Dr. Shiva Rajkumar
Born	Nagaraju Shiva Puttaswamy (1961-07-12)12 July 1961 (age 64) Madras,Madras State, India[1]
Alma mater	The New College, Chennai M.G.R. Government Film and Television Training Institute
Occupations	Actor film producer television presenter playback singer
Years active	1986–present
Works	Full list
Parents	Dr. Rajkumar Parvathamma Rajkumar
Relatives	SeeRajkumar family

Dr. Shiva Rajkumar (bornNagaraju Shiva Puttaswamy; 12 July 1961)^[2] is an Indian actor, film producer and television presenter who predominantly works inKannada cinema.^[3] In a career spanning over three decades, he has worked in over 125 films inKannada and has received several awards, including fourKarnataka State Film Awards, fourFilmfare Awards South and sixSouth Indian International Movie Awards.^[4]

Shiva Rajkumar is the eldest son of matinee idolDr. Rajkumar. He is also fondly known as "Shivanna" by his fans.^[5][6] He made his first onscreen appearance in a blink and miss role in the 1968 movieDhoomakethu - alongsideV.Ravichandran. He was then seen in the 1974 movieSri Srinivasa Kalyana as achild artiste. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science inChemistry, Shiva Rajkumar began his film career at the age of 24 by starring in the leading role in hismother's productionAnand (1986), which was a critical and commercial success. His performance inAnand which fetched him theCinema Express Award for Best Actor. He then followed it up withRatha Sapthami (1986) andManamecchida Hudugi (1987), both of which were commercially successful, earning him the nickname ofHat-trick Hero, coined by the media and his fans.^[7] He then appeared in several successful films in the late 1980s with theromantic-thriller filmSamyuktha (1988), thecomedy-thrillerInspector Vikram (1988), theaction-drama filmRanaranga (1988) and the comedyAasegobba Meesegobba (1988).^{[citation needed]}

Shiva Rajkumar achieved further critical and commercial success for his films in the 1990s, including his performances in thecultgangster-drama filmOm (1995), which catapulted him intosuperstardom inKarnataka and won him his firstKarnataka State Film Award for Best Actor andFilmfare Award for Best Actor and, the romantic dramasJanumada Jodi (1996) andNammoora Mandara Hoove (1996), the action dramaSimhada Mari (1997), thebiographical filmBhoomi Thayiya Chochchala Maga (1998), the action-thriller filmA. K. 47 (1999) and the romantic drama filmHrudaya Hrudaya (1999), which won him his secondKarnataka State Film Award for Best Actor. His acclaimed performances as the film director Manoj inNammoora Mandara Hoove and thevigilante Raam inA. K. 47 won him his second and third Filmfare Award for Best Actor respectively.

Anand,Ratha Sapthami (1986),Om (1995),Janumada Jodi,Nammoora Mandara Hoove,A. K. 47,Jogi,Bhajarangi,Mufti,Shivalinga andTagaru which became milestones in the Kannada film industry and made records at the box office. In 2010, he made his television debut with the talk showNaaniruvude Nimagagi, aired onZee Kannada.^[8] He made his first film appearances outside of Kannada cinema through the Telugu filmGautamiputra Satakarni (2017) and the Tamil filmJailer (2023) in cameo appearances. He produced a TV serial –Manasa Sarovara. He was also the co-producer of two web series –Hate You Romeo^[9] andHoneymoon.

Shiva Rajkumar was born inMadras (now Chennai),Tamil Nadu, to actorRajkumar and film producerParvathamma as the first of five children. His two brothers areRaghavendra, a film producer and actorPuneeth. He did his schooling in T. Nagar,Chennai and then studied at theNew College, Chennai.^[10]

Shiva Rajkumar joined an acting school in Chennai after completing his graduation from Madras University in 1983. After training inKuchipudi dance form under Vempetti Chinni Sathyam in Chennai during his college days, he made his entry into the Kannada film industry withAnand.^{[citation needed]}

Shiva Rajkumar started his acting career with the filmAnand (1986).^[11] Before that, he had appeared as a child artist in small roles inDhoomakethu (1968) andSri Srinivasa Kalyana (1974) - both starring his fatherDr. Rajkumar.^[12] In his career spanning over 36 years, he played a variety of roles. The most notable movies of his career areJanumada Jodi,Jogi,Anand,Ratha Sapthami,Nammoora Mandara Hoove,Om andChigurida Kanasu.^[13] He acted inSugreeva, which was shot in 18 hours. HisOm, directed byUpendra, set a trend for gangster movies inKannada and other film industries in India. It continues to be shown even to this day.^[14]

InBhoomi Thayiya Chochchala Maga (1998), Shiva Rajkumar played Karna, a friend of legislator Bharath Kumar, played byRamesh Aravind, out on a mission to achieve the latter's unfulfilled goal of having a dam constructed in a village. His performance received praise; Srikanth Srinivasa ofDeccan Herald called it his "best... till date".^[15] Srinivasa also praised Shiva Rajkumar for his performance inDon (2003), where he played a lawyer-turned-serial-killer, and wrote, "Shivanna excels in his role as the don. He has put in a spirited yet collected and controlled performance."^[16]

