Veteran Tamil film director Bharathiraja has passed away in Chennai on Wednesday. He was 84.

Director of some of the epoch-making films in Tamil with a rural backdrop, he is the recipient of six National Film Awards. Bharathiraja also won four Filmfare Awards and six Tamil Nadu State Awards. A recipient of Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian honour, he also directed films in Telugu and Hindi.

He has directed more than 40 films. His first film was 16 Vayathinile (1977) for which he wrote the script. The film had Kamal Haasan, Sridevi and Rajanikath as lead actors who would go on to become superstars in Indian cinema. The film is considered a classic which pioneered village-based themes in a new manner in Tamil cinema.

Some of his other renowned films include Sigappu Rojakkal (1978), Alaigal Oivathillai (1981), Muthal Mariyada (1985) and Karuthamma (1994).

Bharathiraja is known for introducing many newcomers, who would go on to become eminent actors in Tamil and elsewhere. Noted among them include Karthik, Revathi, Radha, Renjitha, Napoleon, and Rekha.

Bharathiraja is survived by his wife and daughter, Janani. His son Manoj Bharathiraja, who was an actor and director, passed away due to cardiac arrest in 2025.

Celebrities from the film industry took to their social media handles to express their condolences to his grieving family.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Joseph Vijay, himself a film star, visited the family to pay his last respects.

Actors Chiranjeevi, Mohanlal, Prakash Raj, Shivakumar, Suriya, and Radhika are among other film personalities who shared their condolences on social media.

Celebrities pay tribute as renowned Tamil film director Bharathiraja dies in Chennai