Atul Kulkarni
Indian actor
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Atul Kulkarni (born 10 September 1965) is an Indian actor, producer and screenwriter who works in Hindi, Marathi, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu and English language films. Kulkarni won the National Award for the Best Supporting Actor for the films Hey Ram and Chandni Bar.[1][2] He is also the president of Quest, a research-action organization concentrating on enhancing quality of education. He left his study in engineering at College of Engineering, Pune while he was in his first year.[3] He is known for his performances in films like Hey Ram, Chandni Bar, Rang De Basanti (2006), Natarang (2010) among others. He has also written the screenplay of Laal Singh Chadda,[4] the official remake of Forrest Gump.[5]
Atul Kulkarni | |
|---|---|
Atul at the screening of Sonata | |
| Born | 10 September 1965 |
| Alma mater | National School of Drama, New Delhi |
| Occupations |
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| Spouse | |
| Website | www.atulkulkarni.com |
Early life and career
Kulkarni received his diploma in acting from the National School of Drama, New Delhi in 1995.[6] He is married to theatre actress Geetanjali Kulkarni (née Geetanjali Moreshwar Sherikar), whom he met at the National School of Drama.[7]
Kulkarni's first stint on stage was during his high school days. He participated in the Maharashtra State Drama Competition regularly. Between 1989 and 1992, he won awards for Acting and also for Drama-Direction.[8] Atul enacted in Gandhi Viruddh Gandhi, the play made later famous by Dilip Prabhavalkar in Marathi professional theatre circuit until mid-90s.[9] Later during his college days he actively participated in cultural gatherings. While studying, Atul joined Natya Aradhana, an amateur theatre group from Solapur. Atul Kulkarni holds a postgraduate diploma in dramatic arts from National School of Drama, New Delhi. Atul Kulkarni, a national-award winner and a fine actor, expresses his belief of art being a product of social, political and economic changes in the society.[10]
Other works
Philanthropy
Kulkarni has been serving as President of Quest Education Support Trust.[11] Quest Trust invests in running workshops and enabling Teachers, to support education for children of marginalized communities between 3–14 years. All this activity is mainly in State of Maharashtra. It conducts its activities in Marathi language.[12]
Atul Kulkarni has been active in sharing his knowledge on running NGO with other NGO's. He does visit Maharashtra based NGO's like Snehalaya regularly.[13] Kulkarni has been involved in an environmental project, making a 24-acre barren land in Satara District into Green area.[14]
Filmography
As actor
| Year | Film | Role | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1997 | Bhoomi Geetha | Kannada | |
| 2000 | Kairee | Marathi | |
| Jayam Manade Raa | Basavayah | Telugu | |
| Hey Ram | Shriram Abhyankar | Hindi Tamil | |
| 2001 | Chandni Bar | Potya Sawant[15] | Hindi |
| 2002 | Run | Bhaskar | Tamil |
| Bhet | Prabhakar | Marathi | |
| Bibhatsa | Hindi | ||
| Dahavi Fa | Ganesh Deshmukh | Marathi | |
| 2003 | Mango Soufflé | Edwin 'Ed' Prakash | English |
| 88 Antop Hill | Pratyush Shelar | Hindi | |
| Satta | Yashwant Varde | ||
| Dum | 'Encounter' Shankar | ||
| Vaastupurush | Nishikant Dada | Marathi | |
| 2004 | Andhrawala | Bade Mia's sidekick | Telugu |
| Chanti | MLA Sarvarayudu | ||
| Gowri | Sarkar | ||
| Mansarovar | Malayalam | ||
| Vajram | |||
| Khakee | Dr. Iqbal Ansari | Hindi | |
| Devrai | Shesh | Marathi | |
| Manmadhan | ACP Deva | Tamil | |
| Leela Mahal Center | GK | Telugu | |
| Chakwa | Tushar Khot | Marathi | |
| 2005 | Page 3 | Vinayak Mane | Hindi |
| 2006 | Kedi | Minister Pughazhenthy | Tamil |
| Raam | Veerendra | Telugu | |
| Rang De Basanti | Laxman Pandey | Hindi | |
| Corporate | Narrator | ||
| 2007 | Aa Dinagalu | Agni Shridhar | Kannada |
