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Bava Chelladurai dons many hats: he is an Indian writer, storyteller, actor, literary activist, and farmer. Bava is well-known for his Tamil short stories, and he works as an actor in the Tamil film industry, with Jai Bhim being one of his biggest blockbusters.
Wiki/Biography
Bava Chelladurai was born on Sunday, 22 April 1962 (age 59 years; as of 2021) in Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu. His zodiac sign is Taurus. Bava attended the Danish Mission Higher Secondary School in his hometown of Tiruvannamalai.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 9″
Hair Colour: Salt and Pepper
Eye Colour: Black
Family & Caste
He belongs to a Dalit Christian family.
Wife & Children
Bava is married to K. V. Shylaja, who owns and manages a publishing house called “Vamsi” in Tamil Nadu. The couple has two children.
Bava Chelladurai with his wife
Their son, Vamsi Bava Chelladurai, is pursuing English Literature at Madras Christian College, and he made his first documentary called Asvagosh in 2019. Bava had another son named CB, who died in an accident.
Bava Chelladurai’s son Vamsi
He also has a daughter named Manasi Bava Chelladurai.
Bava Chelladurai’s daughter
Religion/Religious Views
Bava became an atheist as he grew up.
Career
Storytelling
Bava is a well-known name in the Tamil storytelling clubs. He writes short stories that are unique and contain “story mantras.” Most of Chelladuari’s works have already been translated into English, Hindi, and Malayalam languages, and now they are being translated into French, Spanish, and German as well. Bava started to perform storytelling with his friend J. P. He revealed in an interview that the duo decided to perform every Friday evening at his friend J. P.’s Quartis Multilingual Conversation Center, in Thiruvannamalai. Bava added,
We started this storytelling event next Friday. With no big plan for it, no poster, no banner, we simply put a post on Facebook that storytelling is going to happen in this place. About 60 people came for it.”
Acting
The writer tapped into his acting skills and made a debut in the Tamil film industry in 2016 with a film named “Joker,” in which he was seen in a comic role.
Bava Chelladurai in a still from the movie Joker
Following his debut, Bava has featured in many Kollywood films. In 2019, he appeared in the Tamil-language film, Peranbu, as a character named Siddha Kudimagan. Next year, the actor did two movies – Psycho, as Akbar and Walter, as Eshwaramoorthi. Bava played the role of Annam’s husband in the film Sennai in 2021, and in the same year, he was applauded for his acting skills in the widely acclaimed Tamil drama, Jai Bhim, in which he was seen as a politician named Natraja.
Writing
Chelladurai is a popular Tamil writer, who started writing in 2011. His debut book, “Ruins of the Night,” was co-written by Janaki Venkataraman. In 2013, he co-wrote his second book, “Kaalam,” in collaboration with V Nedu Cheziyan. Bava published two books as an author in 2016 – Bashirin Arai Aththanai Elithil Thirakkapadavillai and Dominick. In 2018, he came out with two more books titled “Ella Nalum Karthigai,” and “From 19 DM Saron.”
Award, Achievement
In May 2021, Bava was felicitated with the Best Actor Award at Golden Sparrow International Film Festival for his feature film.
Salary/Income
According to an article published in October 2023, Bava charged between Rs. 1 lakh to Rs. 3 lakhs per week.
Favourites
Facts/Trivia
- Bava is a declared Marxist.
- He is in charge of the Progressive Writers’ Association in Tamil Nadu.
- The storyteller took to the video platform, YouTube, in 2010, to continue his storytelling, and his namesake channel has more than 35 K subscribers as of 2021. Chelladurai revealed in an interview that he had no such intentions; however, his son, Vamsi, recorded his third and fourth storytelling events and uploaded the videos on YouTube. This eventually started Chelladurai’s YouTube channel. Bava added,
Actually, I have this YouTube channel and I have no idea how to get started with it. He [Bava’s son] had just bought a camera and was learning all about photography.”
- Chelladurai is an advocate of Dalit rights, and he has remained a part of the jury that did a public hearing on the murders of Dalits in Tamil Nadu in 2017. Evidence, a Madurai-based NGO, organised the hearing.
- The actor also strongly spoke against constructing a drainage pipe in Sonagiri Forest of Tiruvannamalai, Tamil Nadu.