Jiiva (born Amar Choudary; 4 January 1984) is an Indian actor and film producer who works mainly in Tamil cinema and a few Hindi and Malayalam films. He is the youngest son of film producer R. B. Choudary. He began his career as a child actor in 1991 in films produced by his father. He made his debut as a lead actor in his father's 50th production, Aasai Aasaiyai (2003). After Sivaji Ganesan, Jiiva is the only Tamil actor to have been awarded at the Cyprus International Film Festival, particularly for his performance in Raam (2005).
After this, he has acted in other movies that have been successful, such as E (2006), Katradhu Tamizh (2007), Siva Manasula Sakthi (2009), Ko (2011), Nanban (2012), Mugamoodi (2012), Neethaane En Ponvasantham (2012), Endrendrum Punnagai (2013), Kalakalappu 2 (2018) and Kalathil Santhippom (2021). He made his Hindi cinema debut with the film 83 (2021), in which he portrayed cricketer Krishnamachari Srikkanth.
Early life
Jiiva was born on 4 January 1983 in Chennai to Rajasthani-origin film producer R. B. Choudary and his wife Mahjabeen, a Tamilian. He is the youngest of four boys; his brothers are Suresh Choudary (co-producer in their home banner, Super Good Films), Jeevan Choudary (entrepreneur of a steel company), and Jithan Ramesh Choudary (actor and producer). R. B. Choudary is a noted independent south Indian film producer (Super Good Films) who has been a launchpad for now-famous directors and actors.
Jiiva is fluent in Tamil and English, and can also speak limited Hindi.
Career
2003–2008: Debut and breakthrough
Jiiva made his debut in his father's production (Super Good Films), Aasai Aasaiyai, directed by Ravi Mariya in 2003. The film performed averagely at the box office, but critics felt that Jiiva left an impression.
His second film Thithikudhe (the Tamil remake of Uday Kiran's Telugu movie Manasantha Nuvve) which also released in the same year was also produced by Super Good Films. The film opened to mixed reviews but the actor gained appreciation for his good looks and expressive emotions. It was his third movie, Ameer's crime thriller, Raam (2005) that was called a 'dream break' for his calling in the film industry. The racy screenplay and his role of an eccentric 17-year-old gained positive feedback from audience and critics. The movie was screened at the International Film Festival in Goa and later at the Cyprus International Film Festival, where he won the Best Actor award.
Jiiva next starred in Dishyum (2006), opposite Sandhya of Kaadhal fame. "A feel-good movie for youngsters", reviewed various local publications. "Jeeva continues from this point and has matured as an actor. His acting is impeccable and natural; his emoting, expressions, emotions expressed by looks, body-language – all are perfect," remarked Galatta. The same year, he made his debut as an NSG Commando in Malayalam cinema with Major Ravi's film Keerthi Chakra (2006) starring Mohanlal. The movie had a great opening and was one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of the year. Jiiva also won the Best Pair Award along with Gopika at Asianet Film Awards. "Jeeva the Tamil actor has a more heroic role which he has done with felicity. The physical energy he imparts to the role has to be seen to be believed," wrote Sify. Later, the movie was dubbed and released in Tamil as Aran. His last movie in 2006 was E, where he portrayed the role of a slum dweller, opposite Nayanthara.The film received positive reviews and was a commercial hit.
The release of Kattradhu Thamizh (2007), which turned out to be a super hit. Jiiva had two more releases after that, Rameswaram in 2007 and Thenavattu in 2008.
2009–2014: Commercial success and critical acclaim
Among his releases in the 2000s, Jiiva garnered the most appreciation for portraying various roles that were critically and commercially successful. In 2009, Jiiva experienced major commercial success with Director Rajesh's maiden venture, Siva Manasula Sakthi (2009), opposite Anuya, still hailed as one of the best romantic comedies of all time and has since become a cult rom-com in the Tamil film industry. In 2010, he signed up with Super Good Films for a movie titled Kacheri Arambam, which was described as entertaining, action-packed and comical by various news channels (Behindwoods, Indiaglitz, IANS)