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Ajith Kumar: Biography, Facts and Career

Who is Ajith Kumar? An evergreen, sourced profile: biography, key facts and career.

By the Pop Culture Files editorial team4 min read✓ Fact-checked
Ajith Kumar
Shridhar Devalla from Chennai, Tamil Nadu via Wikimedia Commons · CC BY 2.0

Ajith Kumar Subramaniam (born 1 May 1971) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Tamil cinema. To date, he has starred in over 63 films, and won four Vijay Awards, three Cinema Express Awards, three Filmfare Awards South and three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards. In addition to his acting career, Ajith is an occasional racing driver and participated in the MRF Racing series (2010) and having competed in circuits around India in places such as Mumbai, Chennai and Delhi. He is one among very few Indians to race in the international arena and in Formula championships. Based on the annual earnings of Indian celebrities, he was included in the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list three times. Kumar began his career with a small role in the 1990 Tamil romantic drama En Veedu En Kanavar. After his success in Rajavin Parvaiyile, his first major breakthrough was Aasai (1995), Ajith established himself as a romantic hero with Kadhal Kottai (1996), Kaadhal Mannan (1998) and Aval Varuvala (1998), and established himself as an action hero starting with the film Amarkkalam (1999). Kumar's dual portrayal of twin brothers—where one is deaf-mute—in S. J. Suryah's Vaalee (1999) won him his first Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil. He earned critical acclaim for his dual roles in the vigilante film Citizen (2001). He was also praised for his dual role performance in K. S. Ravikumar’s Villain (2002) where he won his second Filmfare Award for Best Actor - Tamil. In 2006, he starred in K. S. Ravikumar's Varalaru, in which he played three roles including one of a classical Bharatanatyam dancer. It became the highest-grossing Tamil film of 2006, and earned him another Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil. The following year, he starred in two remakes—Kireedam (2007) and Billa (2007), both of which earned him critical acclaim. Kumar played an antagonist in his 50th film Mankatha (2011), which became one of the highest-grossing Tamil films of all time. His next release, Billa II (2012), was Tamil cinema's first prequel. Kumar has also been abroad for various races, including Germany and Malaysia. He drove in the 2003 Formula Asia BMW Championships. He raced in the 2010 Formula 2 Championship along with two Indians, Armaan Ebrahim and Parthiva Sureshwaren. In 2025, Government of India honoured him with Padma Bhushan, the nation's third highest civilian honour.

Quick facts about Ajith Kumar

  • Full name: Ajith Kumar
  • Born: 1971-05-01
  • Nationality: India
  • Known as: Actor
  • Wikidata ID: Q339896

Profile compiled from public Wikipedia and Wikidata data. Details can change over time.

Frequently asked questions

Who is Ajith Kumar?

Ajith Kumar Subramaniam (born 1 May 1971) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Tamil cinema.

What nationality is Ajith Kumar?

Ajith Kumar is India.

When was Ajith Kumar born?

Ajith Kumar was born on 1971-05-01.

Sources

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