Aug 13, 2026 5:40pm IST
From Suriya to Venkatesh: A-List South Indian Stars Return to Recording Songs
Across film industries in India’s South states, A-List actors are returning to recording booths to voice singles for their projects. While this would happen more often than not in recent years, the trend came to a standstill, of late. The latest re-entrant to this list is Tamil superstar Suriya, who sang “The Wedding Song” for the film “Vishwanath And Sons,” a year after 2025’s “Love Detox” for Kartik Subbaraj’s “Retro."
Tamil stars lead pack
Tamil cinema has the most prolific actors-turned-singers. Apart from Suriya, there’s Thalapathy Vijay (most recently heard in “Jana Nayagan”’s “Thalapathy Kacheri” and “Whistle Podu” in “The Greatest Of All Time” in 2024). Dhanush is the most quoted example, creating history with the viral “Why This Kolaveri Di” for the film “3” (2012). Karthi has also sung a few numbers for films like "Biriyani" (2013) and "Japan" (2023).
Related Stories
GV Prakash, who directed the music for “Vishawanath And Sons” and is a prolific singer-composer and actor, notes, "From Kamal Hassan to Sharath Kumar, Dhanush or Thalapathy Vijay, they have all attempted singing. I feel their fans get very excited to watch their favourite actors sing. It certainly helps during the film’s promotions.”
Malayalam stars keep it going
Malayalam stars have also embraced singing over the years. Mohanlal has delivered several popular tracks, while Dulquer Salmaan impressed fans with songs like “Chundari Penne” from Charlie (2016) and “Johny Mone Johnee” from “ABCD” (2013). “Varanasi” star Prithviraj Sukumaran has sung in films "Urumi" (2011) and "The Thriller" (2010), adding another dimension to his on-screen presence.
Kannada: Then and now
When it comes to Kannada, the late superstar Puneeth Rajkumar delivered several hit songs as a leading hero, while his brother, Shiva Rajkumar, also sang popular tracks like “Mani Mani” (2022) and “Kamanna Makkalu” (2008). Actor-director Upendra has likewise showcased his singing talent in multiple films.
Telugu: Keeping it massy
The Telugu film industry has its own list of singing stars. Chiranjeevi surprised fans by singing songs in films like "Master" (1997) and "Tagore" (2003) and more recently, “Peddi Reddy” for “Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu” this year. Pawan Kalyan's songs from films like "Gabbar Singh" (2012), "Thammudu" (1999), and "Johnny" (2003) have always carried a special craze among his followers.
Venkatesh recently lent his voice for 'Blockbuster Pongal' from his cult hit "Sankranthiki Vasthunnam" (2025), which broke records. Jr NTR's song, 'Follow Follow Me' from "Nannaku Prematho” (2016), was also a rage with the youth. Not to forget Nandamuri Balakrishna, who sang the cult classic 'Mama Ek Peg La' from "Paisa Vasool" (2017). Nagarjuna and Ravi Teja too have sung songs that perfectly match their image.
Adding more about it, popular Telugu playback singer Lipsika Bhashyam says "Singing is an art, just like acting. If an actor genuinely has the ability and the song serves the story, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. It only becomes a gimmick if the choice is driven purely by marketing. What matters most is honesty, emotion, and whether the performance connects with people.
Emotional connect matters
The main reason behind this trend is simple. Fans love hearing their favorite hero sing. Even if the actor is not a professional singer, the emotional connection is much stronger when audiences hear the hero's own voice. Such songs often get more views, more shares, and more attention ahead of the film's release. In a way, singing is proving to be one of the easiest and most effective ways to do that. More importantly, it gives fans one more reason to celebrate their favorite heroes.
Comments are moderated. They may be edited for clarity and reprinting in whole or in part in Variety publications.