Thai Pongal (Tamil: தைப்பொங்கல்) is a harvest festival celebrated by Tamilians in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, the Indian Union Territory of Pondicherry. and Sri Lanka. This South Indian festival, Thai Pongal, is timed by an astronomical event - the winter solstice. Pongal is traditionally dedicated to the Sun God Surya, and marks the beginning of the northward journey of the Sun from its southernmost-limit, a movement traditionally referred to as uttarayana. It coincides with the festival Makara Sankranthi celebrated throughout India as the winter harvest, and is usually held from January 13–15 in the Gregorian calendar i.e. from the last day of the Tamil month Maargazhi to the third day of Thai. This also represents the Indic solstice when the sun purportedly enters the 10th house of the Indian zodiac i.e. Makaram or Capricorn.

The saying "Thai Pirandhal Vazhi Pirakkum" (தை பிறந்தால் வழி பிறக்கும்) meaning "the commencement of Thai paves the way for new opportunities" is often quoted regarding the Pongal festival. Pongal Tamils thank the Sun god (கதிரவன்) for the good harvest and consecrate the first grain to him on this 'Surya Mangalyam'. Tamilians decorate their homes with banana and mango leaves and embellish the floor with decorative patterns drawn using rice flour.

Jayam Ravi (Tamil: ஜெயம் ரவி; born 10 September 1980 as Ravi Mohan) is an Indian film actor. Ravi has appeared in films including Jayam, M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi, Unakkum Enakkum, Santhosh Subramaniam and Thillalangadi all of which have been directed by his brother, M. Raja. His films are almost all remakes of Tollywood hits. They repeated the same success in Kollywood, too.

Ravi was born to Mohan, editor of South Indian cinema and Varalakshmi in a Balija family. He has two siblings; his elder brother M. Raja is a noted film director, with most of his films featuring Ravi in the lead role, while his sister Roja is a dentist. He completed his schooling at Jawahar Vidyalaya in Ashok Nagar, Chennai. He studied dancing under the Bharatnatyam dancer Nalini Balakrishnan and performed his arangetram at the age of 12. After completing his degree in Visual Communication from Loyola College, Chennai, he decided to get into the film industry. He has also undergone training in acting at the Kishore Namit Kapur Institute in Mumbai.

Kamal Haasan (born 7 November 1954) is an Indian film actor, screenwriter, producer and director, considered to be one of the leading method actors of Indian cinema. He is widely acclaimed as an actor and is well known for his versatility in acting. Kamal Haasan has won several Indian film awards, including four National Film Awards and numerous Filmfare Awards, and is known for having starred in the largest number of films submitted by India in contest for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film. In addition to acting, screenwriting and directing, he has also featured in films as a songwriter, playback singer and choreographer. His film production company, Rajkamal International, has produced several of his films. In 1990, he was awarded the Padma Shri for his contributions to Indian cinema. Kamal Haasan is also a recipient of an Honorary doctorate by Sathyabama University. In 2009, he became one of very few Indian actors to have completed 50 years in cinema.

After several projects as a child artist, Kamal Haasan's breakthrough into lead acting came with his role in the 1975 drama Apoorva Raagangal, in which he played a rebellious youth in love with an older woman. He secured his second Indian National Film Award for his portrayal of a guileless school teacher who tends a child-like amnesiac in 1982's Moondram Pirai. He was particularly noted for his performance in Mani Ratnam's Godfatheresque Tamil film Nayagan (1987), which was ranked by Time magazine as one of the best films of all time. Since then he has gone on to appear in other notable films such as Anbe Sivam and his own productions, Hey Ram and Virumaandi, as well as Dasavathaaram, in which he appeared in ten distinct roles.