Shiva Rajkumar (born Nagaraju Shiva Puttaswamy; 12 July 1962) is an Indian actor, film producer and television presenter, who predominantly works in Kannada cinema. In a career spanning over three decades, he has worked in over 125 films in Kannada and has received several awards, including four Karnataka State Film Awards, four Filmfare Awards South and six South Indian International Movie Awards.
Shiva is the eldest son of matinee idol Dr. Rajkumar. He made his onscreen debut with Sri Srinivasa Kalyana (1974) as a child artiste. After graduating with a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, Shiva began his adult film career at the age of 24 by starring in the leading role in his mother's production Anand (1986), which was a critical and commercial success. His performance in Anand which fetched him the Cinema Express Award for Best Actor. He then followed it up with Ratha Sapthami (1986) and Manamecchida Hudugi (1987), both of which were commercially successful, earning him the nickname of Hat-trick Hero, coined by the media and his fans. He then appeared in several successful films in the late 1980s with the romantic-thriller film Samyuktha (1988), the comedy-thriller Inspector Vikram (1988), the action-drama film Ranaranga (1988) and the comedy Aasegobba Meesegobba (1988).
Shiva achieved further critical and commercial success for his films in the 1990s, including his performances in the cult gangster-drama film Om (1995), which catapulted him into superstardom in Karnataka and won him his first Karnataka State Film Award for Best Actor and Filmfare Award for Best Actor and, the romantic dramas Janumada Jodi (1996) and Nammoora Mandara Hoove (1996), the action drama Simhada Mari (1997), the biographical film Bhoomi Thayiya Chochchala Maga (1998) the action-thriller film A. K. 47 (1999) and the romantic drama film Hrudaya Hrudaya (1999), which won him his second Karnataka State Film Award for Best Actor. His acclaimed performances as the film director Manoj in Nammoora Mandara Hoove and the vigilante Raam in A. 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 and Tagaru which became milestones in the Kannada film industry and made records at the box office. In 2010, made his television debut with the talk show Naaniruvude Nimagagi, aired on Zee Kannada. He made his first film appearance outside of Kannada cinema through the Telugu film Gautamiputra Satakarni (2017) as Kalahasteeshwara (cameo appearance). Shivanna produced a TV serial - Manasa Sarovara. He was also the co-producer of two web series - Hate You Romeo (which was shot in Vietnam) and Honeymoon. He is also fondly known as Shivanna by his fans.
Early life and family
Shiva Rajkumar was born in Madras (now Chennai), Tamil Nadu, to actor Rajkumar and film producer Parvathamma as the first of five children. His two brothers are Raghavendra, a film producer and actor Puneeth. Shiva did his schooling in T. Nagar, Chennai and then studied at the New College, Chennai.
On the insistence of film director K. Balachander, Shiva joined an acting school in Chennai after completing his graduation from Madras University in 1983. After training in Kuchipudi dance form under Vempetti Chinni Sathyam in Chennai during his college days, he made his entry into the Kannada film industry with Anand.
