Kollywood – Mollywood cross-overs are something that happens very often in South Indian cinema. Many Malayalam actors have performed in direct Tamil films, and Many Tamilactors have a huge fan following in Kerala. 

Recently actor Vijay Sethupathi did a brief cameo in actor Jayram’s film Maarconi Mathaai. This cross-over is not something that happens with actors alone, even a few directors and writers from the Malayalam industry have shared their work with the Tamil film industry.   

This article is about a shortlist of a few super hit and memorable Tamil films that were remade from a Malayalam film. The specialty here is that these films were successful in both languages equally. 

Perazhagan

Perazhagan is a comedy-drama film directed by Sasi Shanker. The film was released in 2004. It featured actor Suriya and actress Joythika in a dual role. The film was a remake of the 2002 Malayalam film titled Kunjikoonan. Kunjikoonan was starring actors Dileep, Navya Nair, and Saikumar. No big change was made to the story except for the actors. Through this film, Suriya received the Filmfare Awards South in the best actor category for that year. 
 
Kadhalukku Mariyadhai

Kadhalukku Mariyadhai was directed by Fazil. Fazil is a unique director who did some great films both in Tamil and Malayalam. The beauty is that he directs his own films in both languages by changing the cast, and the films will be a super hit on both Tamil and Malayalam. Kadhalukku Mariyadhai is the remake of his own film Aniyathipravu. Aniyathipravu was starring Kunchacko Boban and Shalini, whereas Kadhalukku Mariyadhai featured actor Vijay and Shalini in the lead. 
 
Chennaiyil Oru Naal

Chennaiyil Oru Naal is a remake of the 2011 Malayalam film Traffic. The story of this film was inspired by an event that happened in Chennai. The screenplay is written in a hyperlink format, involving the stories of 4 different characters. In Malayalam, the film was made with an ensemble cast that consisted of Sreenivasan, Kunchacko Boban, Rahman,  Remya Nambeesan, and few others. In Tamil, the film was made with actors like R. Sarathkumar, Prakash Raj, Cheran, Prasanna, Raadhika, and few others. 
 
En Bommukutty Ammavuku

En Bommukutty Ammavuku was a super hit film in actor Sathyraj’s career. It is considered one of his best films. The film was an emotional family drama. It crossed the 100 days mark in theaters across Tamil Nadu.  En Bommukutty Ammavuku is an official remake of  Ente Mamattikkuttiyammakku. It was director Fazil again who made this magic happen. 

Lesa Lesa

Lesa Lesa is an official remake of the 1998 Malayalam film Summer in Bethlehem. Trying to remake a 1998 film in the year 2003 was not a good idea, and the film became an average film at the box office. But actress Trisha won the best actress award at the International Tamil Film Awards. Songs were composed by Harris Jayaraj, and all the songs became a super hit. In Malayalam, the film featured actors Suresh Gopi, Jayaram, and Manju Warrier. In Tamil,  actors Shaam, Vivekh, and Trisha played the roles respectively. The cameo role performed by Mohanlal in Malayalam was filled by R Madhavan in the Tamil remake. Ace filmmaker Priyadarshan took care of the direction department in Tamil.