Guru Somasundaram

Guru Somasundaram
Somasundaram during a photoshoot
Born (1975-09-03) September 3, 1975
Madurai, Tamil Nadu, India
Alma materGovernment Polytechnic College, Tamil Nadu
OccupationActor
Years active2011–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

YearTitleRoleLanguageNotes
2011Aaranya KaandamKaalaiyanTamil
2013KadalKovil Kutty
5 SundarikalPhotographerMalayalam
Pandiya NaaduNagarajTamil
2014JigarthandaMuthu
201549-OAarumugam
Bench TalkiesDavidSegment: The Lost Paradise; credited as David
Thoongaa VanamDuraipandianTamilBilingual film
Cheekati RajyamTelugu
KohinoorNaayakkarMalayalam
2016JokerMannar MannanTamil
Kuttrame ThandanaiBalan
2017YaakkaiSriram
Paambhu SattaiRajendran
2018Odu Raja OduManohar
Vanjagar UlagamSampath
2019PettaDistrict collector
2021MaaraChokku
Manja Satta Pacha Satta
Jai BhimPublic Prosecutor (PP) Chellapandiyan
IkkGnana Prakasam
Minnal MuraliShibuMalayalam
2022MaamanithanVappa BhaiTamil
Agent KannayiramKannayiram's father
HayaNandagopanMalayalam[7]
Naalam MuraJayesh
2023Pakalum PaathiravumJanakiraman[8]
YaathisaiPriestTamil[9]
Charles EnterprisesGomathi's husbandMalayalam[10]
NeerajaPsychologist[11]
BellBrahmaTamil
Rani: The Real StoryDharmajanMalayalam
Spark LifeDr. RudraTelugu[12]
2024Bayamariya BrammaiJagadishTamil
Indian 2Common Man (Animated character) [In body suit]Tamil[13]
CupBabuMalayalam[14]
Barroz 3DS. P. Subramanyam[15]
HerAuto driverAnthology film[16]
2025KudumbasthanRajendranTamil[17]
Bottle RadhaRadha[18]
MaranamassTattoo artistMalayalamCameo[19]
2026ParasakthiM. KarunanidhiTamil[20]
My LordKathirvelan[21]
2027 Dragon Telugu [22]

Short films

  • Irudhi Aram (2017)

Web series

Year Title Role Language Platform Notes
2020 Topless Kalki (Politician) Tamil ZEE5 [24]
2022 Meme Boys College Deen SonyLIV [25]
Victim Guna

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Film Language Result Ref
2017 Behindwoods Gold Medal Best Actor Male Joker Tamil Won [26]
2022 10th South Indian International Movie Awards Best Actor in a Negative Role Minnal Murali Malayalam Won
Mazhavil Entertainment Awards Best Actor in a Villain Role Won
OTT Play Awards Breakthrough Performance of the Year Won

References

  1. ↑ Bhavanishankar, Jyothsna. "GURU SOMASUNDARAM INTERVIEW". Behindwoods.com. Archived from the original on 26 November 2012. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  2. ↑ Srinivasan, Pavithra (10 June 2011). "Review: Aaranya Kaandam bypasses gangster cliches". Rediff. Archived from the original on 12 June 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  3. ↑ "AARANYA KAANDAM MOVIE REVIEW". Behindwoods. Archived from the original on 13 June 2011. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  4. ↑ Krishna, Gayathri (10 June 2013). "In pursuit of recognition". Deccan Chronicle. Archived from the original on 15 October 2014. Retrieved 11 October 2014.
  5. ↑ Srinivasan, Sudhir (21 September 2014). "Training Day". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 5 July 2020. Retrieved 12 January 2022.
  6. ↑ "'Rajinikanth's enthusiasm and dedication are beyond his age'". 23 January 2019. Archived from the original on 19 June 2022. 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. Archived from the original on 26 February 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
  9. ↑ "Guru Somasundaram plays priest in period film". The Times of India. 1 April 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 8 April 2023. Retrieved 6 May 2023.
  10. ↑ "Charles Enterprises gets a release date". Cinema Express. 10 April 2023. Archived from the original on 16 April 2023. Retrieved 16 April 2023.
  11. ↑ "New song from Shruti Ramachandran's Neeraja out". Cinema Express. 10 May 2023. Archived from the original on 11 May 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  12. ↑ "Vikranth Reddy-starrer Telugu Film Spark: LIFE Fails To Impress Audience". News18. Retrieved 9 June 2025.
  13. ↑ "Indian 2 makers to drop glimpse soon". Cinema Express. 29 October 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2024.
  14. ↑ "Mathew Thomas-Basil Joseph starrer Cup confirms release". Cinema Express. 4 September 2024. Retrieved 4 September 2024.
  15. ↑ "Mohanlal's 'Barroz' planning to release on THIS date! Read more". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Archived from the original on 20 March 2023. Retrieved 20 March 2023.
  16. ↑ "Her first-look poster out: Parvathy, Aishwarya Rajesh, Oorvasi, Remya Nambessan headline Lijin Jose's film". The Indian Express. 26 November 2022. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023. Retrieved 4 April 2023.
  17. ↑ "Manikandan's fam-com will focus on adventures in people's everyday life". Times of India. 18 December 2023. Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved 27 September 2024.
  18. ↑ Kumar, Akshay (25 June 2024). "Guru Somasundaram to headline 'Bottle Radha'". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 29 August 2024.
  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 16 May 2025.
  20. ↑ "Sudha Kongara on working with Sivakarthikeyan: 'He is the cornerstone of Parasakthi…'". The New Indian Express. 12 January 2026. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  21. ↑ "Suriya meets My Lord team, appreciates film". Cinema Express. 14 February 2026. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  22. ↑ "NTR Jr-Prashanth Neel's epic actioner titled Dragon; first glimpse shows brutal conflict waged over exotic flora". Cinema Express. 19 May 2026. Retrieved 16 July 2026.
  23. ↑ M, Ramakrishnan (19 April 2017). "'Joker deserved the National Award'". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 20 March 2020. Retrieved 6 January 2022.
  24. ↑ Krishnakumar, Ranjani (20 February 2020). "Tamil web series Topless takes a story about women, honour and makes it about the absurdities of men". Firstpost. Archived from the original on 20 February 2020. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  25. ↑ கார்த்தி (25 July 2022). "MEME BOYS விமர்சனம்: ஒரு மீமுக்கு அக்கப்போரா - எப்படியிருக்கிறது காலேஜ் கலாட்டா நிறைந்த வெப்சீரிஸ்?". Vikatan (in Tamil). Archived from the original on 26 July 2022. Retrieved 26 July 2022.
  26. ↑ "BEHINDWOODS GOLD MEDALS 2017: FULL WINNERS LIST". Behindwoods. 13 June 2017. Archived from the original on 17 June 2017.

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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