Kavin (actor)

Kavin
Kavin in 2024
Born
Kavin Raj

(1990-06-22) 22 June 1990 (age 36)
Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India
EducationLoyola College, Chennai
Occupations
  • Actor
  • Television host
Years active2011–present
Spouse
Monica David
​
(m. 2023)​
Children2
AwardsFull list

Kavin (born 22 June 1990) is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Tamil cinema.

Early life and family

Kavin pursued his education at Loyola College, Chennai. During his early college years, he started attending auditions conducted by Star Vijay. His first notable appearance on television was through the college edition of Kana Kaanum Kaalangal, where he portrayed Siva, one of the lead characters. He continued working with Star Vijay, appearing in supporting roles in the serials Thayumanavan and the first season of Saravanan Meenatchi.

In the second season of Saravanan Meenatchi, Kavin initially played an antagonist. However, the character of his, Vettaiyan, underwent a transformation during the course of the series and became the main lead. His performance earned him widespread acclaim and he won the Vijay Television Award for Favourite Actor Male in 2015.

After the end of Saravanan Meenatchi Season 2, Kavin chose to focus on building a career in the Tamil film industry, opting not to appear in further television serials.

Loyola college churns out lot of Christian actors and musicians : KAVIN is a christian with a name confusing if he is a Hindu or a christian, married to a christian. 

Film career

2011–2017: Early years

Prior to gaining recognition, Kavin had appeared in small roles in Karthik Subbaraj’s Pizza (2012) and R. Ravikumar’s Indru Netru Naalai (2015).

In 2017, he played a supporting role as a doctor opposite Aishwarya Dutta in S. R. Prabhakaran’s Sathriyan (2017), featuring Vikram Prabhu and Manjima Mohan. Although Sathriyan received mixed reviews, it helped Kavin gain visibility.

2019–present: Breakthrough

Kavin's first lead role came with Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma (2019), directed by Shiva Aravind, a friend he met during his Star Vijay days. The film, where he starred opposite Remya Nambessan, faced several release delays due to distribution issues but eventually released to mixed reviews. Nevertheless, the film helped establish Kavin as a leading actor. In 2019, Kavin rose to wider fame by participating in the third season of Bigg Boss. His stint on the show significantly boosted his popularity among the Tamil audience.

Following this, he played the lead in Lift (2021), directed by Vineeth Varaprasad. Released on Disney+ Hotstar, the film opened to positive response from critics and viewers alike. In 2022, Kavin starred in the romantic web series Akash Vaani, which premiered on February 11. He achieved critical and commercial success with the film Dada (2023), earning praise for his performance. Having high expectations, Kavin's next, Star, was released in 2024 to mixed reviews. Despite this, it emerged as the highest-grossing film of his career, continuing his growth as a bankable leading actor. The same year, his fifth film as lead actor, Bloody Beggar, was released to mixed-to-negative reviews and became a box-office bomb. However, after its theatrical run was completed and was released on its streaming platform, the film received a more positive response from viewers. In 2025, Kiss, also received a positive response from critics, and Kavin's performance was specifically praised though it failed commercially due to poor promotions. In the same year he starred alongside Andrea Jeremiah in the film Mask which opened to mixed to positive reviews though it also underperformed the box office due to its high budget. In 2026, Kavin's next Hi, co-starring Nayanthara was released on August 28, 2026, to positive reviews from critics and became his best performing film after Star (2024).

Personal life

Kavin entered into a relationship with Monica David, a private school teacher, and the couple married on 20 August 2023.

. Kavin and Monica were blessed with twin babies—a baby boy and a baby girl—in July 2026.

Filmography

Films

Key
† Denotes films that have not yet been released
Year Films Role Notes Ref.
2012PizzaGhost researcherUncredited role
2015Indru Netru NaalaiAnu's imaginary husband
2017SathriyanChandran
2019Natpuna Ennanu TheriyumaShivaDebut as lead actor
2021LiftGuruprasad
2023DadaManikandan
2024StarKalaiarasan
Bloody BeggarBeggar
2025KissNelson / Sendhan
MaskVelu
2026 Hi :) Mayilsamy
TBA Kavin #9 † TBA Filming

Television

Year Serial / Show Role Channel Notes
2011–2012Kana Kaanum Kaalangal Kalloori Salai Season 2SivaStar Vijay
2013–2014ThayumanavanVicky
2012–2013Saravanan MeenatchiMurugan
2013–2016Saravanan Meenatchi Season 2Saravana Perumal "Saravanan" (Vettaiyan)Lead role
2019Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 3ContestantWalked out with 5 lakhs
2021Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 4Guest
Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 5Guest
2022 Akash Vaani Akash aha
2023Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 6GuestStar Vijay
2024Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 8Guest
2025 Bigg Boss Tamil – Season 9 Guest

