Actor and writer · Telugu cinema
P. Ravi Shankar
P. Ravi Shankar movies: 23 Telugu films on file (22 as actor, 1 as writer), 1979–2024. Earliest on file: Gorintaku (1979). Latest release: Matka (14 November 2024).
- Films on file
- 23 (22 as actor, 1 as writer)
- Years on file
- 1979–2024
- Born
- 28 November 1966 · November birthdays (Wikidata)
- Selected films on file
- Guntur Kaaram, Aadavaallu Meeku Johaarlu, Bhagavanth Kesari
- Record
- Q7117492 on Wikidata
P. Ravi Shankar (born Pudipeddi Ravi Shankar, 28 November 1966), also known as Sai Ravi, is an Indian actor, dubbing artist, director and writer. One of the most prolific dubbing artists in South India, he has voiced thousands of films, with more than 1,000 each in Telugu and Tamil. As an actor he works mainly in Kannada, where his role in Kempe Gowda (2011) won him the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – Kannada.
Family
Ravi Shankar was born in Chennai to Telugu parents. His mother, Krishna Jyothy Pudipeddi, was an actress who worked with Rajkumar, and his father, P. J. Sarma, was an actor and dubbing artist. His elder brother is the actor Sai Kumar. He is married to Suchil, and their son, Adhvey, is also set to act.
Early acting
He debuted as a lead in R. Narayana Murthy’s Telugu film Aalochinchandi (1986) and had supporting roles in films such as Madhura Nagarilo. After a break he returned as a villain in Gopichand‘s debut Tholi Valapu (2001), but with little success he turned to dubbing, like his father and brother.
Dubbing artist
He has voiced actors such as Raghuvaran, Nassar, Ashish Vidyarthi, Prakash Raj, Ashutosh Rana, Sonu Sood, Mukesh Rishi and Pradeep Rawat. His Nandi Awards for Best Male Dubbing Artist include Prema Katha (1999), Indra (2002), Sye (2004), and four in a row from 2006 to 2009 for Pokiri, Athidhi, Arundhati and Anjaneyulu; his voice for Sonu Sood in Arundhati earned him the nickname “Bommali Ravi Shankar”. He also won a Tamil Nadu State award for dubbing Ashish Vidyarthi in Dhill.
Writer and director
He wrote dialogue for more than 75 Telugu films, sang playback in films such as Rakta Charitra, and directed the Kannada film Durgi (2004), later remade in Telugu as Narasimhudu from his story.
Kannada stardom
Kempe Gowda made him a household name in Karnataka, and he became a busy supporting actor in Kannada films such as Dandupalya and Bachchan, as well as in the Tamil Vettaikaaran.
Career on file
P. Ravi Shankar has 23 Telugu films on file at Tollywood Desk, dated from 1979 to 2024: 22 films as actor and one film as writer. The earliest of them is Gorintaku (1979), and the most recent release is Matka (2024). Measured by how many Wikipedia language editions cover them, the best-known titles here are Guntur Kaaram (2024), Aadavaallu Meeku Johaarlu (2022) and Bhagavanth Kesari (2023). Other recent releases on file are Bhaje Vaayu Vegam (2024), Geethanjali Malli Vachindi (2024) and Ooru Peru Bhairavakona (2024).
Shruti Haasan, Prakash Raj and Brahmanandam are the most frequent co-stars, each sharing three films with P. Ravi Shankar, followed by Mahesh Babu (2) and Ramya Krishnan (2). Among directors, Muthyala Subbaiah and Gopichand Malineni each cast P. Ravi Shankar in two films, more than any other director. Devi Sri Prasad and S. Thaman each scored three of them, more than any other music director; next are K. V. Mahadevan (2) and Thaman S (2). Across these films the credits on file name 21 different directors, 18 music directors and 79 other credited actors.
Runtime is on file for 18 of them; they average 152 minutes, and the longest is Narasimhudu at 174 minutes. 12 of them have a streaming (OTT) release noted on the site. By decade the list splits into 1970s (1), 1980s (2), 1990s (3), 2000s (4), 2010s (3) and 2020s (10). 2024 is the busiest single year, with five films.
Figures come from the films on file at Tollywood Desk and change as records are added.