Over the years, many child actors have made their presence felt in Tamil movies with their cute antics and superb performances. While some of them seemed to have disappeared from the film scene with time, there are others who came back as leading actors and actresses.
Here are some actors who first made it big as child prodigies in Tamil movies.
Kamal Hassan
When it comes to child artists, there is no way one can forget Ulaganayagan Kamal Hassan. As a child, he appeared on screen for the first time in Kalathur Kannamma. His immense talent at such a young age was applauded by all and he was awarded a Gold Medal by the then President of India. He went on to act in five other movies as a child actor. These include Paarthal Pasi Theerum, Paadha Kannikai, Vanambadi and Anandha Jodi.
Sridevi
The ethereal beauty Sridevi, who mesmerized the Tamil audience with her looks and talent, first ventured into movies as a child artist. She mainly worked in Hindu mythological movies and was known for her roles as Krishna and Murugan. In 1971, she won the Kerala State Award for her stellar performance in Malayalam film, Poombatta. Some of her noteworthy Tamil movies as child artist are Nam Naadu, Kandan Karunai, Prarthanai, Vasantha Maaligai and Babu.
Silambarasan
Known for his inimitable style of acting and his energy, Silambarasan aka Simbu first made his presence as a child actor. He took the Tamil audience by storm by displaying his dancing abilities in the film, Samsara Sangeetham. He went on to act in 11 other movies most of which were directed by his father, T. Rajendran. Some of the movies in which you can see Master Simbu are Oru Thaayin Sabatham, Oru Vasantha Geetham, Samsara Sangeetham, Sabash Babu and Petredhu Pillai.
Meena
The effervescent and extremely talented Meena debuted into the Tamil film industry as a child artist in the movie Nenjangal, which had veteran actor Sivaji Ganesan in the lead. Her performance in the movie Anbulla Rajnikant was highly applauded and still remains a hot favorite among the Tamil movie lovers. She went on to act in 45 movies as a child star including Nenjangal, Anbulla Rajnikant, Theerpugal Thiruthapadalam, Lakshmi Vanthachu and Vasanthi.
Vijay
Believe it or not, Ilayathalapathi Vijay was first seen as a child actor in the 1984 movie Vetri which had Vijaykanth in the lead role. This film was directed by his father S.A. Chandrasekhar who was appalled by his son’s acting prowess. This is what propelled him to encourage his son to polish his acting skills and to establish him as a star in the Tamil film industry.
At an age when most children are busy completing their assignments and studying for exams, these actors wowed the audience with their histrionics on screen. This dabbling with the silver screen is what made them come back for more as lead actors and actresses.
