# Prithviraj Sukumaran

Prithviraj Sukumaran (/pr̩t̪ʰʋiɾaːd͡ʒ/; born 16 October 1982) is an Indian actor, producer, director, and playback singer who primarily works in Malayalam cinema, in addition to Tamil, Hindi and Telugu films, adding to more than 100 films involving diverse genres and variety of roles. Prithviraj's accolades include a National Film Award, four Kerala State Film Awards, a Tamil Nadu State Film Award, seven SIIMA Awards and a South Filmfare Award.
Prithviraj made his acting debut with the 2002 film Nandanam. After starring in a few box-office faliures, he made a comeback with Classmates (2006), the highest-grossing Malayalam film of the year, and became the youngest recipient of Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor for Vaasthavam (2006). He then played a musician in the Tamil romantic comedy Mozhi (2007) and ventured into playback singing with Puthiya Mukham (2009) before earning his second Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor for the medical drama Ayalum Njanum Thammil (2012) and the biographical film Celluloid (2013).
In 2010, Prithviraj became a producer and joined the production company August Cinema. He co-produced and headlined Urumi and Indian Rupee (both 2011); the latter won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam and Kerala State Film Award for Best Film. He won the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Villain for Kaaviya Thalaivan (2014) and had further success with Ennu Ninte Moideen (2015) and Ezra (2017). After leaving August Cinema in 2017, he launched Prithviraj Productions independently that first produced 9 (2019). Prithviraj made his directorial debut with Lucifer (2019), which became one of the highest-grossing Malayalam film. He has since achieved critical and commercial success with Driving License (2019), Ayyappanum Koshiyum (2020), Jana Gana Mana (2022), Kaduva (2022), The Goat Life (2024) and Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil (2024) and the Telugu film Salaar (2023).

## Early life, family and education

Prithviraj Sukumaran was born on 16 October, 1982 to the actors Sukumaran and Mallika Sukumaran at Thiruvananthapuram. His family was settled in Tamil Nadu at the time, where he attended Shrine Vailankanni Senior Secondary School in T. Nagar, Chennai, and St. Joseph's Boys School, Coonoor.
When his family moved to Kerala, he attended the NSS Public School, Perunthanni. He then moved to St. Mary's Residential Central School, Poojappura where he acted in plays and skits for the school's Annual Day Celebrations. He completed his education at Sainik School, Kazhakootam and Bhavan's Senior Secondary School, Kodunganoor. He also participated and won several debates and elocution competitions while in school. Prithviraj won the title of "Mr LA Fest" in the Annual Inter-School arts festival hosted by Loyola School, Thiruvananthapuram in successive years and is the only person to date to win that title twice.
After school, he studied for a bachelor's degree in Information Technology at the University of Tasmania in Australia. During this time, he auditioned for film director Ranjith and won the lead role in the film Nandanam. It was film director Fazil who introduced him to Ranjith. His elder brother Indrajith Sukumaran and sister-in-law Poornima Indrajith are also film actors.

## Career
### Debut and career struggles (2002–2008)

In 2001, Prithviraj underwent a screen-test by director Fazil for one of his projects. Even though that project never materialised, Fazil recommended him to director Ranjith, who was planning his second directorial, Nandanam (2002), Prithviraj underwent screen-test for the role and got selected. Though Nandanam was the first film that Prithviraj acted in, it was released after Nakshathrakkannulla Rajakumaran Avanundoru Rajakumari and Stop Violence. Prithviraj then appeared in films directed by Lohithadas, Vinayan, Kamal and Bhadran. Shyamaprasad, who cast him as the lead in his film Akale, said that Prithviraj's advantages are his talent and intelligence irrespective of his box office successes.
In 2005, Prithviraj Sukumaran debuted in Tamil cinema through Kana Kandaen. He starred in Director Santosh Sivan’s Anandabhadram in which he portrayed a character called Anandan who is a young NRI who likes his mother’s native village, a place known for powerful wizards and go through several human emotions. In 2006, Prithviraj co-starred with actor Bhagyaraj's daughter Saranya Bhagyaraj in Parijatham. It became an acclaimed film.
In 2006, he played the role of Sub Inspector Solomon Joseph in Vargam, and then appeared in the film Vaasthavam, for which he received the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor. He was the youngest actor to win the award. The same year he starred in Lal Jose's Classmates. The coming-of-age romantic comedy-drama was one of the biggest hits of his career. In 2007, he starred in Chocolate, directed by Shafi. In 2007, Prithviraj co-starred Jyothika in Mozhi. He also starred in Satham Podathey and Kannamoochi Yenada in the same year.
In 2008, he starred in Thalappavu, (directed by Madhupal) and Thirakkatha (directed by Ranjith), playing pivotal characters in both. One of the reviews of Thalappavu describes it as the coming-of-age film for prithviraj describing the "spartan dignity" he brought to his portrayal of the Naxalite Joseph. The Sify review of Thirakkatha describes it as a "genuine attempt that keeps the viewer engaged until the end". Both Thalappavu and Thirakkatha shared the award for the best film in the Film Critics Award for 2008. In 2008, Prithviraj starred in Vellithirai, the Tamil remake of Udayananu Tharam. Rediff described, "Prithviraj ... makes the best of his assets – his expressive eyes, which glint in fury, soften with love, or brim over with frustrated tears."

