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Madras Rajagopalan Radhakrishnan Ravi mononymously called as Radha Ravi is an Indian actor and politician who played supporting roles throughout his career. He is the son of veteran actor M. R. Radha and the uncle of
Vasu Vikram Vasu Vikram is an Indian actor who has worked on Tamil-language films and in television dramas. Career Vasu Vikram is the son of actor M. R. R. Vasu Madras Rajagopalan Radhakrishnan Vasudevan was an Indian actor who was active in Tamil cin ...
and half-brother of Radhika. He is a former chief member of the Tamil Nadu Film Artistes' Association. He is known for his roles as antagonists 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 ...
films and a he acted in the serial '' Chellamae''. He is also known for his controversial criticism of other film personalities. He was elected to the
Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly is the unicameral legislature of the India, Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It has a strength of 234 members, all of whom are democratically elected using the first-past-the-post system. The presiding office ...
from
Saidapet Saidapet, also known as Saidai, is a neighbourhood in Chennai, India, situated in the northern banks of the Adyar River and serves as an entry point to Central Chennai. It is surrounded by West Mambalam in the North, C.I.T Nagar in the North-Ea ...
in 2001 as a member of the
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (; AIADMK, also abbreviated as ADMK), also shortened to Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, is an Indian Regionalism (politics), regional political party with great influence in the Federated state, sta ...
. He is one of the current state executive members of Tamil Nadu
Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...
.


Career

Radha Ravi was born to the well-known actor M. R. Radha and Dhanalakshmi Ammal. He has one brother,
M. R. R. Vasu Madras Rajagopalan Radhakrishnan Vasudevan was an Indian actor who was active in Tamil cinema and theatre during the latter half of the 20th century. He was known for playing negative roles, but he was also a successful character actor. He acte ...
, and three sisters, Rashya, Rani and Rathikala. Having started his career as a theatre artiste, he still associates himself with plays. He is a man with diverse interests. He played the role of
Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (12 or 13 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC) was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in Caesar's civil wa ...
in a Tamil drama when he was in the ninth standard. During his New College days, both his friends, Jailani and Rafee helped him to pursue his passion for theatre. He performed for V. K. Ramasamy troupe, M. R. R. Vasu troupe, T. K. Chandran troupe and the UAA troupe. In 1980, he started his own troupe Nadikavel Theatres. His first time before the camera was for a Kannada film '' Rahasya Rathri'' (1980), produced by actor Bharathi's father for BNK Pictures in 1976. His first Tamil film was '' Manmadha Leelai'' (1976), after
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 ...
recommended his name to K. Balachander. Director
Rama Narayanan Rama Narayanan (3 April 1949 – 22 June 2014) was an Indian film director and film producer. In the 1980s, he was known as a director who specialized in shooting commercial films in which animals played vital roles, while in the 1990s, several ...
gave his career a boost, while T. Rajendar was instrumental in casting him as a villain in '' Uyirullavarai Usha'' (1983). But it was actor S. S. Chandran who made him speak like his father in that film and made the world sit up and take notice. He later modified himself into one of the most versatile character-actors the Tamil industry has ever produced. He made notable performances in films such as '' Vaidehi Kathirunthal'' (1984), '' Uyarndha Ullam'' (1985), '' Guru Sishyan'' (1988), '' Rajadhi Raja'' (1989), '' Solaikuyil'' (1989), '' Chinna Thambi'' (1991), ''
Annaamalai ''Annaamalai'' (also spelt ''Annamalai''; ) is a 1992 Indian Tamil language, Tamil-language action drama film directed by Suresh Krissna and produced by Kavithalayaa Productions. A remake of the 1987 Hindi film ''Khudgarz'', itself based on Je ...
'' (1992), '' Uzhaippali'' (1993), '' Pooveli'' (1998), '' Padayappa'' (1999), '' Oru Murai Sollividu'' (2004), '' Iraivi'' (2016), '' Sarkar'' (2018) and ''Kadaisi Thotta'' (2025). He tried his hand in production with films such as ''Thai Maasam Poo Vasam'' (1990), '' Idhu Namma Bhoomi'' (1992), '' Chinna Muthu'' (1994) and '' Ilaignar Ani'' (1994). Apart from being a renowned actor, he is an eminent leader. He heads the Lions Club of Chennai and holds the post of secretary in Nadigar Sangam, which he headed a few years ago.


