Ravi Mohan (born 10 September 1980), better known by his former stage name Jayam Ravi, is an Indian actor who works in
Tamil cinema
Tamil cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Tamil language, the main spoken language in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is nicknamed Kollywood, a portmanteau of the names Kodambakkam, a Ch ...
. The son of veteran film editor
A. Mohan, Ravi made his lead acting debut in ''
Jayam'' (2003), the success of which prompted the title to become a prefix to his stage name until 2025.
He has won one
Tamil Nadu State Film Award and one
Filmfare Award South and three
SIIMA Awards respectively.
The success of ''Jayam'' made Ravi continue to collaborate with his brother for other films including ''
M. Kumaran S/O Mahalakshmi'' (2004), ''
Unakkum Enakkum'' (2006), ''
Santhosh Subramaniam'' (2008) and ''
Thani Oruvan'' (2015).
Early life and family
Ravi Mohan was born as M. Ravi in
Tirumangalam, Madurai.
His father is
Editor Mohan, a Tamil, while his mother is a Telugu from
Hyderabad
Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
. His elder brother,
Mohan Raja, is a film director, with most of his films featuring Ravi in the lead role, while his sister, Roja, is a dentist. Ravi grew up in both
Chennai
Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...
and
Hyderabad
Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
. He completed his schooling at Jawahar Vidyalaya in
Ashok Nagar, Chennai
Ashok Nagar is a residential locality situated at the southern part of Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It was established in 1964. At the heart of this colony, stands the Pillars of Ashoka, Ashok Pillar. This four lion head stump, resembles the one ...
. He studied dancing under the
Bharatnatyam
''Bharatanatyam'' is a Indian classical dance form that came from Tamil Nadu, India. It is a classical dance form recognized by the Sangeet Natak Akademi, and expresses South Indian religious themes and spiritual ideas of Hinduism and Jain ...
dancer Nalini Balakrishnan and performed his
arangetram at the age of 12. After completing his degree in
Visual Communication
Visual communication is the use of visual elements to convey ideas and information which include (but are not limited to) signs, typography, drawing, graphic design, illustration, industrial design, advertising, animation, and electronic resourc ...
from
Loyola College, Chennai
Loyola College is a government aided private Catholic higher education institution run by the Society of Jesus in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It was founded in 1925 by the France, French Jesuits, Jesuit priest, Francis Bertram, along with other ...
, he decided to get into the film industry. He also trained in acting at the Kishore Namit Kapur Institute in
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
. Before debuting as an actor, Ravi had been an assistant director to
Suresh Krishna for ''
Aalavandhan'' (2001), starring
Kamal Haasan
Parthasarathy Srinivasan (born 7 November 1954), known professionally as Kamal Haasan, is an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. Considered as one of the most accomplished actors of Indian Cinema, Haas ...
.
Acting career
1989–2008: Debut and success
Ravi acted as a child actor in three films including two Telugu films: ''Oru Thottil Sabadham'' (1989), ''
Bava Bavamaridi'' (1993) and ''
Palnati Pourusham'' (1993), which were all produced by his father.
Ravi made his lead acting debut in the action-
masala film ''
Jayam'', produced by his father and directed by his brother
Mohan Raja. It was a remake of the 2002
Telugu film of the same name. His next venture was the sentimental drama ''
M. Kumaran Son Of Mahalakshmi'' (2004), the remade version of the Telugu film ''
Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi'', in which he starred alongside
Asin Thottumkal. Of Ravi's performance, a critic from
Sify
Sify Technologies Limited (formerly Satyam Infoway) is an Indian information and communications technology (ICT) company providing telecom services, data center services, cloud & managed services, transformation integration services, and ...
wrote that he "makes you want to see more of him", while ''
The Hindu
''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...
''s Malathi Rangarajan noted that he came out with an "appreciable portrayal throughout". The film, considered a family entertainer, received the
Tamil Nadu State Film Special Award for Best Film and fetched Ravi himself the
Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor. It also emerged a financial success and he changed his stage name to Jayam Ravi.
His next release, ''
Daas'' (2005), a romantic action, featured him as a
football player
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby ...
. The film took an even bigger opening than his previous ones. Sify's reviewer described his performance as "impressive", calling Ravi a "hundred percent convincing as an action hero". ''
Mazhai'', a remake of the Telugu film ''
Varsham'', was his other release that year, which was "lukewarm" at the box office.
In 2006, he starred in
Saran's ''
Idhaya Thirudan'', which performed poorly at the box office, following which, he acted in ''
Unakkum Enakkum'' (initially released and promoted as ''Something Something Unakkum Enakkum''), again under his brother's direction in another remake of a Telugu film ''
Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana''. Ravi portrayed a rich, happy-go-lucky
NRI from London, who has to live and fight for his love in dire conditions in a rural milieu. The film, which featured
Trisha Krishnan
Trisha Krishnan (born 4 May 1983) is an Indian actress known for her work primarily in Tamil language, Tamil and Telugu language, Telugu cinema. One of the highest-paid actresses in India, she has sustained a successful career as a leading ...
alongside Ravi, became a high critical as well as financial success, emerging one of the highest-grossing and most-profitable films of the year. The
N. Linguswamy-produced ''
Deepavali
Diwali (), also called Deepavali (IAST: ''Dīpāvalī'') or Deepawali (IAST: ''Dīpāwalī''), is the Hindu festival of lights, with variations celebrated in other Indian religions such as Jainism and Sikhism. It symbolises the spiritual ...
