Who is Heisenberg? Mystery lyricist behind hit songs for Rajinikanth, Jr NTR, Vijay, Kamal Haasan

Director Lokesh Kanagaraj insists that lyricist Heisenberg is not a ‘robot’ nor is it him. So who really is Heisenberg? The person behind some hit Tamil songs.

Have you ever heard a song so ‘bloody sweet’ that it makes you wonder who the lyricist is? For the last few years, the Tamil film industry has seen the rise of a mysterious lyricist called Heisenberg. Mysterious because Heisenberg is the name Walter White uses for his alter ego in the hit American series Breaking Bad, and no one but Lokesh Kanagaraj has seen what this lyricist looks like.

Kamal Haasan's song Once Upon A Time from Vikram was also written by the mysterious Heisenberg.

What did Heisenberg write?

When the Kamal Haasan-starrer Vikram, directed by Lokesh, was released in 2022, fans were taken by the songs Wasted and Once Upon A Time. For the director's 2023 Vijay-starrer Leo, the lyricist wrote the tracks Bloody Sweet, Ordinary Person, I’m Scared and Leo Das Entry. When music composer Anirudh Ravichander was asked about it by the press, he said, “I spoke to him over the phone. Lokesh Kanagaraj is the only one who has seen him in person,” passing the ball to the director.

Since then, Heisenberg is the person behind songs like All Hail The Tiger and Red Sea from Jr NTR’s 2024 film Devara: Part 1 and Hands Up from Rajinikanth’s Vettaiyan, which was released the same year. One quick Google search will reveal that the mysterious Heisenberg doesn’t even have a Wikipedia page, but there’s a commonality in all their songs. They seem to prefer penning their lyrics in English. And Anirudh is the only composer they have worked with.

So, who really is Heisenberg?

In a recent interview with Galatta Plus, Lokesh was asked about the lyricist, and he insisted that Heisenberg is a real person he has met. He also stated that he doesn’t want to ‘blow his cover’. “Actually, I saw him (Heisenberg) first, and I made Ani (Anirudh) meet him as well. He knows him as well. But we don't want to blow his cover. And let it continue,” explained Lokesh.

When asked if the lyricist was a real person, Lokesh claimed they’re not a ‘robot’. He also added that it’s not him or Anirudh going by the pen name, especially when the duo recently even referenced Breaking Bad in the song Powerhouse from Coolie. “Heisenberg is an actual person. It's a name we gave to him. I'll give you a clue. If you have seen Varumaiyin Niram Sivappu, you will know the answer,” hinted Lokesh.

Varumaiyin Niram Sivappu is a 1980 film directed by K Balachander, simultaneously shot in Telugu as Aakali Rajyam. It stars Kamal Haasan and Sridevi in lead roles, making many wonder if Kamal is the mysterious lyricist. While most people still bet on Lokesh or Anirudh being Heisenberg, some in the past have also wondered if filmmaker Nelson Dilipkumar is the man behind it all. But only time will tell!