Key Highlights
- No regional labels: Dhanush said on 'Koffee With Karan' that films shouldn't be divided as North or South, but seen as Indian cinema.
- A 2013 stand: He recalled first voicing this view while promoting his Bollywood debut 'Raanjhanaa'.
- Request to the media: He asked writers to refer to him as 'actor Dhanush', not 'South actor Dhanush'.
- 'Atrangi Re' promotions: He appeared on the show with Sara Ali Khan to promote the Aanand L. Rai film, which also stars Akshay Kumar.
Mumbai: Long before "pan-India" became the industry's go-to buzzword, Dhanush had already made his position clear: there is no South or North cinema, only Indian cinema. The actor shared his views during an appearance on Karan Johar's chat show 'Koffee With Karan', where he weighed in on one of the most debated topics in the Indian film industry.
Dhanush had arrived on the show with actress Sara Ali Khan to promote his film 'Atrangi Re'. During the conversation, host and filmmaker Karan Johar asked whether Indian films should stop being categorised as Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam or Hindi cinema and instead be celebrated as Indian cinema.
"Are you also of that opinion that we should all collectively look at ourselves as the products of Indian cinema and not regional anymore", KJo asked.
Dhanush replied that he had said the same thing years earlier, back in 2013, while promoting his Bollywood debut 'Raanjhanaa'.
"Indeed, I said it long back in 2013 when I was promoting 'Raanjhanaa'. I said the same thing. I should be like, don't call it North films, South films, it should be like an Indian film. I am an Indian actor. Don't write, when you write about me, don't write 'South actor Dhanush'. I'm just an actor, that's it," Dhanush said.
Why Dhanush's Words Still Resonate
What makes the remark notable is its timing. When Dhanush first raised the point in 2013, the divide between Hindi and southern film industries was far sharper, both in audience reach and in how the media framed actors. Since then, dubbed releases, OTT platforms and cross-industry casting have blurred those lines considerably, with films from the South drawing massive audiences in the Hindi belt and Bollywood stars increasingly working with southern filmmakers.
Yet the labels persist. Actors from Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada industries are still routinely described by region in headlines, while Hindi film actors are rarely called "North actors". Dhanush's request to be described simply as an actor touches on this imbalance, and it continues to strike a chord with fans who view regional tags as limiting rather than descriptive. His own career, spanning Tamil, Hindi and international projects, makes him one of the strongest examples of an actor who doesn't fit neatly into one box.
On 'Atrangi Re' and Aanand L. Rai
Speaking about 'Atrangi Re', Dhanush added, "I don't see this as a very important film for me in Hindi, directed by my brother, so it is a very important film that way. Every film I do is very important for me."
The "brother" he referred to is director Aanand L. Rai, who also helmed 'Raanjhanaa', the film that introduced Dhanush to Hindi audiences. Their creative bond has since become one of the more consistent actor-director partnerships to cross industry lines.
Written by Himanshu Sharma, 'Atrangi Re' was backed by T-Series Films, Colour Yellow Productions and Cape of Good Films. Along with Dhanush and Sara Ali Khan, Akshay Kumar was also part of the film's core cast.
As the conversation around pan-India cinema keeps growing, Dhanush's simple statement remains a reminder that the idea isn't new; it was only waiting for the industry to catch up.