Biography
Acting Career
Early career
Ajith was born as the middle child in Secunderabad, a northern
district of Hyderabad, India, to a Tamil Iyer father from Palakkad and a
Sindhi mother, but was brought up in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, hence
learning Tamil since his childhood. He dropped out of Asan Memorial
Senior Secondary School in 1986 before completing his higher secondary.
He took up work as a two wheeler auto mechanic, and got himself a
driver’s licence to coincide with his interests, that of car / bike
racing. At 18, Ajith had to take up a job to support his career in
racing. Joining as an apprentice, he rose to be a merchandiser with a
garment export company, doing small-time press ads and TV commercials
occasionally. He had put a lot of money into racing and would borrow
tyres from his friends who used to help when the chains wore out as
there was no money in racing at that time.
Following an accident,
several business agencies pushed him into modeling for advertisements in
print media. He had to make a choice between films and racing, and as
the movies were happening and generating him some money, he began
concentrating on it.
Aged 20, Ajith was selected by Telugu film producers, Lakshmi
Productions, to star in their film; however shooting was stalled soon
after filming began, following the death of the film’s director. Ajith
then started his film career at the age of 21 appearing in the low
budget Telugu film, Prema Pustagam in 1992, which remains his last
direct Telugu film to date.
His first Tamil film Amaravathi, directed by
then newcomer Selva, was a moderate success and his voice was rendered
by fellow actor, Vikram. After the release, Ajith whilst training for an
amateur motor race, suffered a fall, injuring his back and underwent
three major surgeries resulting in a bed rest for one and a half years.
Following the injury in 1993, Ajith played a supporting role in the
Arvind Swamy starrer, Paasamalargal, before appearing in a supporting
lead role in the family drama, Pavithra, which featured him as an ailing
patient shown maternal affection from Raadhika.
Romantic hero (1995-2000)
In 1995, after a supporting role in the Vijay starrer Rajavin
Parvaiyile, Ajith appeared in his first major success, Aasai. The film
directed by Vasanth and produced by Mani Ratnam, featured him in the
lead role opposite Suvalakshmi, whose brother-in-law infatuates about
her. The film became became a big success and established Ajith as an
upcoming actor in the Tamil film industry.
Ajith’s next Vaanmathi was
also a hit and he later played the lead in Kalloori Vaasal co-starring
Prashanth and Pooja Bhatt.Ajith’s second blockbuster came in the form of
National Award winning Kadhal Kottai, in which Ajith reunited with
Agathiyan, the director of the earlier project Vaanmathi.The film which
told the tale of two people falling in unconditional love without seeing
each other until the climax.
The film paired him opposite Devayani,
with Heera Rajgopal, who Ajith fell in love during the making of the
project, playing a supporting role.
After the success of his films in 1996, the following year saw a
series of five failures, the most notable being Amitabh Bachchan’s Tamil
production Ullasam with Maheswari, in which he was paid a salary of Rs.
2 million for the first time. Ajith returned with another successful
project in Saran’s Kadhal Mannan, with the “masala film” setting the
foundations for an expanding fan base.Following films Aval Varuvala and
Unnidathil Ennai Koduthen also became successes, with the latter
featuring Ajith in a praised guest role.
After a couple of average
grossers in Uyirodu Uyiraga and Ramesh Khanna’s Thodarum, Sundar C’s
romantic drama Unnaithedi opposite Malavika became another comeback film
and set the tone for a series of big successes. S. J. Suryaah’s
thriller, Vaali, which portrayed him in dual roles opposite Simran,
became his biggest hit til date following it’s release. The film told
the story of a deaf and mute brother setting his eyes on his younger
brother’s wife, with Ajith’s portrayal of the two brothers winning him
his first of many awards for Filmfare’s Best Actor.Furthermore Ajith’s
portrayal of the brothers was also praised, with critics claiming that
the film was an”instant classic” with Ajith showing that he is a
“talented actor”.
