Alaipayuthey

Madhavan made his debut in Mani Ratnam’s ‘Alaipayuthey’. A love story, the film catapulted Madhavan into the big league and made him an overnight superstar. Till then, Madhavan was known as a popular actor in north as he had acted in some very popular Hindi serials. ‘Alaipayuthey’ introduced Madhavan to southern film industry and his portrayal of Karthik was lauded by one and all.

Minnale

If ‘Alaipayuthey’ made Madhavan a star, Gautham Menon’s ‘Minnale’ sealed his position in the Tamil film industry. The film starred Abbas, Madhavan and Reema Sen and was college romance. Madhavan played Rajesh, a happy-go-lucky guy madly in love with Reena (Reema Sen). The film was a Valentine’s Day release in 2001 and was a blockbuster. Owing to its stupendous success, Vashu Bhagnani offered Menon to remake the film in Hindi and signed Madhavan for the same role. The film was remade in Hindi as ‘Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein’ which starred Dia Mirza and Saif Ali Khan along with Madhavan.

Dumm Dumm Dumm

Produced by Mani Ratnam’s Madras Talkies and directed by Azhagam Perumal, the film starred Madhavan and Jyothika. A fresh pairing, an interesting story line and some soulful music made this film an enjoyable watch. And Madhavan shined as the carefree young Adhi who was anti-marriage till he realises he is hopelessly in love with Ganga (Jyothika) and wants to spend the rest of his life with her.

Kannathil Muthamittal

Mani Ratnam-Madhavan’s second outing together was drama. The film came at a time when Madhavan was already known for his romantic roles. In ‘Kannathil Muthamittal’, Madhavan played a writer and supportive father to his daughter who is in search of her biological mother. The film won laurels and fetched many awards. Madhavan’s role was a supporting one, but it was refreshing to see him in a serious character-based role.

Anbe Sivam

A hilarious take on the ever divide between a communist and a capitalist was essayed by Kamal Haasan and R Madhavan in ‘Anbe Sivam’. Both belonging to different ideologies, unwillingly end up together on a journey from Bhuwaneshwar To Chennai. Some light hearted moments are shared, some poignant issues are raised and the two actors give stupendous performances.

Aaytha Ezhuthu

This multi-starrer film had Madhavan playing a rogue. Madhavan tried a character with negative shades for the first time. His fans got to see him playing a rustic man who is on the wrong side of law but who is deeply in love with his wife. The film fetched him his first Best Actor Filmfare trophy.

Rang De Basanti

He had a small role but a pivotal one. As the righteous level-headed Flight Lt. Ajay Rathod, he made an impact in the minds of dissuaded youngsters. His character and subsequent death in the film proved to be a catharsis for the story line.

Guru

Madhavan played Shyam, a righteous journalist who exposes Gurukant Desai’s (Abhishek Bachchan) corrupt ways. Although the film had stars like Abhishek Bachchan, Aishwarya Rai and Mithun Chakraborty, Madhavan held his own space and gave a stellar performance.

3 Idiots

The blockbuster film had Madhavan playing Farhan Qureshi, an engineering student who harboured dreams to become a wildlife photographer. Even though he was in his late 30s when the film was shot, Madhavan essayed the role of a twenty something quite convincingly. The film also starred Aamir Khan and Sharman Joshi as the other ‘idiots’.

Tanu Weds Manu

Madhavan’s Hindi outing post the success of ‘3 Idiots’, was in ‘Teen Patti’. In spite of a stellar cast, like Amitabh Bachchan and Ben Kingsley in it, the film sank without a trace. In 2011, Madhavan starred in Anand L Rai’s ‘Tanu weds Manu’ opposite Kangana Ranaut. While the music of the film was already a success before the release of the film, no one had really expected the film itself to do so well. A hit at the Box Office, it made Madhavan do what he does best – play the lover boy. He played the love-stricken Manav Sharma who takes it upon himself to get his love (Tanu) married to the man she loves.

By Shomini Sen