Siddhant Chaturvedi (born 29 April 1993) is an Indian actor who appears in Hindi films. He starred as a teenage cricketer in the Amazon Prime Video web series ‘Inside Edge’ from 2017 to 2019 and ventured into Bollywood in the supporting role of MC Sher, a street rapper in the musical drama ‘Gully Boy’ (2019), which earned him widespread critical acclaim and nationwide recognition, in addition to winning the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor and a nomination for Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut.
Early life
Chaturvedi was born on April 29, 1993 in Ballia, Uttar Pradesh and moved to Mumbai when he was five years old. His father is a chartered accountant and his mother, a homemaker. He attended Mithibai college in Mumbai and initially aspired to be a chartered accountant (CA), while acting on stage as a hobby. While pursuing his CA articleship, he became disillusioned and took some time off, during which he participated in and won ‘The Times of India’s’ Fresh Face Contest in 2013.
Early career and appreciative film debut (2016–19)
In 2016, Chaturvedi appeared in the web television sitcom ‘Life Sahi Hai’, about four male roommates. The following year, he began starring as Prashant Kanaujia, a teenage cricketer, in the Amazon Prime Video web series ‘Inside Edge’, which was inspired by the Indian Premier League. Reviewing the first season for Scroll.in, Devarsi Ghosh considered Chaturvedi and his co-star Tanuj Virwani to be the show’s “two big acting discoveries”. He later reprised his role for the second season in 2019.
At a success party of ‘Inside Edge’, filmmaker Zoya Akhtar, whose brother Farhan Akhtar produced the show, spotted and asked Chaturvedi to audition for her next directorial ‘Gully Boy’ (2019), which marked his film debut and proved to be his breakout role.
Starring Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt, the film saw Chaturvedi play the supporting role of a street rapper named MC Sher, who fuels the ambitions of Ranveer Singh’s titular character. Jay Weissberg of ‘Variety’ found Chaturvedi to be “impressive” in his part, and Rajeev Masand commended his “charming presence”.
At the annual Filmfare Awards ceremony, he was awarded with the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor in addition to a nomination for Best Male Debut.
Further works (2020–present)
Chaturvedi starred in Yash Raj Films’s ‘Bunty Aur Babli 2’ co-starring Rani Mukerji, Saif Ali Khan and Sharvari Wagh, that is a sequel to the crime comedy ‘Bunty Aur Babli’ (2005). He also starred in Shakun Batra’s romantic drama, Gehraiyaan, in which he plays lead role opposite Deepika Padukone and Ananya Panday. On 12 December 2020, he began shooting for the horror comedy ‘Phone Bhoot’ with Katrina Kaif and Ishaan Khatter.
Siddhant Chaturvedi is set to feature in his upcoming romantic-action-thriller ‘Yudhra’, directed by Ravi Udyawar. The film also features Malavika Mohanan and Raghav Juyal. He will be seen with Ananya Panday and Adarsh Gourav in ‘Kho Gaye Hum Kahan’ which is slated to release in 2023.
With Gehraiyaan, the actor is turning his back on stereotypes, leaning into ‘real’ narratives, and letting director Shakun Batra’s collaborative process strengthen his craft.
“It’s a relationship drama, but unlike anything you’ve seen before,” he says. “We called it domestic noir for the longest time and didn’t even have a title until much later because it’s so new and fresh.” Siddhant said to ‘The Hindu Weekend’.
‘Gehraiyaan’, a Dharma Production directed by Shakun Batra, that also stars Deepika Padukone and Ananya Pandey, is Chaturvedi’s third film. The actor had a dream debut of sorts in Zoya Akhtar’s Gully Boy (2019) as MC Sher — who helped Ranveer Singh’s Murad channel his angst and achieve his dream of a career in hip-hop.
