Karan (born 19 August 1967) is an Indian former actor who appeared predominantly in
Tamil
Tamil may refer to:
People, culture and language
* Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia
**Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka
** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
and
Malayalam
Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...
films. He started his career as a child actor (under the stage name Master Raghu). In the 1990s he started to act in leading and villain roles. In the mid-2000s, after a sabbatical, Karan chose to prioritise appearing in films where he would portray the lead role following the relative success of ''
Kokki'' (2006).
Career
Karan started his career as child artist under the name Master Raghu for more than 70 films in Malayalam and Tamil. In 1992, he made his Tamil debut as an adult in ''
Annamalai'' starring alongside
Rajinikanth
Shivaji Rao Gaikwad (born 12 December 1950), known professionally as Rajinikanth, is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. In a career spanning over five decades, he has done 170 films that includes films in Tamil, Hindi, ...
in an uncredited role, before making a breakthrough with his performance as a rogue college student in ''
Nammavar'' (1994) alongside
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 ...
.
In 2004, Karan became a solo hero with the Malayalam film ''Isra''. He has continued with films like ''
Kokki'' (2006), ''
Karuppusamy Kuththagaithaarar'' (2007) and ''
Kathavarayan'' (2008). His recent films are ''
Sooran'' (2014) and ''
Uchathula Shiva'' (2016).
In 2018, a clip from his film ''
Coimbatore Mappillai
() is a 1996 Indian Tamil language, Tamil-language romantic comedy film written and directed by C. Ranganathan. It stars Vijay (actor), Vijay and Sanghavi. The film's score and music was composed by Vidyasagar (composer), Vidyasagar. It was re ...
'' went viral online, prompting internet users to associate the word "Shroov" with the actor.
Other work
Karan made his advertisement debut in a 45-second Mahindra Duro advertisement with
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...
actress
Kareena Kapoor
Kareena Kapoor Khan (; ; born 21 September 1980) is an Indian actress. A prolific leading lady of Hindi cinema since 2000, she is noted for her roles in a range of film genres—from romantic comedies to crime dramas. Kapoor is the recipient ...
.
Personal life
Karan's father died in 2014, aged 90.
Awards
;
Kerala State Film Awards
The Kerala State Film Awards are the film awards for a motion picture made in Kerala. The awards started in 1969 by the Department of Cultural Affairs, Government of Kerala and since 1998 the awards have been bestowed by Kerala State Cha ...
:
* 1974 –
Best Child Artist – ''Rajahamsam''
* 1975 – Best Child Artist – ''
Prayanam'', ''
Swami Ayyappan''
;
Tamil Nadu State Film Awards
Tamil Nadu State Film Awards were given for excellence in Cinema of Tamil Nadu, Tamil cinema in India. They were given annually to honour the best talents and provide encouragement and incentive to the South Indian film industry by the Governmen ...
:
*2009 -
Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor – ''
Malayan''
Filmography
As child artist: Credited as Master Raghu
As actor
Films
Television
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Karan
1967 births
Tamil male actors
20th-century Indian male actors
Male actors in Kannada cinema
Male actors in Malayalam cinema
Indian male film actors
Kerala State Film Award winners
Living people
Male actors from Tamil Nadu
21st-century Indian male actors
Tamil Nadu State Film Awards winners
Male actors in Tamil cinema
Indian male child actors