Kunal Kemmu (born Kunal Ravi Kemmu; 25 May 1983) is an Indian
actor
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...
who works in
Hindi cinema.
Early life and background
Kunal Ravi Kemmu was born in
Srinagar,
Jammu and Kashmir,
India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...
on 25 May 1983 into a
Kashmiri Pandit
The Kashmiri Pandits (also known as Kashmiri Brahmins) are a group of Kashmiri Hindus and a part of the larger Saraswat Brahmin community of India. They belong to the Pancha Gauda Brahmin group from the Kashmir Valley, a mountainous region l ...
family to
actor
An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...
s Ravi Kemmu & Jyoti Kemmu.
He is the older child to the couple and has a younger sister named Karishma Kemmu. He stayed in Srinagar in early years and got initial education from
Burn Hall School, but shifted to
Jammu
Jammu is the winter capital of the Indian union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir. It is the headquarters and the largest city in Jammu district of the union territory. Lying on the banks of the river Tawi Ri ...
after the
Insurgency in Kashmir during the 1990s for being a
Kashmiri Hindu
Kashmiri Hindus are ethnic Kashmiris who practice Hinduism and are native to the Kashmir Valley of India. With respect to their contributions to Indian philosophy, Kashmiri Hindus developed the tradition of Kashmiri Shaivism. After their exodus ...
. Later, his family stayed in
Mira Road
Mira Road (Marathi pronunciation: iɾaː is a suburb in the Western Suburbs of Mumbai which stretches from Bandra to Bhayander in Mumbai Metropolitan Region situated in the north-western portion of Salsette Island, Maharashtra state, India. ...
area of
Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
,
Maharashtra
Maharashtra (; , abbr. MH or Maha) is a states and union territories of India, state in the western India, western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. Maharashtra is the List of states and union te ...
. He finished his schooling from N. L. Dalmia High School in Mira Road; and later attended
SVKM's
Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics
Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics (also known as NM College) is a premier college for commerce and economics affiliated to University of Mumbai. The college was established in 1964 by Shri Vile Parle Kelavani Mandal. It was awar ...
in
Vile Parle
Vile Parle (, also known as Parle, pronounced "Parle" or "Parla"), is a neighbourhood and also the name of the railway station in the Western suburb of Mumbai. Vile Parle has a significantly strong base of Marathi and Gujarati population. It s ...
for his further studies. He now lives in
Khar, Mumbai
Khar (Marathi pronunciation: ʰaːɾ is an affluent suburb of Mumbai, north of Bandra and south of Santacruz, Mumbai. Originally one of the 'villages' that made up the larger Bandra, the present suburb is divided into Khar West and Khar Eas ...
.
His grandfather,
Moti Lal Kemmu
Moti Lal Kemmu (born 1933) is an Indian contemporary playwright from Jammu & Kashmir. He was born in Srinagar into a Kashmiri Pandit family and attended Jammu and Kashmir University. His plays include ''Nagar Udas'', ''Teen Asangati Aikanki' ...
(original spelling of last name) is a
Kashmiri Kashmiri may refer to:
* People or things related to the Kashmir Valley or the broader region of Kashmir
* Kashmiris, an ethnic group native to the Kashmir Valley
* Kashmiri language, their language
People with the name
* Kashmiri Saikia Baruah ...
playwright and a recipient of several awards by the government of
Jammu and Kashmir: Rashtra Bhasa Prachar Samiti,
Sahitya Akademi
The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of, the Indian government. Its of ...
award in 1982 for his contribution to Kashmiri literature as a playwright and
Padma Shri
Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...
.
Personal life
Khemu was in a relationship with actress
Soha Ali Khan Pataudi since May 2013. The couple got engaged in July 2014 and got married in a private ceremony in Mumbai on 25 January 2015 in the presence of selected members of
Soha's Family. Through his marriage to Khan, he is related to the
Pataudi family
The Pataudi family is an Indian people, Indian family of actors and erstwhile nawabs of the former princely states, princely state of Pataudi State, Pataudi, from which they take their name. The first nawab of Pataudi, nawab was Faiz Talab Kha ...
.On 29 September 2017, Khan gave birth to their daughter Inaaya Naumi Khemu.
Career
Kunal made his debut as a child actor appearing in the
Doordarshan
Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...
TV series ''
Gul Gulshan Gulfaam'' (1987), directed by
Ved Rahi. He made his film debut with
Mahesh Bhatt
Mahesh Bhatt (born 20 September 1948) is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter known for his works in Hindi cinema. A stand-out film from his earlier period is ''Saaransh'' (1984), screened at the 14th Moscow International Film F ...
