Atharvaa Murali (born 7 May 1989) is an Indian actor who works in Tamil cinema. The son of actor Murali and grandson of director S. Siddalingaiah, Atharvaa began his acting career with Baana Kaathadi (2010).[1] He then garnered critical acclaim for his performance as a youngster suffering from delusion in the romantic thriller Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal (2012), before signing on to feature in Bala's period film Paradesi (2013). His role as a rural villager held as a slave in a tea plantation became his breakthrough performance, earning Atharvaa a Filmfare Award for Best Actor in Tamil.

Atharvaa
Atharvaa Murali at Eetti Success Meet.
Born
Vijay Murali

(1989-05-07) 7 May 1989 (age 35)
OccupationActor
Years active2010–Present
Parents
RelativesS. Siddalingaiah (Grand Father)
Daniel Balaji (Uncle)

Early life

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Atharvaa was born as the second child to late actor Murali and his wife, Shobha. He also has an elder sister, Kavya, and a younger brother, Akash. He did his schooling in St. Michael's Academy. He attended Sathyabama Institute of Science and Technology, majoring in engineering.

Career

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2010–2017

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Atharvaa receiving Best Actor – Tamil Award at the 61st Filmfare Awards South from Samantha Ruth Prabhu for his performance in the film Paradesi (2013)

In 2009, his father found him an offer to play the lead role in a film to be produced by Sathya Jyothi Films and directed by Badri Venkatesh. Titled Baana Kaathadi, the film launched in March 2009 and had Atharvaa pair up with fellow rookie actress Samantha. Portraying a youngster from the Royapuram slum area, he stayed in the locality for forty-five days to learn about the lifestyle, while he also learned to fly a kite for the film, canning scenes at the Gujarat Kite Festival.[2] The film, which also had Murali making a special appearance, released in August 2010 with critics mostly praising his debut performance with Sify.com writing he "makes a promising debut and he dances and emotes well".[3] Similarly a critic from Rediff.com added "romance is a cake-walk" for the actor, drawing comparison with his father's performances in romantic roles, though noted "his dialogue delivery is a little too melodramatic".[4] He subsequently gained recognition at the Edison Awards for Best Debut Actor, while also receiving a nomination from the Vijay Awards in the same category. The success of the film prompted Murali to begin pre-production on a Tamil and Kannada bilingual film which would feature Atharvaa.[5] However, a month after Baana Kaathadi's release, his father Murali died after suffering cardiac arrest. Atharvaa consequently took a break to spend time with his family, before beginning work on a different venture.[6]

Gautham Vasudev Menon had previously shown interest in directing Atharvaa for a film.[7] A year later, his next release was Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal where he played a youngster suffering from hallucinations, film had an average collection and his performance was stated by Sify.com as “good but has miles to go in the histrionics department and voice modulation”.[8] His biggest movie was Paradesi under the direction of Bala, for which he won multiple awards including the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil. His next film was Sargunam's Chandi Veeran alongside actress Anandhi, which was a flop the box office.[9]

Atharvaa's Eetti, a sports drama film produced by S. Michael Rayappan, in which he pairs up with Sri Divya and the thriller Kanithan in which he features alongside Catherine Tresa, were hits in the box office. In January 2016, he announced that he had set up a production studio called Kickass Entertainment. The first film under his banner would be directed by Badri Venkatesh, who had introduced Atharvaa as an actor.[10] In 2017, Gemini Ganeshanum Suruli Raajanum was released, starring the movie along with Aishwarya Rajesh, Regina Cassandra, Pranitha and Aaditi Pohankar.[11]

2018–present

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After several delays, Atharvaa's debut production Semma Botha Aagathey (2018), directed by Badri Venkatesh released and was an average success.[12] He later appeared in 2018’s Imaikkaa Nodigal in which he acted as Nayanthara's brother (Arjun), a role that received major recognition.[13] In March 2019, Boomerang, featuring alongside Megha Akash, was released to average reviews.[14] In September 2019, Atharvaa made his Telugu debut in the film Gaddalakonda Ganesh.[15] Atharvaa was initially considered to play the young Aditha Karikalan in Mani Ratnam’s 2022 film Ponniyin Selvan, however, the part ultimately went to Aswin Rao.