The two following supporting roles in the drama films
Anandha Poongatre and Nee Varuvai Ena also brought Ajith plaudits for
his portrayals. His final film before the new millennium was another
blockbuster, Amarkalam directed by Saran and featuring Shalini, whom he
married shortly after the film. Amarkalam told the story of a negelected
child who grew up and fails to show feelings of love or affection,
becoming a gangster in the process, with Ajith’s depiction of his rogue
character appreciated by critics.
His next, Mugavari, won him commercial and critical praise.
The film
revolved around the life of a struggling music composer who faces
sacrifices to proceed in his career. The film featured dual endings, one
with Ajith succeeding in his career, the other with Ajith dejected.
Ajith’s performance was yet again praised with critics from Rediff,
claiming that “Ajith is the real winner”, drawing an allusion with the
film’s script, whilst adding that “it is amazing to see how Ajith has
grown as an actor. He brilliantly portrays the vulnerable and sad
Sridhar”.
He also appeared in A. R. Rahman’s 2000 musical Kandukondain
Kandukondain directed by Rajiv Menon. The blockbuster featured Ajith
alongside prominent actors Mammooty and Raghuvaran and actresses
Aishwarya Rai, Tabu and Srividya. In a similar role to his previous
film, Ajith played a struggling film director facing an oscillating
relationship with Tabu, with the pair being unanimously praised for
their roles. His first failure in eight films, came in the form of the
army based Unnai Kodu Ennai Tharuven co-starring Simran.
Ups and downs (2001-2005)
In 2001, Ajith appeared in Dheena, A. R. Murugadoss’s debut film
co-starring Laila Mehdin and Suresh Gopi. The film, indirectly marked
the beginning of a new image of Ajith, that of an action hero that would
appeal to the masses. Furthermore from the successful film, Ajith’s
nickname in the film, Thala, Tamil for Leader, became a new identity for
the actor amongst his fans.
His next was the much-hyped thriller,
Citizen, portraying Ajith in ten different get-ups and it became an
above average success at the box office, despite being labelled a
disappointment from critics. A role in the family drama, Poovellam Un
Vasam followed opposite Jyothika and was a success commercially and
critically earning a Special Best Actor Award from the Tamil Nadu State.
The year ended off with an appearance in Santosh Sivan’s Hindi project,
Asoka, in which Ajith appeared in a brief negative role alongside Shah
Rukh Khan. 2002 saw Ajith appear in three films, the first two; Red and
Raja being average grossers, the former further building up his image as
an action hero. The third film, Villain, in which Ajith appeared in
dual roles, one as a mentally ill handicap, became a blockbuster and in
return earning Ajith his second Filmfare Best Tamil Actor Award.
The following years, from 2003 til 2005, saw Ajith appear in a fewer
amount of films due to his career in motor racing becoming more
prominent. 2003 saw the release of his long-delayed Ennai Thalatta
Varuvala and the police-drama Anjaneya, both failing commercially. His
next Jana with Sneha also became a big failure, with the Saran film,
Attagasam being his only hit in the period.
The film, saw Ajith portray
dual roles, with a song, Thala Deepavali penned to promote his action
image.In 2005, the failure of the Linguswamy film Ji, despite garnering
positive reviews and taking a strong opening, saw Ajith take a
sabbatical from acting to re-work his image.
Billa and the future (2006-present)
During 2006, Ajith returned from his hiatus by appearing in P. Vasu’s
Paramasivan for which he had lost twenty kilograms to portray the lead
role. The film enjoyed a moderate success, scoring over Vijay’s Aadhi,
which also released in the same week, at the box-office.Critics from The
Hindu stated Ajith looked “trim and taut” in the film with “only his
eyes seeming to have lost some of its sparkle”, following the major
weight loss.
