'I Can Only Salvage About 20 Years': Kamal Haasan Reflects On 67 Years In Cinema, Says Rest Was 'Going With The Flow Of Wastewater'

Kamal Haasan took to X to reflect on his 67 years in cinema, expressing gratitude to everyone who wished him on the milestone. Looking back at his remarkable journey, the veteran actor said he considers only around 20 of those years as his actual learning, while describing the rest as “going with the flow of the wastewater.” He also used the metaphor of a vast, unchannelled sea to describe cinema, saying that artists and audiences are all ultimately moving towards the collective form of the medium.

Kamal penned, "Thanks to all who wished me well on my 67 years of cinema. 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." Reflecting on the ups and downs of his 67-year career, the actor said he continues to remain hopeful. Using the imagery of waterways and the sea, Kamal added, "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."

Acknowledging that even after 67 years in the industry there is still scope for growth and learning, Kamal added, "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." Through this, the actor suggested that the experience he has accumulated over the years can still be refined and put to better use while he continues his journey in cinema.

The Lumière brothers' first public film screening in December 1895 is commonly considered one of the starting points of cinema's history. By August 2026, that makes the film industry roughly 130 years and eight months old. Kamal pointed out that he has been part of that history for 67 years, meaning he has spent more than half of cinema's entire recorded history working in the industry. Calling it a "rather extraordinary thought to take in", Kamal added, "Yet, in my own account, I can claim only about 20 years as actual learning."

Kamal Haasan's first film was Kalathur Kannamma in 1960 where he appeared as a child artiste at the age of six. As for his latest film, Kamal was last seen in Thug Life in 2025.