Early life
Vijay was born in Chennai to
S. A. Chandrasekhar, a film producer and director, and Shoba Chandrasekhar, a playback singer. He had a sister named Vidhya Chandrasekhar who died at the age of two. Vijay went on to study visual communications at
Loyola College, Chennai.
Career
1992–1996
1996–2003
2003–2007
In late 2003, Vijay transformed from a romantic hero to an action hero with the action-romance flick,
Thirumalai, co-starring
Jyothika, directed by debutant
Ramana and produced by
K.Balachander's
Kavithalaya Productions, which featured him in a different way.
Thirumalai been considered a turning point in Vijay's career.
[9] Udhaya, which began filming in 2002 but as delayed, was finally released n early 2004.
Ghilli, a remake of the Telugu film
Okkadu was released next in 2004, and completed 200 days in theatres in
Tamil Nadu. Directed by
S. Dharani and produced by
A. M. Rathnam, it co-starred
Trisha and
Prakash Raj.
[10]
It was followed by
Madhurey, directed by
Ramana Madhesh. In 2005, he starred in the
Perarasu directed action film
Thirupaachi, followed by a guest appearance in
Sukran, the romantic comedy
Sachien co-starring
Genelia directed by John Mahendran,
and Savakis co-starring
Asin, again directed by Perarasu. Vijay's next film,
Aadhi, was produced by his father
S. A. Chandrasekhar and directed by
Ramana, released in 2006. In early 2007, Vijay starred in the gangster film
Pokkiri, a remake of the another Telugu
film of the same name. Directed by
Prabhu Deva, it became the third highest grossing Tamil film of 2007. Vijay's character in the film, a reprisal of
Mahesh Babu's role in the original, was well received by critics.
[11][12]
2007–2010
In late 2007, Vijay starred in the
extrasensory perception thriller film Azhagiya Thamizh Magan, and for the first time in his career, he appeared in dual roles as both the antagonist and protagonist. The film was only a moderate success at the boxofice, despite the initial hype and expectations. In 2008, he starred in the action film
Kuruvi, again under Dharani's direction, and produced by
Red Giant Movies. The year 2009 commenced with the action film
Villu, in which Vijay teamed up with
Prabhu Deva (from
Pokkiri). His next film
Vettaikaaran, directed by Babu Sivan and produced by
AVM Productions and distributed by
Sun Pictures became
one of the highest grossing Tamil film of 2009. In 2010, he acted in his 50th film,
Sura, also distributed by
Sun Pictures.
Sura released amidst huge fanfare but failed to meet expectations.
2011–present
Actor Joseph Vijay Chandrasekhar
Personal life
Family
Vijay married Sangeetha Sornalingam on 25 August 1999.
[35] They have two children, a son Sanjay born in 2000 in London,
[36] and a daughter Divya born in 2005 in Chennai.
Brand endorsement
In 2002, Vijay appeared as
Coca Cola's brand ambassador in Tamil Nadu.
[37][38] He acted in a variety of South Indian Coca Cola advertisements, along with
Katrina Kaif. In 2008, Vijay was signed up as an ambassador for the
Indian Premier League cricket team
Chennai Super Kings, along with actress
Nayanthara.
[39] In January 2009, Vijay was approached as the brand ambassador for Coca Cola products.
[40] As of August 2010, Vijay was signed by
Jos Alukkas as their brand ambassador for Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
[41]The Jos Alukkas advertisement featuring Vijay and his mother Shoba is an extremely famous one in Tamil Nadu. Vijay signed for
Tata Docomo[42]
Philanthropy
Vijay started a social welfare organisation Vijay Makkal Iyakkam which was officially launched at
Pudukottai on 26 July 2009. It is responsible for much of his philanthropic work. After
Cyclone Thane his Makkal Mandram administrators arranged for a relief camp at Kammiyampettai, Cuddalore where the star provided rice to the affected people. Cuddalore was the worst affected area in floods and Vijay reached out to help these people out by rendering some assistance. The area in which the camp happened soon wore a festive look with thousands of people gathering to catch a glimpse of their favorite star.
[43] Vijay has appeared along with
Suriya,
R. Madhavan and
Jyothika in a short commercial video about child poverty, labour and lack of education, titled
Herova? Zerova? produced by Surya in an effort to eliminate children who drop out of school at an early age, made in association with Vishnuvardhan Induri the founder of
CCL and the Ministry of Education of
Tamil Nadu[44]. The Ilayathalapathy Vijay Educational Awards 2012 was conducted at JS Kalyana Mandapam in Chennai on 8 July 2012 by his Vijay Makkal Iyakkam to honour the students topped in 2012 SSLC and 12th board exams and the awards were distributed by Vijay himself. On his every birthday, Vijay presents golden rings to the new born babies at the Egmore Government General Hospital.
[45]
