Jeeva, also written Jiiva, is an Indian film actor who predominantly appears in Tamil films. Son of Tamil film producer R. B. Choudary, Jeeva appeared as a child actor in his father`s films in 1996, before making his debut as a leading actor in the year 2003, with the romantic film "Aasai Aasaiyai". He later starred in mystery thriller film "Raam", released in 2005, for which he won the Best Actor Award at the Cyprus International Film Festival. In his subsequent films, Jeeva has taken on varied roles, such as that of a stuntman in "Dishyum" and a slum dweller in "E", both released in 2006 and a psychopath in "Kattradhu Thamizh", released in 2007.
Film Career of Jeeva
Jeeva, born as Amar Choudary on January 4, 1984 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, first appeared as a child artist in minute roles in two of his father`s productions. He made his feature film debut as a lead actor in 2003, with the film "Aasai Aasaiyai". The film failed to fare well at the box office, but Jeeva won decent reviews. His second film "Thithikudhe" also released in the same year. His subsequent release was Tamil filmmaker Ameer`s mystery thriller "Raam", released in 2005. It was screened at the International Film Festival in Goa and later at the Cyprus International Film Festival, where Jeeva won the Best Actor award. He next starred in "Dishyum", released in 2006 and later that very year, Jeeva made his debut in Malayalam Cinema with Major Ravi`s war film "Keerthi Chakra", which also saw a dubbed release as "Aran" in Tamil Nadu. His final 2006 release was Tamil medical-thriller "E".
In 2007, Jeeva starred in "Kattradhu Thamizh", as a lower middle class post-graduate degree holder in Tamil literature, who gradually turns a psychopath, frustrated by the inequality in the social structure. Whilst the film opened to rave reviews, Jeeva`s portrayal as Prabhakar was also praised by critics and widely termed as the best in 2007; the "Behindwoods" media house review labelled it as "a performance of his lifetime". Jeeva had grown a full length beard for the character and cited the hardships during the shoots of the film, considering it as his most painful experience and a "torturous affair". He stated that he even had to undergo therapy to "come out of the character" as it was "too emotional". He subsequently appeared in Tamil films "Rameswaram", released in the same year and "Thenavattu", released in 2008.
In 2009, Jeeva appeared in director M. Rajesh`s maiden venture, the comedy film "Siva Manasula Sakthi". In 2010, he starred in "Kacheri Arambam" and in 2011 he appeared in "Singam Puli", playing dual roles, following which K. V. Anand`s political thriller "Ko" released. Jeeva received positive reviews for his performances and was considered as one of the strongest rising performers in the Tamil film industry. His next two films "Rowthiram" directed by Gokul and "Vandhaan Vendraan" directed by R. Kannan released in quick succession, both opening to mixed critical reception.
In 2012, Jeeva appeared in S. Shankar`s comedy-drama "Nanban" that released to highly positive reviews and become a huge blockbuster. His next projects were Mysskin`s superhero film "Mugamoodi" and Gautham Menon`s "Neethaane En Ponvasantham". After that, he worked on Bejoy Nambiar`s "David" and Mueenuddin Ahmed"s `Endrendrum Punnagai". In 2014, he worked with cinematographer Ravi K. Chandran`s directorial debut "Yaan", which was a box office failure. After "Yaan", Jeeva starred in his 25th film "Pokkiri Raja", which was directed by "Tamizhuku En Ondrai Azhuthavum" fame Ramprakash Rayappa. The film released on March 4 2016 from mixed to negative reviews from critics and was a box office failure. In 2016, he was seen in the Tamil action film "Thirunaal" with actress Nayanthara, after the film "E". Some of his other films are Kadavul Irukaan Kumaru, Kee, Gorilla, Gypsy, Jiiva 33 etc.
Other Ventures of Jeeva
Jeeva was a judge on STAR Vijay`s dance reality show "Jodi Number One", in its third season, along with Sangeetha and Aishwarya Rajinikanth. In mid 2011, he announced that he would start a film production company called Spiral Dreams, with his brother Jithan Ramesh, in order to promote new directors like his father.
Filmography of Jeeva
Jeeva has acted in the following films highlighted along with their years of release:
| Year | Film | |
| 2003 | Aasai Aasaiyai | |
| 2003 | Thithikudhe | |
| 2005 | Raam | |
| 2006 | Dishyum | |
| 2006 | Keerthi Chakra (Malayalam) | |
| 2006 | E | |
| 2007 | Pori | |
| 2007 | Kattradhu Thamizh | |
| 2007 | Rameswaram | |
| 2008 | Thenavattu | |
| 2009 | Siva Manasula Sakthi | |
| 2010 | Kacheri Arambam | |
| 2011 | Singam Puli | |
| 2011 | Ko | |
| 2011 | Rowthiram | |
| 2011 | Vandhaan Vendraan | |
| 2012 | Nanban | |
| 2012 | Mugamoodi | |
| 2012 | Neethaane En Ponvasantham | |
| 2013 | David | |
| 2013 | Endrendrum Punnagai | |
| 2014 | Yaan | |
| 2016 | Pokkiri Raja | |
| 2016 | Thirunaal | |
| 2016 | Kadavul Irukaan Kumaru | |
| 2016 | Kavalai Vendam | |
| 2017 | Sangili Bungili Kadhava Thorae | |
| 2018 | Kalakalappu 2 | |
| 2018 | Tamizh Padam 2 | |
| 2019 | Kee | |
| 2019 | Gorilla | |
| 2019 | Gypsy | |
| 2019 | Jiiva 33 | Filming |
| 2019 | Seeru | Filming |
| 2020 | 83 | Pre-production |