Rio Raj

Rio Raj is an Indian actor and television host who works in Tamil television and cinema. He began on Star Vijay's youth serial Kana Kaanum Kaalangal Kaloori Saalai in 2011, became a familiar face as a Sun Music video jockey, and found fame as Saravanan, the male lead of Saravanan Meenatchi season 3 (2016 to 2018), which won him the Favourite Find of the Year award at the Vijay Television Awards. In 2020 to 2021 he finished second runner-up on Bigg Boss Tamil season 4.

He made his debut as a film lead in Nenjamundu Nermaiyundu Odu Raja (2019), produced by Sivakarthikeyan, and established himself in cinema with the romantic drama Joe (2023), in which he also made his debut as a lyricist. Three of his films as lead were released in 2025, including Sweetheart!, produced by Yuvan Shankar Raja, and Aan Paavam Pollathathu, which drew the best reviews of his film career so far.

As of November 2026, his latest release is the romantic comedy Ram and Leela, which opened on 21 August 2026 and has been streaming on Amazon Prime Video since 18 September 2026. He launched his own production house, River Route Studios, in March 2026, and his next film as lead, Maddy, is in post-production.

Quick facts

Early life

Rio Raj is from Erode in Tamil Nadu, where he grew up in a joint family. He moved to Chennai when he entered the media industry and has lived there since.

Career

Television and Sun Music (2011 to 2016)

Rio Raj's first acting role was Pazhani in Kana Kaanum Kaalangal Kaloori Saalai, the college-set edition of Star Vijay's youth drama, in 2011 to 2012. He then joined Sun Music as a video jockey and hosted shows including Kaloori Kalam, Suda Suda Chennai and Free Ah Vidu.

He made small film appearances during this period, the first credited one being Guna's friend in Sathriyan (2017), starring Vikram Prabhu.

Saravanan Meenatchi season 3 (2016 to 2018)

His breakthrough came when Star Vijay cast him as the male lead of the third season of Saravanan Meenatchi, which ran for 575 episodes from 18 July 2016 to 17 August 2018 and closed the seven-year franchise. He played Saravanan Veluchamy, a middle-class young man who marries Meenatchi, a London-educated woman from a wealthy family, played by Rachitha Mahalakshmi. At the 3rd Vijay Television Awards in 2017 he won Favourite Find of the Year and was nominated for Favourite Actor Male; the following year he and Rachitha were nominated for Favourite Screen Pair.

During the same period he and Sruthi Ravi, whom he later married, competed as a pair on the Star Vijay dance show Jodi Number One season 9 and reached the finals, and he hosted the Star Vijay game show Ready Steady Po.

Nenjamundu Nermaiyundu Odu Raja (2019)

His first film as lead was the comedy Nenjamundu Nermaiyundu Odu Raja, released on 14 June 2019. It was the directorial debut of Karthik Venugopalan and the second production of Sivakarthikeyan Productions, with music by Shabir. Rio Raj played Shiva, a YouTube prankster, alongside Shirin Kanchwala, RJ Vigneshkanth, Radha Ravi and Nanjil Sampath; several of the cast, including Rio Raj, came from the YouTube channel Black Sheep. Reviews were mixed, with The Times of India rating it 2.5 out of 5.

Bigg Boss Tamil 4 (2020 to 2021)

Rio Raj entered the fourth season of Bigg Boss Tamil, hosted by Kamal Haasan on Star Vijay, on its opening day, 4 October 2020. He was house captain three times and stayed for the full 105 days, finishing second runner-up at the finale on 17 January 2021 behind winner Aari Arjunan and runner-up Balaji Murugadoss. He returned to Star Vijay in 2021 to host Varutha Padatha Valibar Sangam, a special show built around the 6th Vijay Television Awards. The same year he appeared as Sembi in the film Plan Panni Pannanum.

Joe (2023)

After Broken Script (2023), in which he played Thambi Durai, Rio Raj took the title role in Joe, a romantic drama written and directed by debutant Hariharan Ram S. and released on 24 November 2023. Produced by Vision Cinema House with music by Siddhu Kumar, it cast him as Joe opposite Malavika Manoj as his late girlfriend Suchitra and Bhavya Trikha as his wife Shruthi. Rio Raj also wrote the lyrics of the song "Kovai Kulira", sung by Vineeth Sreenivasan, his first work as a lyricist. The film received mixed to positive reviews and completed a 50-day run in theatres.

