Having won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Director for his directorial debut 16 Vayathinile in 1977, P. Bharathiraja is one of Tamil cinema`s most sought-after director. In his long-standing career, spanning more than four decades, the director has received various awards, including six National Film Awards as of 2017. Bharathiraja then directed Kizhake Pogum Rail, which went on to become a blockbuster and has a 364-day-long run at the cinemas.
With his next, Sigappu Rojakkal in 1978, Bharathiraja went on to receive the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Director, following which he made his Bollywood debut, directed the 1979 Sridevi and Amol Palekar-starrer drama Solva Sawan, which is the remake of his debut movie. Some of his award-winning movies are Alaigal Oivathillai, Seethakoka Chiluka, Mudhal Mariyathai, Vedham Pudhithu, Karuthamma, Anthimanthaarai, and Kadal Pookkal. In 2004, the successful director and writer was presented with India`s fourth-biggest civilian honour, the Padma Shri Award for his contribution to the film industry.
While he is primarily a director, Bharathiraja has also acted in a handful of movies, making his debut in 1980 with the movie Kallukkul Eeram and then going on to appear in movies like Aayutha Ezhuthu (2004), Rettaisuzhi (2010), Pandianadu (2013), which he won the Vijay Award for Best Supporting Actor, Kurangu Bommai (2017), Padaiveeran (2018), Kennedy Club (2019) and Namma Veetu Pillai (2019).