Vaanmathi to Viswasam: When Ajith rocked the screens on Pongal

As Ajith's action entertainer Thunivu gears up to hit Pongal, fans are on cloud nine. Ajith has had a slew of releases on the occasion of the harvest festival and many of the releases have raked in the moolah as well. Here are some of Ajith's notable releases during Pongal that had his fans elated.

Vaanmathi (1996)
This romantic drama helmed by Agathiyan stars Ajith opposite Swathi and revolves around two young people from different financial backgrounds falling in love with each other after getting off on the wrong foot. The film was a huge commercial success at the box office and marked the arrival of Ajith as a bankable actor.

Nesam (1997)
This romantic comedy helmed by K Subash had Maheshwari playing the leading lady. Ajith later went on to collaborate with her in Ullasam as well. The film which also starred Goundamani, Manivannan and Senthil, opened to mixed reviews and was considered a dampener at the box office.

Thodarum (1999)
Thodarum was yet another Pongal release of Ajith, which was helmed by popular comedian and supporting actor Ramesh Khanna, marking his directorial debut. The film, which is a remake of the Telugu film, Maavichiguru, marked the hit combination of Ajith, Heera and Devayani, who had earlier teamed up in Kadhal Kottai as well.

Dheena (2001)
With Dheena, Ajith took the plunge into the action genre. The actor also earned the nickname Thala in the film, which his fans used to address him fondly. The film also marked the debut of AR Murugadoss. Laila played the leading lady in the film, which had some chartbusters by Yuvan Shankar Raja. The film set the cash registers ringing at the Box Office.

Red (2002)
Ajith played the titular character in Red, who is a modern-day Robinhood and has the heart of gold. The film's soundtrack was a huge success. Though Red was supposed to hit screens for Deepavali, the release got postponed to Pongal, to avoid competition with Kamal Haasan's Aalavandhan.

Paramasivan (2006)
Ajith underwent a major body transformation after Red and appeared in a much leaner avatar in Paramasivan. The film was a remake of the Hindi film Kartoos and was helmed by P Vasu. Laila teamed up with Ajith once again after Dheena. Ajith had signed the film after dropping out of Bala's Naan Kadavul.

Aalwar (2007)
The action drama directed by debutant Chella Ayyavu, had Ajith playing a priest, who later takes on baddies. The film, which has Asin as the leading lady, opened to negative reviews. Aalwar was a commercial failure at the box office.

Veeram (2014)
Veeram, one of Ajith's biggest hits in his career, hit screens on Pongal. The action drama directed by Siva had Ajith playing Vinayagam, who lives along with his four brothers, is a good-hearted person and hates the idea of marriage.

Viswasam (2019)
Yet another commercial hit of Ajith, Viswasam, written and directed by Siva, had Ajith and Nayanthara in the lead. The film's composer Imman bagged the Best Music Director at the 67th National Film Awards.