In 2021, Atharvaa was seen in Navarasa, an anthology streaming television series on Netflix.[16] He then starred in Thalli Pogathey, remake of the Telugu film Ninnu Kori.[17] Next year, he was seen the action films such as Kuruthi Aattam (2022), Trigger (2022) and Pattathu Arasan (2022).[18][19][20] In 2023, he plays as DCP in the gangster drama television series Mathagam.[21] Atharvaa joins with R. Sarathkumar and Rahman in Karthick Naren's Nirangal Moondru (2024), a hyperlink thriller that explores the various emotions and dimensions of a person.[22]

Filmography

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Key
Denotes films that have not yet been released
Year Film Role Notes
2010 Baana Kaathadi Ramesh Debut film
2011 Ko Himself Special appearance in "Aga Naga" song
2012 Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal Ramachandran
2013 Paradesi Raasa
2014 Irumbu Kuthirai Michael Prithviraj Narayanan
2015 Chandi Veeran Paari
Eetti Pugazhenthi Subramaniam
2016 Kanithan Gowtham Ramalingam
2017 Gemini Ganeshanum Suruli Raajanum Gemini Ganeshan
2018 Semma Botha Aagathey Ramesh Also producer
Imaikkaa Nodigal Arjun Prabhakar
2019 Boomerang Shiva and Shakthi Double role
100 SI Sathya Ganesh
Gaddalakonda Ganesh Abhilash Telugu film
2021 Thalli Pogathey Karthik
2022 Kuruthi Aattam Shakthivel
Trigger Prabhakaran IPS
Pattathu Arasan Chinnadurai
2024 Nirangal Moondru Vetri
2025 Address TBA Completed
Thanal TBA Filming
SK25 TBA

Music Videos

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Year Title Co-actor Director Ref(s)
2018 Bodhai Kodhai Aishwarya Rajesh Gautham Vasudev Menon [23]

Television

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Year Title Role Streaming Platform Notes Ref
2021 Navarasa Vetri Netflix Segment: Thunitha Pin
2023 Mathagam Ashwath Rathnakumar IPS Disney Hotstar

Shows

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Year Title Role Channel Notes Ref
2023 Kadhanayagi Guest Vijay TV Guest [24]

Awards and nominations

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Film Award Category Result Ref.
Baana Kaathadi Edison Award Best Male Debutant Won
Vijay Award Best Debut Actor Nominated
Paradesi Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards Best Actor Won [25]
[26]
BFI London Film Festival Nominated [27]
11th Chennai International Film Festival Special Jury Award Won [28]
Edison Awards Extreme Performance – Male Won [29]
61st Filmfare Awards South Best Actor – Tamil Won [30]
Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards Best Actor Won [31]
Techofes Awards Won [32]
8th Vijay Awards Nominated [33]
[34]
Gaddalakonda Ganesh South Indian International Movie Awards Best Supporting Actor Nominated