's movie ''
Sir (film)'' (1993). He went on to star as a child artist in movies including ''
Raja Hindustani
''Raja Hindustani/Prema Bandham''(/ప్రేమ బంధం) is a 1996 Indian Hindi-language romantic drama film directed by Dharmesh Darshan. It tells the story of a cab driver from a small town who falls in love with a rich young woman. ...
'', ''
Zakhm
''Zakhm'' () is a 1998 Indian Hindi-language drama film written and directed by Mahesh Bhatt. The film stars Ajay Devgn, Kunal Khemu, Pooja Bhatt, Sonali Bendre and Nagarjuna.
''Zakhm'' was awarded with the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature F ...
'', ''
Bhai'', ''
Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke
''Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke'' () is a 1993 Indian romantic comedy-drama film, directed by Mahesh Bhatt and produced by Tahir Hussain, with screenplay written by Aamir Khan and Robin Bhatt, and with a musical score by Nadeem-Shravan. It stars Aamir ...
'', ''and
Dushman.''
He played the male lead in the 2005 film ''
Kalyug'', which was directed by
Mohit Suri.
''Kalyug'' was based on the
pornography
Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults, industry. In 2007, his first release was
Madhur Bhandarkar
Madhur Bhandarkar (born 26 August 1968) is an Indian film director, script writer, and producer. In 2016,Bhandarkar was honoured with the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian honour, by the Government of India.
The drama film ''Chandni Ba ...
's ''
Traffic Signal
Traffic lights, traffic signals, or stoplights – known also as robots in South Africa are signalling devices positioned at road intersections, pedestrian crossings, and other locations in order to control flows of traffic.
Traffic light ...
'', where he played a street-smart money lender who lends money to poor families, but always gets it back with interest.
His second release of 2007 was ''
Dhol
Dhol (IPA: ) can refer to any one of a number of similar types of double-headed drum widely used, with regional variations, throughout the Indian subcontinent. Its range of distribution in India, Bangladesh and Pakistan primarily includes nort ...
'' in which he again played lead. In 2008, in his only release, ''
Superstar
A superstar is someone who has great popular appeal and is widely known, prominent, or successful in their field. Celebrities referred to as "superstars" may include individuals who work as actors, musicians, athletes, and other media-based profe ...
'', he featured in a double role. In 2009, he starred in ''
Dhoondte Reh Jaaoge
''Dhoondte Reh Jaoge'' ( en, You Will Keep on Searching) is a 2009 Indian comedy film directed by Umesh Shukla and produced by UTV Motion Pictures. The film stars Kunal Khemu, Paresh Rawal, Sonu Sood, Soha Ali Khan, Dilip Joshi and Johnny Lever ...
'' and ''
Jai Veeru
''Jai Veeru'' is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language action film directed by Puneet Sira, starring Fardeen Khan, Kunal Khemu, Anjana Sukhani, Dia Mirza and Arbaaz Khan. The film was released on 13 March 2009.
Plot
Veer "Veeru" Sharma is a small-t ...
''. In 2009, he appeared in the comic-thriller ''
99''. In 2010, he appeared in ''
Golmaal 3
''Golmaal 3'' () is a 2010 Indian Hindi-language action comedy film directed by Rohit Shetty and the third film in the '' Golmaal series''. The film contains an ensemble cast starring Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi, Mithun Chakraborty, Kareena Kapoor ...
'' in which he played a supporting role as Laxman.
In 2012, he appeared in
Mukesh Bhatt
Mukesh Bhatt (born 5 June 1952) is an Indian film producer and actor who has produced several Bollywood films. He is the younger brother of Mahesh Bhatt, and also the co-owner of the production company Vishesh Films, set up in 1986. He is the u ...
's ''
Blood Money
Blood money may refer to:
* Blood money (restitution), money paid to the family of a murder victim
Films
* Blood Money (1917 film), ''Blood Money'' (1917 film), a film starring Harry Carey
* Blood Money (1921 film), ''Blood Money'' (1921 film ...
'', in which played the lead role as Kunal Kadam, an honest and hard worker who is unknowingly taken into the dark side of
Diamond
Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, ...
Trade by his Boss. He co-starred in ''
Go Goa Gone
''Go Goa Gone'' is a 2013 Indian Hindi-language zombie action comedy film directed by Raj and D.K. The film features Saif Ali Khan, Kunal Khemu, Vir Das, Anand Tiwari and Puja Gupta. It was released on 10 May 2013. Almost one third of the fil ...
