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The career of Soundarya Rajinikanth,
in seven movements.

Twenty-seven years, read as a single argument: take charge of how a film looks, then of how it is made, then of whether it is made at all.

Learning the industry from its lettering

Soundarya entered Tamil cinema as a graphic designer. Her first credit — the title sketch for Padayappa in 1999 — was for a single card at the head of a film. It was also an authorship position: the moment a film announces itself.

Three years later she designed the title sequence for Baba. By 2005 she was working across five features in a single year. In 2007 she handled the title sequence for Sivaji and worked on Chennai 600028.

Ten films in eight years, in a craft that almost never carries a name above the poster — and an education in how a Tamil production is actually assembled.

1999Padayappa — title sketch. First screen credit.
2002Baba — title sequence.
2005Chandramukhi, Anbe Aaruyire, Sivakasi, Majaa and Sandakozhi — graphic design.
2007Sivaji — title sequence; Chennai 600028 — graphic design.
Soundarya Rajinikanth in a blue shirt during an early press interaction
Early in the career, at a press interaction.

Ocher Studios, and a partner in Burbank

In 2005 she founded Ocher Studios in Chennai — a visual-effects and pre-production house, opening with Chandramukhi. Within three years it had grown to a team of around eighty specialising in visual effects and pre-production services.

In 2008 Ocher Studios signed an agreement with Warner Bros. Entertainment to partner on producing and distributing Tamil films — a rare direct arrangement between a Hollywood studio and an independent Chennai house at the time.

The studio’s own first feature was to be Sultan: The Warrior, a 3D animated film with Rajinikanth voicing the lead, co-produced with Adlabs Films and planned for release in multiple languages. A teaser was released; the film was eventually dropped.

2005Ocher Studios founded in Chennai. First project: Chandramukhi.
2008Agreement signed with Warner Bros. Entertainment for Tamil film production and distribution.
2008Cameo appearance in the song “Cinema Cinema” in Kuselan.
—Sultan: The Warrior developed as a 3D animated feature with Adlabs Films; shelved before completion.

Deciding which films get made

In 2010 Soundarya produced her first feature, Goa, under Ocher Picture Productions — the banner she founded and owns. It marked the shift from being commissioned to make a film’s images to commissioning the film itself.

The period that followed was spent in development on the project that would become her directorial debut: a motion-capture feature of a kind that had not been attempted in India, requiring facilities and a workflow that had to be assembled across three continents.

2010Goa — producer. Debut as a film producer, under Ocher Picture Productions.
2010–13Development and production of Kochadaiiyaan: performance capture at Pinewood Studios, London, with animation across the United States, Hong Kong and China.
Soundarya Rajinikanth applauding in a marigold-yellow embroidered outfit at a film event
At a film event during the production years.

Kochadaiiyaan — the first of its kind in India

Released on 23 May 2014, Kochadaiiyaan was India’s first photorealistic motion-capture feature. Rajinikanth played a triple role; Deepika Padukone made her Tamil debut; A. R. Rahman composed the music; K. S. Ravikumar wrote the screenplay; Resul Pookutty designed the sound; Peter Hein choreographed the action; Neeta Lulla designed the costumes.

It opened simultaneously in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Bengali, Marathi and Punjabi. Directing it made Soundarya the first woman to direct her father in a feature film. She framed the project as a tribute to the centenary of Indian cinema.

Reviews divided sharply, largely over the animation, and the film did not recover its reported ₹125 crore budget. Later that year the NDTV Indian of the Year awards honoured her for Technical Innovation in Film.

RoleDirector and graphic designer.
TechnologyPerformance capture at Pinewood Studios, London; animation in the United States, Hong Kong and China.
Release23 May 2014, in six languages.
RecognitionNDTV Indian of the Year 2014 — Technical Innovation in Film.

VIP 2, and a return that made news

After the technology of Kochadaiiyaan, her second film was a mainstream live-action sequel. Velaiilla Pattadhari 2 was directed and written by Soundarya from a story by Dhanush, and produced by Kalaipuli S. Thanu’s V Creations with Dhanush’s Wunderbar Films.

Casting Kajol as the antagonist brought her back to Tamil cinema after twenty years — her first Tamil film since Minsara Kanavu in 1997. The film opened on 11 August 2017 in Tamil, followed by Hindi and Telugu releases the same month.

A third project, Nilavuku En Mel Ennadi Kobam, went into pre-production in 2016 with Dhanush, Kajal Aggarwal and Manjima Mohan attached, and was subsequently dropped.

RoleDirector and screenwriter.
CastDhanush, Kajol, Amala Paul, Samuthirakani, Saranya Ponvannan, Vivek.
MusicSean Roldan, with Anirudh Ravichander’s original theme retained.
Release11 August 2017 (Tamil); Hindi and Telugu versions later that month.
Soundarya Rajinikanth in a marigold-yellow outfit with gold jewellery at a promotional event
On the promotional circuit.

May6 Entertainment, and a platform built on voice

On 3 September 2018 Soundarya established May6 Entertainment in Chennai — a film and television content company working across the whole production chain, from creative writing and casting through to motion graphics, sound engineering, visual effects and distribution strategy.

In March 2021 she set up Hoote Global Technologies. That October, Rajinikanth launched Hoote: a voice-based social platform built around sixty-second voice notes, announced as the first voice-based social network launched from India and planned for fifteen Indian and ten international languages.

The idea began with a voice note her father sent her while shooting Annaatthe. The name comes from the call of the owl — a bird long read as a symbol of wisdom.

2018May6 Entertainment established, 3 September, Chennai.
2021Hoote Global Technologies incorporated in March; Hoote launched in October.
ScopeIndependent films, original series and documentaries with character-driven narratives.
Soundarya Rajinikanth in a brown printed kurta at an entertainment company event backdrop
At an entertainment industry event.

Original series, and a new banner

In March 2024 May6 Entertainment moved into streaming with Gangs — Kuruthi Punal, a 1970s-set period action drama for Prime Video directed by Noah, with Soundarya as creative producer and a cast led by Ashok Selvan, Nimisha Sajayan and Nassar.

In 2025 she founded Zion Films. That November, With Love was launched in Chennai — a Zion Films production made with MRP Entertainment, directed by Madhan and starring Abishan Jeevinth and Anaswara Rajan, with music by Sean Roldan and cinematography by Shreyaas Krishna. Rajinikanth launched the title teaser.

2024Gangs — Kuruthi Punal for Prime Video — creative producer, May6 Entertainment.
2025Zion Films founded.
2025With Love launched in Chennai on 24 November, with MRP Entertainment.
2026With Love — producer.
Soundarya Rajinikanth smiling at a recent film event, photographed in front of a printed film backdrop
At a recent film event in Chennai.

Every film, every credit — set out in full.

The complete filmography, from title design to production.

View filmography