His filmCheluveye Ninne Nodalu was shot at the seven wonders of the world.^[17] His 100th movie,Jogayya, is the sequel to his blockbusterJogi.^[18]

In his last release of 2017, Shiva Rajkumar starred as mobster Bhairathi Ranagal in the crime drama,Mufti. The film was critically acclaimed and commercially successful.^[19] In his second collaboration with directorDuniya Suri, Shiva Rajkumar played a cop that takes on the underworld in the latter'sTagaru (2018). The film proved to be another success and is seen as a landmark in his career.^[20][21]The Hindu called it "one of the biggest hits" of his career, and "... [t]his happens to be one of Shivanna's most mature performances."^[22] His only other release of 2018,Prem'sThe Villain, was not received well and a critic wrote, "[Shiva] expectedly, doesn’t disappoint but he is let down by a weak role."^[23]

Shiva Rajkumar made a cameo in his brother Puneeth's posthumous releaseJames (2022), alsodubbing for him in the film's end portions.^[24] InVijay Milton'sBairagee, an adaptation of hisKadugu (2017), he plays Shivappa, a folk artist specialising inpulivesha, who gets entangled in the politics of the region. A critic wrote, "Shivarajkumar convincingly pulls off the role of a pulivesha artist and gives a stellar all-around performance. Shivanna takes us back to the classic characters that he played in films likeOm,Jogi, andKaddipudi."^[25] In his fourth collaboration withA. Harsha, and his 125th film, he starred in an eponymous role in the revenge dramaVedha.^[26] Shiva Rajkumar's first release of 2023 came through a cameo as gangster Siddhantha inR. Chandru'sKabzaa.^[27] The year marked his debut inTamil cinema, with his next release coming in theRajinikanth-starrer,Nelson Dilipkumar's action-comedy titledJailer (2023).^[28] In another cameo, he played Narasimha, which was well received by audiences.^[29] The critic fromThe Hindu called it "excellent".^[30] Shiva Rajkumar's role in another Tamil film,Captain Miller, was confirmed in December 2022,^[31] and in an eponymous role inBhairathi Ranagal, a prequel toMufti, in May 2023.^[32] Hisheist filmGhost was released in October 2023.^[33] This was Shiva's first collaboration with Sreenivas.^[34] In 2024, the producers had lauded him for giving consistent no. of movies every year which do minimum guarantee business at the box office^[35][36][37] – making him the first actor inKannada cinema to continue to play the lead role continuously even after the age of 60 years. His 2024 movieBhairathi Ranagal was the first prequel ofKannada cinema.^[38]

Shiva Rajkumar is married to Geeta, the daughter of the formerChief Minister of KarnatakaSarekoppa Bangarappa.^[39] The couple have two daughters: Niveditha^[40] and Nirupama.^[41]

He was thebrand ambassador ofRoyal Challengers Bangalore for their 11th Season ofIndian Premier League and has now been appointed as the brand ambassador for Nandini milk products.^[42] He was the second Kannada actor to buy Maruti 800 when it was launched in 1983.^[43]

Shiva Rajkumar opposed the proposal ofvoice dubbed movies releasing in theKannada film industry. He openly criticized the need for voice dubbed movies in theIndian film industry.^[44][45][46] However, once the Supreme Court gave its final verdict against the ban on dubbed movies, he announced that he would no longer oppose dubbing. He went on to say that if that is what the audience wants, he is not the one to oppose it.^[47] In 2003, he also gave a statement that he would not act in any remake movies. Since then, he has appeared in only 4 remakes out of more than 60 releases in lead roles over a period of 20 years.^[48] In 2025, he criticized the trend of spreading inflated box-office collections and the practice of paying people for filling theatres and artificially inflating the numbers.^[49]

Shiva Rajkumar won four Filmfare and four State awards in the best actor category. He has also won numerous Cine-Express, Sirigannada and ETV awards. He lent his name for creating awareness for social causes and charity. On his birthday, "Shivarajkumar Suvarana Mahotsava Abhinandana Samithi" was formed for charity.^[50]

• Recipient ofKohinoor of South India honor by the British South India Council of Commerce and Visionnaire Entertainment – London in 2016^[51]
• Recipient ofNTR National Award for 2011^[52]

• Honorary doctorate fromVijayanagara Sri Krishnadevaraya University of Bellary (2014).^[53][54]
• SIIMA Award for Social Responsibility (2012)^[55]
• The residents of Manyata Residency in Bangalore named the circle leading to his house asDr. Shiva Rajkumar Circle on the occasion of his 60th birthday.^[56]
• He receivedCinema Express Award for his debut movie,Anand.

Wikimedia Commons has media related toShiva Rajkumar.

• Shiva Rajkumar atIMDb
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• Living people
• Male actors in Kannada cinema
• Kannada male actors
• Male actors in Telugu cinema
• Indian male film actors
• 20th-century Indian male actors
• 21st-century Indian male actors
• University of Madras alumni
• Kannada playback singers
• Filmfare Awards South winners
• M.G.R. Government Film and Television Training Institute alumni
• Male actors from Chennai
• South Indian International Movie Awards winners
• 1962 births
• Rajkumar family

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