Once a prominent face in 90s Bollywood and South Indian cinema, actor Abbas rose to fame with memorable performances alongside stars like Kamal Haasan (Hey Ram), Rajinikanth (Padayappa), Mammootty, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, and Tabu.
Hits like Kandukondain Kandukondain, Anandham, and Minnale showcased his versatility and secured him a special place in audiences’ hearts.
However, fame didn’t bring him lasting security. The actor went bankrupt four times and found it hard to keep his career going. Today, he lives quietly in New Zealand, doing different jobs like driving a taxi and cleaning toilets to earn a living, reported by News18.
Early career
After starting his career as a fashion model, he made his film debut with Kathir’s Kadhal Desam (1996), which was a big hit and brought him instant fame. He went on to act in successful movies like VIP (1997), Pooveli (1998), Padayappa (1999), Suyamvaram (1999), Malabar Police (1999), Kandukondain Kandukondain (2000), Minnale (2001), Aanandham (2001), Pammal K. Sambandam (2002), Adi Thadi (2004), Guru En Aalu (2009), and Ramanujan (2014).
He also appeared in popular Telugu films such as Priya O Priya (1997), Rajahamsa (1998), Raja (1999), and Anasuya (2007), and acted in Malayalam films too, with notable work in Kannezhuthi Pottum Thottu (1999).
In 2013, Abbas was set to act in a Malayalam film called Love Story, with Maqbool Salmaan as the lead, but the project didn’t move forward. He later played an important role in the Kannada film Savaari 2 (2014) and appeared in television serials. He also portrayed the scientist Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis in Ramanujan (2014).
As his interest in acting declined, Abbas moved to Auckland, New Zealand, and worked in jobs like gas stations and construction to support his family before becoming a motivational speaker. Love Story was eventually released as Pachakkallam in 2015, marking his last film.