Nivin Pauly

Nivin Pauly (born 11 October 1984) is an Indian actor and producer who works predominantly in Malayalam films. He is the recipient of two Kerala State Film Awards, three Filmfare Awards South, two Kerala Film Critics Association Awards, and six SIIMA Awards. He made his acting debut in Vineeth Sreenivasan's directorial debut, Malarvaadi Arts Club, in 2010. The 2012 film Thattathin Marayathu pushed him into stardom.

Nivin came to be known for playing the boy-next-door archetype, following roles in the bilingual black-comedy thriller Neram (2013), the sports-drama 1983 (2014), the romantic-comedy Ohm Shanthi Oshaana (2014), the romantic-drama Bangalore Days (2014), the comedy road-thriller Oru Vadakkan Selfie (2015), and the coming-of-age romantic drama Premam (2015). He then went on to star in the police drama Action Hero Biju (2016), the family drama Jacobinte Swargarajyam (2016), the political satire Sakhavu (2017), the family comedy Njandukalude Nattil Oridavela (2017), and the epic film Kayamkulam Kochunni (2018), which emerged as one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films. and the romantic action comedy Love Action Drama (2019). He later starred in Sarvam Maya (2025), which became the highest-grossing film of his career, further solidifying his commercial success.

Nivin made his debut as a producer with Action Hero Biju under his production company Pauly Jr. Pictures and has produced the films Njandukalude Nattil Oridavela and Kanakam Kaamini Kalaham (2021). The latter is the first Malayalam movie to premiere on Disney+ Hotstar.

He won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut for Neram (2013). In 2015, he won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor for his performances in Bangalore Days and 1983. He won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Malayalam for Action Hero Biju (2016). In 2020, he won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Actor -Special Mention for Moothon.

Nivin Pauly was born on 11 October 1984 at Aluva in the Ernakulam district of Kerala. His parents are Pauly Bonaventure and Thressiamma Pauly, who were employed at Aarau, Switzerland. He was brought up in Kerala. He did his B.Tech. degree in Electronics & Communication Engineering from the Federal Institute of Science and Technology in Angamaly. He was employed at Infosys Ltd. in Bangalore through campus placements and was working there as a software engineer from 2006 to 2008. However, he resigned and returned home after his father's death.

Nivin auditioned for Malarvaadi Arts Club and was cast by Vineeth Sreenivasan in the role of Prakashan, which marked his debut. Following this, he acted in the films The Metro and Sevenes, and did cameos in Traffic and Spanish Masala. He appeared in the music video Nenjodu Cherthu from the album Yuvvh.

The 2012 film Thattathin Marayathu became one of the biggest hits of the year. He played the role of Vinod, a Hindu boy madly in love with Ayesha, a Muslim girl. This was Vineeth Sreenivasan's second film as a director. This also secured his position as one of the finest actors in the Malayalam film industry. He received offers from directors, including Sathyan Anthikad, Rajesh Pillai, Aashiq Abu, and Shyamaprasad.

Nivin made his debut in Tamil with the bilingual film Neram.The film was director Alphonse Puthren's directorial debut and was noted for its non-linear screenplay. His other Malayalam films in 2013 include 5 Sundarikal and Sunil Ibrahim's Arikil Oraal. The latter was a psychological thriller in which he played the role of Ichcha, a waiter at a café. In 5 Sundarikal, he acted in the segment "Isha" directed by Sameer Thahir. He also acted in Shyamaprasad's English: An Autumn in London where he portrayed the character of a London-born dapper playboy.