted in the father or grandfather roles even at young age. Sadly the two legendary actors were not alive to live the age groups they have represented in their films. Balaiah died at 57 while Rao died at 56.

Kamal Haasan

There is a common feeling that actor Kamal Haasan will handle media interviews diplomatically and most of his answers will be confusing. It is, of course, true to an extent. But the star has never hesitated to express his opinion on certain issues without having a second thought on how it would affect his image as a star and how it will be taken by the society or the concerned person.As a human being and a creator, he has always opposed capital punishment. He voiced his opinion against the Babri Masjid demolition and has never hesitated to criticise politicians in general on various issues. He even criticised the people who receive cash for vote.This way Kamal has proved his uniqueness as an actor/celebrity is not limited to the screen.

Seeman

Seeman started his career as a director and later became an actor. Unlike many of his peers, he never concealed his political and ideological stand. He never tried to hide is admiration for the controversial LTTE founder Prabhakaran. Now he is more a politician than a film industry celebrity but even before entering politics, he has never hesitated to oppose the ruling parties and political leaders if he perceives them to be 'anti-Tamil' or ‘anti-elam’

Ajith Kumar

Actors endorsing products and appearing in Television commercials is something that has been existing ever since the medium became popular. But it is a generally held conception in Kollywood that acting in too many TV commercials is inimical to an actor as people will get overdosed with their face and onscreen presence. So actors especially heroes would tread a cautious path with limited appearancesSuriya is the actor who broke this convention and kept acting in many private commercials as well as public awareness videos and still remained at the top of the star ladder. He spearheaded this trend and nowadays, its a common sight to see Kollywood actors appearing in multiple TV ads at a time.

Allowing mockery on oneself is a very rare quality found in human beings and it is even more rare in celebrities especially the film industry in which people are required to maintain a ‘super’ human status.