Pooja Mohanraj

Pooja Mohanraj is an Indian film and theatre actress, director, and educator who works primarily in Malayalam cinema. She began her theatre career at the age of ten as a member of Lokadharmi, the theatre group led by Prof. Chandradasan, and went on to train extensively in both Eastern traditional performance forms and contemporary Western acting techniques. She made her film debut with the Malayalam film One and gained wider recognition for her performances in films such as Romancham, Neelavelicham, Kaathal – The Core, Aavesham, and Sookshmadarshini.

Early life and education Pooja Mohanraj was born in Pondicherry, India, to Usha Mohanraj and K. Mohanraj, a mechanical engineer.

Pooja graduated with a degree in Economics (Honours) from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, University of Delhi. She subsequently obtained a Master's degree in Theatre Arts from the School of Drama and Fine Arts, University of Calicut (at the College of Fine Arts, Thrissur).

Her notable theatre productions include Egle and Cleopatra (a solo play written and directed by Chandradasan, based on Lithuanian myth and Shakespeare's Antony and Cleopatra), When We Dead Awaken, Andorra, and Balcony. The same year, she appeared in the thriller Cold Case.

In 2023, she appeared in several films, including Romancham directed by Jithu Madhavan, Neelavelicham directed by Aashiq Abu, and Kaathal – The Core directed by Jeo Baby.

In 2024, she appeared in Aavesham, also directed by Jithu Madhavan and starring Fahadh Faasil, in which she played the role of Beauty. The film was a major commercial success. She was also part of Sookshmadarshini, starring Basil Joseph and Nazriya Nazim.

In 2025, she appeared in Oru Jaathi Jathakam, Maranamass, and Padakkalam, further establishing herself as a consistent presence in Malayalam cinema. She also spoke at the Summit of Future 2025 hosted by Jain University in Kochi on the topic of stereotypes in Malayalam cinema.

Filmography

Films Year Title Role Notes 2021 One Civil Police Officer Sookshmadarshini Asma

Web series Year Title Role Platform Notes 2023 Masterpeace Rashmitha Disney+ Hotstar