Naveen Polishetty – Indian film actor of ‘Agent Sai Srinivasa Athreya’ and ‘Chhichhore’ fame

Naveen Polishetty is a film actor from Hyderabad who acts in Telugu and Bollywood films. Started off as a theatre artist, he acted in comic roles in YouTube videos by AIB, which gave him the first break to big screen. 2019 comedy thriller, Agent Sai Srinivasa Athreya (2019) for which he played the titular role of a private detective gave him major break in the industry. He also co-scripted the film. He played the role of short-tempered college mate with abusive tongue – ‘Acid’ in 2019 Bollywood blockbuster, Chhichhore which marked his impressive debut in Bollywood.

His role in a school play as a bartender drew his attention towards the world of acting

Naveen Polishetty hails from Hyderabad, and was born in 1989 into a family of engineers and IITians. He started his professional career as a stage actor and acted in English and Hindi plays. In 2012, he marked his Telugu film debut with Life is Beautiful in a supporting role, and later played supporting roles in D for Dopidi and 1 – Nenokkadine (as Taxi driver’s son seeking revenge and a fan of Mahesh Babu’s rockstar character). For better opportunities, he moved to Mumbai in 2014, and gained initial recognition through YouTube videos for AIB, where he mostly played standup comedian roles. ‘Chinese Bhasad’ in 2016 earned him initial appreciation.

Two big hits in 2019 cemented his position in entertainment industry

Agent Sai Srinivasa Athreya marked his debut in a lead role, and he signed his second lead role in Jathi Ratnalu. He has been a part of TV series – Fais pas ci, fais pas ça (French), What’s Your Status, Chinese Bhasad, 24, AIB Honest Series, Untag etc. In 2019 he got two back-to-back hits through Agent Sai Srinivasa Athreya and Chhichhore in two different languages, which helped him to make his mark in the industry.

Naveen Polishetty – Some interesting and less-known facts

1. His father is into pharmaceutical business and his mother is a former bank employee.

2. During his childhood days he dreamt to get employed in Reserve Bank of India.

3. He graduated in Engineering from Maulana Azad National Institute of Technology, Bhopal.

4. After graduation he worked in Pune for a while, and then moved to London. But he returned back to pursue a career in films. Initially he didn’t reveal it to parents that he quit his secure job in London.

5. His monologue in AIB’s series, Honest Engineering Campus Replacements in 2017 made him famous.

6. During his school plays, he used to end up with girl characters as he studied in a boys’ school. He has dimples, and it was one of the reasons for his casting as a girl.

7. Theatre work was not enough to feed him, and that’s why he moved to internet medium and YouTube through All India Bakchod’s videos, which helped him to succeed.

8. In 2018 he received Digital Hash award for best actor.

9. He was one of the three male leads of the play, ‘Five Point Someone’ based on Chetan Bhagat’s book, and the play had a successful run in many countries.

10. During his struggling days, he might have attended around 1500 auditions before landing into the solo lead role of Agent Sai Srinivasa Athreya. It took almost 8 years to make his mark in the industry.

11. During his initial days when he acted in web series, TV shows and standup comedy videos, he used to walk up to people in restaurants and stare at them to make them recognize him.