4 min readMumbaiJul 12, 2026 06:54 PM IST
R Madhavan has long held his Anbe Sivam co-star Kamal Haasan in “high esteem” because of his pathbreaking and trailblazing career, marked by diverse performances. In an old interview, Madhavan opened up on the “guru-shishya parampara” he shared with the veteran actor on the sets of their film in the early 2000s. The actor also recalled Kamal’s kind gesture for his parents.
Madhavan on his early memories of Kamal Haasan
“He is to Tamil cinema what (Amitabh) Bachchan sahab is to Hindi cinema,” said Madhavan. “I remember my excitement when I was to do a film with Kamal ji. It was to be directed by Priyadarshan,” he added, referring to Anbe Sivam, which was initially being helmed by Priyadarshan. However, after the filmmaker walked out owing to creative differences, Sundar C stepped in instead.
“To discuss the project, I spent the most unforgettable four hours with Kamal ji. For the first three hours, we talked about everything under the sun except the film. We had lunch together. As he talked about his life, work and friends, I realised what made him who he was,” Madhavan told Rediff in 2023.
Kamal Haasan and R Madhavan in Ambe Sivam.
Madhavan’s experience of working with Kamal Haasan
“I told him I want to do the film exactly the way he narrated it to me. ‘Just take me on and teach me,’ I told him. The way he enacted my scenes and his own was simply amazing. I wanted to do my own scenes exactly the way he showed me,” recalled Madhavan. He also recounted a “backhanded compliment” the veteran actor paid him before they started working on the film.
“He said he needed someone for my role who was spontaneous, so he wouldn’t have to worry about what that character is doing,” said Madhavan. He referred to the experience of working with Haasan as one “that defied description”. “I didn’t know how I’d behave with him or whether I would match his standards. But it was wonderful how he took me under his wings,” added the actor.
“Though I’m far less experienced and talented, he never got patronising. While doing Anbe Sivam, we represented the purest form of the guru-shishya parampara. He gave his interpretations of scenes, and most of the time, he was right,” claimed Madhavan, hailing Haasan as “one of the most dedicated actors” he’s ever worked with.
Kamal Haasan’s lesson in humility
Madhavan also shared another instance when him and his family, who had gone to a restaurant for dinner, bumped into Kamal Haasan. “He actually walked up to our table to talk to my parents. They talked about that evening for the next six weeks! I learnt something invaluable from Kamal ji that evening. I learnt the art of putting those who are in awe of you at ease. I saw Kamal ji make my parents so comfortable. He has the qualities of true leadership,” said Madhavan, who also celebrates Haasan as a “pathbreaker”.
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“I believe there’re two kinds of people in world, the reasonable and unreasonable. The reasonable man adapts to the world while the unreasonable man tries to bring the world around to his point of view. All progress in the world is due to unreasonable men like Kamal ji,” argued Madhavan.
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“Here is a man who’s always pushing the envelope regardless of the repercussions. That’s the frenzy of a genius at work,” he added. “I’d like to do the kind of roles that Kamal Haasan does. Daringly different and always the unexpected. I hold him in the greatest esteem. I’d be happy if I achieve even a fraction of what he has,” concluded the actor.
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