| Maati Maay | Narsu | Marathi | |
| Gauri: The Unborn | Sandeep | Hindi | |
| 2008 | Valu | Swanand Gaddamwar | Marathi |
| Talappavu | Krishnadeva Saivar | Malayalam | |
| Kurukshetra | |||
| D-17 | |||
| 2009 | Yeh Mera India | Raj | Hindi |
| Delhi 6 | Gobar | ||
| Padikathavan | Kasi Anandan | Tamil | |
| Vandae Maatharam | Malayalam Tamil | ||
| Jail | Lawyer | Hindi | |
| 2010 | Yaksha | Machendranath Poonja | Kannada |
| Sukhaant | Marathi | ||
| Natarang | Guna Kagalkar | ||
| Allah Ke Banday | School Teacher | Hindi | |
| Bumm Bumm Bole | |||
| 2011 | Panjaa | Kulkarni | Telugu |
| Koffi Bar | Business man | ||
| Aagaah: The Warning | Aazan Khan | Hindi | |
| Chaalis Chauraasi | Bobby | ||
| 2012 | Suzhal | Surya Narayanan | Tamil |
| Edegarike | Agni Shridhar | Kannada | |
| 2013 | Nimidangal | Business man | Tamil |
| Aarambam | JCP Milind Virekar | ||
| The Attacks of 26/11 | Inspector Shinde | Hindi | |
| Popat | Janya | Marathi | |
| Vallinam | Basketball Coach[16] | Tamil | |
| Premachi Goshta | Ram | Marathi | |
| Zanjeer | Jayadev | Hindi | |
| The Lovers | Raoji | English | |
| 2014 | @Andheri | Rajan Pilla | Malayalam |
| Ugramm | Dhiraj Shivrudralingaiah | Kannada | |
| Veeram | Aadalarasu | Tamil | |
| Abhinetri | Kannada | ||
| Burma | Bothra Seth | Tamil | |
| Happy Journey | Niranjan | Marathi | |
| 2015 | Dirty Politics | Police Inspector | Hindi |
| Mythri | Raviprakash | Kannada Malayalam | |
| Jazbaa | Lawyer | Hindi | |
| Nellikka | Satheesh | Malayalam | |
| Kanal | Kuruvila Mathew | ||
| Rajwade and Sons | Shubhankar Rajwade | Marathi | |
| 2016 | Pranam | Hindi | |
| Akira | Akira's father | ||
| 2017 | Raees | Jairaj | |
| The Ghazi Attack | Lieutenant Commander Santosh Devraj | Telugu Hindi | |
| Bongu | Subash, assistant commissioner | Tamil | |
| Aval The House Next Door | Paul, Jenny's Father | Tamil Hindi[17] | |
| Koode | Coach Ashraf | Malayalam | |
| 2018 | Black Bud | Mehmood Khan | Hindi |
| 2019 | Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi | Tatya Tope | |
| 706 | Shekhawat | ||
| Mere Pyare Prime Minister | In PMO | ||
| Junglee | Keshav Kotian | ||
| Majili | Anshu's Father | Telugu | |
| Athiran | Dr. Benjamin Diaz | Malayalam | |
| Valiyaperunnal | Shivaji | ||
| Alidu Ulidavaru | Police Inspector | Kannada | |
| 2020 | Wild Dog[18] | DIG Hemanth | Telugu |
| 2021 | Koi Jaane Na | Dr. Rao | Hindi |
| 2022 | A Thursday | Javed Khan | |
| Manasmita | Panchakshari | Kannada | |
| Anya | Panchakshari | Marathi | |
| 2023 | Khufiya | Shashank Mehra, KM's ex-husband | Hindi |
| 2025 | Ekka | Masthan Bhai | Kannada |
| 2026 | Dacoit: A Love Story † | TBA | Telugu Hindi |
As screenwriter
| Year | Film | Language |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Laal Singh Chaddha | Hindi |
Television/web series
| Year | Series | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2017–18 | The Test Case | Colonel Ajinkya Sathe | |
| 2019–2023 | City of Dreams | Ameya Rao Gaikwad | |
| 2020 | The Raikar Case | Yashwant Naik Raikar | |
| Bandish Bandits | Digvijay Rathore | ||
| Sandwiched Forever | VK Sarnaik | [19] | |
| 2021–present | Faraar - Kab Tak? | Host | |
| 2022 | Rudra: The Edge Of Darkness | DCP Gautam Navlakha | |
| 2023 | Happy Family: Conditions Apply | Ramesh Mansukhlal Dholakia |
Awards and nominations
| Awards | Year | Film | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Film Awards | 2000 | Hey Ram | Best Supporting Actor | Won | [20] |
| 2003 | Chandni Bar | Won | [21] | ||
| Filmfare Awards | 2001 | Hey Ram | Best Supporting Actor | Nominated | |
| Asia Pacific Screen Awards | 2010 | Natarang | Best Performance by an Actor | Nominated | [22] |
| Filmfare Awards South | 2012 | Edegarike | Best Supporting Actor – Kannada | Won | [23] |
| Filmfare OTT Awards | 2023 | Happy Family: Conditions Apply | Best Actor Male in a Comedy Series | Nominated |
- 2019: Won: Best Actor in Murder on the Road to Kathmandu[citation needed]
