Vikram is an Indian actor and singer who predominantly appears in Tamil language films. He has won seven Filmfare Awards as well as one National Film Award and Tamil Nadu State Film Award amongst other recognitions and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate by the University of Milan. In 2016, he produced and directed the video to the flood relief anthem, Spirit of Chennai as a tribute to the city’s volunteers following the 2015 South Indian floods.
Birth Name
Kennedy John Victor
Nickname
Kenny, Chiyaan Vikram
Profession
Actor, Producer, Playback Singer
Genre
Soundtrack
Instruments
Vocals
Labels
He is unsigned. Mostly, he has contributed to film songs. His songs are labeled by Sony Music India, Pyramid, Vega Music, Big B, Think Music and others.
Nationality
Indian
Personal Life
Birthday / Date of Birth
Vikram was born on the 17th of April 1966, in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India.
Age
He’s currently 53 years old.
Sun Sign
Aries
Ethnicity
Asian (Indian)
He has Tamil ancestry.
Religion
Christianity
Education
Vikram was educated at Montfort School, Yercaud a boarding school in a hill station near Salem and graduated in 1983. Later, his father forced him to go through education with Vikram subsequently graduated from Loyola College, Chennai with a degree in English Literature and worked halfway towards an MBA programme.
Family Details
- Father – John Victor (alias Vinod Raj) (Supporting roles in Tamil Films and serials)
- Mother – Rajeshwari (Sub-Collector)
- Siblings – Arvind (Younger Brother) (Actor), Anitha (Younger Sister) (Teacher)
Marital Status
Married
Girlfriend / Spouse
Vikram has dated –
- Shailaja Balakrishnan (1992-Present) – Vikram met Shailaja Balakrishnan in the late 1980s and married her in 1992 at Guruvayoor in a mass wedding alongside dozens of couples. The pair then had a low-key wedding ceremony conducted at the church at Loyola College, Chennai. She hails from Thalassery, Kerala and now works as a psychology teacher at a leading Chennai school. The couple has a daughter Akshita born in 1993 and a son Dhruv born in 1997.
Physical Statistics
Height
- In feet – 5 feet 6¼ inches
- In centimeters – 169 cm
- In meters – 1.69 m
Weight
- In Kilograms – 73 kg
- In Pounds – 161 lbs
Body Measurements
- Measurements – 40-16-34
- Chest – 40 in or 101.5 cm
- Arms / Biceps – 16 in or 41 cm
- Waist – 34 in or 86 cm
Body Build
Average
Eye Color
Dark Brown
Hair Color
Black
Shoe Size
His shoe size is 9.5 (US).
Sexuality
Straight
Professional Statistics
Famous For
Vikram appeared in a series of masala films with Dhill (2001), Gemini (2002), Dhool (2003) and Saamy (2003) becoming commercially successful ventures. He has won seven Filmfare Awards as well as one National Film Award and Tamil Nadu State Film Award.
Film Debut
In 1990, Vikram made his film debut by appearing in En Kadhal Kanmani a small budget love story featuring him alongside Rekha Nambiar.
Television Debut
In 1988, Vikram made his television debut with the Doordarshan series, Galatta Kudumbam.
Brand Endorsements
Vikram has appeared in the following TV commercials Chola Tea, Alwyn Watches, TVS Excel & 3 Roses (2010).
Vikram Favorites
- Favorite Actor – Rajnikanth, Robert De Niro
- Favorite Actress – Sandra Bullock, Meryl Streep, Julia Roberts
- Favorite Director – Dharani
- Favorite Musician – Yanni, Michael Bolton
- Favorite Color – Black
- Favorite Food – Pazhya Sadam and Karruvattu Kolambu
Vikram Net worth
Vikram has an estimated net worth of $20 million dollars as of 2020.
Social Media Profiles
- Instagram – the_real_chiyaan
Some Lesser Known Facts About Vikram
- Vikram was first offered the role of Arvind Swamy in Mani Ratnam’s film Bombay but he refused because he had to shave his beard which he cannot do as he was doing some other film which has its requirement.
- His father left his home to become an actor but only got supporting roles instead of leading roles.
- Vikram gave everything he had for his role in Sethu like he shaved his head, lost 21 kgs and grew long nails.
- In 1990, he made his debut film, En Kadhal Kanmani which was followed by a series of small-budget Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu films.
- In 1993, he almost signed on to appear in Mani Ratnam’s Bombay and featured in the initial photo shoot alongside Manisha Koirala.
- In 2003, he won the National Award for his role of Chithan in Pithamagan.
- In 2004, he is also a recipient of the Kalaimamani Award from the Government of Tamil Nadu.
- In 2005, his appearance as an idealistic lawyer with multiple personality disorder in Shankar’s blockbuster Anniyan also won critical acclaim.
- In 2009, the music composer Devi Sri Prasad had asked Vikram to sing a few rough tracks during the film’s song composition in Malaysia.
- In 2010, his film Raavan was promoted at the Cannes Film Festival and then screened at Venice Film Festival and the Busan International Film Festival.
- In 2011, Vikram has promoted various social causes and appeared as the Youth Envoy for the United Nations Human Settlements Programme.
- In 2011, Vikram was awarded an honorary doctorate from Università Popolare degli Studi di Milano (People’s University of Milan) in the field of Fine Arts.
- In 2015, Vikram has endorsed Big Deal TV, a celebrity-driven home shopping channel.