'', a
Zombie comedy
The zombie comedy, often called zom com or zomedy, is a film genre that aims to blend zombie horror motifs with slapstick comedy as well as morbid humor.
History
The earliest roots of the genre can be found in Jean Yarbrough's ''King of the ...
film, which was released on 10 May 2013. Both the films fared well at the box office.
In 2015, after over a two-year break, Kunal returned to the screen with the thriller ''
Bhaag Johnny
''Bhaag Johnny'' () is a 2015 Indian Hindi language Bollywood thriller film directed by Shivam Nair, and produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Vikram Bhatt and Ajay Kapoor. The film stars Kunal Khemu, Mandana Karimi and Zoa Morani in lead ...
'' about a man who gets to live two lives by the help of a
Jinn
Jinn ( ar, , ') – also Romanization of Arabic, romanized as djinn or Anglicization, anglicized as genies (with the broader meaning of spirit or demon, depending on sources)
– are Invisibility, invisible creatures in early Arabian mytho ...
, portrayed by director
Vikram Bhatt
Vikram Bhatt (born 27 January 1969) is an Indian director, producer, screenwriter and actor. He is best known for directing the ''Raaz'' film series, an Indian horror series produced by Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt and for directing '' Ghula ...
. Though the film began shooting in 2013, it released on 25 September 2015 to mixed reviews and low box office collections. His second release of the same year was the comedy film ''
Guddu Ki Gun
''Guddu Ki Gun'' () is a Bollywood Sex comedy, Adult comedy film directed by the duo Shantanu Ray Chhibber & Sheershak Anand. The film stars Kunal Khemu, debutant Aparna Sharma and marks the debut of Payel Sarkar (Bengali people, Bengali Actres ...
'', in which Kunal appears in the title role along with
Sumeet Vyas
Sumeet Vyas (born 27 July 1983) is an Indian actor and writer of films, web series and theatre. His breakthrough role was Mikesh Chaudhary in TVF's 2014 web series '' Permanent Roommates''. Vyas has since played supporting roles in Bollywood fi ...
. In 2017, he did a voice over in an animated film ''
Hanuman: Da' Damdaar'' in role of Lord
Indra
Indra (; Sanskrit: इन्द्र) is the king of the devas (god-like deities) and Svarga (heaven) in Hindu mythology. He is associated with the sky, lightning, weather, thunder, storms, rains, river flows, and war. volumes/ref> I ...
. He also appeared in the fourth installment of ''
Golmaal (film series)
Golmaal is an Indian comedy film series directed by Rohit Shetty, with four installments to date, the first three produced by Dhilin Mehta and the fourth by Shetty and Sangeeta Ahir. The first film '' Golmaal: Fun Unlimited'' released in 2006 ...
'' named ''
Golmaal Again
''Golmaal Again'' () is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language supernatural comedy film written and directed by Rohit Shetty; produced by Rohit Shetty Pictures, Mangal Murti Films and Reliance Entertainment. The film is the fourth installment of '' Gol ...
'' reprising his famous role of Laxman Sharma. He portrayed a noteworthy negative character in ''
Malang'' and gained critical acclaim for his role in ''
Kalank
''Kalank'' (; ) is a 2019 Indian Hindi-language period romantic drama film directed by Abhishek Varman and produced by Karan Johar, Hiroo Yash Johar and Apoorva Mehta under Dharma Productions and Sajid Nadiadwala under Nadiadwala Grandson Ent ...
'' .
ZEE5
ZEE5 is an Indian subscription video on-demand and over-the-top streaming service, run by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in India on 14 February 2018 with content in 12 languages. The ZEE5 mobile app is available on Web, Androi ...
team will go on the release the Abhay Season 2 in September 2020 and the streaming will be in October 2020. Kunal Khemu playing main role in this web series. This series directed by
Ken Ghosh
Ken Ghosh is an Indian Hindi film
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Boll ...
. He will return as the investigating officer in Season 3 as well.
Filmography
Films
Web series
Television
Short Film
Awards and nominations
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khemu, Kunal
1983 births
Living people
20th-century Indian male actors
Indian people
Kashmiri people
Kashmiri Hindus
People from Srinagar
Male actors in Hindi cinema
Indian male film actors
Indian Hindus
Indian male child actors
21st-century Indian male actors
Male actors from Jammu and Kashmir
Kashmiri Pandits
Indian people of Kashmiri descent