Sivakartikeyan

Sivakarthikeyan (born 17 February 1985), also known by his initials as SK, is an Indian actor, playback singer, lyricist, and film producer primarily active in Tamil cinema. He served as a television presenter before his entry into films. He is a recipient of one Filmfare Award, two Tamil Nadu State Film Awards and eight SIIMA Awards.

Sivakarthikeyan gained attention after winning the stand-up comedy show Kalakka Povathu Yaaru? in 2006 and began hosting various shows on Star Vijay. His Tamil film breakthrough came with the 2012 comedy drama Marina. Later, he went on to star in commercially and critically successful films such as Ethir Neechal (2013), Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam (2013), Namma Veettu Pillai (2019) and Amaran (2024), the latter becoming one of the top‑grossing Tamil films of that year. He launched his own production company, Sivakarthikeyan Productions, and produced various films including Kanaa (2018).

He received the Kalaimamani award from the Government of Tamil Nadu in 2020.

Early life and family Sivakarthikeyan was born on 17 February 1985 in Piranmalai near Singampunari in Sivagangai district in a Tamil family. His father G. Doss was a jail superintendent. He has an elder sister, who is a doctor. He completed schooling at Campion Anglo-Indian Higher Secondary School in Tiruchirappalli and earned a Bachelor’s degree from JJ College of Engineering. He married Aarthi on 27 August 2010. The couple have three children, one daughter and two sons. His cousin is Arun Prabu, for which he collaborated with for Vaazhl (2021).

Career 2006–2012: Early career and introduction to cinema Sivakarthikeyan took part in various cultural events and performed mimicry and standup comedy during his college years. He took a three month-break in between studies, to take part in the auditions of Kalakka Povathu Yaaru?, a comedy reality TV show airing on Star Vijay, and won the second season of the competition in 2006. The makers of Aegan (2008) noticed his performance and offered him a supporting role in the film, but his portions did not make the final cut. He appeared in short films such as Mugaputhagam.

Director Pandiraj approached Sivakarthikeyan to play the lead role in his film Marina (2012), and he signed the project. He prepared for the role by visiting Marina Beach extensively to study the surroundings, while revealing that he hoped that his natural talent of humor would come through onscreen. Featuring alongside Oviya as a young couple in the film, Sivakarthikeyan's performance was well-received, with a critic noting "the romance adds colour to a monochrome film", while the reviewer also noted that the "role of Senthilnathan requires Siva to be just himself, it is just a cake walk in terms of performance for this actor."

Aishwarya Rajinikanth signed up Sivakarthikeyan to play a supporting role as Dhanush's friend in 3, after being impressed with his work onstage as a host. Though the film opened to mixed reviews, critics appreciatied Sivakarthikeyan's work as providing comic relief in a serious film. He was next seen in Ezhil's romantic comedy Manam Kothi Paravai that released later that year. It opened to mixed reviews with a critic noting that the film "might not provide Sivakarthikeyan the platform he is aspiring for – lead roles in movies. But it does showcase his potential as an actor."

2013–2019: Experimentation in genres and success In 2013, Sivakarthikeyan appeared in three films. In his first release of the year, Kedi Billa Killadi Ranga, a dual hero coming-of-age comedy film, Sivakarthikeyan partnered once again with Pandiraj and acted alongside Vimal. The film opened to positive reviews from critics, and became a success at the box office. His next film was Dhanush's debut production venture Ethir Neechal, written and directed by R. S. Durai Senthilkumar, a former assistant of director Vetrimaaran. His third release of the year was director Ponram's comedy Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam, which saw Sivakarthikeyan portray a carefree rural youth and he was paired with newcomer Sri Divya, and Soori. He won positive reviews for his performance from critics, with Sify noting "Sivakarthikeyan is terrific as Bosepandi because he makes it look so believable on screen with his body language, eyes and dialogue delivery". Another reviewer called him a delight to watch and claimed that he carried the script. The film completed 100 days during its theatrical run and was Sivakarthikeyan's biggest commercial box office success at that time. His performances in 2013 led him to win the year's Vijay Award for Entertainer of the Year, an onstage moment which Sivakarthikeyan described as "memorable".

Sivakarthikeyan with Nivin Pauly and Vikram at Iru Mugan film audio launch event.

Sivakarthikeyan started the year 2014 with a comedy film Maan Karate produced by A. R. Murugadoss. In 2015, he paired up once again with Durai Senthilkumar for a police action film, Kaaki Sattai. The film released on 27 February 2015. It was a story about a sincere constable who takes risks to stop black market organ donation and having the aim to become an Inspector. He again joined hands with Ponram in the film Rajini Murugan, starring another newcomer Keerthy Suresh. The film's producer, N. Linguswamy, ultimately failed to provide Sivakarthikeyan with his salary due to losses incurred by the film's delayed release. His film Remo, directed by debutant Bakkiyaraj Kannan and produced by R. D. Raja, featured Sivakarthikeyan playing a lovestruck youth disguising himself as a female nurse to befriend his love interest. Sivakarthikeyan's next venture was director Mohan Raja's action-thriller, Velaikkaran, pairing with Nayanthara and featuring Fahadh Faasil as the main antagonist. The film, which revolves around an employee fighting against food adulteration in society, was released in 2017 to positive reviews from critics.