'' under
Ezhil's direction was released on 2007.
In 2008, Ravi appeared in three films. Following a
cameo appearance
A cameo appearance, also called a cameo role and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief guest appearance of a well-known person or character in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking on ...
in ''
Velli Thirai'', he acted in the family drama ''
Santhosh Subramaniam'', once again under his brother's direction in a remake. In the Tamil version of the 2006 Telugu film ''
Bommarillu'', starring opposite
Genelia D'Souza, he played a young man, whose choices and wishes are continually subdued by his father. Ravi received a nomination for the
Best Tamil Actor Award at the
56th Filmfare Awards South. Next, he starred in the action thriller ''
Dhaam Dhoom'', directed by cinematographer-director
Jeeva, who died in the midst of the film's shooting in Russia. Completed by Jeeva's assistant Manikandan, his wife Aneez Tanveer and his guru
P. C. Sreeram, ''
Dhaam Dhoom'' released in mid-2008 in which he portrayed Gautham Subramaniyam, a man accused in a murder he did not commit.
Sify's reviewer wrote that he was "simply amazing in his role", label the film as an "out and out Jayam Ravi movie".
2009–2019: Action and comedy roles
In 2009, Ravi starred in the action-adventure film ''
Peranmai''. In 2010, he starred in the action-comedy ''
Thillalangadi'', a remake of the 2009 Telugu-language film ''
Kick
A kick is a physical strike using the leg, in unison usually with an area of the knee or lower using the foot, heel, tibia (shin), ball of the foot, blade of the foot, toes or knee (the latter is also known as a knee strike). This type of ...
''. In 2011, he starred in the romantic drama ''
Engeyum Kaadhal''. In 2013, he starred in the action film ''
Ameerin Aadhi-Bhagavan''. In 2014, he starred in the action film ''
Nimirndhu Nil'', which was also shot simultaneously in Telugu as ''
Janda Pai Kapiraju'' with
Nani in the lead.
In 2015, Ravi appeared in four films: the romantic comedy ''
Romeo Juliet'', the action-comedy ''
Sakalakala Vallavan'', the action-thriller ''
Thani Oruvan'' (directed by his brother
Mohan Raja) and the sports action film ''
Bhooloham''. In 2016, he starred in the action-horror film ''
Miruthan'' revolving around a zombie apocalypse. In 2017, he appeared in the action-thriller ''
Bogan'' (reuniting with actor
Arvind Swami after ''Thani Oruvan'') and the action-adventure film ''
Vanamagan''.
In 2018, he starred in the sci-fi action film ''
Tik Tik Tik'' (considered as India's first space film) and the action-thriller ''
Adanga Maru''. In 2019, he made a cameo in the adventure film ''
Thumbaa'' and starred as the lead in the comedy film ''
Comali''.
2021–present: Professional expansion
After a two-year absence from the big screen, Ravi made his debut on
OTT platforms with his 25th film, ''
Bhoomi'', in 2021. The film was initially supposed to release in theatres but was instead released on OTT due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
in India. In 2022, he was seen in
Mani Ratnam's ''
Ponniyin Selvan'' as
Arulmozhivarman who later became the
Chola
The Chola Empire, which is often referred to as the Imperial Cholas, was a medieval thalassocratic empire based in southern India that was ruled by the Chola dynasty, and comprised overseas dominions, protectorates and spheres of influence ...
Emperor
Raja Raja Chola
Rajaraja I (Middle Tamil: ''Rājarāja Cōḻaṉ''; Classical Sanskrit: ''Rājarāja Śōḷa''; 3 November 947 – January/February 1014), also known as Rajaraja the Great, was a Chola Empire, Chola emperor who reigned from 985 to 1014. He ...
.
The second part was ''
Ponniyin Selvan: II'' released in 2023. He appeared in the revenge film ''
Siren'', followed by the comedy drama film ''
Brother
A brother (: brothers or brethren) is a man or boy who shares one or more parents with another; a male sibling. The female counterpart is a sister. Although the term typically refers to a family, familial relationship, it is sometimes used ende ...
'', which was released in theatres on October 31, 2024, and digitally on
ZEE5
ZEE5 or Z5 is an Indian subscription video on demand and over-the-top streaming service, owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in India on 14 February 2018 with content in 12 languages. The ZEE5 mobile app is available on We ...
on November 29, 2024''.''
Personal life
Ravi Mohan married Aarthi, daughter of film producer Sujatha Vijayakumar, in 2009. They have two sons, Aarav and Ayaan. Aarav appeared in the film ''
Tik Tik Tik'' (2018). Ravi and Aarthi separated in September 2024, with Ravi filing for divorce.
In January 2025, he changed his stage name to his real name, Ravi Mohan.
Filmography
*''All films are in Tamil, unless otherwise noted.''
Television
Awards and nominations
Notes
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ravi, Jayam
1980 births
Living people
Tamil people
Telugu actors
20th-century Indian male actors
Tamil male actors
Indian Tamil people
Indian Hindus
Indian Muslims
Tamil Muslims
Loyola College, Chennai alumni
Bharatanatyam exponents
Tamil Nadu State Film Awards winners
Male actors from Madurai
Male actors in Tamil cinema
21st-century Indian male actors
IIFA Utsavam winners