Actor Silambarasan TR celebrates his 42nd birthday today. One of his most recent hits is Maanaadu (2021), which was directed by Venkat Prabhu, and stars SJ Suryah, Kalyani Priyadarshan and Premgi Amaren. Director Venkat Prabhu, in an interview from 2021, had revealed that Silambarasan was not his first choice for the film and that he narrated the story to another actor before finalizing upon Silambarasan.
In an interview from 2021 with Cinema Vikatan, Venkat Prabhu mentioned that Silambarasan was not the first choice for Maanaadu. He recalled that he narrated the story to actor Karthi initially. The director mentioned that since Karthi, "was already committed to Saguni (2012), he did not want to do another political film.” Venkat Prabhu also said that he then “changed the script to Biriyani (2013) for him (Karthi).”
Maanaadu, a science fiction film based on time-travel, was a box office success, collecting ₹ 79.2 Cr, worldwide, according to Sacnilk. The film follows Abdul Khaliq (Silambarasan) who is coerced by a police officer, Dhanushkodi (SJ Suryah) into assassinating the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. Unexpectedly, Abdul is caught in a time loop, which restarts his days everytime he dies, which Abdul uses to his advantage and tries to outsmart Dhanushkodi, while trying to save the CM. Maanaadu highlights the political undertones of anti-communalism with a commentary on divisive politics.
Biriyani (2013) is a crime comedy which follows the adventures of two friends as they hunt for a plate of biryani. The action-thriller, also stars Hansika Motwani, Premgi and Nassar.
Silambarasan is currently shooting Arasan, the newest film from the world of Vada Chennai (2018), which is directed by Vetri Maaran. The team behind Arasan had released a promo featuring Silambarasan and director Nelson in October 2025. Arasan is backed by Kalaipuli S Thanu’s V Creations.