Sivakathikeyan then featured in the 2018 film Seemaraja, collaborating with director Ponram for the third time. The film, featuring an ensemble cast including Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Simran, Lal and Soori, released to mixed reviews. Later that year, he acted in the film, Kanaa, the directorial debut of Arunraja Kamaraj and the debut film of Sivakarthikeyan's production company Sivakarthikeyan Productions. The film features Sivakarthikeyan as a cricket coach, acting alongside Aishwarya Rajesh and Sathyaraj. The film was released to highly positive reviews. Sivakarthikeyan's first 2019 film was Mr. Local, starring opposite Nayanthara for the second time, which received poor reviews. His scenes from Kanaa were reused in the Telugu remake of the film titled Kousalya Krishnamurthy. In 2019, Sivakarthikeyan appeared in the family drama film Namma Veettu Pillai, and in a superhero film Hero.

2021–present: Further success Sivakarthikeyan's only 2021 film was Doctor, which received highly positive reviews from critics and audiences. It became the highest-grossing film of his career, with a global collection of 100 crore rupees. His next release was Don, which released in 2022. Like Doctor, it received favorable reviews by both the critics and audience. In 2022, he began filming for Prince under the direction of K. V. Anudeep. At the same time, he also began shooting for Maaveeran, which was directed by Madonne Ashwin. Prince released in 2022 to negative reviews, but Maaveeran released in 2023 and was a commercial success. Soon after, on the occasion of Pongal, his long-delayed film Ayalaan was released in 2024 to generally positive reviews, especially with families. Clashing with his former co-star's film Captain Miller, the film grossed over ₹96 crores (US$12 million), emerging as a box office success, and becoming among the highest-grossing Indian films of 2024.

A month later, Sivakarthikeyan's film with Raaj Kamal Films International, directed by Rajkumar Periyasamy, was announced, previously under the tentative title SK21. On 16 February 2024, the title was revealed to be Amaran, as confirmed by a teaser trailer. The teaser garnered more than 2 million views within 6 hours. Amaran became a sleeper hit at the box office, emerged as the second highest-grossing Tamil film of 2024, garnering widespread critical acclaim for its engaging screenplay, based on the real life incidents revolving around veteran Indian army officer Mukund Varadarajan. The film was his first major fully-fledged action entertainer.

His next release after Amaran was Madharaasi (2025), written and directed by A. R. Murugadoss, marking their second collaboration after Murugadoss produced Maan Karate (2014). The film, which had music composed by Anirudh Ravichander in his ninth collaboration with Sivakarthikeyan, saw him portray Raghu Ram, a patient with Fregoli delusion recruited to infiltrate an arms syndicate. Despite the film's mixed box office performance, Sivakarthikeyan was praised for his intense transformation and performance, particularly in action-heavy sequences. The following year, he starred in Sudha Kongara's political period drama Parasakthi (2026), his 25th film as a lead actor, set against the 1965 Anti-Hindi agitations. While the film received mixed reviews and underperformed commercially, critics commended Sivakarthikeyan's restrained and assured performance, with many calling it one of his finest works since Amaran. As of June 2026, Sivakarthikeyan is filming Seyon, a rural action drama produced by Raaj Kamal Films International, with music composed by Santhosh Narayanan.

Controversies

In 2023, Tamil composer D. Imman publicly announced that he would no longer collaborate with actor Sivakarthikeyan, mentioning a personal betrayal that deeply impacted his life. He chose not to share further details, emphasizing his children’s well-being and the importance of privacy.

Filmography

Films

As an actor All films are in Tamil unless otherwise noted.

As a producer

As dubbing artist

Television for Amaran Film promotions

Discography As playback singer + List of Sivakarthikeyan film playback singing credits Year Film Song ComposerNotes2013 Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam "Varuthapadatha Valibar Sangam" D. Imman 2014 Maan Karate "Royapuram Peter" Anirudh Ravichander 2015 Kaaki Sattai "I'm So Cool" Mapla Singam "Edhukku Machchan" N. R. Raghunanthan Movie Version Only2016 Rajini Murugan "Rajini Murugan" D. Imman 2018 Kanaa "Vaayadi Petha Pulla" Dhibu Ninan Thomas 2019 Mr. Local"Kalakkalu Mr. Localu" Hiphop Tamizha Thumbaa"Humpty Dumpty" Santhosh Dhayanidhi Sixer"Engavena Kochikinu Po" Ghibran 2021Lift"Inna Myluu"Britto Michael2023Maaveeran"Vannarapettayila"Bharath Sankar 2025Oh God Beautiful"Venum Macha Peace"JC Joe2026 Parasakthi"Tharakku Tharakku"G. V. Prakash KumarThaai Kizhavi "Thaai Kizhavi Vaaraa" Nivas K. Prasanna

As lyricist + List of Sivakarthikeyan film credits as a lyricist Year Film Song Composer Notes 2018 Kolamaavu Kokila "Kalyana Vayasu" Anirudh Ravichander 2019 Gurkha "Hey Poya" Raj Aryan Namma Veettu Pillai "Gaandha Kannazhagi" D. ImmanAdithya Varma "Idhu Enna Maayamo" Radhan 2021 Doctor "Chellamma" Anirudh Ravichander "So Baby" Naai Sekar "Edakku Modakku" Anirudh Ravichander 2022 Etharkkum Thunindhavan "Summa Surrunu" D. Imman Beast "Arabic Kuthu" Anirudh Ravichander Don "Private Party" 2024 Ayalaan "Maanja Nee" A. R. Rahman 2026 Indie Song "Velum Mayilum" Nivas K. Prasanna

Awards and nominations IIFA UtsavamBest Actor – Tamil 2025 Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards Best Production Kottukkaali South Indian International Movie Awards Best Actor – Tamil Amaran 2026Filmfare AwardsBest Actor – TamilAmaran