The Best Villains in Tamil Cinema – The New Age Antagonist

Best Villains in Tamil Cinema: The sweet flavor of a lemon begins with a sour vinegary taste, and the same can be said about an antagonist cause there is no Hero in any film without his counterpart called the Villain. And many blockbuster movies we have experienced over the years wouldn’t have been entertaining or compelling without a solid antagonist. Villains are just normal characters, with a set of rules exactly opposite to the protagonist and get punished or corrected at the very end.

In the lengthy history books of Kollywood, we are introduced to numerous villains like M. N. Nambiar, Mansoor Ali Khan, Anandraj, Raghuvaran, Nassar, Prakash Raj, and even Superstar Rajinikanth as every actor aspires to do a negative role in their illustrious careers to fulfill their acting thirst. So, here is a list of characters (filled with mostly newcomers) that gave a new dimension and redefined the roles of antagonists in Tamil cinema, here’s presenting the Best Villains in Tamil Cinema.

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[Ranked in no particular order]

8. Victor by Arun Vijay / Yennai Arindhaal

The character Victor, who oversees the network of illegal organ trade, played by Arun Vijay in the movie Yennai Arindhaal is arguably one of the best counterparts for Ultimate Star – ‘Thala’ Ajith Kumar, to date. For the first time, Arun Vijay picks up an antagonist role and is also offered a good amount of screentime to play with a variety of emotions, on par with the protagonist.

Opposing a mass actor like Ajith is not an easy task, but, Arun Vijay with his fierce performance and stylish mannerisms showcased greatness on-screen which, turned out to be a vital point in his career. With Gautham Vasudev Menon’s classy touch, the movie gets elevated whenever Victor appears in front of the camera, especially towards the very end. One of the Best Villains in Tamil Cinema.

7. Rudra by Anurag Kashyap / Imaikkaa Nodigal

Acclaimed director Anurag Kashyap’s Kollywood debut as Rudra in 2018’s psychological thriller – Imaikkaa Nodigal was the primary positive element of the movie. The serial killer role suited flawlessly for Kashyap’s powerful eyes and his composed performance packed with evilness complemented by director Magizh Thirumeni’s dubbing voice supplied the much-needed fierceness to his character. Hiphop Tamizha’s splendid background score made the film even better, and the motto behind Rudra’s killing provided completeness to the overall narrative.

6. Hari Dada by Nana Patekar / Kaala

After Neelambari in Padayappa (’98), Superstar Rajinikanth confronted a powerful opponent in Hari Dada performed by Nana Patekar in the super-hit 2018 film – Kaala. The precise writing by Pa. Ranjith and a tremendous performance by Patekar made us root for the protagonist much more from the beginning till the end. The current political resemblance also added a special attribute to the character alongside the eerie background score by Santhosh Narayanan.

5. Thatha Maistry by Karate Venkatesan / Pariyerum Perumal

On the other side of the coin, to this day we (as an audience) primarily got to witness businessmen, gangsters, politicians, mentally disturbed, big shots, and wealthy jerks as antagonists. And it is a rare occurrence to watch a normal person co-existing within our society as an antagonist. The critically acclaimed 2018 drama – Pariyerum Perumal is a one-of-a-kind film that has an egocentric old brute performing honor killing, and a stubborn individual who is ready to do anything for the sake of his caste.

Not being a rich and an affluent person and expecting nothing in return for his nightmarish activities shows the cruelty of the character. Karate Venkatesan, a newcomer, performed this role ‘Thatha Maistry’ in such a terrifying way inside and out as we got scared and angry whenever he’s on-screen. This character is an authentic and a realistic villain with top-notch writing by Mari Selvaraj.

4. Sudalai by S. J. Suryah / Spyder

Best Villains in Tamil Cinema: Sudalai, a complete sicko who extracts satisfaction by watching human deaths, as this uncanny nature brings enough negativity to the character. Furthermore, S. J. Suryah with his distinguished performance added more negativeness to Sudalai in Spyder.

Sudalai’s character was tailor-made for S. J. Suryah, who already has bulgy eyes and a scary smile with a little mysterious body language. His performance in the film entertained and thrilled us despite the bland plot and Mahesh Babu’s typical screen presence.

3. Pettaikaran by V. I. S. Jayapalan / Aadukalam

Pettaikaran played by V. I. S. Jayapalan in Vetri Maaran’s Aadukalam, is yet another intriguing character with a negative shade. Pettaikaaran, a veteran in cockfights, in a selfish disagreement, turns cold against his team member, Karupu (Dhanush), and continues to backstab him. This aged character expressing his anger in a composed way was handled expertly by Jayapalan, and he gave a natural performance as a wealthy elder man Pettaikaran, standing opposite to Karupu, who is younger than him was a fascinating conflict to experience.

2. Siddharth Abimanyu by Arvind Swamy / Thani Oruvan

Next on the list of the Best Villains in Tamil Cinema, the character Siddharth Abimanyu played Arvind Swamy in Thani Oruvan, holds a special place in the history book of Tamil cinema as it presented a new-age villain to all of us. This character threw light on the unknown sides of a business tycoon, who has been celebrated for the good deeds that he does and how powerful enough he is to control a person’s day to day life activities and make government work for him. The incidents that happen in the movie gave everyone a spectacular experience and also Arvind Swami made Siddarth Abimanyu a likable antagonist with his sheer brilliance of acting.

Even though the hero and villain only meet face-to-face towards the climax, we experienced an exceptional cat and mouse chase only due to perfectly written script by Director Mohan Raja and writer Subha. For the first time, watching a charming actor like Arvind Swamy in a negative role induced novelty to the character, and the chic carefree businessman with a cocky attitude suited him well. Characters like Siddharth Abimanyu only see the light of day once in a lifetime, and we are very fortunate enough to witness magic on-screen in Thani Oruvan.

1. Sathyamoorthy by ‘Action King’ Arjun / Irumbhuthirai

‘Action King’ Arjun as Sathyamoorthy a.k.a the White devil delivered a terrific performance in Irumbhuthirai. Although the character had a few shades of Siddharth Abimanyu, it became appealing due to its cyber crime point of view, and the clever screenplay handled by Director P. S. Mithran.

Arjun delivers a subtle and a matured performance as the White Devil controlling and performing cybercrimes on his fingertips. And, as usual, Yuvan Shankar Raja uplifts the character with his music. As White Devil only gets revealed in the second half of the film, it would’ve helped even more with an extended screen time as the short amount of time that he’s on-screen created a huge impact. One of the Best Villains in Tamil Cinema.

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