Prithviraj Sukumaran (born October 16, 1982) is a versatile Indian actor, director, producer, and playback singer primarily active in Malayalam cinema, with notable contributions to Tamil, Hindi, and Telugu films. His extensive career spans over 100 films, earning him accolades such as a National Film Award, three Kerala State Film Awards, a Tamil Nadu State Film Award, and a South Filmfare Award. Prithviraj marked his acting debut with the commercially successful Nandanam (2002) and rose to prominence as a leading Malayalam actor with Classmates (2006), the highest-grossing Malayalam film that year. His role in Vaasthavam earned him the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor, making him the youngest recipient at 24. Exploring diverse roles, he portrayed a musician in the Tamil romantic comedy Mozhi (2007) and delved into playback singing with Puthiya Mukham (2009). He secured his second Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor for his performances in the medical drama Ayalum Njanum Thammil and the biographical film Celluloid. In 2010, Prithviraj joined August Cinema, co-producing and headlining Urumi and Indian Rupee (both 2011). The latter won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Malayalam and the Kerala State Film Award for Best Film. He earned the Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Villain for Kaaviya Thalaivan (2014) and starred in impactful films like Ennu Ninte Moideen (2015) and Ezra (2017). After parting ways with August Cinema in 2017, he independently launched Prithviraj Productions, which backed 9 (2019). Making his directorial debut with Lucifer (2019), the film became the highest-grossing Malayalam film until June 2023. Subsequently, he featured in notable films such as Driving License (2019), Ayyappanum Koshiyum (2020), Jana Gana Mana (2022), Kaduva (2022), and Prashanth Neel’s Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire (2023) alongside Prabhas.
