Bobby Simha is one of the versatile and ingenious actors of the era. He’s one of the very few actors who have an innate art of assimilating any character and work towards making it a sensation. The subtlety in embracing a character is quite peripheral and Bobby Simha doesn’t usually fail in this department. Bobby Simha aka Jayasimha has mainly appeared in Tamil and a few Telugu and Malayalam movies. The first sprouts of becoming an actor were sowed in 2005 when he participated in a Coimbatore-based event. The chief guests of the event, Sundar C and E. Ramdoss suggested that he could attempt to become an actor Tamil films. Simha initially moved to Chennai after his graduation to pursue acting but eventually, he ended up working in marketing, insurance and business process outsourcing to fulfil his financial needs.
He subsequently became acquainted with short-film maker Manikandan, who introduced him to his friend, another short-film maker Karthik Subbaraj. The pair subsequently made a series of short films together, with Subbaraj giving Simha a role in his directorial debut Pizza, too. Balaji Mohan, who too was short-film maker, gave Simha a small role in his first feature film, Kadhalil Sodhappuvadhu Yeppadi. Both ventures became critically acclaimed and amongst the most profitable of 2012. Simha then appeared in Soodhu Kavvum (2013) portraying the role of Pagalavan, and played the antagonist in the bilingual Neram, his performances in both films were received well.
In 2014, he was seen in the role of an ageing Madurai gangster in Jigarthanda with his portrayal winning him critical praise. The character brimmed with dynamism. The scope of the role it had for an actor was quite evident. The actor had to make several changes to his body language to play the role. A veteran gangster who has seen a lot of blood, the character is not one to faze easily. He had to ooze confidence and act with a certainly assured lethargy. Simha also had to remember to slow down his walking pace. He also met gangsters in Madurai who have turned over a new leaf. He noticed that they all lead normal lives now. He needed to depict this without over-dramatizing the character.
Simha won positive reviews for his depiction of Sethu, with Rediff.com noting that Simha “steals the show. He is chillingly menacing at times, while completely hilarious in others, but equally convincing in both”, stating it is “a truly remarkable performance”. A critic from Sify.com delivered a similar verdict, writing “truly the film belongs to Simhaa. He is electrifying especially in the first half, where he brings out the viciousness and violent streak of the character along with that eerie laughter.” His performance in the film earned him the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor. In 2019, Film Companion ranked Simha’s performance in Jigarthanda among the 100 Greatest Performances of the decade.
