Popular Tamil film producer K Rajan died by suicide on Sunday, May 17, in Chennai. He was 85. A police case has been registered and investigation is ongoing.
A senior official of the City police said the 85-year-old outspoken film producer was returning to his hotel in his car when he asked the driver to stop the vehicle on the bridge and jumped into the river. He was separated from his family and was staying at a private hotel, the police officer added.
Alerted, Adyar police, with the assistance of Fire and Rescue Services personnel, recovered the body and sent it to Government Royapettah hospital for post mortem. The Adyar police have filed a case and are investigating.
Rajan, who was an active voice in most cinema events in Tamil, was an actor, director, writer and producer. Rajan began his career by producing the film Brammacharigal in 1983. In 1987, he made his acting debut in the film Michael Raj, starring Raghuvaran. Over the next 10 years, Rajan wrote films such as Thangamana Thangachi (1991) and Chinna Poovai Killathe (1992) and directed Namma Ooru Mariamma (1991), starring Nizhalgal Ravi and Sarathkumar.
Rajan then went on to produce films such as Doubles (2000), Aval Paavam (2000), and Ninaikkatha Naalillai (2001) over the turn of the century. He directed Unarchigal in 2005.
Though he didn’t produce or direct many films, Rajan has appeared in over 18 films. He was last seen in the 2023 Ajith Kumar starrer Thunivu and Bakasuran, starring Selvaraghavan, which released the same year.
Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the State’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416. and Sneha’s suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050.
Published – May 17, 2026 08:00 pm IST
