Kamal Haasan has said his parents first named him Parthasarathy, the name his mother continued to use. He later became known as Kamal Haasan; his own reported explanation connects “Kamal” with the lotus and “Haasan” with laughter. A separate story linking the surname to a freedom fighter is disputed.
What was Kamal Haasan’s original name?
Haasan said his parents named him Parthasarathy before he became known as Kamal Haasan. The Times of India reported on April 5, 2012, that he shared this account during a call on the quiz show Neengalum Vellalam Oru Kodi, adding that his mother continued to call him Parthasarathy until her death. The Times of India report.
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A Filmfare profile from August 1988, preserved in the Tuli Research Centre archive, also describes Parthasarathy as his initial name before his father changed it to Kamal Haasan. Neither account establishes when the change happened or its precise circumstances. Filmfare profile in the Tuli Research Centre archive.
What do “Kamal” and “Haasan” mean?
In an interview summarized by The Times of India on November 2, 2014, Haasan explained “Kamal” as meaning lotus and “Haasan” as deriving from the Sanskrit word hasya, meaning laughter. This is Haasan’s reported explanation of his name; the article does not provide a transcript or identify the interview. The Times of India report.
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Was the surname chosen to honor a freedom fighter?
A popular account says Haasan’s father took the surname Hassan in honor of Yaakob Hassan, a Muslim freedom fighter who had shared imprisonment with him. But Scroll reported on March 27, 2017, that Haasan characterized the connection as “a story” in an interview with BBC journalist Karan Thapar. The BBC interview itself is not available in the cited coverage, so the honorific explanation should not be treated as established fact. Scroll’s account of the story and Haasan’s reported response.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What remains uncertain about the name change?
The available accounts support the broad sequence—Parthasarathy first, Kamal Haasan later—but do not establish the exact date, motive, or legal or professional status of the change. The documented explanations also differ in kind: Haasan’s reported account of his original name and the meanings he gave for the names are distinct from the disputed story about his father’s friend.
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