Three lead roles in a year (2025)

In 2025 he had three lead roles in theatres. He played Athiyan in Niram Marum Ulagil, an anthology about parental sacrifice written and directed by debutant Britto JB and released on 7 March 2025, with Bharathiraja and Natty Subramaniam among the cast.

A week later, on 14 March 2025, came Sweetheart!, a romantic comedy written and directed by debutant Swineeth S. Sukumar and produced and scored by Yuvan Shankar Raja under YSR Films. Rio Raj played Vasu, a young man whose fear of being abandoned wrecks his relationship with Manu, played by Gopika Ramesh; he also wrote the lyrics of its "Amma Song". He has said he pitched the story to Yuvan Shankar Raja during a music-video shoot. Reviews were mixed, though the lead performances were praised. It began streaming on JioHotstar on 11 April 2025.

On 31 October 2025 came Aan Paavam Pollathathu, the directorial debut of Kalaiarasan Thangavel, produced by Drumsticks Productions and distributed by AGS Entertainment, with music by Siddhu Kumar. Rio Raj played Siva, a Chennai IT professional, opposite Malavika Manoj, reuniting the pair from Joe, with RJ Vigneshkanth and Sheela Rajkumar as lawyers. It earned the strongest reviews of his film career, with The Times of India rating it 3.5 out of 5 and Cinema Express 3 out of 5. It began streaming on JioHotstar on 28 November 2025.

Ram and Leela and River Route Studios (2026)

Rio Raj's next film was announced on 1 December 2025 under the title Ram In Leela and retitled Ram and Leela shortly before release. A romantic comedy with a supernatural twist, it was the directorial debut of Ramachandrran Kannan, produced by Trident Arts and EYWA Entertainments, with music by Ankit Menon. Rio Raj played Raghuram, known as Ram, a man with fifty matrimonial rejections behind him who marries Leela, played by debutante Vartika Jain, on the condition that he never sees her after 6 pm. Released on 21 August 2026, it drew mixed reviews and did not do well at the box office. It began streaming on Amazon Prime Video on 18 September 2026.

In March 2026 he launched his own production banner, River Route Studios, announcing two films: one directed by Kathiravan and another written and directed by K. Sivamuneswaran.

Upcoming film

His next film as lead is Maddy, a romance set against a cricket backdrop, directed by debutant Karthikeyan and produced by Kalai Arasu under Roll Time Studio, with music by Dhibu Ninan Thomas. Rio Raj plays Sachin opposite Saniya Iyappan. Shooting was complete and visual-effects work was under way in September 2026; no release date has been announced.

Filmography

Television

Songs

Awards

Personal life

Rio Raj is married to Sruthi Ravi. The couple have appeared together on television, including on Jodi Number One.

FAQ

Which serial made Rio Raj famous?

Saravanan Meenatchi season 3 on Star Vijay, in which he played Saravanan opposite Rachitha Mahalakshmi from 2016 to 2018. He won Favourite Find of the Year at the 2017 Vijay Television Awards for it.

Did Rio Raj win Bigg Boss Tamil 4?

No. He finished second runner-up at the finale on 17 January 2021. Aari Arjunan won the season and Balaji Murugadoss was the runner-up.

What is Rio Raj's latest film?

Ram and Leela, a romantic comedy directed by Ramachandrran Kannan, released on 21 August 2026 and streaming on Amazon Prime Video since 18 September 2026.

What is Rio Raj's next film?

Maddy, a cricket-themed romance directed by Karthikeyan, in which he plays Sachin opposite Saniya Iyappan. It is in post-production and has no release date yet.

Has Rio Raj written songs?

Yes. He wrote the lyrics of "Kovai Kulira" in Joe (2023) and "Amma Song" in Sweetheart! (2025).

Who is Rio Raj's wife?

Sruthi Ravi. They competed together as a pair on the Star Vijay dance show Jodi Number One.