V. Ravichandran

**V. Ravichandran** (born Veeraswamy Ravichandran, May 30, 1961, in Bengaluru, Karnataka, India) is an Indian actor, director, producer, music composer, lyricist, and editor who works predominantly in Kannada cinema. Popularly known as "Crazy Star" and "The Showman of Kannada Cinema", he is celebrated for introducing grand visual scale, technical innovation, and musical extravagance to Sandalwood. The son of noted film producer N. Veeraswamy, Ravichandran began his screen journey as a child artist in *Dhoomakethu* (1968) and *Kula Gourava* (1971). He later entered adult cinema in the early 1980s, co-producing and acting in films under his family banner, Sri Eswari Productions, such as *Khadeema Kallaru* (1982) and *Chakravyuha* (1983). His landmark breakthrough came with the romantic musical *Premaloka* (1987), which he wrote, directed, produced, and starred in. Featuring Juhi Chawla and introducing composer Hamsalekha, *Premaloka* became a massive cultural phenomenon and an all-time blockbuster in Kannada cinema. Following this success, Ravichandran and Hamsalekha formed one of the industry's most prolific creative partnerships, collaborating on over 50 films and delivering evergreen hits including *Ranadheera* (1988), *Anjada Gandu* (1988), *Yuga Purusha* (1989), *Ramachaari* (1991), *Halli Meshtru* (1992), *Gadibidi Ganda* (1993), *Annayya* (1993), and *Putnanja* (1995). Known for taking ambitious creative risks, he directed and starred in the big-budget multilingual action drama *Shanti Kranti* (1991) and later composed music and penned lyrics for several of his own directorial ventures, including *Ekangi* (2002) and *Malla* (2004). In the later phase of his career, Ravichandran transitioned seamlessly into acclaimed character and senior roles across mainstream commercial cinema, winning widespread praise for his performances in *Maanikya* (2014), *Drishya* (2014), *Mungaru Male 2* (2016), *Hebbuli* (2017), *Kurukshetra* (2019), *Drishya 2* (2021), *Kranti* (2023), and *KD - The Devil* (2026).