Suriya reveals his first career option; says he did his maiden film for money

Actor Suriya who is a prominent name in the Tamil film industry and one of the beloved actors in the country, revealed how his first career option was not the entertainment industry. The actor, who hails from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, recounted his first paycheck and how the transition as an actor took place.

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Suriya on his first pay check and career choice as an actor

Actor Suriya, in conversation with Curly Tales, recalled how despite being the son of veteran actor Sivakumar, he did not have any aspiration to become an actor. "I was more inspired by my relatives who are in the textile industry. Our hometown is Coimbatore and we have a lot of textile mills. So, my thought was to have a factory, many workers and my interest laid in stitching, dying and those stuff. I also worked for three years in the garment industry. I really thought I would be a textile exporter,” Suriya said.

He also said how he worked as an intern and hid his identity as an actor's son. "My first check was for Rs 746, and then 1200 per month and by the third month, I was earning Rs 8,000 per month,” he called.

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Suriya’s first film

Asked what really made him say yes to his first film, the actor said it was for money. He shared, "One day, my mother said on the breakfast table that she had to repay Rs 25,000 and that Appa does not know about this and she was not able to pay back. Ups and downs happen in the film industry, and Appa too had his highs and lows. I got an offer to do my first film and an important actor walked away from it. They wanted to start it immediately and that film happened to be produced by Mani Ratnam sir and Vasanth sir. So soon, I was standing in front of the camera.”

Suriya made his debut with Nerrukku Ner, directed by Vasanth Sai. The film co-stars Vijay as another lead and is available for streaming on Aha Tamil and OTTplay Premium. Nerrukku Ner is a romantic action drama also featuring Raghuvaran, Simran, Kausalya and others.