Rajinikanth’s co-star once worked as a cleaner, earning R 20 per day. Today, he charges over Rs 20 crore per film. Who is Soori?

Before he was Porotta Soori, before he established himself as a leading man, Ramalakshmanan Muthuchamy Thevar worked as a cleaner in Chennai to support himself while dreaming of walking in the footsteps of his idol, superstar Rajinikanth.

“I changed my name from Ramalakshmanan to Surya after being inspired by Rajinikanth,” Soori said in an interview with Behindwoods. “The Soori you see today came from that inspiration. From being a fan named Suriya, I entered cinema as Surya and eventually became Soori in the film industry.” He added, without any hesitation: “I am an absolutely crazy fan of Rajinikanth.”

He was inspired by Rajinikanth’s character Surya in the 1991 blockbuster Thalapathi. When Ramalakshmanan watched the film, he was so awed at the superstar’s powerful performance that he decided to adopt the character’s name.


Soori was no stranger to financial hardships. He worked as a daily wage labourer in 1993, when he was only 16, earning as little as Rs 20 per day. From his weekly wages, he would set aside Rs 70 and send that to his family in Madurai.

Surviving in Chennai was a struggle. From doing odd jobs, he eventually landed uncredited appearances in movies. Many of these were the usual blink-and-you-miss-it roles. He appeared uncredited in comedy scenes in movies like Maru Malarchi, getting paid almost nothing, according to the Indian Express. However, his fate changed with the 2009 sports drama film Vennila Kabadi Kuzhu. There was a scene involving a parotta-eating contest, and it became a hit among the audience. The film became a hit, and Lady Luck finally smiled on ‘Parotta Soori’.

Soori emerged as one of the most sought-after comedians in Tamil film starting in 2009. He starred alongside Vijay and Mohanlal in Sundarapandian (2012), Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam (2013), Pandiya Naadu (2013), and Jilla (2014). His collaboration with Sivakarthikeyan, which started with Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam, developed into one of Tamil cinema's most well-known actor-comedian duos. He later starred with Sivakarthikeyan in a number of films, including Rajini Murugan (2016).

Soori was finally able to feature in his idol’s film, Annatthe, in 2021. The film was a hit, earning more than Rs 240 crore at the box office.

Soori was able to reinvent himself and transition to a male lead in a non-comedy role with the films Viduthalai Part 1 and 2. His performance as a police constable caught between duty and conscience received much appreciation.

As per a Times Now report, Soori earns a whopping Rs 25 crore per film these days. That’s the amount he charged for Ravikumar’s upcoming film.