Kamal Haasan calls himself 'oldest of Gen Z' in cinema
What's the story
Veteran actor Kamal Haasan recently celebrated an impressive 67 years in the film industry. Despite his extensive experience, he humorously referred to himself as the "oldest of the Gen Z in cinema." On X (formerly Twitter), he shared a post reflecting on his remarkable journey in Indian cinema. He said, "Thanks to all who wished me well on my 67 years of cinema."
Career insight
'The uplifting hope is, however dark the waterway...'
In his post, Haasan added, "Out of those 67, I think I can only salvage about 20 years as my actual learning. The rest was going with the flow of the wastewater."
"The uplifting hope is, however dark the waterway turns out to be, the wait for a confluence with the largest singular form called the collective cinema, an unchannelled sea. We are all flowing towards it - artists, audience, and all."
Twitter Post
See Haasan's post here
Thanks to all who wished me well on my 67 years of cinema.
— Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) August 13, 2026
Out of those 67, I think I can only salvage about 20 years as my actual learning. The rest was going with the flow of the wastewater.
The uplifting hope is, however dark the waterway turns out to be, the wait for a…
Industry reflection
'Since the Lumière brothers' first public film...'
Haasan reflected, "So I guess what I have salvaged as experience can be improved upon before people stop counting my years in this field and start looking for better numbers elsewhere."
"Since the Lumière brothers' first public film screening in December 1895, the film industry has been around for approximately 130 years and 8 months."
"My team reminded me that I have been around for 67 of those years."
"I am probably the oldest of the Gen Z in cinema."
Career highlights
Debuted as a child artist in the 1960s
Haasan began his cinematic journey as a child artist, winning the Rashtrapati Award at six for his role in 1960's Kalathur Kannamma.
He later debuted in Malayalam cinema with Kannum Karalum in 1962.
Over his illustrious career, he has acted in over 230 films across multiple Indian languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Hindi, Kannada, and Bengali.