One of the most popular actors in Tamil cinema, Sarath Babu has been a part of the movie industry, predominantly South Indian films, for almost four decades. He made his debut with the 1977 film Pattina Pravesam, and then gained popularity after playing one of the lead characters in Nizhal Nijamagiradhu, under the direction of K. Balachander. He starred in the 1992 Tamil drama Annamalai opposite Rajinikanth as the owner of a five star hotel, who is Rajinikanth's childhood friend in the film. He was seen in director K. Balachander's Duet, and also played a significant role in another Rajinikanth starrer Muthu. Apart from these, he has been a part of several movies like Baba, Puthiya Geethai, Rendella Tharuvatha, Kalvanin Kadhali, Malayn, Ramanujan, Aryan and Brindavana. He played the role of a doctor in the 2001 Chiranjeevi - Simran starrer Daddy, about a man who starts a chit fund business. Directed by Suresh Krishna, Daddy was dubbed in Hindi as Meri Izzat. Sarath Babu is also a popular figure among the television audiences, as he was part of serials like Gopuram, Ivala En Manaivi, Rajakumari and Mannan Magal. For his work in the 2009 movie Malayan, he won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Character Artiste (Male). Not only this, he has won several Nandi awards for Best Actor and Best Supporting Actor from the Government of Andhra Pradesh for his performances in Telugu movies.