Shobana Height, Age, Family, Biography

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Hometown: Trivandrum, Kerala

Marital Status: Unmarried

Age: 54 Years

Bio/Wiki
Full Name	Shobana Chandrakumar Pillai
Profession(s)	• Actress • Dancer • Choreographer
Physical Stats
Height (approx.)	5' 8" (172 cm)
Eye Colour	Black
Hair Colour	Black
Career
Debut	• Tamil Film: Mangala Nayagi (1980) as a child artist • Telugu Film: Bhakta Dhruva Markandeya (1982) as Sunithi Devi • Malayalam Film: April 18 (1984) as Shobana • Kannada Film: Giri Baale (1985) as Neelaveni • Hindi Film: Swami Vivekananda (1998) as a Dancer • English Film: Mitr, My Friend (2002) as Lakshmi • TV (Tamil): Penn (1991) on DD Podhigai • TV (Malayalam): Super Jodi (2010) on Surya TV
Awards & Honours	• Best Child Artist award for the film Mangala Nayagi (1980) • Best Actress for the film Manichitrathazhu (National Film Awards; 1993) • Best Actress for the film Manichitrathazhu (Kerala State Film Awards; 1993) • Best Actress for the film Thenmavin Kombath (Filmfare Awards South; 1994) • Best Actress for the film Innale (1999) • Grade A Top by Doordarshan (2000) • Best Actress for the film Mitr, My Friend (National Film Awards; 2002) • Padma Shri (2006) • Kalaimamani (2011) • Arch of Excellence by All India Achievers Conference (2012) • Kalarathna by Kerala Sangeetha Nataka Academy (2013) • Best Actress for the film Thira (Vanitha Film Awards; 2013) • Honorary doctorate (D.Litt) by Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute (2019) • Best Actress for the film Varane Avashyamund (10th South Indian International Movie Awards; 2021) • Doctor of Letters degree from Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit (2022) • She has won two National Film Awards, one Kerala State Film Award, and two Filmfare Awards South with 14 nominations for Best Actress in three different South Indian languages
Personal Life
Date of Birth	21 March 1970 (Saturday)
Age (as of 2024)	54 Years
Birthplace	Trivandrum, Kerala, India
Zodiac sign	Aries
Nationality	Indian
Hometown	Trivandrum, Kerala, India
School	St. Thomas Higher Secondary School, Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu
Religion	Hinduism
Food Habit	Non-vegetarian
Tattoo(s)	• On her right arm • On her left arm
Social Media	• Instagram • Facebook • YouTube • Twitter
Relationships & More
Marital Status	Unmarried
Family
Children	Daughter- Anantha Narayani (adopted; dancer)
Parents	Father- Chandrakumar Pillai Mother- Anandam Chandrakumar
Other Relatives	Cousins Travancore sisters (Lalitha, Padmini, Ragini) (dancers, performers) Parvathy Jayaram (actress) Vineeth (actor)

Some Lesser Known Facts About Shobana

Shobana started her career as a child artist.
A childhood picture of Shobana

She came into the limelight with the 1980 Tamil film ‘Mangala Nayagi,’ which was directed by Krishnan and Panju. This film was a remake of the Hindi film ‘Saajan Bina Suhagan.’
Shobana as a child artist in a still from the film Mangala Nayagi

In 1982, she appeared in the Telugu film ‘Bhakta Dhruva Markendaya,’ a children’s film. The film was later released in Tamil.

Shobhana is a trained Bharatanatyam dancer. She is trained by Chitra Visweswaran and Padma Subrahmanyam at the Chidambaram Academy of Performing Arts (CAPA) in Chennai, Tamil Nadu.
An old picture of Shobana while performing Bharata Natyam

Shobana excels in Abhinaya, a form of Bharatanatyam. She became an independent performer and choreographer in her twenties.

She entered the film industry as an actress with the Malayalam film ‘April 18’ in 1984. The film was directed by Balachandra Menon. Her portrayal of a simple girl in the film was praised by audiences.

In 1984, she made her acting debut in the Tamil film industry with the film ‘Enakkul Oruvan,’ which was directed by SP Muthuraman. The film did not perform well at the box office.
Shobana in a still from the film Enakkul Oruvan

In the 1984 film ‘Rudraveena,’ she acted opposite Chiranjeevi and played the role of Lalitha Sivajyothi, a classical dancer from a lower caste who was denied entry into the temple. This role brought her recognition in Telugu cinema.

She performed live at the World Malayalee Convention in the United States in 1985.

In 1985, Shobana acted in sixteen films.

In the 1988 film ‘Abhinandana,’ she played the love interest of Karthik’s character, who aspires to become a classical dancer.
Shobana in a still from the film Abhinandana

In 1989, she started her dance school named ‘Kalipinya,’ and registered it in 1992.

In the 1990 film ‘Kokila,’ Shobana worked with actor Naresh, and in ‘Alludugaru,’ she acted opposite Mohan Babu. ‘Alludugaru’ was a remake of the Malayalam film ‘Chithram.’
Shobana on the poster of the film Alludugaru

Shobana worked in some Tamil films in the early 1990s. These films include ‘Mallu Vetti Minor,’ ‘Vaathiyaar Veettu Pillai,’ ‘Idhu Namma Aalu,’ ‘Ponmana Selvan,’ and ‘En Kitta Mothathey.’

Shobana then returned to Malayalam films.

Some of her hit Malayalam films include ‘Kanamarayathu’ (1984), ‘Kalikkalam’ (1990), ‘Makalkku’ (2005), ‘Thira’ (2013), and ‘Varane Avashyamund’ (2020).
Shobana in a still from the film Varane Avashyamund

In Tollywood, Shobana has acted alongside top actors including Nandamuri Balakrishna, Daguubati Venkatesh, Chiranjeevi, Akkineni Nagarjuna, Rajinikanth, Mohan Babu, and Rajendra Prasad.
Shobana in a still from a film with actor Rajinikanth

In 1991, she appeared in the Telugu films ‘1 April Vidudala’ and ‘Rowdy Gari Pellam.’

In 1994, Shobana founded another classical dance school named ‘Kalarpana’ in Chennai.

In her live dance shows and events, she often collaborates with artists like Zakir Hussain, Vikku Vinayakram, and Mandolin Srinivas.
Shobana posing with Zakir Hussain, Shankar Mahadevan, and others

In 1995, she performed a dance show in Kuala Lumpur before the King and Queen of Malaysia.

She has performed at stage shows across the United States, Europe, Southeast Asia, and Australia, and is a regular performer at the Soorya Music & Dance Festival organized by Soorya Krishnamoorthy.

In 2001, she appeared in the Indian English-language film ‘Mitr, My Friend.’ The film was directed by actress Revathy.
Shobana in a still from the film Mitr, My Friend (2001)

In 2003, she appeared in an English language film ‘A Little Dream,’ based on the life of former Indian President late APJ Abdul Kalam.

She acted in the Tamil historical film ‘Kochadaiiyaan’ in 2014.

Shobana has acted in more than 230 films in various languages.

In 2019, she was featured on the cover of Vogue magazine.
Shobana on the cover of Vogue magazine

She frequently appears as a judge on various dance reality shows on television.
Shobana during a dance reality show

She is an animal lover and has pet dogs. She often shares pictures of her pets on social media.
Shobana with her pet dogs

She likes travelling to distant places, cooking food, singing classical songs, and listening to music in her free time.
Shobana while enjoying a trip

She is often invited to various events as a guest by the Government of Kerala to promote Kerala Tourism.
Shobana while promoting Kerala Tourism during an event