Mayilsamy

Mayilsamy (2 October 1965 – 19 February 2023) was an Indian actor and comedian who primarily played supporting roles. Appearing in many Tamil films, he was also a regular guest judge for Asathapovathu Yaaru on Sun TV in Chennai. He was well known for his comedy tracks in movies collaborating with veteran comedians Vivek and Vadivelu. He featured in excess of 200 films in a career spanning nearly four decades.

He was renowned for his mimicry skills and soon became a household name in Tamil Nadu through the television hit show Comedy Time. He was also actively involved in debates and was highly regarded for his speech skills, and won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Comedian for his performance in Kangalal Kaidhu Sei.

Mayilsamy was involved in various stage performances and in theatres from his early childhood days. He performed and travelled across Tamil Nadu with a local famous comedy troupe.

He began his film career in the 1980s. His acting debut was in Dhavani Kanavugal (1984), which he shared billing with K. Bhagyaraj. He played minor roles in several films in his early career, including Apoorva Sagodharargal (1989) and Michael Madhana Kama Rajan (1990), in which he collaborated with veteran actor Kamal Haasan. He rose to prominence for his performance in Dhool (2003) with Vivek.

Mayilsamy also had a series of standup comedy releases, including Sirippo Sirippu. He made his debut on Tamil television as the host and judge of the popular comedy show Asathapovathu Yaaru, which aired on Sun TV from 2002 to 2004 and attained a very high place among the comedy reality shows. Mayilsamy mainly appeared as a host and occasionally as a guest judge.

In October 2009, Mayilsamy announced that his son Arumainayagam was ready to act in films, and gave him the stage name of Anbu. Later his other son Yuvan also started acting in TV shows.

Mayilsamy died from a cardiac arrest in Chennai, in the early morning on 19 February 2023, at the age of 57.

On the evening of 18 February, Mayilsamy had attended a Shivratri Puja at Sri Meghnad Eswarar temple in Kelambakkam, Chennai. He then called Drums Sivamani to conduct a special musical session in the temple, which occurred at around 11 PM. He was returning home from the temple in the early morning, when he suffered a cardiac arrest. He was taken to a nearby hospital in an auto-rickshaw. The doctors declared him brought dead.

His funeral was conducted at his home. He was cremated at AVM cemetery in Vadapalani on 20 February.

• 1992 - Kasthuri Manjal
• 1996 - Selva for Manivannan
• 2001 - Ullam Kollai Poguthae
• 2004 - New for Brahmanandam, Ali
• 2004 - Ghilli for Brahmanandam