Vijay Height Weight Age Biography Family Wiki Net Worth, Affairs, Marriage & much more. Joseph Vijay Chandrasekhar (born 22 June 1974), known professionally as Vijay, is an Indian actor, dancer, playback singer and philanthropist who works predominantly in Tamil cinema and also appeared in other Indian languages films. He is one of the highest-paid actors in India. He has a significant fan following globally and has acted in 65 films as a lead actor. He has won numerous awards, including eight Vijay Awards by Star India, three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards by the Government of Tamil Nadu, and a SIIMA Award. He has been included several times in the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list, based on the earnings of Indian celebrities. Pan-Indian demand for his films made him a sought-after actor in Hindi cinema.
At 10 years old, Vijay’s first role was in the drama Vetri (1984); he performed as a child actor in films until Ithu Engal Neethi (1988), directed by his father S. A. Chandrasekhar, and then featured as the lead for the first time in Naalaiya Theerpu (1992). He rose to prominence in the 90s as a romantic hero performing in many romance silver jubilee films. His first blockbuster came in 1996 with Poove Unakkaga. He played anti-hero roles as a hyper-possessive lover in Priyamudan (1998), followed by a play-boy in Azhagiya Tamil Magan (2007). The success of his masala film Thirumalai (2003) changed his on-screen persona to that of an action hero. He appeared as a kabaddi player in Ghilli (2004), which went on to become the first Tamil film to earn ₹500 million (Indian rupees). He continued to achieve success during the 2000s with cult films including Thirupaachi (2005), Sachein (2005), Sivakasi (2005), Pokkiri (2007) and Vettaikaaran (2009). In the 2010s and 20s, Vijay achieved further success with critics acclaimed blockbusters including Kaavalan (2011), Nanban (2012), Thuppakki (2012), Kaththi (2014), Mersal (2017) and Sarkar (2018). While Vijay’s earlier films were primarily action and masala based, his later films transitioned into the thriller genre and discussion of reform concerning social, environmental and political issues in India.
Vijay is among the most popular celebrities in India. He was appointed the brand ambassador for several endorsements, notably the American Embassy for ‘V go Green’ global awareness campaign movement, and the Indian Premier League cricket team Chennai Super Kings. Vijay’s popularity has been recorded by both Google and Twitter as the most-searched-and-tweeted actor several times. He received an honorary doctorate from the Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute in 2007 for his contributions to social welfare and in honour of his achievements in the film industry. International Business Times framed him as the “consistent box office performer”.
Early life and family
Vijay was born as Joseph Vijay Chandrasekhar on 22 June 1974 in Madras (now Chennai), Tamil Nadu. His father S. A. Chandrasekhar is a Tamil film director and his mother Shoba Chandrasekhar is a playback singer and carnatic vocalist. His father S.A. Chandrasekhar is of Christian Tamil descent and his mother Shoba is of Hindu family. Vijay was baptised at the of age of 12 as he was born in a Catholic family. In their early days, Vijay’s family was a lower-middle-class family and his mother Shoba used to earn ₹100 rupees as her daily wages by singing in concerts, the day she sings only Vijay and his family had food, other days they starved without food. Vijay had a sister Vidhya, who died when she was two years old. His sister’s death affected Vijay greatly; according to his mother, Vijay, who was very talkative, naughty and hyperactive as a child, became silent after Vidhya’s death. In her memory, Vijay named his production house, V.V Productions, which stands for Vidhya-Vijay productions. Vidhya’s memorable photo was shown in the 2005 film Sukran, in which Vijay played an extended cameo.
Initially attending Fathima Matriculation Higher Secondary School at Kodambakkam, Vijay later joined Balalok Matriculation Higher Secondary School at Virugambakkam and went on to pursue a degree in Visual Communications from Loyola College. He eventually dropped out as he was more interested in acting.
Personal life
Vijay married his fiancée, Sangeetha Sornalingam, a Sri Lankan Tamil whom he met in the United Kingdom, on 25 August 1999. They have two children, a son Jason Sanjay born in 2000 in London and a daughter Divya Shasha born in 2005 in Chennai. Jason Sanjay made a cameo appearance with his father in Vettaikaaran (2009) and Divya Shasha portrayed a small role as her father’s pre-teen daughter in Theri (2016).
