Sathyaraj

Sathyaraj (born Rangaraj Subbiah, 3 October 1954) is an Indian actor, film producer and media personality who works mainly in Tamil films, with further work in Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam and Kannada. He has acted in more than 260 films and has won three Filmfare Awards South and three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards. Beginning as a screen villain, he became a popular leading man in the late 1980s and 1990s, and later won nationwide fame as Kattappa in S. S. Rajamouli‘s Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017).

Early life

Sathyaraj was born Rangaraj to Subbiah, a doctor, and Nathambal, and has two younger sisters. He studied at St Mary’s Convent School and Suburban High School in Coimbatore and earned a BSc in botany from Government Arts College, Coimbatore. A fan of M. G. Ramachandran and Rajesh Khanna, he wanted to act despite his mother’s opposition, and in 1976 he left Coimbatore for the film industry in Chennai.

Villain years

After watching the shoot of Annakili, he sought help from the actor Sivakumar, who advised him to go home; he stayed on, supported by the producer Maathampatty Sivakumar, and joined Komal Swamynathan’s drama troupe. His first credited role was as a henchman in Sattam En Kaiyil (1978), and he worked as production manager on Kannan Oru Kaikkuzhanthai. Between 1978 and 1985 he appeared in about 75 films, mostly as a villain. His college friend, the director Manivannan, gave him important parts in Nooravathu Naal (1984), 24 Mani Neram and January 1, and he was the main antagonist in Kakki Sattai (1985).

Leading man

His first lead came in the crime thriller Saavi (1985), a box office success. In Kadalora Kavithaigal (1986) he broke away from his action image with a romantic lead, and in Mr. Bharath (1986) he played the father of Rajinikanth’s character though he was younger than Rajinikanth. His performance in Vedham Pudhithu (1987) won him the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor. Manivannan cast him in a run of hits including Chinna Thambi Periya Thambi and Jallikattu.

In the 1990s he had successes including Nadigan, Walter Vetrivel, Thai Maaman and Bramma, and his on-screen pairing with Khushbu was popular. His dual role as father and son in Manivannan’s political satire Amaidhipadai (1994) is considered one of his best performances. For his 125th film, Villadhi Villain (1995), he acted in three roles and also produced and directed.

Character roles

After some setbacks around 2000, he reinvented himself in comedies and co-starred with his son Sibiraj in films such as Jore and Kovai Brothers. He played the title role in Periyar (2007), and later took on supporting parts: as a college professor in Nanban (2012), which won him Filmfare, Vijay and SIIMA awards for Best Supporting Actor, and as fathers in Raja Rani, Chennai Express and the Telugu film Mirchi. He won another Filmfare award for Kanaa (2018).

Baahubali and Telugu films

Playing Kattappa in the Baahubali films brought him popularity across India. He has said that since his debut at 24 he had wanted to do a folklore film, and that Rajamouli fulfilled that dream when he was 60. After Kanaa he appeared in the Telugu films Jersey and Prati Roju Pandage, and he later starred in the Telugu streaming anthology Meet Cute.

Recent work

His Tamil work since 2021 has included Tughlaq Durbar, Etharkkum Thunindhavan, Love Today and the horror thriller Connect, in which he played Nayanthara‘s father. He took the lead in Weapon (2024) and Madras Matinee (2025), and reunited with Rajinikanth in Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Coolie (2025).

Sathyaraj married Maheswari in 1979; they have a daughter, Divya, and a son, the actor Sibiraj.

Sources: Wikipedia and Wikidata.