# Kavin (actor)

Kavin is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. He made a transition from the small screen to the silver screen. In the beginning of his career, he made a name for himself by playing the character Vettaiyan, a villain turned into a hero in the television series Saravanan Meenatchi. In 2019, Raj was a contestant on Bigg Boss (Season 3). He got his breakthrough with the lead role in successful movies such as Lift (2021) and Dada (2023).

## Career

While completing his education at Loyola College, Raj attended auditions with Star Vijay. His first appearance in television serials was through the college version of Kana Kaanum Kaalangal, in which he appeared as Siva, one of the lead characters. He continued working on Star Vijay, appearing in supporting roles in the serials Thayumanavan and in the first season of Saravanan Meenatchi. In the second season of Saravanan Meenatchi, Raj was initially given an antagonist role but, during the course of the show, his character of Vettaiyan went through a character arc and became the main lead. He won positive critical acclaim for his performance and won the Vijay Television Award for Favourite Actor Male for 2015. After season 2, Raj opted not to act in any more television serials and stated his intentions of breaking into the Tamil film industry.
Raj played a supporting role in S. R. Prabhakaran's Sathriyan (2017) and the lead role in Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma (2019) in 2016. Prior to this, he appeared in small, insignificant roles in Karthik Subbaraj's Pizza (2012) and Ravikumar's Indru Netru Naalai (2015). Sathriyan, featuring Vikram Prabhu and Manjima Mohan, eventually opened to mixed reviews, and Raj's role as a doctor opposite Aishwarya Dutta in the film also was met with a mixed response. Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma saw him associate with director Shiva Aravind, whom he became acquainted with during his stint with Star Vijay. They developed the script together. In the film, he played a man whose life changes after meeting the main character, played by Remya Nambeesan. The film went through several delays as the producer was keen to have a wide release across Tamil Nadu. The film was ultimately released in 2019 to mixed reviews.
Raj became known through his participation in the third season of Bigg Boss Tamil, after which he was cast as the lead actor in Lift, directed by Vineeth Varaprasad and released on OTT, which opened to a positive response .
He worked as an assistant director in Doctor (2021). His romantic web series titled Akash Vaani released on February 11, 2022. He went on to star in the critically acclaimed and commercially successful movie Dada. In 2024, his movie Star was released to positive to mixed reviews.

## Filmography
### Films

Key :
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Year | Films | Role | Notes |
| 2012 | Pizza | Ghost researcher | Uncredited roles |
| 2015 | Indru Netru Naalai | Anu's imaginary husband | Uncredited roles |
| 2017 | Sathriyan | Chandran | Supporting role |
| 2019 | Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma | Shiva | |
| 2021 | Lift | Guruprasad | |
| 2023 | Dada | Manikandan | |
| 2024 | Star | Kalaiarasan | |
| 2024 | Bloody Beggar | Beggar | |
| 2025 | Kiss † | TBA | Post-production; choreographer-actor Sathish Krishnan's debut film as director |
| 2025 | Mask † | TBA | Filming |
| 2025 | Untitled with Nayanthara † | TBA | Filming |

### Web series

| Year | Title | Role | Ref. |
| 2022 | Akash Vaani | Akaash | |

### Television

| Year | Serial / show | Role | Channel | Notes |
| 2011–2012 | Kana Kaanum Kaalangal Kalloori Salai Season 2 | Siva | Star Vijay | |
| 2013–2014 | Thayumanavan | Vicky | Star Vijay | |
| 2012–2013 | Saravanan Meenatchi | Murugan | Star Vijay | |
| 2013–2016 | Saravanan Meenatchi Season 2 | Saravana Perumal "Saravanan" (Vettaiyan) | Star Vijay | Lead role |
| 2019 | Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 3 | Contestant | Star Vijay | Walked out with 5 lakhs |
| 2021 | Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 4 | Guest | Star Vijay | |
| 2021 | Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 5 | Guest | Star Vijay | |
| 2023 | Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 6 | Guest | Star Vijay | |
| 2024 | Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 8 | Guest | Star Vijay | |

### Host

* Vettaiyadu Vilaiyadu for Star Vijay
* Filmfare Awards South 2018 Tamil version for Star Vijay
* Vijay Television Awards 2015 & 2017 for Star Vijay
* Kings of Dance (season 1) for Star Vijay
* Jailer Audio Launch for Sun TV

### Music video

* "Asku Maaro" for Sony Music South

## Awards
### Awards

| Year | Award | Show / film | Role |
| 2015 | Vijay Television Awards for Favourite Actor Male | Saravanan Meenatchi | Saravana Perumal alias Vettaiyan |
| 2019 | Game Changer Award | Bigg Boss Tamil 3 | |
| 2019 | Behindwoods Gold Medal Awards for Most Popular Person on Television | Bigg Boss Tamil 3 | |
| 2019 | Chennai Times Most Desirable Man on Television | | |
| 2019 | Chennai Times Most Desirable Man on 6th position | | |
| 2020 | Viral Song of the Year 2019 | Bigg Boss Tamil 3 | "We are the boyz" |
| 2021 | Chennai Times Most Desirable Man (16th Position) | | |
| 2022 | Best Actor Male OTT – Blacksheep Digital Awards | Lift | |
| 2023 | People's Favourite Actor of the Year – Behindwoods Gold Icons 2023 | Dada | |
| 2024 | Most Promising Actor of the Year – South Indian International Movie Awards 2024 | Dada | |