References

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  1. ^ "Murali's Praises For His Son Adharva". News.moviegalleri.in. 4 May 2010. Archived from the original on 15 September 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  2. ^ ‘I wanted to become a dhobi’ Archived 6 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine. The New Indian Express. Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  3. ^ "Movie Review : Baana Kaathadi". Sify. Archived from the original on 25 December 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  4. ^ Tamil's Kites could have been better – Rediff.com Movies Archived 8 September 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Movies.rediff.com (6 August 2010). Retrieved 29 December 2015.
  5. ^ "A father's dream come true". Bangalore Mirror. 30 March 2011. Archived from the original on 16 May 2023. Retrieved 16 May 2023.
  6. ^ "Popular Kannada, Tamil actor Murali dead". Deccanherald.com. 31 August 2010. Archived from the original on 11 September 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  7. ^ "Gautham Menon considers Adharva". TamilVix.Com. Archived from the original on 8 August 2010. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  8. ^ "Movie Review : Muppozhudhum Un Karpanaigal". Sify. Archived from the original on 7 April 2013. Retrieved 25 October 2013.
  9. ^ "Arthava Hits and Flops Movie List". Archived from the original on 14 August 2021. Retrieved 14 August 2021.
  10. ^ Metroplus (January 2016). "Atharvaa turns producer". The Hindu. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  11. ^ "Gemini Ganeshanum Suruli Raajanum movie review: A dumb comedy about relationships – Movies News". Indiatoday.in. 15 July 2017. Archived from the original on 15 August 2020. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  12. ^ "Semma Botha Aagathey (Aka) Semma Bodha Aagatha review". 29 June 2018. Archived from the original on 5 May 2021. Retrieved 5 May 2021.
  13. ^ "'Imaikkaa Nodigal' review: Nayanthara, Anurag Kashyap are great, but script is lacking". The News Minute. 31 August 2018. Archived from the original on 14 August 2020. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  14. ^ "Boomerang Movie Review {2.5/5}: The movie's plot is interesting enough to entertain the audience, but the screenplay falters as the story progresses". Timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 8 March 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  15. ^ Chowdhary, Y. Sunita (18 September 2019). "Atharvaa makes his Telugu film debut with 'Valmiki'". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 21 September 2019. Retrieved 18 January 2020.
  16. ^ "Navarasa Web Series 2021: Release date, cast, story, teaser, trailer, first look, rating, reviews, box office collection and preview". Archived from the original on 23 December 2021. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  17. ^ "Thalli Pogathey review: A faithful remake". Sify. Archived from the original on 24 December 2021.
  18. ^ "'Kuruthi Aattam' movie review: This gangster film lacks emotional heft".
  19. ^ "'Trigger' movie review: Great action set-pieces but just all over the place".
  20. ^ "'Pattathu Arasan' movie review: A run-of-the-mill rural sports-family drama".
  21. ^ "'Kids are exposed to adult content on OTT': Prasath Murugesan".
  22. ^ "The good, the bad, and the grey in 'Nirangal Moondru'".
  23. ^ Ondraga Entertainment (14 June 2018). "Bodhai Kodhai - Single Gautham Vasudev Menon, Karthik, Karky, Atharvaa, Aishwarya Rajesh". Archived from the original on 21 December 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2020 – via YouTube.
  24. ^ "சின்னத்திரையில் என்ட்ரி கொடுக்கும் நடிகர் அதர்வா.. ஆரம்பமே அசத்தல்.. நடிகர் சரத்குமார் சொன்ன வார்த்தை". 18 August 2023. Archived from the original on 9 December 2023. Retrieved 18 August 2023.
  25. ^ "ஆனந்த விகடன் விருதுகள் 2013 – 1" [Ananda Vikatan Awards 2013 – 1]. Ananda Vikatan (in Tamil). 8 January 2014. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  26. ^ "Ananda Vikatan Awards 2013 Winners". Ananda Vikatan. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  27. ^ Pyarilal, Vasanth (21 August 2013). "London international filmmakers film festival nominates director Bala's "Paradesi" (Vagabond) in eight categories". South Scope. Archived from the original on 3 July 2017. Retrieved 26 May 2017.
  28. ^ "Offbeat films earn laurels at CIFF". The Hindu. 20 December 2013. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  29. ^ "Director Atlee, Tapsee Among Recipients of Edison Award". The New Indian Express. 17 February 2014. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  30. ^ "Winners of 61st Idea Filmfare Awards South". Filmfare. 13 July 2014. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  31. ^ "Tamilar Awards 2014: Winners and finalists announced!". Norway Tamil Film Festival Awards. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  32. ^ "'Paradesi' sweeps Techofes'14 Awards". Sify. 14 February 2014. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  33. ^ Seshagiri, Sangeetha (6 July 2014). "Vijay Awards: Ajith's 'Arrambam', Kamal Haasan, Sivakarthikeyan Bag Awards [Winners List]". International Business Times. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 May 2017.
  34. ^ "8th Vijay Awards". Vijay Awards. Chennai. 5 July 2014. Star Vijay.
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