Ashwin Kumar Lakshmikanthan

Ashwin Kumar Lakshmikanthan (born 7 May 1991) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Tamil films. He played the lead roles in Star Vijay serials Rettai Vaal Kuruvi (2015) and Ninaikka Therintha Manamae (2017), and had supportive roles in films such as O Kadhal Kanmani (2015) and Adithya Varma (2019). He rose to prominence after contesting in the 2021 reality programme Cooku with Comali 2.[2] The Times of India named him the "Most Desirable Man on Television 2020", in its Chennai Times edition.[3]

Ashwin Kumar
Ashwin Kumar in 2021
Born
Ashwin Kumar Lakshmikanthan

(1991-05-07) 7 May 1991 (age 33)[1]
Education
Occupation(s)Actor
Model
Years active2014–present

He played the lead in Enna Solla Pogirai (2022), Meet Cute (2022) and Sembi (2022).[4]

Early life and education

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Born and brought up in Coimbatore, Ashwin Kumar completed his schooling in Carmel Garden. He pursued his bachelor's degree in Mechanical Engineering from Kumaraguru College of Technology and completed Master of Business Administration from PSG Institute of Management. During his college days, he developed a passion for acting and attended auditions for films and TV series.[5]

Career

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Television

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Ashwin Kumar made his television debut on Star Vijay's serial, Office. He played the lead roles in the serials Rettai Vaal Kuruvi (2015) and Ninaikka Therintha Manamae (2017).[6][7] He also played the lead in Raja Rani, a Telugu remake of the hit Tamil serial Saravanan Meenatchi on Star Maa. Following the end of the series, he appeared in the short films Blink, Cinderella, 3 Scenes of his love story, and Kadhal Ondru Kanden.[8][9][10][11]

He was one of the contestants in the cooking reality show Cooku with Comali – Season 2 on Star Vijay.[12][13][14] He was the second runner-up in the finale,[15] and received the "Most Popular Male on Reality Television" award at the Behindwoods Gold Icons 2021[16] for his performance in Cooku with Comali.

Films

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At the start of his film career, Ashwin Kumar played a minor role in Mani Ratnam's O Kadhal Kanmani as a colleague of Dulquer Salmaan's character.[17] He had portrayed the role of Dhruv Vikram’s brother in the film Adithya Varma.

In April 2021 Indiaglitz reported that he would be playing the lead in the romantic comedy movie Enna Solla Pogirai directed by debutante Hariharan for Trident Arts productions.[18][19] The film was released on the week of Pongal 2022 and a critic with the Times of India wrote "Ashwin makes a confident leap to leading man".[20]

He made his Telugu debut with Meet Cute, an anthology film directed by debutante Deepthi Ghanta and produced by Nani under his banner Wall Poster Cinema.[21] This Telugu anthology consists of five conversational shorts on modern-day relationships. He played the lead role in the segment, Meet the boy and in the review, ottplay.com wrote "Ashwin, exuding charm, is the surprise package".[22] He had next played the lead in Prabhu Solomon’s film, titled Sembi, alongside actors Kovai Sarala and Thambi Ramaiah.[23] Touted to be an intense social drama, set against the backdrop of Kodaikanal, the film was produced by Trident Arts.[24] The film received highly positive reviews from critics and audiences upon release and Ashwin’s performance as a lawyer, a nameless saviour was widely appreciated. A critic from Sakshi Post wrote "Ashwin Kumar as a lawyer keeps the audience on the egde of their seats in the second half with his brilliant show. He has made full use of the opportunity to prove his acting prowess".[25]

He is next playing the lead in the action thriller film titled Nodikku Nodi, directed by Vijay Adhiraj for Nox Studios alongside actors Shaam and Narain.[26]

Web Series

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Ashwin Kumar had a lead role in Thanthu Vitten Ennai, a web series produced by Zee5.[27] He was also part of the horror-thriller web series Live Telecast directed by Venkat Prabhu for Disney+ Hotstar.

Music videos and model work

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Ashwin Kumar is the lead actor in the music videos "Cloning Kadhal", "Rhythm of Life" (Sony Music), "Shades of Kadhal", "Kutty Pattas" (Sony Music),[28] "Criminal Crush", "Loner",[29] "Adipoli" (Think Music), "Baby Nee Sugar", "Yaathi Yaathi" (Sony Music) and "Vaadi Vaadi" (Think Music).

