Chennai: Popular Tamil film actor, writer director Visu, who has become a household name through his fims depicting middle class families and his comic timing, died yesterday evening after a prolonged illness. He was 74.
He was suffering from age related health issues and breathed his last at around 5.30 pm Sunday. He began his career as a theatre artist, before becoming a popular director with his films loaded with comedy and highlighting the problems faced by the middle-class
and became a household name.
He has also acted with Superstar Rajinikanth in films like Nallavanukku Nallavan, Mannan, Arunachalam and Uzhaippali. Meenakshisundaram Ramasamy Viswanathan, popularly known as Visu, started his career on the stage, working with
theatre artiste Y G Parathasarathy’s drama troupe by writing scripts for stage.
Later, he entered the film industry as an assistant director to veteran K Balachandar by writing scripts and dialogues,
including the wholly-entertaining comedy film Thillu Mullu with Rajinikanth in the lead. He acted, wrote script and directed in popular family centric films like Kudumbam Oru Kadambam, the critically acclaimed Manal Kayiru, though he was best known for
his film Samsaram Adhu Minsaram, highlighting the joint family drama in the 1980s, besides films like Chidambara
Ragasiyam with comedian S Ve Shekhar in the lead.
He became even more famous with his debate show Arattai Arangam in SUN TV on Sundays, drawing viewers to the
TV screens, on social issues. Visu later shifted to Jaya TV where he conducted theVisuvin Makkal Arangam show for a few years before he called it quits.
The actor joined the BJP in 2016 as he believed in nationalism and spirituality. The Tamil film fraternity took to twitter to offer his their condolences to the deceased actor.