Host

Music video

Awards

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

References

  1. 1 2 "Kavin shares his experience of being an ardent Ajith fan". Behindwoods.com. 20 June 2017.
  2. 1 2 "Vettaiyan gave me the break: Kavin". The Times of India.
  3. ↑ "New season of Saravanan Meenakshi to begin". The Times of India.
  4. ↑ "Did you know, Kavin appeared in Vijay Sethupathi's super hit film Pizza?". The Times of India.
  5. ↑ "Kavin, the accidental hero". Cinema Express.
  6. ↑ "Vikram Prabhu's Sathriyan is based on a True incident happened in Trichy". IndiaGlitz.com. 31 January 2017.
  7. ↑ "Sathriyan (aka) Mudisooda Mannan review". Behindwoods.com. 10 June 2017.
  8. ↑ "Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma will be entertaining and worth the ticket price: Kavin". The New Indian Express.
  9. ↑ "Three friends and Remya Nambeesan!". The Times of India.
  10. ↑ "Release Of Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma Postponed Due To Unavailability Of Screens". Silverscreen.com. 11 October 2018. Archived from the original on 17 May 2019.
  11. ↑ "Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma Movie Review {2.5/5}: Critic Review of Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma". The Times of India.
  12. ↑ "Natpuna Ennanu Theriyuma Review: Confused execution salvaged by efficient gags". Cinema Express.
  13. ↑ "Bigg Boss Tamil 3: Meet the contestants". The Indian Express. 24 June 2019.
  14. ↑ Sunder, Gautam (30 September 2021). "Actor Kavin on making his comeback with 'Lift,' and why director Nelson is his rockstar". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 2 October 2021. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
  15. ↑ "Lift Review Kavin Starrer is a refreshing horror movie on the corporate trap". indianexpress.com. 2 October 2021.
  16. ↑ "Akash Vaani Trailer starring Kavin, Reba John".
  17. ↑ "dada-movie-review-kavin-aparna-das-impress-in-this-emotional-". www.thehindu.com. 10 February 2023.
  18. ↑ "'Star' Twitter review: Kavin's film is a blockbuster, rate netizens". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  19. ↑ Srinivasan, Sudhir (10 May 2024). "Star Movie Review: Some momentary joys in this not-so-deep take on pursuit of passion". Cinema Express. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  20. ↑ "'Star' Review: Kavin, Elan's coming-of-age film falls short of excellence". India Today. 10 May 2024. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  21. ↑ "'Star' box office collection day 1: A record start for Kavin at the box office". The Times of India. 11 May 2024. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  22. ↑ "Kavin's 'Star' is now the highest-grossing film of the actor; reaches Rs 25 crore at the box office". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  23. ↑ "Nelson Dilipkumar's kind gesture for 'Blood Beggar' steals millions of hearts". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  24. ↑ "Weeks after release, Kavin's Bloody Beggar begins to get positive word of mouth only now". www.ottplay.com. Retrieved 27 April 2025.
  25. ↑ "Kiss movie box office collection day 1: Kavin and Preethi Asrani's romantic fantasy makes Rs 40 lakhs". www.ottplay.com. Retrieved 21 September 2025.
  26. ↑ "Kavin says he signed Mask for its final 20 minutes; reveals details on his character". Cinema Express. Retrieved 6 November 2025.
  27. ↑ "Actor Kavin gets married to beau Monicka David; pics inside". The Times of India. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  28. ↑ "Kavin to marry his longtime girlfriend Monica on August 20. Details inside". India Today. 2 August 2023. Retrieved 26 April 2025.
  29. ↑ "Star: Kavin, Elan movie sets eyes on Valentine's day release". www.moviecrow.com. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
  30. ↑ "Kavin's 'Bloody Beggar' to release for Diwali". www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 3 September 2024.
  31. ↑ "'Kiss' teaser: Kavin stars as a youth against love, romance and Valentine's Day". www.thehindu.com. Retrieved 25 February 2025.
  32. ↑ "Kavin – Andrea Jeremiah team up for 'Mask'; Vetrimaaran to produce the film". www.thehindu.com. Retrieved 18 May 2024.
  33. ↑ "Kavin and Nayanthara's film with Vishnu Edavan goes on floors with a muhurat puja". www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com. 12 July 2024.
  34. ↑ "Kavin, Reba Monica John-starrer Akash Vaani goes on floors". Cinema Express. Retrieved 2 August 2021.