On 5 February 2020, the Income Tax Department raided Vijay’s residence in Chennai and inquired about potential tax evasion, regarding his investment in immovable properties, which he inherited from the production studio AGS Entertainment. It was reported that actor Vijay and AGS Entertainment producer Anbu Cheliyan were suspected of undisclosed payments, alleged tax fraud and nearly ₹65 crore was seized by the officials from Cheliyan’s residence. Vijay was investigated while he was busy shooting for his film Master in Cuddalore. On 12 March, The I-T department said that nothing significant was found during the raid and Vijay has paid all the necessary taxes. Non BJP supporters and politicians accused the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party of politically targeting actor Vijay through IT raids because he was critical of the BJP.
On 13 July 2021, The Madras High Court dismissed a writ petition filed by actor Vijay in 2012, seeking exemption of Entry Tax for his Rolls Royce Ghost car, imported from England. It has also imposed a fine cost of ₹1 lakh to be paid by him and it will be allotted to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s Public Covid-Relief Fund. Justice S.M. Subramaniam said that Vijay’s fan base considers him as a real hero and he was expected to be one instead of a “reel” hero and also called it an anti-national habit. On 15 July 2021, Vijay filed a appeal against defamatory statements made by the Judge S.M. Subramaniam against him in Madras High court. On 20 July 2021, Vijay’s appeal against the tax exemption case issue and defamatory statements made by the Judge S.M. Subramaniam was moved to different tax bench sector in High court. On 27 July 2021, An two-Judges bench of Madras High court has stayed the earlier passed order by Judge S.M. Subramaniam with critical remarks against Vijay in the Rolls Royce tax exemption issue case and also stayed the earlier order of ₹1 lakh fine amount. On 25 January 2022, Madras High court dismissed and removed the defamatory critical statements made by Judge S.M. Subramaniam against Vijay in Rolls Royce tax exemption case issue.
On 12 August 2021, Indian cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni had a friendly meeting with Vijay on the sets of his film Beast and it became viral on social media.
Views
Vijay always had a different aspect of philosophical view on films, politics and life lessons. He has been a motivational orator at several occasions. In many of his interviews, Vijay has mentioned that he finds films as just a pure business field with entertainment and he is one among those, and he has asked the audience to take the lighthearted positive message only from his films and leave off the harsh negative ones. Vijay said in an interview that “I have faith in god and it has to be; I go to church, temple, dargah and felt the divine presence”. At one time, Vijay even said that “The crown on your head can be heavy, but your head should not be heavy at all”.
Wealth
As of 2021, Vijay’s net worth is ₹4200 million or ₹420 crores and he owns luxury cars including Rolls Royce Ghost, Audi A8, BMW series 5, BMW X6 and Mini Cooper. Vijay on his trip to America was impressed by Tom Cruise’s beach house and its infrastructure, so he took a picture of it and constructed a similar beach house for him at Neelankarai, Chennai. Vijay earned ₹100 crore salary for Beast and surpassed Rajnikanth’s salary, and also earned an estimated ₹120 crore—₹150 crores for his 66th film, marking him among the highest-paid Indian actors.
Vijay Height Weight Age Body Statistics Biography
| Bio | |
| Real Name | Joseph Vijay Chandrasekhar |
| Nickname | Ilayathalapthy |
| Profession | Actor, Producer and Singer |
| Physical Stats & More | |
| Height (approx.) | in centimeters- 178 cm in meters- 1.78 m in Feet Inches- 5’ 10” |
| Weight (approx.) | in Kilograms- 73 kg in Pounds- 161 lbs |
| Body Measurements (approx.) | – Chest: 38 Inches – Waist: 29 Inches – Biceps: 14 Inches |
| Eye Colour | Brown |
| Hair Colour | Black |
| Personal Life | |
| Date of Birth | 22 June 1974 |
| Age (as in 2022) | 48 Years |
| Birth Place | Chennai, India |
| Zodiac sign/Sun sign | Cancer |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Hometown | Chennai, India |
| School | Not Known |
| College | Loyola College, Chennai |
| Educational Qualifications | Dropout |
| Debut | Naalaya Theerpu (1992) |
| Family | Father– S. A. Chandrasekhar (Filmmaker) Mother– Shoba Chandrasekhar (Singer) Brothers– N/A Sisters– N/A |
| Religion | Christianity |
| Address | Chennai, India |
| Hobbies | Stunts, dancing and singing |
| Controversies | When he was shooting for “Pokiri”, due to sudden irritation and swelling in the eyes, he had gone through a minor operation. |
| Favourite Things | |
| Favourite Food | Chicken Briyani |
| Favourite Actor | Amitabh Bachchan, Rajanikanth and Kamal Haasan |
