Manoj Bharathiraja, actor and son of veteran filmmaker Bharathiraja, passed away in Chennai on Tuesday, due to cardiac arrest. He was 48.
Born on September 11, 1976, Manoj made his acting debut with Taj Mahal (1999), directed by his father, written by Mani Ratnam, and scored by A.R. Rahman. He also tried his hand at playback singing, lending his voice to the song ‘Eechi Elumichi’ from Taj Mahal.
He went on to act in films such as Samuthiram (2001), Alli Arjuna (2002), Varushamellam Vasantham (2002), Maha Nadigan (2004), Annakodi (2013), Champion (2019), Maanaadu (2021), and Viruman (2022). He was last seen in the Prime Video series Snakes and Ladders (2024). Before stepping into cinema, he studied theatre arts at the University of South Florida.
In addition to acting, Manoj worked as an assistant director to Bharathiraja in Final Cut of Director (2016), and also assisted Shankar in Enthiran (2010) and Mani Ratnam in Bombay (1995). He made his directorial debut with Margazhi Thingal (2023), which would remain his only film as a director.
Manoj is survived by his wife, Nandana, and their two daughters, Arthika and Mathivadani.