Viraj (actor)
{{Short description|Indian actor}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2018}}
{{Use Indian English|date=July 2018}}
{{Infobox person
| name = Viraj
| image =
| imagesize =
| birth_name = Hari Prashanth
| birth_date = {{birth date and age|1992|8|25}}
| birth_place = Chennai, India
| occupation = Actor
| othername =
| yearsactive =
| spouse =
| father = S. N. Surendar
}}
Viraj (also credited as Hari Prashanth) is an Indian actor, who has appeared in Tamil language films. The son of dubbing artiste S. N. Surendar, Viraj made his debut as a child actor by appearing in Uyirile Kalanthathu (2000), before working in Anniyan (2005) and Chennai 600028 (2007) in supporting roles.{{cite web|url=http://www.nadigarsangam.org/member/s-hariprashanth/|title=S.Hariprashanth - Official Site of South Indian Artists Association, Nadigar Sangam, Tamil Nadigar Sangam|website=www.nadigarsangam.org}}{{cite web|url=http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/fr/2002/05/17/stories/2002051701370200.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030210211656/http://thehindu.com/thehindu/fr/2002/05/17/stories/2002051701370200.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=2003-02-10|title=Unnai Ninaithu|website=The Hindu|date=2002-05-17|last=thmrn}}
Early life
Viraj is the son of Tamil dubbing artiste and singer S. N. Surendar, the brother of vocalist Shoba Chandrasekhar. Actor Vijay is his first cousin, while his uncle S. A. Chandrasekhar is also a film director.
Career
Viraj made his first appearance as a child artiste in K. R. Jaya's family drama Uyirile Kalanthathu (2000) portraying the younger version of the character portrayed by Raghuvaran, and used his original name of Hari Prashanth as his stage name.{{cite web|url=http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/fr/2005/09/02/stories/2005090203290300.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150916130758/http://www.thehindu.com/thehindu/fr/2005/09/02/stories/2005090203290300.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=2015-09-16|title=Entertainment Chennai / Interview : Junior with potential|website=The Hindu|date=2005-09-02|last=thmrn}} Having previously trained as a singer under musician T. S. Raghavendra, Viraj's father's influence in the film industry helped him also work as a chorus singer for the song "Sundari" in A. R. Rahman's 2002 soundtrack for Mani Ratnam's Kannathil Muthamittal. He then starred in Unnai Ninaithu (2002) as Laila's brother and appeared as young Chinnu in the film Thithikudhe (2003), the Tamil remake of the 2001 Telugu film Manasantha Nuvve. He won critical acclaim for his portrayal of the younger version of Ambi in Shankar's Anniyan (2005), where he appeared in scenes alongside Nedumudi Venu. He later played the role of a young street cricketer who captains the 'Bad Boys' team in Chennai 600028 (2007) and reprised the role in its sequel Chennai 600028 II, released almost a decade later.{{Cite web|url=http://manam.online/Cinema/2016-OCT-31/Chennai-28-is-my-visiting-card-says-Actor-Viraaj|title=என்னோட விசிட்டிங் கார்டு சென்னை 28 தான்! நடிகர் விராஜ்|date=31 October 2016|website=Manam|language=ta|trans-title=Chennai 28 is my visiting card! - Actor Viraaj|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170713152127/http://manam.online/Cinema/2016-OCT-31/Chennai-28-is-my-visiting-card-says-Actor-Viraaj|archive-date=2017-07-13|url-status=|access-date=2017-07-13}}
In January 2014, Viraj announced his intentions of appearing as the lead actor and began working on a film titled Mozhivathu Yathenil alongside Mahendran, but the film did not have a theatrical release.{{cite web|url=http://updates.lakshmansruthi.com/news.php?id=1371|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220051728/http://updates.lakshmansruthi.com/news.php?id=1371|url-status=usurped|archive-date=20 December 2016|title=Lakshmansruthi.com - Welcome to Lakshman Sruthi - 100% Manual Orchestra|website=updates.lakshmansruthi.com}}{{cite web|url=http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movies/mozhivathu-yathenil/mozhivathu-yathenil-photos-pictures-stills-index.html|title=Mozhivathu Yathenil (aka) Mozhivathu Yaathenil photos stills & images|website=www.behindwoods.com}}
Filmography
| class="wikitable sortable" style="background:#f5f5f5;" | |||
| style="background:#B0C4DE;"
! Year ! Film ! Role !class=unsortable| Notes | |||
| 2000 | Uyirile Kalanthathu | Younger Raghuram | Child artist |
| 2002 | Unnai Ninaithu | Nirmala's brother | Child artist |
| 2003 | Thithikudhe | Young Chinnu | Child artist |
| 2003 | Unnai Charanadaindhen | Child artist | |
| 2005 | Anniyan | Younger Ambi | Child artist |
| 2007 | Chennai 600028 | Hari | |
| 2016 | Chennai 600028 II: Second Innings | Hari | |
| 2024 | Mission: Chapter 1 | Thomas |
References
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Category:Male actors in Tamil cinema
Category:21st-century Indian male actors