Vijay Raghavendra

Early life

Vijay Raghavendra was born in Bangalore, India to a family of film personalities. He began to act in films featuring his uncle Rajkumar in the lead. After having acted in about eight films as a child artist, Vijay underwent a formal training in acting at Chennai.

Film career

Child roles : 1980s–1990s

In 1982, Vijay appeared in a small role as a child in Singeetham Srinivasa Rao's romantic drama Chalisuva Modagalu, starring his uncle Rajkumar, Ambika and his cousin Puneeth Rajkumar, credited as Master Lohith. He went on to appear in the 1989 movie Parashuram, alongside his cousin Puneeth Rajkumar in a song. After a brief gap, in 1991 he appeared in Aralida Hoovugalu, a remake of the Hindi film Jawani Diwani (1971), directed by Chi. Dattaraj and co-starred Shiva Rajkumar. His next movie Chinnari Mutha became a huge success and he became a household name in Karnataka. After that, he acted in many movies, including Kotreshi Kanasu, for which he won a National Award for his performance.

In 1993, Vijay, in his teens, appeared in three films: H. R. Bhargava's novel-based drama Jaga Mechida Huduga, Renuka Sharma's devotional Kollura Sri Mookambika, where he played the role of young Shankaracharya and the lead protagonist in the T. S. Nagabharana's Children's film Chinnari Mutha. The film won multiple laurels and awards upon release both at the state and national level. Vijay won the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Child Actor (Male) for his portrayal of an innocent Mutha who rises to great popularity through his good deeds. His popularity further rose in 1995 with the Nagathihalli Chandrashekar's film adaption of the novel Kotra Highschoolige Seriddu, titled Kotreshi Kanasu. Vijay played the title role of Kotreshi and went on to win the National Film Award for Best Child Artist for the year 1994–95. The other film he featured in was the biographical Sangeetha Sagara Ganayogi Panchakshara Gavai, directed by Chindodi Bangaresh. He again played the title role as the young and blind reformer Gawai and also portrayed the younger part of Narendra in the Hindi film Swami Vivekananda. Following this, he took a break from films and concentrated on his studies.

Adult roles: 2002–present

His first adult role as an actor was in Ninagagi (2002), a box office blockbuster which brought him success on his first role opposite the debutant Radhika. The film was a remake of the Telugu hit Nuvve Kavali, which screened for over 100 days and created a record. Following this success, he signed two more movies in the same year, which could not succeed at the box office. He has acted in many movies since then. His notable movies are Khushi (2003), Rishi (2005), Kallarali Hoovagi (2006) and Ganesha Matte Banda (2008). Regarding his performance in Khushi, a critic noted, "Vijay is like Rahul Dravid of Indian cricket. He has churned out emotions very well".

Vijay did not have a single release in 2010. His much delayed films Shravana, Vinayaka Geleyara Balaga and the multi-starrer Kalla Malla Sulla released in 2011 with the latter two films earning favourable reviews. In 2012, he starred again in a multi-starrer comedy Snehitaru, which received a mixed response at the box office. In 2013, Vijay was a contestant and winner in the much talked about Kannada version of the reality show Bigg Boss in its first season, which started with 13 contestants. Vijay has been reportedly paid Rs. 5 million prize money. In 2016, he starred in the biographical Shivayogi Sri Puttayyajja and won the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Actor.

Personal life

Vijay is the eldest child of producer S. A. Chinne Gowda and his wife Jayamma. He has a elder sister and a younger brother Sriimurali, is a popular Kannada film actor. His paternal aunt Parvathamma Rajkumar was a prominent film producer and distributor in Kannada cinema. He is the cousin of actors Shiva Rajkumar, Raghavendra Rajkumar and Puneeth Rajkumar. On 26 August 2007, he married a Tulu-speaking girl, Spandana, the daughter of Assistant Commissioner of Police, B. K. Shivaram. The couple has a son named Shourya. Spandana died on 7 August 2023 from cardiac arrest in Bangkok.

In 2013, it was announced that he had joined other Bollywood and international celebrities in the TeachAids initiative, a state-of-the-art approach to worldwide HIV prevention, developed at Stanford University.

Filmography

Actor

Singer

Television

References

References

1. (11 November 2013). "Vijay Raghavendra makes his directorial debut, changes his name". [[The Times of India]].
2. (26 January 2017). "On my pinboard — Vijay Raghavendra". [[Deccan Herald]].
3. (16 September 2014). "Vijay Raghavendra has got national award". [[The Times of India]].
4. (17 May 2016). "Vijay Raghavendra, Malashri bag top honours at State Film Awards". News Karnataka.com.
5. (12 November 2013). "'Kismat' turns Vijay Raghavendra into a director".
6. "Vijay Raghavendra wins Kannada Bigg Boss Season 1".
7. "Vijay Raghavendra- A Macho Built Popular Actor Of Kannada Cinema". Passionconnect.in.
8. (30 June 2013). "Vijaya Raghavendra Lucky". Chitraloka.com.
9. [https://archive.today/20130624172900/http://www.hindu.com/thehindu/lf/2002/08/11/stories/2002081101210200.htm Centuries on debut for them]
10. "Kushi Movie Review".
11. "Vijay Raghavendra wins Kannada Bigg Boss Season 1".
12. "Vijay Raghavendra in Big Boss house".
13. "Bigg Boss Winner Vijaya Raghavendra - Exclusive - chitraloka.com {{!}} Kannada Movies {{!}} Latest Kannada Film News, Reviews {{!}} Stills, Images, Actress, Actors, Pictures".
14. (5 April 2007). "Vijay to wed Spandana". IndiaGlitz.
15. (20 April 2007). "Wedding bells for Vijaya Raghavendra". [[The Times of India]].
16. (7 August 2023). "Dance Karnataka Dance judge Vijay Raghavendra's wife, Spandana, dies of cardiac arrest in Bangkok". The Times of India.
17. (7 August 2023). "Vijay Raghavendra: ನಟ ವಿಜಯ್ ರಾಘವೇಂದ್ರ ಪತ್ನಿ ಸ್ಪಂದನಾ ಇನ್ನಿಲ್ಲ".
18. (2013). "Kannada movie star Vijay Raghavendra joins the TeachAIDS education efforts". TeachAIDS Blog.
19. "Prema Quidi - Old wine in new bottle". [[Viggy]].
20. Gowda, Aravind. (2 February 2003). "Heart Beats".
21. "Rajeeva is mindless mayhem".
22. "Review: Golmaal can put you to sleep".
23. "'Grey Games' movie review: Despite flaws, this psychological thriller manages to entertain".
24. (1 March 2025). "Kannada Movie Review–FIR 6 to 6: A thriller with many characters on the run".
25. "Remake of award-winning national showû Yaadon Ka Idiot BOX WITH Neelesh Misra in Kannada".
26. (26 April 2016). "Vijay Raghavendra to judge Drama Juniors".
27. (4 January 2022). "Vijay Raghavendra to judge new reality show Dancing Champion". The Times of India.
28. (16 November 2022). "Vijay Raghavendra to be a judge on new show".