He had given voice-over in the music audio 11:11 – Guru undu Bhayamillai, composed by Ady Kriz.[30] As a model, he has worked in multiple TV commercials and print adverts for various brands.[31] He was a brand ambassador of Zee Thirai.[32]

Controversy

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During the audio launch of Enna Solla Pogirai, Ashwin's speech that he had dozed halfway through the narration of 40 stories due to weak scripts, stirred controversy with people calling him "arrogant" and "boastful". Later he apologised, stating that he was trying to speak spontaneously, not having prepared a speech, was completely distorted by fans' love and never intended to disrespect anyone.[33] The controversy is referenced in an episode of the miniseries Tamil Rockers, which led to Ashwin criticising the director Arivazhagan Venkatachalam.[34]

Filmography

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Key
Denotes films or series that have not yet been released
  • All work is in Tamil, unless otherwise noted.
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2014 Kathai Thiraikathai Vasanam Iyakkam Arya's friend Deleted scene [2]
Nerungi Vaa Muthamidathe Maya's friend
2015 O Kadhal Kanmani Aditya's co-worker Uncredited role [5]
2019 Enai Noki Paayum Thota Saranya's groom Uncredited role
July Kaatril Shreya's yoga friend
Adithya Varma Siddharth Varma
2020 Indha Nilai Maarum Surya
2021 Oh Manapenne! Arjun [35]
2022 Enna Solla Pogirai Vikram [36]
Sembi Sembi's lawyer [24]
2023 Anni Manchi Sakunamule Ram Telugu film [37]
2024 Nodikku Nodi TBA [26]

Television

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Year Serial/show Role Channel Notes Ref.
2015 Office Ashwin Star Vijay
Rettai Vaal Kuruvi BalaMurugan
2016 Raja Rani Karthik Star Maa Telugu series
Remake of Saravanan Meenatchi
2017–2018 Ninaika Therintha Manamae Aravind Star Vijay [38]
[39]
2020–2021 Cooku with Comali – Season 2 Contestant Second runner-up [40]

Web series

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Year Series Role OTT platform Notes Ref.
2020 Thanthu Vitten Ennai Vinay ZEE5 Lead – remake of Honar Sun Me Hya Gharchi
Dubbed in Telugu as Nenu c/o Nuvvu
[41]
2021 Live Telecast Ashwin Disney+ Hotstar [42]
2022 Meet Cute Abhi SonyLIV Telugu anthology series; segment – Meet the Boy [21]

Short films

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Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2014 3 Santhipugal Pugazh
Bullet 350 CC Munna
2016 Pradhi Vijay
2017 Idar Shiva
2018 3 scenes of Love story Munna
2019 Blink Akshay Won Best Short Film award at SMIFA Shorts [43]
Cindrella Abhi
2020 Kadhal Ondru Kanden Mathew Won Best Short Film Award at Behindwoods Gold Medals 7 [44]

Music videos

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Year Title Music Vocals Notes Ref.
2015 "Cloning Kadhal" Arun Sundar Syed Subahan
2017 "Rhythm of Life" Vishal Chandrasekhar Yazin Nizar
2019 "Shades of Kadhal" Maran Rajendraan Sudharshan Ashok
2021 "Kutty Pattas" Santhosh Dhayanidhi Santhosh Dhayanidhi, Rakshita Suresh Released in Telugu as "Rowdy Pattasu" [45]
"Criminal Crush" Godson Rudolph Anirudh Ravichander, Srinisha Jayaseelan [46]
"Loner" Ady Kriz Anand Aravindakshan [47]
"Ennam Pol Vazhkai" Edwin Louis [48]
"Adipoli" Siddhu Kumar Vineeth Sreenivasan, Sivaangi Krishnakumar [49]
"Yaathi Yaathi" Abhishek CS Yazin Nizar, Anuradha Sriram Released in Telugu as "Sathi Sathi" [50]
2022 "Baby Nee Sugar" Osho Venkat Osho Venkat [51]
"Vaadi Vaadi" Harris Jayaraj Ravi G, Sunitha Sarathy, Samuel Nicholas Jayaraj [52]
2023 "Makka Makka" Harris Jayaraj Bamba Bakya, Satyaprakash Co-starring with Mugen Rao [53]
"Vannamayilae" AK Prriyan AK Prriyan, Akshaya Shivkumar

Discography

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As voice-over artist

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Year Album Song Composer Ref.
2023 11:11 Guru Undu Bhayamillai Ady Kriz [30]

