Karthik
Sivakumar (born 25 May 1977), better known by his stage name Karthi, is an
Indian film actor who works primarily in the Tamil film industry. The younger
brother of actor Suriya, Karthi holds a Bachelor's degree in Mechanical
Engineering from India and a Master of Science in Industrial Engineering which
he earned in the United States. He however always wanted to become a film
director, and hence returned to India and joined Mani Ratnam as an assistant
director. He was offered acting roles and made his acting debut in
Paruthiveeran in 2007 as the title character, a careless village ruffian,
winning critical acclaim and several accolades including the Film fare Award
for Best Actor and a Tamil Nadu State Film Award. His next role was that of a
coolie in Aayirathil Oruvan (2010), an adventure fantasy film directed by
Selvaraghavan. He achieved consecutive commercial successes with his subsequent
releases – Paiyaa (2010), Naan Mahaan Alla (2010) and Siruthai (2011). After
appearing in a series of box office flops, he starred in successful films such
as Biriyani (2013), Madras (2014) Oopiri (2016), Kaatru Veliyidai (2017) and
Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru (2017), which established him in Tamil cinema.
Apart
from his film career, Karthi has also been involved in social welfare
activities, encouraging fans to do likewise through the "Makkal Nala
Mandram", a social welfare club that he inaugurated. In 2011, he became a
cause ambassador to promote awareness of lysosomal storage disease. As of 2015,
he is the treasurer of the Nadigar Sangam.
