V. Gowthaman

V. Gowthaman (Tamil: வ. கவுதமன்) is a Tamil film director and actor. He has directed few Tamil films. These include Magizhchi,^[1] Kanave Kalaiyadhe. He has also directed the famous thriller biography serials of Auto Shankar and Veerappan in the name of Auto Sankar and Santhanakkaadu^[2] in Makkal TV. He is preparing to direct a new film based on Neela Padmanaban's novel. He has participated in Jallikatu demonstration in Chennai.

V. Gowthaman
Occupation(s)	actor, director, politician
Years active	1998-present

Career

Gowthaman made his directorial debut with Kanave Kalaiyadhe (1998) starring Murali and Simran. In 2001, he started a film titled Poranthaalum Pompalaiyaa Porakkakkoodaathu with Livingston and Pandiarajan in the lead, though the film was later dropped.^[3]

After a long gap he directed a tele series for Makkal TV based on the life of serial killer Auto Shankar and "Santhanakaadu" based on Veerappan. He made his comeback as a director with Magizhchi (2010) in which he also made his debut as an actor.^[4] Gowthaman was working with the screenplay of the movie for 12 years.^[5] The film, received good reviews for its content and went unnoticed due to its low key release.^[6][7][8]

He went on to direct a short film called "Vetti" which received controversy as the police felt that it was insulting against national flag.^[9][10]

Filmography

Director

Films

• Kanave Kalaiyadhe (1999)
• Magizhchi (2010)
• Padaiyaanda Maaveeraa (2025)

Television

• Santhanakadu
• Auto Shankar

Actor

• Neengalum Herothan (1990) - Tiger' Premnath's fan
• Kaadhale Nimmadhi (1998) - Servant
• Solla Marandha Kadhai (2002) - Taxi driver
• Magizhchi (2010)

Politics and activism

Gowthaman have organized and participated many protest favoring Tamil people interests.^[11][12][13] He has been part of Jallikattu protest, Cauvery water dispute, farmer related issues, katchatheevu reinstatement and other issues.^[14][15][16]

He floated a new party Tamil Perarasu Katchi and contested in 2019 by-election held in Vikravandi constituency in Tamil Nadu.^[17][18]