Accolades

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Awards and nominations

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Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2015 Vijay Television Awards Favourite Screen Pair (with Pavani Reddy) Rettai Vaal Kuruvi Nominated
Favourite Find of The Year Nominated
2021 Trending Pair of the Year (with Sivaangi Krishnakumar) Cooku with Comali Won [54]

Other recognitions

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References

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  1. ^ "Zeethiraitamil on Instagram : ஆல் இன் அழகுராஜா #Ashwinkumar விசிறிகள் அனைவருக்கும் ஜீ திரையின் மனமார்ந்த Happy Engineer's Day". Instagram. 15 September 2021. Archived from the original on 24 December 2021.
  2. ^ a b S, Srivatsan (27 April 2021). "Meet 'Cook with Comali' star Ashwin Kumar: The man you know, the journey you don't". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 29 April 2021. Retrieved 1 May 2021.
  3. ^ "Chennai Times Most Desirable Man On Television 2020: Ashwin Kumar". The Times of India. 26 May 2021. Archived from the original on 10 July 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  4. ^ "Kovai Sarala, Ashwin Kumar stand out in this decently engaging drama with minor flaws". ottplay.com. 30 December 2022. Archived from the original on 1 January 2023. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  5. ^ a b "It is not a typical love story: Ashwin Kumar". The Times of India. 11 June 2015. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  6. ^ "The new couple in Town – The lead pair of RVK, speak about their on screen chemistry". Deccan Chronicle. 2 August 2015. Archived from the original on 18 March 2020. Retrieved 15 March 2020.
  7. ^ "டி.வி.யில் கலக்கும் குட்டி "அஜித்'கள்! அஷ்வின் குமார்". Dinamalar.com. 5 September 2015. Archived from the original on 1 May 2021. Retrieved 31 March 2020.
  8. ^ "அவ்வளவா கதை புரியலே! – அஷ்வின் குமார்". Dinamalar.com. 8 April 2018. Archived from the original on 11 April 2020.
  9. ^ "'Ninaika Therintha Maname' revolves around a girl who loses her memory". The Times of India. 12 December 2017. Archived from the original on 4 April 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2020.
  10. ^ "பார்வர்ட் ஸ்பெஷலிஸ்ட்! – அஷ்வின் குமார்". Dinamalar.com. 11 March 2018. Archived from the original on 13 November 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
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  12. ^ "மணிரத்னம் படம்.. சின்னத்திரை ஹீரோ.. ஷார்ட் பிலிம் மேக்கர்.. வெற்றிக்காக காத்திருக்கும் குத் வித் கோமாளி அஸ்வின்!". The Indian Express. 23 December 2020. Archived from the original on 9 May 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
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  14. ^ "Cook with Comali 2 Ashwin Kumar gets 1 Million followers on Instagram!". tamil.news18.com. 1 February 2021. Archived from the original on 3 May 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  15. ^ "Cook With Comali 2 Grand Finale Winner, Runner Up, Special Guests, Pairing Updates Revealed". Newscrunch.com. 12 April 2021. Archived from the original on 18 August 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  16. ^ ""ஒரு ரூபா கூட நான் வீட்டுக்குன்னு.." Behindwoods டிஜிட்டல் விருது மேடையில் எமோஷனலான அஸ்வின்...!". Behindwoods.com. 24 March 2021. Archived from the original on 15 April 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  17. ^ "மணிரத்னம் படத்தில் குக் வித் கோமாளி அஷ்வின்!!! இணையத்தை கலக்கும் வைரல் போட்டோ". Behindwoods.com. 28 January 2021. Archived from the original on 26 April 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
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  19. ^ "Ashwin Kumar apologizes after his controversial speech". The Times of India. 10 December 2021. Archived from the original on 14 January 2022. Retrieved 15 January 2022.
  20. ^ Suganth, M. (13 January 2022). "Enna Solla Pogirai Movie Review: This familiar but breezy romance is an engaging affair". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 13 January 2022. Retrieved 13 January 2022.
  21. ^ a b "Meet Cute Review : A Sweet and light-hearted anthology about love and relationships". The Times of India. 25 November 2022. Archived from the original on 6 August 2024. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  22. ^ "Meet Cute Review : A largely satisfying, heart-warming bunch of conversational shorts". ottplay.com. 24 November 2022. Archived from the original on 26 November 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2022.