Furthermore, for Paramasivan and his two other projects in
2006, Ajith sported long hair, which was being grown for Bala’s project,
Naan Kadavul, which Ajith eventually opted out of. Similarly his next,
AVM Productions’s, Thirupathi directed by Perarasu performed above
average business at the box-office, despite garnering poor reviews, with
Rediff critics citing that the film is “anything but sensible” but that
Ajith “salvages the situation with a spirited performance”.
Ajith
summed up a successful comeback by the release of his long-delayed film,
Varalaru which went on to become his biggest success til date. The K.
S. Ravikumar film co-starring Asin, portrayed Ajith in three roles,
including that of a classical dancer, with his portrayals being
critically praised.
Moreover, the film fetched Ajith his third Filmfare
Best Actor Award, on its way to becoming a blockbuster. Ajith’s first
release in 2007, Aalwar became a debacle at the box-office, with his
previous film still continuing to run in theatres even after Aalwar had
stopped it’s brief theatrical run. Kireedam, a remake of the 1989
National Award winning Malayalam film of the same name was released to
positive reviews, with the film also becoming a moderate success. During
the shoot of the film, Ajith developed a further spinal injury, a
recurrence of his problem earlier in his career.
Ajith then starred in a remake of a 1980s Rajinikanth starrer, Billa,
which became a blockbuster. The film fetched critical praise for Ajith,
becoming a trendsetter for stylish art direction and cinematography in
India. Billa, yet again, featured Ajith in dual roles one of a notorious
don whilst the other played an innocent person who had to act as the
don, following the former’s death. After Billa,
Ajith appeared in the
film Ayngaran International production Aegan, directed by the
choreographer turned director Raju Sundaram. The film, a remake of the
2004 Hindi comedy Main Hoon Na, only managed to do average business at
the box office. Following a year’s worth of production, Ajith’s latest
release, Aasal released in February 2010, taking a grand opening at the
box office.
The film, which also featured Ajith in dual roles, saw Ajith
creditted as a screenwriter along with his role of being a don
neglected by his brothers in the quest for their father’s will. After a
seconf foray into motor racing, Ajith has signed up to star in a film
directed by Gautham Menon, which is likely to start in late 2010.
Personal life
Family
Ajith Kumar was born on 1 May 1971 to a Tamil Brahmin from Palakkad
named P. Subramaniam and his wife Mohini, of Sindhi origin from Kolkata,
West Bengal. Ajith later created the non-profit organisation
“Mohini-Mani Foundation”, named after his parents, in order to promote
self-hygiene and civic consciousness and to help ease the problems of
urban sprawl.
Ajith Kumar was the middle son out of three brothers, the
others being Anil Kumar, a stock broker in New York and Anoop Kumar, an
IIT Madras graduate working in Seattle. The latter brother was recently
involved in the court case of fellow actor, Prashanth’s, divorce.
Moreover, Ajith had younger twin sisters, both of whom died
young.Through his marriage to actress Shalini, Ajith became
brother-in-law to actor, Richard Rishi, and actress Shamili, who
appeared as his sister-in-law in Rajiv Menon’s Kandukondain
Kandukondain.
Relationships
In 1999, during ths shoot of Saran’s Amarkalam, Ajith began to date
his co-star Shalini. At that time, their involvement made him a regular
subject of tabloid gossip, a role to which he was accustomed following
his previous relationship. Ajith proposed to Shalini in June 1999, and
following consultations with her family, she agreed. They were married
in April 2000 in Chennai ina grand ceremony.
As both were of different
religions, Ajith being a Hindu Brahmin and Shalini being Protestant
Christian, they were married together under the customs of both
religions. After their marriage, Shalini retired as an actress and
became a full time housewife, following the completion of two unfinished
projects.On 3 January 2008, their daughter, Anoushka, was born in
Chennai.
Professional car racer
Ajith claims himself to be a professional “car racer” and has driven
in circuits around India in places such as Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi. He
has also been abroad for various races including Germany and Malaysia.
He drove in 2003 Formula Asia BMW Championships.
