Roger Narayan

{{Short description|Indian Kannada film actor}}

{{Infobox person

| name = Roger Narayan

| image =

| birth_name = Raj Narayan

| nationality =

| occupation = Actor

| yearsactive = 1985{{ndash}}1993
2006{{ndash}}present

}}

Raj Narayan is an actor who works in predominantly Kannada and English-language films. He is known for playing the titular role in Hola Venky! and starring in U Turn (2016).

Career

Roger Narayan studied engineering at BITS Pilani before deciding to pursue his passion of becoming an actor. He subsequently learned acting in several institutions.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/making-the-uturn-home/article8393358.ece|title=Making the U-turn home|work=The Hindu|last=K.|first=Bhumika|date=24 March 2016}}{{Cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/kannada/movies/news/hollywood-actor-is-hero-of-kannada-film/articleshow/50830489.cms|title=Hollywood actor is hero of Kannada film|work=The Times of India|date=24 January 2017|last=Suresh|first=Sunayana}} He changed his stage name from Raj to Roger so that he would not be cast in stereotypical Indian roles. He started off as a child artist in Kannada films before played supporting roles in several English films and television shows before debuting as a lead actor with the quirky Indian English film Hola Venky! (2014), which was shot in India. He garnered recognition for his role in the Kannada film U Turn (2016) as a sub-inspector of police.{{Cite web|url=https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/Tales-from-a-journeyman/article14513152.ece|title=Tales from a journeyman|date=28 July 2016|last=Joseph|first=Raveena|work=The Hindu}} He played the role of an iyengar in The Man Who Knew Infinity (2015) and starred in 417 Miles, another multilingual venture. He starred in Humble Politician Nograj (2018) as a NRI politician.{{Cite web|url=https://www.cinemaexpress.com/stories/interviews/2017/dec/19/roger-narayan-plays-outsider-and-conscience-in-humble-politician-nograj-3685.html|title=Roger Narayan plays an outsider in Humble Politician Nograj|work=Cinema Express|date=19 December 2017|last=Sharadhaa|first=A.}} In a review of the film, a critic noted that "Roger Narayan is a perfect fit as Arun Patil".{{Cite web|url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/review/2018/jan/12/humble-politician-nograj-review-good-for-voters-right-in-time-for-polls-1752339.html|title='Humble Politician Nograj' review: Good for voters, right in time for polls|work=New Indian Express|date=12 January 2018|last=Sharadhaa|first=A.}} Roger Narayan made his debut as an antagonist in the Kannada film Chambal (2019).{{Cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/kannada/movies/news/a-suave-villain-well-roger-that/articleshow/68034688.cms|title=A suave villain? Well, Roger that!|last=Desai|first=Dhwani|work=The Times of India|date=18 February 2019}}{{Cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/kannada/movies/news/roger-narayan-turns-anti-hero-for-his-next/articleshow/68654615.cms|title=Roger Narayan turns anti-hero for his next|date=31 March 2019|work=The Times of India}}{{Cite web|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/kannada/movies/news/roger-narayan-turns-baddie/articleshow/53364009.cms|title=U-Turn actor turns baddie|last=Suresh|first=Sunayana|date=24 January 2017|work=The Times of India}}

Partial filmography

class="wikitable sortable"
Year

! Film

! Role

! Language

! Notes

1985Jeevana ChakraKrishnaKannadarowspan="3"|Child actor
1988SangliyanaKumarrowspan="2"|Kannada
1993AakasmikaRaja
2010Keeping Up with the GuptasKumarEnglish
2011Happy Feet TwoIndian penguinrowspan="4"|Englishvoice role
2012The TestMarcus
2014Hola Venky!Venky
2015The Man Who Knew InfinityIyengar
rowspan="2" |2016

| U Turn

NayakKannada
417 MilesSrinivasEnglish
2017Vismaya{{n/a}}rowspan="3"| KannadaLyricist for "Kaaki Shirt-Ina"
2018Humble Politician NograjArun Patil
rowspan="2"|2019Chambal
PunyakotiKalingaSanskritvoice role
2022DNAAkashrowspan="2"|Kannada
2023Diamond Cross{{cite web |title=Roger Narayan headlines Ramdeep’s directorial debut, Diamond Cross |url=https://www.newindianexpress.com/entertainment/kannada/2023/jul/08/roger-narayan-headlines-ramdeeps-directorial-debut-diamond-cross-2592499.html |website=The New Indian Express}}

= Television =

  • All television shows are in English, unless otherwise noted.

class="wikitable sortable"
Year

! Title

! Role

! Notes

rowspan="2" |2009

| Better Off Ted

JimEpisode "Goodbye, Mr. Chips"
The Young and the RestlessNovich3 episodes (season 1)
rowspan="3"|2010Miami MedicalMukeshEpisodes "Pilot" and "88 Seconds" of season 1{{efn|name=Miami|While his role in the episode "Pilot" is credited, his role in the episode "88 Seconds" is not credited.}}
How I Met Your MotherBabakaEpisode "Blitzgiving"
VictoriousDr. BornsteinEpisode "Rex Dies"
rowspan="2"|2012WeedsBandhi2 episodes
Incredible CrewMr. NarayanEpisode "Pancake Genie"
2014NCIS: Los AngelesRoger AliEpisode "Allegiance"
2015The LeftoversBhagatEpisode "A Matter of Geography"

Awards and nominations

class="wikitable sortable"
Year

! Award

! Category

! Work

! Outcome

! scope="col" class="unsortable" | {{Tooltip|Ref.|References}}

201764th Filmfare Awards SouthBest Supporting Actorrowspan="2"|U Turn{{nom}}style="text-align:center;" |{{cite news|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/tamil/movies/news/winners-64th-jio-filmfare-awards-south/articleshow/59192157.cms|title=Winners: 64th Jio Filmfare Awards 2017 (South)|date=16 June 2018|newspaper=The Times of India|accessdate=1 December 2018}}
20186th South Indian International Movie AwardsBest Debut Actor{{nom}}style="text-align:center;" |{{Cite web|url=https://www.indiatoday.in/movies/regional-cinema/story/siima-awards-2017-mohanlal-wins-best-actor-vijay-entertainer-1021933-2017-07-02|title=SIIMA Awards 2017 Day 2: Mohanlal wins Best Actor, Vijay bags Best Entertainer|work=India Today|date= 2 July 2017}}
20198th South Indian International Movie AwardsBest Actor In A Supporting RoleHumble Politician Nograj{{nom}}style="text-align:center;" |{{Cite web|url=https://www.thelivemirror.com/siima-2019-nominations-complete-list/|title=SIIMA 2019 Nominations: See Full List Of Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam & Kannada Film Industry|work=The Live Mirror|date=19 July 2019|last=Khandelwal|first=Stuti}}

Notes

{{Notelist}}

References

{{Reflist}}