| Favourite Actress | Simran |
| Favourite Destination | London and Los Angeles |
| Favourite Color | Blue and Black |
| Girls, Affairs and More | |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Affairs/Girlfriends | Not Known |
| Wife | Sangeeta Sornalingam |
| Children | Daughter– Divya Saasha Son– Jason Sanjay |
| Money Factor | |
| Salary | 20 Crore (INR) |
| Net Worth | Not Known |
Other film attributes
Inclusive of his film acting and singing ability, Vijay had performed some difficult dance moves in the songs featured in his films. Times of India labelled Vijay’s dance moves in his film songs as “energetic and effortless”. Some of his popular dance moves are from his films Thirumalai, Ghilli, Azhagiya Tamilmagan, Kuruvi, Villu and Sura. Vijay’s iconic signature dance step in Vaathi coming song from his film Master became viral among the masses, and it was imitated by several Indian film personalities and sportsperson. Apart from popularity in India, a Canadian boys dance group danced to the Vijay’s Vaathi coming dance song. Vijay performed his hook step in the dance song Jolly O Gymkhana sung by himself and his dance moves became viral on social media. Beast film song Arabic Kuthu also gained more popularity among audiences with Vijay’s dance moves being appreciated and it was a hit in South Korea. Actress Sai Pallavi in an interview revealed that she is a big fan of Vijay’s dance and even tried to mimic few of his dance steps.
Politics
On 23 August 2008, Vijay and his VMI with the support of congress party in Puducherry held a public meeting to respond to the gathering about his political agenda which was attended by Puducherry Chief minister V. Vaidyalingam. In 2011, Vijay met and expressed his support to Anna Hazare’s fast for a strong Lokpal against corruption in politics held at Ramlila Maidan. In 2017, News 7 Tamil conducted a people survey in which if Vijay forms a political party to contest in Tamil Nadu state elections he has chances to win if alliance formed with DMK-39%, AIADMK-22.8%, BJP-7.7%, Congress-6.3% and Other parties-24.2%. During an audio launch in 2018 with a huge gathering of people with flags and t-shirts with Vijay’s face on it was gathered, Vijay spoke upon issues of corruption, elections and leaders working in the corrupt system efficiently.
Vijay always faced controversies for his strong political statements made by him in his films, and it projected on his real life political career. On 27 September 2021, Vijay’s father S.A.C revealed that Vijay has distanced himself from politics, and VMI will only function as a fan club of actor Vijay and not as a political party. In 2021, Vijay also issued a legal statement that his fans should not indulge his name in any political purposes including not to merge his photos with political leaders in film posters, and also to avoid controversial political tag lines in fan made posters. On 12 October 2021, 121 members of VMI contested and won councillor posts in the rural local body elections in nine Tamil Nadu districts, and VMI received third place in voting results after DMK and AIADMK. On 26 October 2021, Vijay met and urged his VMI members won in electoral polls to work towards flagging people’s basic problems to the State and Central governments, and also work towards solving them. On 22 February 2022, VMI contested for 12 seats and won 10 seats in the urban local body Tamil Nadu electoral polls.
Legacy
Vijay has received global recognition for his film acting and dance work. Many of his film dance music videos garnered high number of views and likes worldwide on YouTube. Aalaporan Tamizhan became a cultural phenomenon in Indian diaspora worldwide and Selfie Pulla became a cultural phenomenon in China and in European countries such as Romania and played in several pubs in Romania. Vijay’s Vaathi coming dance video had a cultural impact on several sportspeople including the Indian cricketer Ashwin and Australian cricketer David Warner grooved to the song. Vijay’s wax figures were unveiled in several parts of India, especially in Kanyakumari Museum. Deadline Hollywood reported that Vijay has star power globally. Many trade analysts reported that “it doesn’t matter how average the film is, Vijay can pull up and even his average films collect huge”. On 9 December 2021, Twitter announced their annual Top Twitter moments of 2021 in India with Vijay’s tweet of Beast’s first look having the most likes and retweets in the entertainment category. Jolly O Gymkhana was an instant hit song among American and Nigerian music critics. Arabic Kuthu-Halamithi Habibo music dance video from film Beast became an instant social media phenomenon globally on YouTube and also entered the global top 100 music charts in Spotify. Arabic Kuthu song music also had a cultural impact on Manchester United F.C. and they grooved to the music.
