He was once spoken of as Tamil cinema’s next big force, the young star who could stand shoulder to shoulder with superstars like Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan.

In the early 1990s, filmmakers, critics and audiences believed he had everything it took to rise to the top. But just when everything seemed to be going his way, life took an unexpected turn.

The actor behind this dramatic rise and equally surprising fall is Arvind Swamy. Before the spotlight found him, he lived a life far away from films.

Born to industrialist V D Swamy and Bharatanatyam dancer Vasantha, he never imagined he would enter cinema.

Everything changed when filmmaker Mani Ratnam noticed him in an advertisement, called him for an audition and placed him on a film set that most newcomers could only hope for.

His story truly began in 1991 when he appeared in Thalapathi. He played a character inspired by Arjun from the Mahabharata while acting alongside Rajinikanth and Mammootty at such a young age.

His standout performance caught everyone’s attention and soon led to the two films that would define his career.

Roja in 1992 and Bombay in 1995 turned him into a familiar name across India and established him as a leading face of Tamil cinema.

By the mid 1990s, the industry believed he could become the natural successor to Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan. His popularity climbed even higher in 1997 after Minsaara Kanavu with Kajol, a film that went on to win a National Award.

A year later, he entered Bollywood with Saat Rang Ke Sapne opposite Juhi Chawla and many assumed this was the beginning of a long phase of pan India success.

But just as everything seemed to be falling in place, the momentum slipped. Several films were delayed and two major projects including one opposite Aishwarya Rai and another planned by Anupam Kher with Amitabh Bachchan, never took off.

By the year 2000, he stepped away from films altogether. He moved towards managing his father’s businesses, first at VD Swamy and Company and later at InterPro Global.

But life brought another difficult chapter in 2005 when he met with an accident that caused partial paralysis in his leg. His recovery stretched over several years and came with long periods of pain. Yet, in this challenging time, he founded Talent Maximus, a company focused on payroll processing and temporary staffing.

The business grew rapidly and eventually became the most successful venture of his life. According to various market tracking portals such as RocketReach, the company generated a remarkable revenue of $418 million (Rs 3,300 crore) in 2022.

Almost a decade after stepping away from films, he returned in 2013 with Kadal. He last appeared in the 2024 film Meiyazhagan with Karthi and also worked in the silent film Gandhi Talks with Vijay Sethupathi and Aditi Rao Hydari.