Ajith Kumar says he could be ‘forced into retirement’, calls himself an ‘accidental actor’

He may be one of the biggest superstars of his generation, but actor Ajith Kumar does not take his superstardom seriously. In a recent interaction, right after being bestowed with the Padma Bhushan, Ajith spoke about his life outside films.

Ajith Kumar on retirement

Earlier this week, the Tamil star received the country’s third-highest civilian honour at a grand ceremony in Delhi. Speaking with India Today after that, Ajith addressed the possibility of leaving films. “You never know! It’s not about me planning when to retire, I could be forced into retirement. I don’t want to take anything for granted. People complain about life. To wake up and feel alive itself is a blessing. I am not being philosophical here. I have been through surgeries and injuries. I have friends and family who are cancer survivors. We understand how valuable life is – just to be alive. I want to make use of every second of my life – want to make the most of it,” he said.

The 54-year-old also spoke about how acting was never a career path for him and he entered the industry accidentally. “Acting was never on my radar. I am an accidental actor. After school, I started working in an auto manufacturing company for about six months. I was 18 when I started racing motorcycles… Then, before I started realising, I started doing print ads and TV commercials,” the actor added.

Ajith Kumar’s recent films

Ajith has been one of the biggest box office draws in Tamil cinema for close to two decades now. He returned to the big screen in 2025 after a two-year hiatus. His comeback film Vidaamuyarchi was praised by critics but not a big success at the box office, earning a moderate ₹138 crore. His latest release – Good Bad Ugly – has fared much better, crossing the ₹200 crore mark in just two weeks after release.