Vishal (actor)

Vishal Krishna Reddy was born on 29 August 1976 into a Telugu-speaking family in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.^[6][7][8] His father and mother, G. K. Reddy and Janaki Devi, are businesspeople and film producers in Telugu and Tamil films.^[9] His elder brother, Vikram Krishna, is also an actor and producer who has produced several of Vishal's films.^[10] His family hails from Nellore, Andhra Pradesh.

Vishal did his schooling at Don Bosco Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Chennai. He then graduated in visual communications from the Loyola College, Chennai.^[11]

Vishal assisted actor-director Arjun in his venture Vedham (2001), and a producer spotted Vishal on the sets of the film and signed him to appear in an acting role in Gandhi Krishna's Chellamae (2004).^[12][13] Accepting the role, Vishal prepared by joining Koothu-P-Pattarai to hone his acting skills and played the protagonist role of Raghunandan, whose wife is kidnapped by her childhood friend.^[13] A critic described his performance is "apt" but "there was plenty left to hone".^[14][15] His next film was Sandakozhi (2005) with N. Linguswamy, who had previously worked with his father's production house as an assistant director.^[16] Vishal was described to have "improved from his Chellamae days" and "clicked as an action hero".^[17] Film journalists stated that he was "the fastest rising action hero" of the time.^[18] After a cameo as himself in Sasi's Dishyum (2006), he went on to appear in Tarun Gopi's action film Thimiru (2006). The film opened to mixed reviews with Vishal being praised for his intense performance with a critic calling his performance "the film's only strength and, to an extent, making up for the weak script and poor characterisation".^[19] The film became Vishal's third consecutive commercial success, and he began to emerge in Tamil films.^[20]

His next film, the political action drama Sivappathigaram (2006), directed by Karu Palaniappan was a failure financially despite favourable reviews.^[21] His next film was released in January 2007, Hari's multi-starring family action drama Thaamirabharani (2007) and the film went on to gain considerable box office success, carrying good reports amidst other big budget releases.^[22][23] Later in the year, he appeared in Boopathy Pandian's Malaikottai (2007), a comedy entertainer. In his first full-length comic role, Vishal received mixed feedback for his portrayal from critics, with Rediff stating that he is "a far cry from the rather endearing young man in Sandakozhi", whilst describing his performance as "cringe-able".^[24] Behindwoods stated it is an "Average masala-mix entertainer".^[25] The film took a large opening and was declared a blockbuster, featuring in the top 10 at Behindwoods box office. In the year 2008, for the first time, Vishal portrayed a police officer in Sathyam, which became a commercial failure at the box office. Then both his films Thoranai (2009) and Theeradha Vilaiyattu Pillai (2010) were just average grossers. Additionally, the box-office duds, Sathyam and Thoranai, both of which were bilingual in Tamil and Telugu, failed to establish his popularity in Telugu cinema.^[26]

Vishal was then given the opportunity to feature in Bala's dark comedy Avan Ivan (2011), after being recommended to the director by his friend Arya. Portraying a village stage actor with a squint, Vishal had severe eye pain and headaches, and he also had a serious muscular injury on sets.^[27] The film opened to mixed reviews, though Vishal's performance won positive reviews. Indiaglitz stated that Vishal delivered an "award winning performance" and that his "mannerisms and body language give you goosebumps". The reviewer further cited that "Vishal's spontaneous response to his mentor's death in the movie is touching. His demonstration of Navarasas in front of actor Suriya will melt you in tears".^[28][29] Vishal played the role of a police officer in his following release Vedi (2011), directed by Prabhu Deva, which was declared an instant flop at the box office.^[30]

In the 2013 film Samar, Vishal played a forest trek guide. Behindwoods stated that he "rocks in the action sequences".^[31][32] Following a cameo role in Theeya Velai Seiyyanum Kumaru, he starred in the action films Pattathu Yaanai and Pandiya Naadu. The latter was Vishal's debut production venture, while the former was the film debut of Aishwarya Arjun, the daughter of Arjun.^[33][34] Vishal opted to produce and collaborate with Thiru for a third venture Naan Sigappu Manithan (2014), a revenge drama, in which his character had narcolepsy. To prepare for the lead role, Vishal read up and studied real life case studies of people with the disorder, citing that there were no references from cinema which he could watch and learn. Then he had acted under director Hari for the second time in Poojai (2014), which did somewhat good business at the box office. In 2015, he acted two films, namely, Aambala and Paayum Puli.^[35][36]

