Actor Nivin Pauly is an Indian film actor and producer, who works in Malayalam films. A native of Aluva, Ernakulam, he applied for an audition for Vineeth Sreenivasan's directional debut Malarvaadi Arts Club in 2009. After the initial test, he failed to make it to the final list of 12 shortlisted candidates. But, as the fate would have it, he was called in again as one of the shortlisted candidates dropped out of the audition. Nivin managed to impress the filmmakers and bagged his debut film, which released in 2010. Following that, he played minor and cameo roles in Malayalam films until Thattathin Marayathu, which became one of the biggest hits in Malayalam in 2012. The success of the film opened new doors for the young actor. In 2013, he starred in Tamil with Neram, which helped him win the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. And with films like 1983 (2014), Ohm Shanthi Oshaana (2014), Bangalore Days (2014) and Oru Vadakkan Selfie (2015), he developed a strong fan following in Kerala. However, his 2015 romantic-comedy Premam boosted his popularity to a new high. He is married to Rinna Joy since 2010 and has a son.