Quick Facts
Biography
K. Manikandan is an Indian screenwriter, actor and film director who works in the Tamil film industry. He is best known of his characters in Jai Bhim (2021), Good Night (2023), and Lover (2024).
Career
Manikandan participated in a popular reality comedy show and finished as the runner-up of the season. Subsequently, he joined an FM channel as a Radio Jockey while also dubbing/voice acting for several films and TV shows.
He debuted as a writer with Pizza II: Villa (2013). He made his acting debut with India Pakistan (2015) and played a minor role in the Kadhalum Kadanthu Pogum (2016) directed by Nalan Kumarasamy. Manikandan then played an antagonist in Sri Ganesh's debut directorial venture 8 Thottakkal (2017) alongside M. S. Bhaskar and Lallu. He penned the dialogues for Pushkar–Gayathri's third directorial venture Vikram Vedha (2017) and also played a role of a police constable in the film. In 2018, Pa. Ranjith picked Manikandan for a role in Kaala (2018). Manikandan was involved in Viswasam (2019) Thambi (2019), directed by Siva and Jeethu Joseph respectively, as a dialogue writer. He paired with Nivedithaa Sathish in the romantic anthology film Sillu Karupatti (2019), directed by Halitha Shameem. Manikandan received critical acclaim for his role in the film, Aelay (2021).
Manikandan directed an independent film Narai Ezhuthum Suyasaritham (English Title: Endless) starring Delhi Ganesh and himself. The film was selected to participate in Bengaluru International Film Festival (2016) under ‘Indian Cinema Competition’. Endless was one of the four films to be selected for screening at 16th New York Indian Film Festival (2016).
He played the role of Rajakannu in the film Jai Bhim (2021) and won critical acclaim for his portrayal. He played the lead role in movie Good Night (2023) which became an audience favourite.
Filmography
As actor
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | Pizza II: Villa | Himself | Uncredited Appearance |
| 2015 | India Pakistan | Mani | |
| 2015 | Indru Netru Naalai | Film Director | |
| 2016 | Kadhalum Kadandhu Pogum | Murali | |
| 2017 | 8 Thottakkal | Jai | |
| Vikram Vedha | Santhanam | Behindwoods Gold Medal - Best Dialogue Writer | |
| 2018 | Kaala | Lenin | |
| 2019 | Sillu Karuppatti | Mukhilan | |
| 2020 | Paava Kadhaigal | Driver | Released on Netflix |
| 2021 | Aelay | Paarthi | Released on Star Vijay & Netflix |
| Netrikann | Manikandan | Released on Disney+ Hotstar | |
| Jai Bhim | Rajakannu | Released on Amazon Prime Video; Behindwoods Gold Medal - Best Actor Critics Choice | |
| 2022 | Narai Ezhudhum Suyasaridham | Manikandan | Directing debut; completed in 2016 |
| Sila Nerangalil Sila Manidhargal | Rajasekar | ||
| 2023 | Good Night | Mohan | Lead role |
| 2024 | Lover | Arun | Lead role |
Web series
| Year | Film | Role | Platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Mathagam | Padalam Sekhar | Disney+ Hotstar |
Other roles
| Year | Film | Credited as | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Writer | Director | |||
| 2013 | Pizza II: Villa |  Y |  N | |
| 2017 | Vikram Vedha | Y | N | Behindwoods Gold Medal - Best Dialogue Writer |
| 2019 | Viswasam | Y | N | |
| Thambi | Y | N | ||
| 2022 | Narai Ezhudhum Suyasaridham | Y | Y | Directing debut; completed in 2016 |
| Sila Nerangalil Sila Manidhargal | Y | N | ||
Television
| Year | Title | Role | Network |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Super Singer Season 10 | Guest | Star Vijay |