In 2013, Vishal started his own production house named Vishal Film Factory.^[37] He has produces and distributed a number of films under the banner and has also acted in all of them. Some of these films include, Pandiya Naadu (2013), Kathakali (2016), Thupparivaalan (2017), Irumbu Thirai (2018) and Veerame Vaagai Soodum (2022). For Pandiya Naadu, he won SIIMA Best Debutant Producer Award.^[38]

In 2016, he appeared in three movies; Kathakali, Marudhu and Kaththi Sandai. The first two were average grossers, while Kaththi Sandai became a flop at the box office. In January 2017, Vishal signed his debut Malayalam film, as the main antagonist in the Mohanlal-starrer Villain, directed by B. Unnikrishnan.^[39][40]

He was elected as President of Tamil Film Producers Council election, which was held on 2 April 2017.^[41][42][43] Apart from this, Vishal is also a staunch advocate against online piracy since 2014, having started an anti-piracy cell.^[44]

In September 2017, Vishal played a detective in Thupparivaalan directed by Mysskin which was loosely based on the British writer Arthur Conan Doyle's detective character, Sherlock Holmes. The film was a commercial success and was appreciated by audiences and critics.^[45] In 2018, Vishal had two major releases. The first one was Irumbu Thirai directed by newcomer P. S. Mithran which released in May 2018.^[46] And second was Sandakozhi 2 released in October 2018 was written and directed by N. Lingusamy. A sequel to the successful Sandakozhi (2005), the film stars Vishal in his 25th film.^[47] The film turned out to be an average grosser.^[48]

He made his television début in October 2018 as a host of Sun Naam Oruvar, a talk show airing on Sun TV.^[49][50]

In 2019, he did one movie titled Action directed by Sundar C.^[51] The film received mixed reviews and was a box office failure.^[52] In 2021, he acted in Chakra directed my newcomer M.S Anandan. The film received mixed reviews from critics and audience and become an average grosser.^[53] His movies, Enemy (2021), Veeramae Vaagai Soodum (2022) and Laththi (2022) opened to mixed reviews from critics. However, his next film, Mark Antony (2023) received positive reviews from critics and audience and became a box office success which was a comeback for Vishal after string of failures. It was Vishal's highest-grossing film in his career worldwide, surpassing Irumbu Thirai and his first film to gross 100 crore worldwide.^[54] In Rathnam (2024), Vishal's portrayal of Rathnam may not have offered anything remarkably new, as he seemed to stick to his signature style seen in previous films. His expressions, emotions, dialogues, and stunts were reminiscent of his earlier roles, showcasing his familiar daredevil persona.^[55] After an incredible 12-year delay, Vishal's much-awaited Tamil action-comedy Madha Gaja Raja finally saw the light of day, releasing in theatres on January 12, 2025. Initially announced in 2012, the film endured a turbulent production journey marked by cast changes, script rewrites, and even disputes with distributors.^[56]

Vishal was elected as the General Secretary of the Nadigar Sangam in October 2015 after initiating a movement against the previous committee.^[57] He was expelled from Tamil Film Producers' Council (TFPC) for remarks against the council.^[58][59] Later in April 2017, he won the election as President of Tamil Film Producers Council.

Vishal filed his nomination as an independent candidate for the by-poll to Radhakrishnan Nagar constituency in Chennai, which fell vacant following Jayalalithaa's death in December 2017.^[60] But his nomination was rejected.^[61]

In 2025, Vishal openly announced his relationship with actress Sai Dhanshika during the press-meet of the film Yogi Dah and announced that the pair will officially get married on 29 August 2025, on his 48th birthday.^[62][63][64]

Vishal was arrested by police in December 2018 when he tried to enter the Tamil Film Producers Council in T. Nagar, Chennai, by trying to break the lock. The council was locked by film producers alleging that Vishal failed to fulfil his promises during the elections in 2017.^[65]

• All films are in Tamil, unless otherwise noted.