He has captivated audiences with his natural performances
on the silver screen for decades.
Entry
He had always wanted to be a painter. But because of his
professor A.P. Santhanarajan's advise, he decided to take
the plunge into movies.
Sivakumar's entry into films was by no means an easy one.
There were endless rollings from one studio to the other and
the inevitable knocking at the doors of various directors,
before he actually got a chance to act.
" In our village, movies were released only during special
occasions like Deepavali in the touring talkies. I bought
a 25 paise tharai ticket to view films," he recounts.
For someone who had seen just 14 movies till he completed
his SSLC, cinema was all but a dream. But, little did Sivakumar
realise that he would actually be a part of the dream.
Debut
He made his debut in the industry with the movie `Motor
Sundaranpillai'. It was S.S. Vasan,
who introduced him to the industry. Among Sivakumar's most
memorable hits are `Sindhu Bhairavi,' `Vandichakram,' `Ini
Oru Suthanthiram,' 'Oruvar Vaazhum Aalayam', `Pournami Alaigal'
and `Solla thaan Ninaikiren.'
He still vividly remembers his first shot at cinema in AVM
studios. "I was given a two-line dialogue and asked to
rehearse it for three days. I was wondering why so much time
was being given for such a small dialogue. But, when the scene
was being shot, I couldn't even speak. People started making
fun of me. I broke down in front of the camera," he recalls.
He has shared the screen with greatest artists of Tamil
cinema - M.G. Ramachandran and Sivaji
Ganesan and worked with the leading film makers like
K. Balachander.
Dedication
In the early days in his career Sivakumar did many things
not needed in cinema. " For a song sequence, I climbed
a coconut tree and got hurt. Only to be told later that I
could climb using a ladder."
While playing Rajendra Chola in the movie Rajaraja Cholan
(with Sivaji Ganesan in the lead), Sivakumar fell off a horse.
He then decided to act again only after getting trained in
horse riding and so went to the beach at 4 a.m. every day
for the training.
Similarly he learnt few things about music that would help
his performance as the versatile singer JKB in the movie Sindhu
Bhairavi.
Approximately 750 times, he has performed in various prominent
roles in dramas staged almost across all the important cities
in India.
He is not only known for his versatility in acting but also
for being the modest, disciplinarian, for which the entire
cine world looks upon him with respect.
  |