Hari (director) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Hari
Hari at the 62nd Filmfare South Awards
Born	Hari Krishnan (1973-12-26) 26 December 1973 (age 51) Katchanavilai Village, Thoothukudi District, Tamil Nadu, India
Occupation	Film director Screenwriter
Years active	2002–present
Spouse(s)	Preetha Hari
Children	3

Harikrishnan, known as Hari, is an Indian film director and screenwriter. He is famous for making exciting action and masala films in Tamil cinema. Masala films mix different genres like action, comedy, romance, and drama.

Hari started his directing career with the film Thamizh in 2002. He has directed many popular movies, including Saamy (2003), Kovil (2004), Ayya (2005), Thaamirabharani (2007), Vel (2007), and the very successful Singam film series (2010-2017). Many of his films are set in places like Coimbatore, Dindigul, Tenkasi, and the Thoothukudi-Tirunelveli districts.

Early Life and Education

Hari was born on December 26, 1973, in the Thoothukudi district of Tamil Nadu, India. His father, Gopalakrishnan, owned a grocery store. Later, Hari's family moved to Chennai. There, he finished his studies and earned a degree in Commerce.

Journey into Filmmaking

Hari began his film career by working as an assistant director. This means he helped experienced directors and learned a lot about making movies. He worked with several directors, including Senthilnathan, Jeevabalan, Ameerjan, and K. Natraj. He also assisted K. Balachander and was an associate director for Saran on films like Amarkalam. This experience helped him understand all parts of filmmaking.

First Films and Big Hits

Hari's first movie as a director was Thamizh in 2002. It starred Prashanth and Simran. Critics noted that the film had a strong script and good dialogue.

His second film, Saamy (2003), was a huge success. It starred Vikram and became one of the biggest hits of the year. Because it was so popular, Saamy was remade into other languages, including Telugu, Kannada, and Hindi.

Hari then directed Kovil with Silambarasan and Arul, which again starred Vikram. In 2005, he made Ayya, starring Sarathkumar. This film also introduced the popular actress Nayantara to Tamil cinema. Later that year, he directed Aaru with Suriya.

In 2007, Hari directed two more films: Thaamirabharani with Vishal and Vel with Suriya. In 2008, he directed Seval.

The Singam Series and Recent Work

In 2010, Hari directed his tenth film, Singam. This was his third movie with actor Suriya. Singam was a major box office success and was also remade in Hindi, Kannada, and Bengali.

After directing Venghai (2011) with Dhanush, Hari made a sequel to Singam called Singam II (2013). Suriya returned in his role as Duraisingam. This sequel was another huge hit and one of the biggest movies of 2013.

Hari then worked with actor Vishal again on the film Poojai (2014). He also teamed up with Suriya for the fifth time for Singam 3 (2017), which continued the Singam story.

In 2018, Hari directed Saamy Square, a sequel to his earlier hit Saamy, with Vikram returning as the lead. This was their third film together. More recently, Hari directed Yaanai (2022), starring his brother-in-law Arun Vijay. His latest film is Rathnam (2024), which is his third collaboration with actor Vishal.

Personal Life

Hari with his wife Preetha Vijayakumar.

Hari is married to former actress Preetha Vijayakumar. Preetha is the daughter of famous actors Vijayakumar and Manjula. She is also the half-sister of actor Arun Vijay. Hari and Preetha have three sons.

Filmmaking Style

Hari's films are known for being very fast-paced and full of action. They often belong to the masala genre, which means they mix different types of stories. Because he often features the aruva (a type of sickle) in his movies, Hari is sometimes called the "aruva director." His films often have strong main characters, funny side stories, and special song-and-dance numbers.

Filmography

As Writer and Director