  23. ^ "Kovai Sarala turns serious for Prabu Solomon's road movie". The Times of India. 19 May 2022. Archived from the original on 20 May 2022. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  24. ^ a b "Ashwin Kumar teams up with Prabu Solomon for an intense social drama". The Times of India. 18 September 2021. Archived from the original on 29 October 2021. Retrieved 20 March 2022.
  25. ^ "Sembi Movie Review: Kovai Sarala Delivers Spellbinding Performance". Sakshi Post. 30 December 2022. Archived from the original on 6 August 2024. Retrieved 1 January 2023.
  26. ^ a b "Ashwin Kumar's next 'Nodikku Nodi' begins with a pooja". TimesofIndia.com. 15 July 2024. Archived from the original on 20 July 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
  27. ^ "Thanthu-vitten-ennai-4-reasons-to-watch-this-Ashwin-Seetha-starrer-on-zee5". zee5news.com. 24 October 2020. Archived from the original on 6 August 2024. Retrieved 31 December 2020.
  28. ^ "Ashwin and Reba shoot for a fun music video". The Times of India. 24 March 2021. Archived from the original on 14 April 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  29. ^ "Ashwin to be seen in another crackling single called loner". Behindwoods.com. 24 April 2021. Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  30. ^ a b Adykriz 11:11 Guru undu Bhayamillai, archived from the original on 1 January 2023, retrieved 1 January 2023
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  37. ^ Anni Manchi Sakunamule Grand Release On Dec 21, archived from the original on 6 January 2023, retrieved 4 October 2022
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  42. ^ "Live Telecast Teaser : Kajal Aggarwal's debut into the Digital space looks spooky(watch video)". zee5news.com. 23 October 2020. Archived from the original on 2 May 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  43. ^ "Smifa_official on Instagram : Here are the proud winners of the 2019 Edition of India's Biggest Short film awards SMIFA Shorts". Instagram. 6 September 2019.
  44. ^ "தப்ப நான் செஞ்சுட்டு தண்டனைய அவனுக்கு கொடுத்துட்டேன்! – காதல் ஒன்று கண்டேன் குறும்பட விமர்சனம்!". Tamil.trendingonlinenow.in. 8 January 2020. Archived from the original on 17 March 2020. Retrieved 17 March 2020.
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  46. ^ "Watch Latest Tamil Music Video Song 'Criminal Crush' Sung By Anirudh Ravichander Featuring Ashwin Kumar And Taniya Ravichandran". The Times of India. 18 April 2021. Archived from the original on 12 July 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
  47. ^ "குக் வித் கோமாளி அஸ்வின் நடித்துள்ள லோனர் ஆல்பம் பாடல் ரிலீஸானது.. ரசிகர்கள் ஹேப்பி!". tamil.filmibeat.com. 29 May 2021. Archived from the original on 30 July 2021. Retrieved 30 July 2021.
  48. ^ "20 பிரபல நட்சத்திரங்கள் பாடிய "எண்ணம் போல் வாழ்க்கை' ஆல்பம்: யுவன்ஷங்கர் ராஜா வெளியீடு". Indiaglitz.com. 31 July 2021. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  49. ^ "குக்வித் கோமாளி அஸ்வினை வாழ்த்திய மோகன்லால்!". Zeenews.india.com. 20 August 2021. Archived from the original on 22 August 2021. Retrieved 22 August 2021.
  50. ^ "Watch Latest Tamil Official Music Video Song 'Yaathi Yaathi' Sung by Anuradha Sriram, Yazin Nizar And Abhishek CS Featuring Ashwin Kumar And Harshadaa Vijay". The Times of India. 14 October 2021. Archived from the original on 28 October 2021. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  51. ^ "Ashwin and Losliya shoot for a peppy, romantic number". The Times of India. 14 February 2022. Archived from the original on 15 May 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  52. ^ "Harris Jayaraj's first-ever music video announcement is here!". The Times of India. 8 January 2022. Archived from the original on 8 May 2022. Retrieved 15 May 2022.
  53. ^ "Harris Jayaraj's MV to star Mugen Rao, Ashwin Kumar". Moviecrow. 30 March 2022. Archived from the original on 19 May 2023. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  54. ^ "Vijay Television Awards 2021 Winners List: Complete List of Vijay Television Award Winners Revealed!". Newscrunch.com. 3 April 2021. Archived from the original on 8 November 2021. Retrieved 16 January 2022.
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