Biographies
Books written about Vijay’s life include:
- The Icon Of Millions
- Vijay Jeitha Kathai (success story of Vijay)
- Unfinished
Filmography
Film
As an actor
| Year | Film | Role(s) |
|---|---|---|
| 1984 | Vetri | Vijay |
| Kudumbam | Narada | Child artist |
| 1985 | Naan Sigappu Manithan | Vijay |
| 1986 | Vasantha Raagam | Vijay |
| 1987 | Sattam Oru Vilaiyattu | Raja |
| 1988 | Ithu Engal Neethi | Vijay |
| 1992 | Naalaiya Theerpu | Vijay |
| 1993 | Sendhoorapandi | Vijay |
| 1994 | Rasigan | Vijay |
| 1995 | Deva | Deva |
| Rajavin Parvaiyile | Raja | |
| Vishnu | Vishnu (Krishna) | |
| Chandralekha | Rahim | |
| 1996 | Coimbatore Mappillai | Balu |
| Poove Unakkaga | Raja | |
| Vasantha Vaasal | Vijay | |
| Maanbumigu Maanavan | Sivaraj | |
| Selva | Selvan | |
| 1997 | Kaalamellam Kaathiruppen | Kannan |
| Love Today | Ganesh | |
| Once More | Vijay | |
| Nerrukku Ner | Vijay | |
| Kadhalukku Mariyadhai | Jeevanandham (Jeeva) | |
| 1998 | Ninaithen Vandhai | Gokulakrishnan |
| Priyamudan | Vasanth | |
| Nilaave Vaa | Siluvai | |
| 1999 | Thulladha Manamum Thullum | Kutty |
| Endrendrum Kadhal | Vijay | |
| Nenjinile | Karunakaran (Karuna) | |
| Minsara Kanna | Kannan (Kasi) | |
| 2000 | Kannukkul Nilavu | Gautham |
| Kushi | Shiva | |
| Priyamaanavale | Vijay | |
| 2001 | Friends | Aravind |
| Badri | Badri | |
| Shahjahan | Ashok | |
| 2002 | Thamizhan | Surya |
| Youth | Shiva | |
| Bagavathi | Bhagavathi | |
| 2003 | Vaseegara | Bhupathy |
| Pudhiya Geethai | Sarathi | |
| Thirumalai | Thirumalai | |
| 2004 | Udhaya | Udhayakumaran (Udhaya) |
| Ghilli | Saravanavelu (Velu) | |
| Madhurey | Maduravel IAS (Madhurey) | |
| 2005 | Thirupaachi | Sivagiri (Giri) |
| Sukran | Sukran | Extended cameo appearance |
| Sachein | Sachein | |
| Sivakasi | Muthappa (Sivakasi) | |
| 2006 | Aathi | Aathi |
| 2007 | Pokkiri | Sathyamoorthy IPS (Thamizh) |
| Azhagiya Tamil Magan | Guru, Prasad | |
| 2008 | Kuruvi | Vetrivel (Velu, Kuruvi) |
| Pandhayam | Himself | Special appearance |
| 2009 | Villu | Pugazh, Major Saravanan |
| Vettaikaaran | Ravi (“Police” Ravi) | |
| 2010 | Sura | Sura |
| 2011 | Kaavalan | Bhoominathan |
| Velayudham | Velu (Velayudham) | |
| 2012 | Nanban | Kosaksi Pasapugazh (Panchavan Parivendan) |
| Rowdy Rathore | Himself | Hindi film; special appearance in the song “Chinta Ta” |
| Thuppakki | Captain Jagadish Dhanapal | |
| 2013 | Thalaivaa | Vishwa Ramadorai (Vishwa Bhai) |
| 2014 | Jilla | Shakthi IPS |
| Kaththi | Kathiresan (Kaththi), Jeevanandham | |
| 2015 | Puli | Marudheeran, Pulivendhan |
| 2016 | Theri | D. C. P. Vijay Kumar IPS (Joseph Kuruvilla, Dharmeshwar) |
| 2017 | Bairavaa | Bairavaa |
| Mersal | Vetri, Dr. Maaran, Vetrimaaran | |
| 2018 | Sarkar | Sundar Ramaswamy |
| 2019 | Bigil | Michael Rayappan (Bigil), Rayappan |
| 2021 | Master | John Durairaj (JD) |
| 2022 | Beast | Veera Raghavan |
| 2023 | Thalapathy 66  | TBA |