Controversies

Radha Ravi became known for his vocal criticism of the actions of other film personalities. On a few occasions, he has spoken out against the actions of several artists. He has also spoken out against larger organizations, such as the Film Employees Federation of South India. His comments were widely reported in the media and became controversial. Radha Ravi has also made
misogynistic Misogyny () is hatred of, contempt for, or prejudice against women or girls. It is a form of sexism that can keep women at a lower social status than men, thus maintaining the social roles of patriarchy. Misogyny has been widely practis ...
remarks on multiple occasions in public. Once he said he would have opportunity to rape
Aishwarya Rai Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (; Rai; born 1 November 1973) is an Indian actress who is primarily known for her work in Hindi and Tamil language, Tamil films. Rai won the Miss World 1994 pageant and later established herself as one of the most-popu ...
if he had known Hindi. In March 2019, during a trailer release function for '' Kolaiyuthir Kaalam'', he made misogynistic comments towards the film's lead actress Nayanthara, leading to his suspension from the DMK. He slut-shamed Nayanthara again in 2021. Radha Ravi has faced multiple accusations at the Dubbing Union and he had been accused of falsely claiming Datukship by the Government of
Malacca Malacca (), officially the Historic State of Malacca (), is a States and federal territories of Malaysia, state in Malaysia located in the Peninsular Malaysia#Other features, southern region of the Malay Peninsula, facing the Strait of Malacca ...
, Malaysia. The Melakan government has confirmed that they never conferred
Datuk Datuk (or its variant Dato or Datu) is a Malay language, Malay honorific title commonly used in Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia, as well as a traditional title by Minangkabau people in West Sumatra, Indonesia. Use of the title various between loc ...
title to Mr Radha Ravi. The building of Tamil Nadu Film Dubbing Association, of which Mr Radha Ravi is the long time president, is named as "Dato Radha Ravi Complex". He criticised Asin Thottumkal on her visit to Sri Lanka, where the heavily opposed
civil war A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
took place, in 2010 for the filming of ''
Ready Ready may refer to: Film and television * ''Ready'', a 2002 British short starring Imelda Staunton * Ready (2008 film), ''Ready'' (2008 film), an Indian Telugu-language film by Srinu Vaitla ** Uthamaputhiran (2010 film), ''Uthamaputhiran'' (201 ...
''. He was quoted as saying: "Sangam won't spare actress Asin's recent visit to
Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...
to take part in the shooting of her upcoming Hindi film ''Ready'' opposite Salman Khan". However,
Sarathkumar Ramanathan Sarathkumar (born 14 July 1954) is an Indian actor, politician and former bodybuilder who works predominantly in Tamil cinema in addition to Telugu cinema, Telugu, Malayalam cinema, Malayalam, Kannada cinema, Kannada and Hindi cinema ...
, president of the
Nadigar Sangam The Nadigar Sangam (), officially known as the South Indian Artistes' Association (), is a Trade union, union for film, television, and stage (theatre), stage actors in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, based in Chennai. Formed in 1952, the grou ...
, stated that "it's the prerogative of the artiste to go to whichever country they wanted". He faced controversy over his criticism against
Academy Award The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence ...
-winner A. R. Rahman for being involved in more Bollywood productions and composing film scores in foreign studios, rather than in
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
, saying: "I would like to make it clear that Rahman's debut was '' Roja'' and not ''
Slumdog Millionaire ''Slumdog Millionaire'' is a 2008 British drama film that is a loose adaptation of the novel '' Q & A'' (2005) by Indian author Vikas Swarup. It narrates the story of 18-year-old Jamal Malik from the Juhu slums of Mumbai. Starring Dev Patel ...
''. He was introduced by Kavithalaya Productions, a Tamil film production company. But today, he has declined to acknowledge it by giving priorities merely to Hindi films". Between 1987 and 2015, Radha Ravi was heavily involved in the
Nadigar Sangam The Nadigar Sangam (), officially known as the South Indian Artistes' Association (), is a Trade union, union for film, television, and stage (theatre), stage actors in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, based in Chennai. Formed in 1952, the grou ...
. He served as president until 2002, when he was criticized for mismanagement and replaced by
Vijayakanth Vijayaraj Alagarswami (25 August 1952 – 28 December 2023), known by his stage name Vijayakanth, was an Indian actor, filmmaker, philanthropist and politician. He worked in Tamil cinema in a career spanning four decades. He ventured into politi ...
. In 2006, he was appointed as the association's General Secretary, while his brother-in-law R. Sarathkumar became president. In 2015, Ravi and Sarathkumar were defeated in election by
Vishal Vishal may refer to: People * Vishal (name), a common Indian given name * King Vishal, emperor of the Mahabharata era who founded the ancient city of Vishalapura * Vishal (actor) (born 1977), Indian film actor, producer and anti-piracy activi ...
and Nassar respectively after both were accused for being involved in a conflict of interest in the Nadigar Sangam building controversy. Radha Ravi was commonly accused of using unparliamentary language against actors. In March 2017, Radha Ravi got himself involved in a controversy when he mocked the DMK's political rivals MDMK's Vaiko and PMK's S Ramadoss and compared them to differently-abled children. DMK's Kanimozhi accused him for his insensitive speech and said that the DMK cadre would not accept this. Disability groups also condemned his statements. He received criticism when he made distasteful remarks and fun on Pollachi sexual assault incident in March 2019. He compared the Pollachi sexual assault issue to a big-budget film. "These days, people do not understand the difference between a big film and small film. A small film is where one guy
rape Rape is a type of sexual assault involving sexual intercourse, or other forms of sexual penetration, carried out against a person without consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or against a person ...
s another girl. A big film is where 40 women are raped like the Pollachi incident. This is the difference," and smiled. In another instance, Radha Ravi made startling allegations against Kalki 2898 AD producer Aswini Dutt, further drawing criticism from industry insiders. The nature of these allegations and their implications stirred discussions across Kollywood circles.


