Anish John Kokken is an Indian actor and former model who has appeared in Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, and Malayalam films, often in negative roles. He got recognition for playing Vembuli in Sarpatta Parambarai (2021).
Early life
Anish John Kokken was born into a Malayali family in Thrissur, Kerala, but raised in Mumbai, Maharashtra. His father John was a school vice principal, and his mother a nurse. He has two brothers.
Career
Kokken began his career as a model, and after finishing in the last ten in the Gladrags 2005 contest, he chose to pursue a career as an actor. He appeared in his first film, Kalabham during 2006, and subsequently continued to play supporting roles across the Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam film industries. In 2010 he was introduced to Kannada cinema by the famous actor cum producer Puneeth Rajkumar using Dr. Rajkumar's films. During this period, he notably portrayed antagonistic roles in films including Yevadu (2014), Baahubali: The Beginning, (2015) and the K.G.F film series. In 2021, Kokken notably appeared as boxer Vembuli in Pa. Ranjith's period drama Sarpatta Parambarai, before portraying the main antagonist in Thunivu (2023).
Personal life
From 2012 to 2016, Kokken was married to actress Meera Vasudevan and they have a son. In April 2019, he married actress Pooja Ramachandran. They have a son born the following April.