The popular film actor, producer and TV personality R Madhavan, also known as Maddy, is ecstatic after scoring a huge hit with his latest Bollywood film ‘3 Idiots’ based on the novel ‘Five Point Someone’ by Chetan Bhagat. The movie, in which he played a supporting lead role, was produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra and directed by Rajkumar Hirani. He co-starred with stars such as Aamir Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Sharman Joshi, Omi Vaidya, Parikshit Sahni, Javed Jaffrey, Mona Singh and Boman Irani.
As of 8 January 2010, 3 Idiots was the "the highest grossing Bollywood movie of all time." It was released in 40 countries and is also "the highest grossing Indian film ever to release in the US, Middle East, Australia, South Africa, Pakistan, Kenya and Fiji."
Most of the shooting was done in Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Ladakh, Chail, Shimla and at the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. As reported and according to Rajkumar Hirani, ‘the biggest joke while filming was that he was called the most idiotic director, as he had asked the heroine of the film to gain weight and the heroes to lose weight.’
The film ‘3 Idiots’ tells the story of Farhan Qureshi (R Madhavan), Raju Rastogi (Sharman Joshi) and Rancchoddas "Rancho" Shyamaldas Chanchad (Aamir Khan) who are engineering college students. While Farhan and Raju are students from modest backgrounds who want to lift their families out of poverty, Rancho is a wealthy genius who studies for the sheer joy of it. Kareena Kapoor plays the role of the medical student Pia, the love interest of Rancho. The film shows all types of college politics and hilarious situations, trials and tribulations, the problems the students face and in a way inspires students to overcome the problems. There are many funny scenes and many more to make people think about day-to-day problems.
The 39-year-old popular actor Madhavan is not new to Bollywood or Hindi film viewers as he had already starred in Hindi movies such as Dil Vil Pyar Vyar, Ramji Londonwaley, Mumbai Meri Jaan, 13 B (simultaneously made in Tamil as Yavarum Nalam), Sikandar and Rehna Hai Tere Dil Mein (remake of the 2001 Tamil film Minnale), marking his debut in Bollywood, for which he was nominated for Zee Cine Award Best Male Debut and nominated for Star Screen Award for Most Promising Male Newcomer. His successful Bollywood films are blockbusters such as Rang De Basanti (2006), Guru (2007) and the latest being 3 Idiots (Dec 2009).
Born in Jamshedpur, the steel city in Jharkhand, India, Madhavan started his film career with Fred Olen Ray's English film ‘Inferno’ (1998) alongside Don Wilson, followed by the Kannada language film “Shanti Shanti Shanti” (1999) and the Tamil film Alaipayuthey (2000). So far he has acted in films of seven languages. He has received several awards for his acting in various categories. He was a very popular actor on television before starting acting in films. He has played major roles in Hindi TV serials such Saaya, Sea Hawks, Banegi Apni Baat, Tol Mol Ke Bol and Ghar Jamai.
Some of his memorable Tamil language films include Alaipayuthey (2000), Minnale (2001), Kannathil Muthamittal (2002 movie for which he was the winner, Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor), Run (2002), Anbe Sivam (2003 Tamil movie for which he won the ITFA Best Supporting Actor Award), Aayutha Ezhuthu (2004 movie for which he was the winner of Filmfare Best Tamil Supporting Actor Award), Evano Oruvan (produced and written by him in 2007 and he won the ITFA Best Actor Award), Rendu (his first dual role and one of his biggest successes), Yavarum Nalam (2009, bilingual horror film, simultaneously made in Hindi as 13 B). Some of his female co-stars include Simran Bagga, Meera Jasmine, Trisha Krishnan, Sadha, Jyothika Saravanan, Bhavana Balachandran, Reema Sen, Soha Ali Khan, Esha Deol and Vidya Balan.
Madhavan is expected to have four releases in 2010 with the long-delayed Naan Aval Adhu, Teen Patti (in which he shares screen space with internationally celebrated actors such as Sir Ben Kingsley -- English actor who has won Oscar, BAFTA, Golden Globe and Screen Actors Guild awards in his career, known for starring as Mohandas Gandhi in the film Gandhi in 1982, for which he won the Academy Award for Best Actor -- and Amitabh Bachchan, another delayed Hindi-Bengali bilingual Sunglass directed by Rituparno Ghosh and Tanu Weds Manu with Kangana Ranaut. Some other projects announced include a film on the life of the legendary Indian painter Raja Ravi Verma, a sequel to 13 B and an English film with Deepa Mehta as the director.
In 2007 Madhavan set up his own production company, ‘Leukos Films’. He is also associated with various social causes such as PETA, and he is a staunch vegetarian. In July 2006 he was voted the "cutest male vegetarian" in an online poll conducted by PETA, along with Kareena Kapoor who won the female award. He is also a popular star in mobile games.
