The dictionary’s definition of a villain, goes something like this- ‘a cruelly malicious person in a play, novel, or the like, who constitutes an important evil agency in the plot.’ It is a common stereotype that villains all around are detested and that the good always triumphs over the evil. However, there are times when the audience genuinely appreciates the villain and the character he portrays. Among the many superhero films in Hollywood, The Joker from Batman will always stand out as an iconic character; hard to hate, hard to forget.
When it comes to Bollywood, plenty of actors who gave brilliant and memorable performances as villains come to mind. They include, Amjad Khan as ‘Gabbar Singh’ in Sholay, Amrish Puri as ‘Mogambo’ in Mr. India, Jeevan as ‘Robert’ in Amar Akbar Anthony and the like.
Recently, it has been seen that some Bollywood movies consist of villains from other film industries and not from Bollywood itself. Be it a need for change or an effort to add flavor to the film, nowadays, directors and producers seem to be relying on Tamil or Telugu actors to play villains in their movies. An actor from a different film industry comes with a completely different package of talent. The director may even incorporate Tamil dialogues in the film, so that the actor plays a more convincing villain and may also reach out to a wider audience. The film, whether a blockbuster hit or a flop, is sure to earn a profit in this case. This psyche is not difficult to understand; if Amitabh Bachchan was to appear in a Tamil film, his crazy fan following from the north would indeed visit the theater to watch the film even though they may be unable to comprehend the Tamil language.
Following are a list of ‘Paanch Villain’ from other film industries who have portrayed negative roles in Bollywood cinema:
- Anand Raj
Born and brought up in Puducherry, Tamil film actor Anand Raj, known for portraying negative roles in several films will be playing a don in the upcoming action comedy film Action Jackson. This will also mark his Bollywood debut, for which he went through a year of intense training and lost about 12 kilos, to sport a certain look, that director Prabhudeva expected of him.
- Sathyaraj
Another Kollywood actor, Sathyaraj, who began his career with villainous roles, played the main antagonist in the action-comedy film Chennai Express, as the headman of the local mafia and Deepika’s dominant father. This also marked his entry into the Bollywood film industry. Currently, the film is the second highest-grossing Bollywood film worldwide and third in India. Apart from his film career, Sathyaraj is also a famous media personality and has been quite vocal about issues like the water rights in Tamil Nadu.
- Prakash Raj
Highly popular in the South Indian Film Industry, Prakash Raj is an Indian film actor, producer, director as well as a television presenter. He has played negative roles in various Bollywood films, including Wanted (2009), Singham (2011) and Dabangg 2 (2012). Due to his fluency in diverse Indian languages, like Kannada, Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Marathi, Hindi and English, Prakash Raj has become one of the most sought after actors in India.
- Raguvaran
Veteran south Indian actor Raghuvaran became famous for portraying villain roles predominantly in Tamil films. Even though he died an untimely death at the age of 49 due to his habit of excessive alcohol consumption, Raghuvaran managed to act in over 200 Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Hindi films. Izzatdaar (1990), Rakshak (1995), Hitler (1998) and Lal Baadshah (1999) are some of the Hindi films in which he portrayed the role of a villain.
- Rami Reddy
Known for his negative roles, Rami Reddy was popular in Telugu cinema. However, he failed to become a successful director or producer. Before entering the film industry, Reddy worked as a journalist. He acted in over 250 films, in languages including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi and Bhojpuri. He played the role of a villain in the Bollywood action film titled Pratibandh.