Agathiyan (born 18 August 1952; pronunciationⓘ) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer, lyricist, and actor.

[2] He was the first director in Tamil cinema to win the National Film Award for Best Direction for Kadhal Kottai (1996).

[4] He wrote story for Ramarajan starrer Manasukketha Maharasa under the name Karunanidhi Santharam and initially directed a film called Mangalyam Thanthunanena in 1991 and was credited as Ravi Thasan but it was unsuccessful.

[1] His elder daughter Kani (Karthika), host of Makkal TV, is married to film director Thiru.

His younger daughter Niranjani Ahathian is a costume designer and actress who is married to director Desingh Periyasamy.