SJ Suryah made his directorial debut with Vaali, starring Ajith Kumar, in 1999. No one expected the film to run for 270 days in theaters across Tamil Nadu. Now, 25 years later, he has become one of the top villains in South Indian cinema, acting alongside stars like Kamal Haasan, Vijay, Mahesh Babu, Ram Charan, Nani, and Dhanush.
As the director of Kushi, SJ Suryah reportedly earns around Rs 8 to Rs 10 crore per film as an actor. Industry sources say he is paid significantly more than famous villains in South Indian cinema, such as Sanjay Dutt, Saif Ali Khan, and Bobby Deol.
Early life:
S.J. Suryah, born Justin Selvaraj Pandian on July 20, 1968, hails from a Tamil Christian family in Vasudevanallur, Tenkasi district, Tamil Nadu. He was raised by his parents, Sammanasu Pandian and Anandham, along with his two older siblings, a sister named Selvi and a brother named Victor.
Worked in hotels
After completing his schooling in Vasudevanallur, SJ Suryah moved to Chennai to study physics at Loyola College, turning down an engineering college offer in Madurai to pursue acting. To support himself, he worked various jobs, including in hotels and as a steward, while seeking opportunities in the film industry. He eventually became an assistant director on films like Aasai and Sundara Purushan. His big break came when actor Ajith Kumar recognized him from Aasai and helped him get the film Vaali produced in 1999. The movie was a commercial success, receiving positive reviews and launching Suryah's career as a director.
In an interview, the actor mentioned, "I had starved due to lack of food for several days. Don't even have money to pay house rent. I joined as servant in a hotel to feed myself."
Success
Interestingly, SJ Suryah, who directed Isai, is one of the few Kollywood directors who has found great success as an actor in recent years. While directors like Samuthirakani, Gautham Vasudev Menon (GVM), Sasikumar, Cheran, and Sundar C have also tried acting, only GVM and Sundar C still direct. SJ Suryah’s success as an actor has made him even more popular than some mainstream heroes.
After Vaali, SJ Suryah hit another major success with Kushi, featuring Thalapathy Vijay. He also directed the film in Telugu with Pawan Kalyan and in Hindi with Fardeen Khan. In 2004, he acted in his own film, New, which had an adult theme that sparked some controversy but was a big hit. His next film, Anbe Aaruyire, released in 2005, also followed a similar theme and was successful.
After 2005, SJ Suryah's career faced challenges, and he struggled to find success as a director or actor. Everything changed when director Karthik Subbaraj offered him a role in the crime drama Iraivi, where he played an alcoholic, struggling film director. His strong performance in Iraivi led to major roles in 2017 in Mahesh Babu’s Spyder and Vijay’s Mersal. Since then, top heroes are eager to cast him in their films.
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