Dhanush

It is not his 'lean, mean and hungry' look that made Venkatesh Prabhu -- now renamed Dhanush -- one of the biggest successes in Tamil cinema, and an actor dubbed as the next Rajnikant.

The 22-year-old has neither style, hairstyle nor the muscles. But he has talent in great measure. And a passion that he instils into his roles.

Coming into films was a coincidence for him. His father (producer) Kasturi Raja could not afford a hero for his film, and he asked his son to act in Thulluvatho Ilamai.

The film was the biggest success of 2002.

In his second film, Kaadal Kondein Dhanush was Vinod, a first-year engineering student. Elder brother Selvaraghavan -- an engineer by profession -- directed him. Selvaraghavan asked him to adopt the body language of a lazy dog for Kaadal Kondein. Dhanush observed street dogs for hours and practised in front of the camera.

Kaadal Kondein became a huge success in 2003. And Dhanush was the toast of Tamil Nadu.

His third release, the masala entertainer Thiruda Thirudi also hit bull's eye. No one complained when his fourth release Piuthukkottayilurunthu Saravanan flopped.

Producers and directors are still willing to wait for months just to get his dates.

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