Karan (actor)

Karan (born 19 August 1967) is an Indian former actor who appeared predominantly in Tamil and Malayalam films. He started his career as a child actor (under the stage name Master Raghu). In the 1990s he started to act in leading and villain roles. In the mid-2000s, after a sabbatical, Karan chose to prioritise appearing in films where he would portray the lead role following the relative success of Kokki (2006).

Career
Karan started his career as child artist under the name Master Raghu for more than 70 films in Malayalam and Tamil. In 1992, he made his Tamil debut as an adult in Annamalai starring alongside Rajinikanth in an uncredited role, before making a breakthrough with his performance as a rogue college student in Nammavar alongside Kamal Haasan.

In 2004, Karan became a solo hero with the Malayalam film Isra and continued with films like Kokki, Karuppusamy Kuththagaithaarar and Kathavarayan. His recent films are Sooran (2014) and Uchathula Shiva (2016).

In 2018, a clip from his film Coimbatore Mappillai went viral online, prompting internet users to associate the word "Shroov" with the actor.

Other work
Karan made his advertisement debut in a 45-second Mahindra Duro advertisement with Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor.

Personal life
Karan's father died in 2014, aged 90.

Awards

 * Kerala State Film Awards:
 * 1974 – Best Child Artist – Rajahamsam
 * 1975 – Best Child Artist – Prayanam, Swami Ayyappan


 * Tamil Nadu State Film Awards:
 * 2009 -Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor – Malayan