Thirai Tamizh: Sattam En Kaiyil (1978 Tamil)

Monday, January 26, 2026

Sattam En Kaiyil (1978 Tamil)

Cast

Kamal Haasan as Babu & Rathnam
Sripriya as Priya, Rathnam's Lover
SriKanth as Senthil, Mayandi & SivaKolunthu's Son
S. A. Ashokan as Mayandi, Thief
Thengai Srinivasan as Nagarajan, Lawyer
Suruli Rajan as Rathnam's Friend
V. Gopalakrishnan as Police Commissioner Gopalakrishnan, Priya's Father
Usilaimani
Loose Mohan
Comedy Shanmugam
Rajavelu as Forensic Doctor
Pushpalatha as Lakshmi, Nagarajan's Wife
Ganthimathi as Sivakolunthu, Mayandi's Wife
Premi as Sengamalam, Nurse
Elizabeth as Kathrine, Babu's Lover
SathyaRaj (Debut) as Vicky
T. K. S. Natarajan as Dancer in Mera Naam Abdullah

Crew

Lyrics - Kannadhasan, Thiruppathuraan
Singers - S. P. Balasubramaniam, Malaysia Vasudevan, Kovai Murali, P. Susheela
Stunt - Kirubha
Choreography - Thangaraj, Vimala, Geetha
Titles - Karuna
PRO - Chitra Lakshmanan
Stills - Vishnujithan
Art - P. Ramkumar
Assistant Director - Namakkal Ra. Balu
Editor - V. Rajagopal
Music - Ilayaraja
Cinematographer - N. K. Viswanahtan
Story - T. N. Balu
Dialogue - T. N. Balu
Producer - T. N. Balu
Director - T. N. Balu

Film Details

Sattam En Kaiyil is a 1978 Tamil-language color action-drama film written, produced, and directed by T. N. Balu.
The film stars Kamal Haasan, Sripriya, Srikanth, S. A. Ashokan, Thengai Srinivasan, and Suruli Rajan, and marks the acting debut of Sathyaraj, who later became popular as “Puratchi Tamizhan”.

The storyline revolves around separated twin brothers, fate, and the consequences of social prejudice.

The film was:

Dubbed in Telugu as Dhonga Dhara
Remade in Hindi as Yeh To Kamaal Ho Gaya

Overview

Mayandi, a habitual thief, is released from prison and reunites with his wife Sivakolunthu, who has raised their son Senthil without revealing his father’s criminal background. Mayandi gifts his son a toy, which is stolen by another boy. During the chase that follows, the boy dies in an accident.

The case is argued by lawyer Nagarajan, who strongly believes that a thief’s son is destined to become a criminal. Despite Mayandi’s pleas, Nagarajan convinces the court, resulting in Senthil being sentenced to prison.

Consumed by revenge, Mayandi kidnaps one of Nagarajan’s twin sons and secretly raises him as a thief, while the other son grows up in a respectable environment.

Years later, the kidnapped son becomes Rathnam, a thief, while the other twin, Babu, returns from abroad as a lawyer. The narrative unfolds as the twins unknowingly exchange identities, leading to confusion, emotional conflict, and dramatic consequences.