Vijay Raghavendra is an Indian Kannada actor. He is better known as ‘Chinnari Mutha’. His father is producer S. A. Chinne Gowda. He is also known as the nephew of actor Dr. Rajkumar.
Vijay made his acting debut as a child artist in the 1982 film ‘Chalisuva Modagalu’. He won the National Film Award for Best Child Artist for his performance in the films Chinnari Mutha in 1993 and ‘Kotreshi Kanasu’ in 1994. In 2002, he got the opportunity to play a lead role in the film ‘Ninagagi’. In 2016, Vijay won the Karnataka State Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in ‘Sivayogi Sri Puttayjwa‘. Vijay made his debut as a producer in 2018 with the film ‘Kismath’. Vijay won the first season of the game show Bigg Boss Kannada by public vote in 2013.
| Attribute | Details |
| Born | Bengaluru, Kannada, India |
| Parents | S. A. Chinne Gowda (Father)
Jayamma (Mother) |
| Spouse | Spandana Vijoy (m. 2007; died 2023) |
| Children | Shaurya |
| Relatives | Rajkumer Family |
| Years Active | 1982 – Present |
Personal Life
Vijay’s father is producer S. A. Chinne Gowda and mother is Jayamma. He has one elder sister and one younger brother. His maternal aunt Parvathamma Rajkumar was a prominent Kannada film producer and distributor. He is the cousin of actors Shiva Rajkumar, Raghavendra Rajkumar and Puneeth Rajkumar. He married Spandana, daughter of Assistant Commissioner of Police B. K. Shivaram, on 26 August 2007. Vijay and Spandana have a son named Shaurya. Spandana died of a heart attack in a Bangkok hospital on 7 August 2023.
Early Life
Vijay’s family is a film personality family in Bangalore, India. His father is a producer, his maternal uncle is a producer as well as an actor. After appearing as a child artist in about eight films, Vijay took formal training in acting.
Career
As child actor (1982–1995)
Vijay acted as a child artist in the romantic drama ‘Chalisuva Modagalu’ in 1982 with his uncle Rajkumar and cousin Puneeth Rajkumar. He entered the acting world through this drama. In 1989, he played the role of his cousin Puneeth Rajkumar in a song in the film ‘Parasuram’. In 1991, he acted in the movie ‘Jawani Deewani’, a remake of the movie ‘Aralida Huvugalu’. His next movie was ‘Chinnari Mutha’. He won the National Film Award as a child artist for his performance in the movie ‘Kotreshi Kanasu’.
As a teenager, Vijay acted in the dramas ‘Jag Mechida Huduga’, ‘Kallur Sri Mukambika‘ and the film ‘Chinnari Mutha’ in 1993. He acted in the film ‘Kotreshi Kanasu’ in 1995. He won the National Film Award for Best Child Artist for the year 1994-95. He then took a break from acting to study.
Adult Actor ( 2002- Present )
After a long break, he made his debut as an adult actor in 2002 with the film ‘Ninagagi’. In the same year, he acted in 2 more films which did not get much response from the fan community. Some of his successful films are ‘Khushi’ (2003), ‘Rishi’ (2005), ‘Kallarali Huvagi’ (2006) and ‘Ganesh Matte Banda’ (2008). His films ‘Shravan’, ‘Vinayak Geliyar Balaga’, ‘Kalla Malla Sulla’ were released in 2011. In 2012, he acted in a comedy film ‘Snehitru’. It is said that he won the reality show Bigg Boss in 2013 and won a prize of 5 million rupees. He won the Karnataka State Film Award in 2016 for his performance in the biographical film of Shivayogi Sri Puttayja.
