Guru Somasundaram

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Guru Somasundaram


Occupation
Actor
Years active
2011–present



Guru Somasundaram is an Indian actor who works in the Tamil and Malayalam film industries. He made his debut in Aaranya Kaandam (2011) winning critical acclaim for his role, before also appearing in the Tamil action film Pandiya Naadu (2013), Jigarthanda (2014) and Joker (2016). He rose to fame for playing the role of Shibu, a super villain in the 2021 Netflix Malayalam film, Minnal Murali.

Early life

Guru Somasundaram was born on 3 September 1975. He joined the prominent Tamil theatre group in Koothu-P-Pattarai, where he acted in plays from 2002 till 2011. In 2003, director Thiagarajan Kumararaja saw him, while he was playing the role of Chandrahari in Koothu-P-Pattarai's play. Thiagarajan offered him an opportunity to feature in his future film.

Career

In 2008, Thiagrajan offered Somasundram a role in his neo-noir film Aaranya Kaandam, as the drunkard Kaalaiyan. Somasundaram lost seven kilograms and underwent training for the movie. Upon release in 2011, the film went on to win two National Film Awards, while Somasundaram's performance was well received by critics.[1] Rediff.com's critic praised the ensemble cast but added "the honours undoubtedly go to Guru Somasundaram. His gleeful cackles at the rooster fight, pathetic rumblings to his son and wide-eyed act in the Lodge are wonderful to behold."[2] Similarly Behindwoods.com noted that the actor had delivered a "superior" performance.[3] After seeing his performance, director Mani Ratnam signed him on to play a small role in Kadal (2013).

After leaving Koothu-P-Pattarai, he toured as a freelance theatre actor, before venturing into Malayalam cinema by portraying a photographer in 5 Sundarikal (2013), after being impressed by Shyju Khaled's narration.[4] Later that year, he was seen in a character role in Suseenthiran's critically acclaimed Pandiya Naadu, portraying the slain brother of Vishal's character. In between feature films, he appeared in the short silent film The Lost Paradise, portraying a prisoner heading home after fifteen years. He also won acclaim for his performance as an acting coach in Karthik Subbaraj's gangster film Jigarthanda (2014), where he was seen giving acting training to the character portrayed by Bobby Simha. Somasundaram had previously trained Simha as an actor in real life during the pair's theatre performances.[5] He is also known for his role as a district collector in the 2019 Tamil film Petta which starred Rajinikanth in the lead role.[6]

Filmography

Films

Year Title Role Language Notes
2011 Aaranya Kaandam Kaalaiyan Tamil
2013 Kadal Kovil Kutty
5 Sundarikal Photographer Malayalam
Pandiya Naadu Nagaraj Tamil
2014 Jigarthanda Muthu
2015 49-O Aarumugam
Bench Talkies - The First Bench David
Thoongaa Vanam Duraipandian Tamil Bilingual movie
Cheekati Rajyam Telugu
Kohinoor Naayakkar Malayalam
2016 Joker Mannar Mannan Tamil
Kuttrame Thandanai Balan
2017 Yaakkai Sriram
Paambhu Sattai Rajendran
2018 Odu Raja Odu Manohar
Vanjagar Ulagam Sampath
2019 Petta District collector
2021 Maara Chokku
Manja Satta Pacha Satta
Jai Bhim Public Prosecutor (PP) Chellapandiyan
Ikk Gnana Prakasam
Minnal Murali Shibu Malayalam
2022 Maamanithan Vappa Bhai Tamil
Agent Kannayiram Kannayiram's father
Haya Nandagopan Malayalam [7]
Naalam Mura Jayesh
2023 Pakalum Paathiravum Janakiraman [8]
Yaathisai Priest Tamil [9]
Charles Enterprises Gomathi's husband Malayalam [10]
Neeraja Psychologist [11]
Bell Brahma Tamil
Rani: The Real Story Dharmajan Malayalam
Spark Life Dr. Rudra Telugu [12]
2024 Bayamariya Brammai Jagadish Tamil
Indian 2 Common Man (Animated character) [In body suit] Tamil [13]
Cup Babu Malayalam [14]
Barroz 3D – Guardian of D'Gama's Treasure S. P. Subramanyam [15]
Her Auto driver Anthology film[16]
2025 Kudumbasthan Rajendran Tamil [17]
Bottle Radha Radha [18]
Maranamass Tattoo artist Malayalam Cameo[19]
2026 Parasakthi M. Karunanidhi Tamil [20]
My Lord Kathirvelan [21]

Short films

  • Irudhi Aram (2017)

