4 min readHyderabadAug 17, 2026 05:13 PM IST
Actor Suriya has talked about his family’s move from Chennai to Mumbai, explaining that the decision was driven by two things: giving Jyotika the chance to be with her ageing parents after 27 years away from home, and their children’s preference for the International Baccalaureate curriculum, which has limited options in Chennai.
In an interaction with Mashable India, the Vishwanath and Sons actor said Jyotika left Mumbai for Chennai when she was 18 to build her film career and stayed there for nearly three decades. “Her parents are a little more elderly than my parents, and when she was 18 she left the city. She was in Chennai with me for 27 years. I thought it is only right if she spends the time back with her parents,” Suriya said.
The children’s education played an equally important role. Their daughter Diya and son Dev both chose the IB syllabus, and Suriya said the options for IB schools in Chennai are extremely limited. “The kids chose the IB syllabus and there are only one or two schools in Chennai,”
Also Read: The death of the South Indian family hero—and why Suriya might be the last one left
Suriya also spoke warmly about discovering Mumbai through Jyothika’s eyes. He revealed her father lives on Perry Cross Road in Bandra West, near Carter Road, and Suriya said visiting the area for the first time felt like walking into a film set.
“Jyothika introduced me to each and every part of Mumbai. To see Carter Road for the first time, we have seen it only in movies, in P.C. Sreeram’s cinematography or Mani Ratnam’s films,” he said, adding, “To walk on Carter Road, to walk Bandstand, was a very different experience. Elco Market, the sugarcane juices, all the auto rides.”
He said the move has given his family a quality of life he did not expect. “After 18 plus years of marriage, to come back and sit on a bench at Bandstand with my daughter, going for walks, taking her for a night walk at 10 at night, or going by auto with her to small eateries and restaurants. It’s like a completely different life opened up for us,” he said.
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Also Read: Suriya-Jyotika reveal their marriage ritual: Morning coffee and ‘missing you’ texts
He described the simple pleasures of fatherhood that his career had previously kept him from. “Just going with my son, playing some basketball, or dropping him, picking him up, all that has been a very different experience. Work keeps happening, life keeps happening, then you miss all these moments with family. The quality of life in Bombay, family-time wise, it’s become even better, I would say,” he said.
Suriya also revealed that the Bandra-Worli Sea Link has become a favourite for family drives. “The Sea Link is my daughter’s favourite road and we come for drives,” he said, adding with a laugh that they never cross 80 kilometres per hour and that he usually stays below 60 or 70.
The move to Mumbai had sparked speculation on social media about possible rifts within the Sivakumar family, particularly given the close-knit joint family setup in which Suriya, Jyotika, their children, his parents Sivakumar and Lakshmi, and brother Karthi’s family had all lived together in Chennai. Suriya’s brother Karthi addressed the rumours at the time, calling Jyotika “like a mother to me” and dismissing any suggestion of a family disagreement.
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Suriya and Jyothika married on September 11, 2006. Their daughter Diya was born in 2007 and son Dev in 2010.
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