The Most Famous
ACTORS from Sri Lanka
Top 2
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Sri Lankan Actors of all time. This list of famous Sri Lankan Actors is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. M. G. Ramachandran (1917 - 1987)
With an HPI of 51.77, M. G. Ramachandran is the most famous Sri Lankan Actor. His biography has been translated into 31 different languages on wikipedia.
Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran (17 January 1917 – 24 December 1987), popularly known by his initials M.G.R., was an Indian actor, politician and philanthropist who served as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu from 1977 until his death in 1987. He was the founder and first general secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. On 19 March 1988, Ramachandran was posthumously awarded the Bharat Ratna, India's highest civilian honour. Ramachandran is regarded as one of the most influential politicians of post-independence India. Apart from politics, as a film personality he won the National Film Award, two Tamil Nadu State Film Awards and two Filmfare Award South. In his youth, Ramachandran and his elder brother M. G. Chakrapani became members of a drama troupe to support their family. Influenced by Gandhian ideals, Ramachandran joined the Indian National Congress. After a few years of acting in plays, he made his film debut in the 1936 film Sathi Leelavathi in a supporting role. By the late 1940s, he had graduated to lead roles. Ramachandran was one of the "three biggest names of Tamil cinema", the other two being Sivaji Ganesan and Gemini Ganesan. While Sivaji Ganesan excelled in dramatic films, Gemini Ganesan was known for his romantic films, M. G. Ramachandran was popular as an action hero. Ramachandran became a member of the C. N. Annadurai-led Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK party) and rose through its ranks, using his popularity as a film star to build a political base. In 1972, three years after Annadurai's death, he left the DMK, then led by M. Karunanidhi to form his own party—the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK). Five years later, Ramachandran steered an AIADMK-led alliance to victory in the 1977 election, routing the DMK in the process. He became Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, the first film actor to become a chief minister in India. Except for a four-month interregnum in 1980, when his government was overthrown by the Union government, he remained as chief minister till his death in 1987, leading the AIADMK to two more electoral wins in 1980 and 1984. In October 1984, Ramachandran was diagnosed with kidney failure as a result of diabetes. He died on 24 December 1987 in his Ramavaram Gardens residence in Manapakkam after a prolonged illness. His autobiography Naan Yaen Piranthaen (Why I was Born) was published in 2003.
2. Pooja Umashankar (b. 1981)
With an HPI of 22.03, Pooja Umashankar is the 2nd most famous Sri Lankan Actor. Her biography has been translated into 15 different languages.
Pooja Gauthami Umashankar is an Indian-Sri Lankan actress who has primarily appeared in Indian Tamil and Sri Lankan Sinhala cinema.
People
Pantheon has 2 people classified as Sri Lankan actors born between 1917 and 1981. Of these 2, 1 (50.00%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Sri Lankan actors include Pooja Umashankar. The most famous deceased Sri Lankan actors include M. G. Ramachandran. As of April 2024, 1 new Sri Lankan actors have been added to Pantheon including Pooja Umashankar.
