What! This national award winner got rejected as an actor for his height and is now worth Rs. 140 crores, guess who

MUMBAI: Many Indian actors have worked their way up to become superstars by impressing the audience with their performances over the years. 

Also read - Whoa! Nayanthara and Vijay Sethupathi were paid this staggering amount to be part of Atlee’s Jawan

Many actors like Rajinikanth, Akshay Kumar, Shah Rukh Khan, and more did odd jobs before entering the industry and are now one of the highest-paid actors.

Another such actor who has impressed the audience with his performance as a hero as well as a villain and even won a National Award for his performance worked as a salesman for pocket money before entering the industry and making his mark. 

He has worked with many actors like Rajinikanth, and Thalapathy Vijay and is now set to star alongside Shah Rukh Khan. He is none other than Vijay Sethupathi. 

Born on 16 January 1978, Vijay Sethupathi was raised in Rajapalayam until he moved to Chennai in class six. According to the actor, he was a ‘below-average student’ in school and attended MGR Higher Secondary School in Kodambakkam and Little Angels Mat. Hr. Sec. School. 

He graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the Dhanraj Baid Jain College (an affiliate of the University of Madras) in Thoraipakam.

The actor auditioned for a role in Nammavar (1994) at the age of 16 but was rejected because of his short height. He did a series of odd jobs from a salesman at a retail store, a cashier at a fast food joint to a phone booth operator to earn money. 

Then, after finishing college, he joined as an account assistant at a wholesale cement business. Later, he moved to Dubai, United Arab Emirates as an accountant because it paid him four times more than what he was making in India as he had to take care of his three siblings too. 

In Dubai, he met his future wife Jessie, online and the two dated for long before tying the knot in 2003. He returned to India unhappy with his job and joined a marketing company. 

He later joined the Chennai-based theatre group Koothu-P-Pattarai as an accountant and actor and observed actors from close quarters. 

Vijay Sethupathi then went on to star as a background actor in some films and also starred in several television shows including the popular series Penn in 2006. He worked with Karthik Subbaraj on many short films who later also cast him in feature films. 

After struggling as a background actor, Vijay Sethupathi finally got his break as lead actor in Ramasamy's drama film Thenmerku Paruvakaatru in 2010 wherein he portrayed a shepherd. The film went on to win three National Awards. 

2012 marked the turning point of Vijay Sethupathi’s career as the three films that were released that year were commercial successes and his performance was critically acclaimed. 

The three films that were released in 2012 were Sundarapandian, Karthik Subbaraj, and Balaji Tharaneetharan’s directorial film Pizza, comedy entertainer Naduvula Konjam Pakkatha Kaanom. 

Later in 2015, he was seen in the rom-com Naanum Rowdy Dhaan directed by Vignesh Shivan which became one of his highest-grossing movies. 

Since then, the actor has given exemplary performances as a hero as well as a villain. He acted as an antagonist in Petta starring Rajinikanth, 2021 film Master starting Thalapathy Vijay, Kamal Haasan-starrer Vikram, and more. 

Now, the actor is all set to impress the audience as an antagonist in Atlee’s directorial Jawan. The movie also stars Shah Rukh Khan and Nayanthara among others and is scheduled to release on September 7. 

The actor is also won a National Award at the 67th National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for his role in the movie Super Deluxe. 

Vijay Sethupathi has made his mark in the industry with his impeccable performances and is one of the highest-paid actors in the industry. The actor reportedly charged Rs 21 crore for Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Jawan for his role as an antagonist. 

Not only this, the actor is one of the most bankable actors in the South industry with a reported net worth of Rs 140 crore. He enjoys a luxurious lifestyle and owns a fleet of swanky and expensive cars. 

Also read - Wow! Shah Rukh Khan and Vijay Sethupathi react to funny questions asked about their upcoming film Jawan

Other than Jawan, Vijay Sethupathi also has Sriram Raghavan’s Merry Christmas in the pipeline which is scheduled to release on December 15. The movie also marks in first-ever collaboration with Katrina Kaif and fans are excited to see this new pair on-screen.

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Credits - DNA