Kanyakumari: First Malayalam film as an adult lead. First Filmfare Award. Kamal often says that it was Malayalam cinema that first made him the hero, and also accepted him as one of them.
Kokila marked Balu Mahendra's directorial debut. The Kannada film had Kamal in a role that we find ourselves difficult to slot in a category. In a love story like this, is he the villain or the hero?Talking about conflicted love stories, Maro Charitra, the K Balachander-directed Telugu film set the benchmark for love stories. A tragic romance, it launched Kamal Haasan in Telugu, and how!The Maro Charitra team sans Saritha remade the film in Hindi as Ek Duje Ke Liye. This time to launch Kamal Haasan in Hindi. It is said that the the film spawned copycat suicides. Talk about impact!Sagara Sangamam marked the first of the legendary combination between Kamal Haasan and K Viswanath. Can we ever forget the 'Panchabootham' sequence? Or the dance on the well? Dancer Kamal's benchmarkIt is not everyday that an actor is nominated for both Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor for the same film. But not everyone is Kamal Haasan, and he achieved this with Saagar. And won Best ActorIt is interesting how Kamal-Viswanath combo worked like a charm, not just in Telugu, but also in the dubbed Tamil version. Both Swathi Muthyam and Sippikul Muthu are celebrated... even now.It is a pity that Chanakyan marks Kamal Haasan's final Malayalam film to date. He is excellent as the unhinged plotter, staying true to the title. Also marked the start of his friendship with JayaramNot having done a direct full-length Telugu comedy film, Kamal got that box ticked with the hilarious Indrudu Chandrudu. It also won him yet another Filmfare AwardIn Eenadu, his last direct Telugu film to date, he played the 'Common Man of the Indian Republic' The Telugu version was as much a critical and commercial success as its Tamil version- Unnaipol Oruvan