3 min readHyderabadAug 3, 2026 04:49 PM IST
Actor Suriya has revealed that veteran actor and producer Radikaa Sarathkumar helped his family financially at a time when they were not in a position to fund his brother Karthi’s education in the United States.
Speaking at the audio launch of his upcoming film Vishwanath and Sons in Coimbatore on Sunday evening, Suriya said Radikaa Sarathkumar stepped in with the money the family needed to show as a bank balance to meet the visa requirements for Karthi’s admission.
“When Karthi was to travel to the US, we had to show a particular bank account balance to meet certain visa requirements. We weren’t financially strong at that time,” Suriya said. “Radikaa, who was working with my father during those years, gave us that money, asking us to hold the money in our bank until Karthi gets admitted into the college.”
Radikaa Sarathkumar was closely associated with veteran actor Sivakumar, Suriya and Karthi’s father, during the 1990s. She worked with Sivakumar on several productions and maintained a close relationship with the family throughout. Karthi later went on to become one of the leading actors in Tamil cinema and shared screen space with Radikaa Sarathkumar in Saguni in 2012.
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Suriya also shared a second memory, saying Radikaa Sarathkumar had appeared in some of his early films without accepting any payment. “If we go back in time, she acted in some of my films without remuneration. She needn’t have done that, but she did it, which was great,” he said. The two have worked together across three films over two decades: Sandhippoma in 1998, Uyirile Kalanthathu in 2000 and Singam 3 in 2017.
“Radikaa is not here with us today at the event, but we have so many memories and experiences with her,” Suriya said. “Similarly, we have many memories and emotions that we share with her.”
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The comments came at the audio launch of Vishwanath and Sons, Suriya’s 46th film as a lead actor, held at Hindusthan College of Arts and Science in Coimbatore.
In the film, directed by Lucky Bhaskar fame Venky Atluri, Suriya and Radikaa play mother and son, their fourth on-screen collaboration. The film tells the story of Sanjay Vishwanath, a 42-year-old international pistol shooting champion played by Suriya, whose life is upended when Maddy, a 22-year-old woman played by Mamitha Baiju, falls in love with him despite his resistance to the age-gap.
The film also stars Raveena Tandon, Nasser, Sudha, Bhavani Sri, Kaali Venkat, George Maryan and Hyper Aadhi in supporting roles. Music is composed by G.V. Prakash Kumar, with cinematography by Nimish Ravi and editing by Navin Nooli. Produced by Suryadevara Naga Vamsi and Sai Soujanya under Sithara Entertainments and Fortune Four Cinemas, presented by Srikara Studios. Vishwanath and Sons releases in theatres worldwide on August 14.
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