Kamal Haasan: Ten Roles, Many Faces and a Khadi Label

Kamal Haasan is best known for changing how he looks on screen, from a dwarf to quadruplets to a woman to ten characters in one film. This piece uses his published biography to look at those transformations, at his work in Hindi cinema, and at his fashion label built on handloom khadi.

A film family in Paramakudi

According to his Wikipedia biography, Haasan was born on 7 November 1954 in Paramakudi to a lawyer and freedom fighter, D. Srinivasan Iyengar, and Rajalakshmi, a homemaker. His brothers Charuhasan and Chandrahasan were also actors, and his sister Nalini Haassan is a classical dancer. His name, which his father chose, combines kamal, lotus, with hasya, the Sanskrit word for laughter. He has made over 230 films in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi, Kannada and Bengali, and has also worked as a choreographer, editor and make-up artist.

Transformations as a method

The biography lists a run of physical changes. In Apoorva Sagodharargal (1989) he played a dwarf, and in Michael Madana Kama Rajan (1990) he played quadruplets. In Avvai Shanmughi, inspired by Mrs. Doubtfire, he played a woman. In Aalavandhan (2001) he played two roles: for one he had his head shaved and gained ten kilograms, and for the other, an army major, he took a crash course at the National Defence Academy. In Dasavathaaram (2008) he played ten roles; the biography calls it one of the first modern science-fiction films made in India, and it was released in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi.

His Hindi connection

Haasan directed the Hindi remake of Avvai Shanmughi, Chachi 420, taking over from the director he had chosen, Shantanu Sheorey, after he was dissatisfied with five days of shooting. His Tamil film Thevar Magan was remade in Hindi as Virasat (1997). Years later he produced and starred in Unnaipol Oruvan, a remake of the Bollywood film A Wednesday, reprising the role played by Naseeruddin Shah.

Awards and honours

The biography lists the Padma Shri in 1990, the Padma Bhushan in 2014 and the French Order of Arts and Letters (Chevalier) in 2016. His performance in Nayakan (1987), directed by Mani Ratnam, brought him his second National Film Award, and the film is on Time's All-Time 100 Movies list. Haasan was invited by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 2025 to join its actors' branch.

The khadi label

Haasan launched KH House of Khaddar, a sustainable fashion brand co-founded with the designer Amritha Ram that blends India's khadi handloom heritage with Western silhouettes. It was first introduced at a launch in Chicago in November 2021, and made its Indian debut on Republic Day 2022.

The biography also says he was known for refusing any kind of brand endorsement, and that he endorsed Pothys for the first time in 2015. He has said that if he ever acted in commercials, the revenue would be donated to children affected by HIV.

Causes and politics

He was the first Tamil actor to convert his fan clubs into welfare associations, and was appointed a United Nations ambassador in 2007 for a campaign on the rights of people living with HIV. He launched the political party Makkal Needhi Maiam in 2018 and took oath as a Rajya Sabha member in 2025.

A caution

Some projects the biography describes never reached the screen. His planned biopic Marudhanayagam, launched in 1997 with Queen Elizabeth in attendance, was left unfinished for budget reasons. Ambition at that scale has also meant uneven results at the box office, which the biography records film by film.

Sources

*Cover photo: Gage Skidmore, Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0).*