### Established actor (2009–2012)

In 2009, the success of Prithviraj Sukumaran's Puthiya Mukham (directed by Diphan) was a major turning point in the actor's career and led to him being branded as a superstar. His other releases in 2009 were Robin Hood (directed by Joshy) and the anthology film Kerala Cafe. In 2010, Sukumaran's notable films were Pokkiri Raja and Anwar, directed by Amal Neerad. He played the antagonist in Mani Ratnam's Raavanan in 2010 alongside actor Vikram who played the main protagonist. His performance was critically acclaimed. In the same year, Prithviraj debuted in Telugu cinema in the film Police Police.
In 2011, Prithviraj produced his first film, the multilingual Urumi. His other releases included City of God, Manikyakallu, Veettilekkulla Vazhi and Indian Rupee. Critics praised Prithviraj for his performance in Indian Rupee, a critic at Nowrunning.com, called it his "careers best performance". In 2012, his releases included Hero, Molly Aunty Rocks! and Ayalum Njanum Thammil, along with cameo roles in Aakashathinte Niram. He also made a special appearance in Anjali Menon's Manjadikuru.
In that same year, Prithviraj debuted in Hindi cinema through Aiyyaa, starring alongside Rani Mukerji.

### Critical acclaim and further success (2013–2018)

In 2013, Prithviraj had three releases Celluloid, Mumbai Police and Memories, all of which were critical and commercial successes. He portrayed J.C. Daniel in Celluloid, for which he won his second Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor. He also played the role of a police officer in Aurangzeb, directed by Athul Sabharwal which was his second project in Hindi cinema.
In 2014, Prithviraj's first major release was London Bridge, which was a box office failure; followed by 7th Day, which emerged as a commercial success. He also featured in a cameo role in Munnariyippu. His third release of the year, Sapthamashree Thaskaraha was praised by critics. Prithviraj also starred in director Vasanthabalan's period film Kaaviya Thalaivan, co-starring Siddharth.
His first release of 2015 was Picket 43, followed by other releases such as Shyamaprasad's Ivide. Prithviraj was widely praised for his performance in the film. He next appeared in Lijo Jose Pellissery's Double Barrel.
His most successful film of that year was Ennu Ninte Moideen co starring Parvathy which narrated the tragic love tale of Kanchanamala and Moideen that happened in the 1960s in Mukkam, a riverside village in Kerala. The film opened to critical acclaim, with several critics regarding it as one of the greatest romance films made in Malayalam cinema. His role as Moideen is regarded as one of the best in his career. His next releases Amar Akbar Anthony and Anarkali were major commercial success.
Prithviraj had four releases in 2016, beginning with Paavada, a family drama in which he played a drunkard. It met with a positive response and was a commercial success and ran for 100 days in theatres. His other releases Darvinte Parinamam and James & Alice were met with mixed reviews, the former told the story of an ordinary man dealing with a local goon and the latter was a family drama that discussed the matter of life and death. His last release, Oozham, an action thriller directed by Jeethu Joseph was a commercial success. He played a demolition expert. In 2017, he starred in the horror film Ezra, which became one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of the year, grossing ₹50 crore worldwide. His other releases that year included Tiyaan, Adam Joan and Vimaanam. Both Tiyaan and Vimaanam were moderate box office hits. He starred in his third Hindi film, Naam Shabana.
His first release of 2018 was Roshini Dinakar's romantic drama My Story, a commercial failure at the box office. His next two releases were Anjali Menon's drama Koode and Nirmal Sahadev's crime drama Ranam. Koode received critical acclaim and was a commercial success while Ranam was met with positive critical response but performed moderately at the box office. In 2018, Prithviraj launched his independent production house, Prithviraj Productions. In 2019, he produced and starred in the science fiction film 9. The film received was a box office success.

