Two decades of marriage and a multi-crore birthday gift for Jyotika from Surya

Actors Surya and Jyotika recently celebrated their twentieth wedding anniversary by marrying each other again in the presence of their children. For Jyotika's fortieth birthday, Surya gave her a house near the sea with a film-style set and a dream celebration surrounded by close family and friends. Surya waited eight years to get a yes from Jyotika's mother for their marriage, turning down other temptations while hoping only for Jyotika. When they first worked together in films like Poovellam Kettuppar, they did not even share a friendship because Surya was shy and kept to himself after a shot. Jyotika once felt hurt when Surya visited her film set for another work purpose and left without meeting her because he was afraid of bothering a big star. Later, Jyotika recommended Surya as the hero for director Gautham Vasudev Menon's Kaakha Kaakha after seeing his work in Nandha. Working together across seven films deepened their bond until Surya realized he could not live without her. Surya was born as Saravanan, the eldest son of Tamil actor Sivakumar and Lakshmi. Despite his father's status, Surya travelled by bus from school until graduation and worked in a garment factory with a hidden identity. Mani Ratnam insisted that Surya act in Nerukku Ner, launching his career despite his initial plan to refuse. Jyotika was born in Punjab, raised in Mumbai, and entered Tamil cinema after working in modelling and a Hindi film directed by Priyadarshan. Initially, Sivakumar's family could not accept Jyotika's background, which left both actors distressed. However, Surya firmly told his father that he wanted no other woman in his life if not Jyotika. Recognizing her good nature, Surya's parents eventually accepted her as a daughter rather than just a daughter-in-law, and Jyotika even gave up advance payments on top projects to focus on family life. Surya later supported Jyotika's career by handing her full charge of their production company, 2D Entertainment, and backing her return to acting in films like the Tamil remake of How Old Are You and Kaathal.