Web series

Year Title Role Language Platform Notes
2020 Topless Kalki (Politician) Tamil ZEE5 [23]
2022 Meme Boys College Deen SonyLIV [24]
Victim Guna

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Film Language Result Ref
2017 Behindwoods Gold Medal Best Actor Male Joker Tamil Template:Won [25]
2022 10th South Indian International Movie Awards Best Actor in a Negative Role Minnal Murali Malayalam Template:Won
Mazhavil Entertainment Awards Best Actor in a Villain Role Template:Won
OTT Play Awards Breakthrough Performance of the Year Template:Won

References

  1. ↑ GURU SOMASUNDARAM INTERVIEW, Bhavanishankar, Jyothsna. Behindwoods.com.
  2. ↑ Review: Aaranya Kaandam bypasses gangster cliches, Srinivasan, Pavithra(10 June 2011).
  3. ↑ AARANYA KAANDAM MOVIE REVIEW. Behindwoods.
  4. ↑ In pursuit of recognition, Krishna, Gayathri. Deccan Chronicle(2013-06-10). Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  5. ↑ Training Day. The Hindu(2014-09-21). Retrieved 2022-01-12.
  6. ↑ 'Rajinikanth's enthusiasm and dedication are beyond his age'(23 January 2019). Retrieved 19 June 2022.
  7. ↑ 'Haya' trailer: Guru Somasundaram starrer promises to be a thriller. Times Of India.
  8. ↑ Kunchako Boban, Rajisha Vijayan's Pakalum Paathiravum to hit screens on this date. Cinema Express(13 February 2023). Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  9. ↑ Guru Somasundaram plays priest in period film. The Times of India(2023-04-01). Retrieved 2023-05-06.
  10. ↑ Charles Enterprises gets a release date. Cinema Express(10 April 2023). Retrieved 2023-04-16.
  11. ↑ New song from Shruti Ramachandran's Neeraja out. Cinema Express(10 May 2023). Retrieved 2023-05-11.
  12. ↑ Vikranth Reddy-starrer Telugu Film Spark: LIFE Fails To Impress Audience. News18. Retrieved 2025-06-09.
  13. ↑ Indian 2 makers to drop glimpse soon, Features, C. E.. Cinema Express(2023-10-29). Retrieved 2024-07-18.
  14. ↑ Mathew Thomas-Basil Joseph starrer Cup confirms release. Cinema Express(2024-09-04). Retrieved 2024-09-04.
  15. ↑ Mohanlal's 'Barroz' planning to release on THIS date! Read more. The Times of India. Retrieved 2023-03-20.
  16. ↑ Her first-look poster out: Parvathy, Aishwarya Rajesh, Oorvasi, Remya Nambessan headline Lijin Jose's film. The Indian Express(2022-11-26). Retrieved 2023-04-04.
  17. ↑ Manikandan's fam-com will focus on adventures in people's everyday life. Times of India(2023-12-18). Retrieved 2024-09-27.
  18. ↑ Guru Somasundaram to headline 'Bottle Radha', Kumar, Akshay. The New Indian Express(2024-06-25). Retrieved 2024-08-29.
  19. ↑ L2: Empuraan writer Murali Gopy reacts to Basil Joseph-starrer Maranamass: ‘A genre mix like this is a brave attempt'. The Times of India. Retrieved 2025-05-16.
  20. ↑ Sudha Kongara on working with Sivakarthikeyan: 'He is the cornerstone of Parasakthi…', Desk, Cinema Express. The New Indian Express(2026-01-12). Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  21. ↑ Suriya meets My Lord team, appreciates film. Cinema Express(2026-02-14). Retrieved 2026-02-15.
  22. ↑ 'Joker deserved the National Award'. The Hindu(2017-04-19). Retrieved 2022-01-06.
  23. ↑ Tamil web series Topless takes a story about women, honour and makes it about the absurdities of men, Krishnakumar, Ranjani. Firstpost(2020-02-20). Retrieved 2021-07-14.
  24. ↑ MEME BOYS விமர்சனம்: ஒரு மீமுக்கு அக்கப்போரா - எப்படியிருக்கிறது காலேஜ் கலாட்டா நிறைந்த வெப்சீரிஸ்?, கார்த்தி. Vikatan(25 July 2022). Retrieved 2022-07-26.
  25. ↑ BEHINDWOODS GOLD MEDALS 2017: FULL WINNERS LIST. Behindwoods(2017-06-13).

Basil Joseph - Guru Somasundaram to star in Namitha Pramod's upcoming film ‘KAPP’ https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/basil-joseph-guru-somasundaram-to-star-in-namitha-pramods-upcoming-film-kapp/articleshow/89296131.cms


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