### Lucifer and beyond (2019–present)

Prithviraj made his directorial debut in 2019 with the film Lucifer, starring Mohanlal. The film became the one of the highest-grossing Malayalam film. In the following years, he would go onto star in the comedy-drama Driving License (2019), Ayyappanum Koshiyum (2020), Jana Gana Mana (2022), Kaduva (2022) and Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire (2023), all of which emerged as box office successes. However, Brother's Day, Kaapa, and Gold failed at the box office. In 2024, he acted in the survival drama, Aadujeevitham, directed by Blessy. Prithviraj had been cast for the project 16 years prior in 2008. Aadujeevitham was critically and commercially successful with Prithviraj earning critical acclaim for his performance. His second release, the comedy-drama Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil was also a commercial success. Both films ranks among the list of List of highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time. He won the Kerala State Best Actor award for Aadujeevitham.

## Personal life

Prithviraj married BBC India reporter Supriya Menon on 25 April 2011 in a private ceremony held in Palakkad. They have a daughter, born in 2014. Prithviraj and his family reside in Thevara, Kochi. He also has a house at Pali Hill, Mumbai.

## Other ventures

Prithviraj Productions is an Indian film production and distribution company based in Kochi, established in 2017 by Prithviraj and his wife Supriya Menon. Since then, it has produced and distributed over 10 films.
| Year | Film | Director | Production | Distribution | Language | Notes |
| 2019 | 9 | Jenuse Mohamed | Yes | | Malayalam | |
| 2019 | Petta | Karthik Subbaraj | | Yes | Tamil | |
| 2019 | Bigil | Atlee | | Yes | Tamil | |
| 2019 | Driving Licence | Lal Jr. | Yes | | Malayalam | |
| 2021 | Master | Lokesh Kanagaraj | | Yes | Tamil | |
| 2021 | Kuruthi | Manu Warrier | Yes | | Malayalam | |
| 2021 | Doctor | Nelson Dilipkumar | | Yes | Tamil | |
| 2021 | 83 | Kabir Khan | | Yes | Hindi | |
| 2022 | Bro Daddy | Prithviraj Sukumaran | | | Malayalam | Project Design |
| 2022 | KGF: Chapter 2 | Prashanth Neel | | Yes | Kannada | Distributed Malayalam version |
| 2022 | Jana Gana Mana | Dijo Jose Antony | Yes | | Malayalam | |
| 2022 | 777 Charlie | Kiranraj K. | | Yes | Kannada | Distributed Malayalam version |
| 2022 | Kaduva | Shaji Kailas | Yes | | Malayalam | |
| 2022 | Kantara | Rishab Shetty | | Yes | Kannada | Distributed Malayalam version |
| 2022 | Kumari | Nirmal Sahadev | | Yes | Malayalam | |
| 2022 | Gold | Alphonse Puthren | Yes | | Malayalam | |
| 2023 | Selfiee | Raj Mehta | Yes | | Hindi | Remake of Driving Licence |
| 2023 | Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire | Prashanth Neel | | Yes | Telugu | Distributed Malayalam version |
| 2024 | The Goat Life | Blessy | | Yes | Malayalam | |
| 2024 | Guruvayoor Ambalanadayil | Vipin Das | Yes | | Malayalam | |
| 2025 | L2: Empuraan | Prithviraj Sukumaran | | | Malayalam | Project Design |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Category | Film |
| 2011 | National Film Awards | Best Feature Film in Malayalam | Indian Rupee |
| 2006 | Kerala State Film Awards | Best Actor | Vaasthavam |
| 2011 | Kerala State Film Awards | Best Film | Indian Rupee (Shared with Santhosh Sivan & Shaji Nadeshan) |
| 2012 | Kerala State Film Awards | Best Actor | Celluloid,Ayalum Njanum Thammil |
| 2023 | Kerala State Film Awards | Best Actor | The Goat Life |
| 2013 | Filmfare Awards South | Critics Best Actor – Malayalam | Celluloid |
| 2003 | Kerala Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actor | Meerayude Dukhavum Muthuvinte Swapnavum |
| 2011 | Kerala Film Critics Association Awards | Special Jury Award (Actor) | Urumi , Indian Rupee |
| 2015 | Kerala Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actor | Ennu Ninte Moideen |
| 2019 | Kerala Film Critics Association Awards | Special Jury Award (Director) | Lucifer |
| 2020 | Kerala Film Critics Association Awards | Best Actor | Ayyappanum Koshiyum |
| 2014 | Tamil Nadu State Film Awards | Best Villain | Kaaviya Thalaivan |