Manikandan (born 1983) is an

Indian actor The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, Ko ...

, who has appeared in Tamil language films. He has acted in films including ''

Boys A boy is a young male human. The term is commonly used for a child or an adolescent. When a male human reaches adulthood, he is described as a man. Definition, etymology, and use According to the ''Merriam-Webster Dictionary'', a boy is "a ...

'' (2003) and ''

Kicha Vayasu 16 ''Kicha Vayasu 16'' () is a 2005 Indian Tamil language film directed by A. N. Rajagopal starring Simran and Manikandan, with Jai Akash and Sujibala in supporting roles. The film centers around the antics of the eponymous character, Kicha, with o ...

'' (2005).

Career

Manikanda, a visual communications graduate who had featured in

Kala Kala or Kalah may refer to: Religion Hinduism *Kāla, a Sanskrit word meaning ''time'' *Kāla, a Hindu deity of time, destiny, death and destruction closely related to Yama and Shiva. *Kalā, a Sanskrit word meaning ''performing arts'' * Kala Bo, ...

’s dance troupe doing stage shows, was selected by

Shankar Shankar may refer to: People * Shankar (name), including a list of people with the name * Sankar (writer) (Mani Shankar Mukherjee), Bengali writer * L. Shankar, Indian violinist *S. Shankar, Indian film director commonly credited as Shankar * San ...

to feature in his coming-of-age film ''

'' after impressing in auditions. He shot for the film throughout 2002 alongside fellow debutants Siddharth,

Genelia D'Souza Genelia Deshmukh (née D'Souza; born 5 August 1987) is an Indian actress and model who predominantly appears in Telugu, Hindi, and Tamil language films. After gaining wide attention in a Parker Pen commercial with Amitabh Bachchan, D'Souza beg ...

, Bharath,

Nakul In the Hindu epic Mahabharata, ''Nakula'' (Sanskrit: नकुल) was fourth of the five Pandava brothers. Nakula and Sahadeva were twins blessed to Madri, by Ashwini Kumaras, the divine physicians. Their parents Pandu and Madri - died early ...

and

Thaman Ghantasala Sai Srinivas Thaman (born 16 November 1983), known professionally as Thaman S, earlier as S S Thaman, is an Indian music composer, professional drummer, and playback singer who predominantly works in Telugu films and Tamil films. Th ...

. The story centred on six youngsters, conveying a message about the importance of a good education and career over other distractions, such as romance and sex, and marked a move away from Shankar's usual brand of vigilante films, gaining much publicity prior to release. The film opened to mixed reviews but became successful at the box office, with reviewers noting the ensemble cast as "excellent". In the following years, while the other five debut actors have been successful, Manikandan has struggled to receive acclaim and feature in high-profile films. Notably, director Shankar revealed that Manikandan was edged by Bharath to star in

Balaji Sakthivel Balaji Sakthivel is an Indian director of Tamil films. He is best known for directing the 2004 film, ''Kaadhal''. Career Balaji Sakthivel began as an assistant director to S. Shankar. In 2002, he directed his first film, ''Samurai (2002 film), ...

's ''

Kaadhal ''Kaadhal'' () is a 2004 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film based on a true story, directed by Balaji Sakthivel, starring Bharath (in his first film as a main lead actor) and Sandhya. It was produced by S. Shankar and featured music co ...

'' (2004), which had won Bharath significant acclaim. Manikandan subsequently received offers to feature as the lead actor in ''

Kadhal FM ''Kadhal FM'' is a 2005 Tamil film directed by Jayaprakash starring Manikandan, Shivani Singh and Aravind Akash. The movie was shot in and around Pondicherry, Tuticorin, Karaikudi and Tiruchi. Cast * Manikandan as Manikandan *Shivani Singh as ...

'' (2005) and then alongside

Simran Simran (Gurmukhi: ਸਿਮਰਨ; hi, सिमरण, सिमरन ; from Sanskrit: , ''smaraṇa'', 'to remember, reminisce, recollect'), in spirituality, is a Sanskrit word referring to the continuous remembrance of the finest aspect of ...

in ''

'', but both films had low key releases and fared poorly at the box office. He has since starred in several low-budget films, including ''Gurusamy'' and ''

Kaadhal 2014 ''Kaadhal 2014'' () is a 2014 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Suganthan and starring Arish Kumar, Neha, and Manikandan. The film is about female empowerment. ''Boys'' Manikandan debuted as a villain with this film. Cast ...

''.

Filmography

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Manikandan Living people Male actors in Tamil cinema 21st-century Indian male actors 1980 births