Pudupettai - The underdog becomes the ruthless don. Pudupettai has become a cult classic now, thanks to the fantastic bro duo, Selvaraghavan and Dhanush. Starting off as a poor sidekick to a menacing villain in Chennai, Dhanush slowly climbs the ladder of the seedy underworld in this no-holds barred film. As Kokki Kumar, he ruled the screen and made a name for himself.
Aadukalam - Considered one of Tamil cinema's gems, Aadukalam earned Dhanush the National Award for Best Actor. The film which revolves around the Madurai's bloodsport of cock fights is a story of love, betrayal and drama. Dhanush scored with his superb intonations of a Madurai boy with a honest bone.
Kaadhal Kondein - He plays the role of a sociopathic love-crazy young genius in this Selvaraghavan movie. Suffice it to say that, the film made people notice him as an actor. He perfectly portrays the role of a young underprivileged man who would go to any length to get the girl. Remember, the dance in the rain where he sings out for Dhivya?
Pollavadhan is in this list for one reason — a lively screenplay with most underwhelming hero role played by the actor. A man gets a life after buying a bike: a girlfriend, a great job, respect from parents. But what happens when the bike gets lost? His life is no longer the same. A simple movie that one can relate to that has a lot of 'hero' moments for Dhanush, which he pulled off effortlessly.
Mayakkam Enna - The first half of Mayakkam Enna can seem like wannabe to many. The booze, the inscrutable girl, the steely friendships — all hallmarks of a Selvaraghavan film — can seem exhausting. But the second half is what made the audience look up. Dhanush plays the role of a passionate photographer for whom opportunities are always evasive. As his passion drifts away, so does his sanity and he takes solace in alcohol. It takes quite a lot for an actor to do a negative 'hero' role: undermining himself in almost every scene. But he does it with aplomb.
Maryan - Dhanush had met his acting pair in Maryan. Though the movie had quite a lot of loopholes, the lead pair was wonderful to watch on the big screen.
Shamitabh - Not every young actor gets to share screen space with Amitabh Bachchan. And in Shamitabh, Dhanush had more than screen space. He plays a mute actor who uses the timeless voice of Bachchan to rise to fame. Does the voice make the actor? The duo had a great chemistry on screen in this off-beat drama.
Velaiyilla Pattathari - As commercial films go, this one takes the cake. It's fun with full of loaded monologues by Raghuvaran (played by Dhanush) who wishes to be an engineer but fails. But does he fail completely? Nope! The success formula for a masala film.
Raanjhanaa - In his first outing in Bollywood, Dhanush took the easy way out. Raanjhanaa's storyline was the typical plot which the actor was comfortable in. The film had fantastic music by A.R.Rahman but received mixed reviews in box office for fluffing up stalking.