Political career

During the early 2000s, Radha Ravi started his political career as a campaigner for the
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (; ; DMK) is an Indian political party based in the state of Tamil Nadu, where it is currently the ruling party, and the union territory of Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry, where it is currently the main ...
(DMK) and later joined the
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (; AIADMK, also abbreviated as ADMK), also shortened to Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, is an Indian Regionalism (politics), regional political party with great influence in the Federated state, sta ...
(AIADMK) because of an opinion difference with the leadership of the DMK. During the 2002 Tamil Nadu Assembly by-elections, he was named as the AIADMK nominee from the Saidapet constituency. He served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from 2001 to 2006. During the 2006 elections, however, he was not re-nominated. He rejoined the AIADMK in 2010 in the presence of J. Jayalalithaa at her residence and remained inactive in the party. In 2017, he left AIADMK and joined the DMK at the party headquarters after meeting M.K Stalin. He said DMK is the only party that has the confidence of the people and also said that M.K Stalin is the most suitable state leader and only he could save Tamil Nadu. In March 2019, he was expelled out of DMK due to his alleged
sexist Sexism is prejudice or discrimination based on one's sex or gender. Sexism can affect anyone, but primarily affects women and girls. It has been linked to gender roles and stereotypes, and may include the belief that one sex or gender is int ...
comments against actress Nayanthara. M.K Stalin said he condemned such conduct as it was against the party's ideals. He joined the AIADMK again in June 2019 in a meeting with Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami, after he was expelled out of the DMK. He left AIADMK and Joined the
Bharatiya Janata Party The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; , ) is a political party in India and one of the two major List of political parties in India, Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. BJP emerged out from Syama Prasad Mukherjee's ...
in November 2019 on a meet with the party's president JP Nadda in Chennai. On July 15, actor and politician Radha Ravi was made the state Executive Member by BJP's Tamil Nadu president, L Murugan. While campaigning for the BJP's Vanathi Srinivasan in the 2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election, Radha Ravi made derogatory comments against Kamal Haasan's personal life who was contesting from Coimbatore South. His comments drew wide criticism. Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) lodged a complaint with Election Commission regarding the violation of the Model Code of Conduct for his speech. During the same campaign he passed lewd comments and slut shamed against Nayanthara.


Allegations of sexual harassment

As part of the #
MeToo movement #MeToo is a social movement and Consciousness raising, awareness campaign against sexual abuse, sexual harassment and rape culture, in which women publicize their experiences of sexual abuse or sexual harassment. The phrase "Me Too" was init ...
in the Indian Tamil industry, in 2018, allegations of sexual harassment, sexual misconduct and inappropriate behaviour have been made against Radha Ravi. The allegations were brought to light by singer Chinmayi but accusers were allegedly silenced from filing official complaints. The singer was axed from the dubbing union, of which Radha Ravi is the president, for speaking up against him. Singer Chinmayi claimed that Radha Ravi had expelled her from the dubbing union because she had exposed him in the #MeToo movement.


Awards

;
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 ...
* Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize – '' Solaikuyil'' (1989) * Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Character Artiste (Male) – '' Oru Murai Sollividu'' (2004) ; Edison Awards * Edison Award for Best Character role (Male) – '' Iraivi'' (2016)


Filmography


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ravi, Radha Tamil male actors Male actors from Chennai Living people Tamil Nadu State Film Awards winners Male actors in Malayalam cinema Indian male film actors 20th-century Indian male actors 21st-century Indian male actors Male actors in Kannada cinema Male actors in Tamil cinema Indian male voice actors All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam politicians Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Tamil Nadu Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam politicians Year of birth missing (living people)