Dheekshith Shetty
Dheekshith Shetty | |
|---|---|
 Shetty in 2022 | |
| Born | 22 December 1995[1] |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2016−present |
Dheekshith Shetty (/ˈdiːkʃɪθ ˈʃɛti/) (born 22 December 1995) is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Kannada and Telugu films. He rose to prominence with his critically acclaimed performance in the Kannada romantic drama, Dia (2020) which earned him a SIIMA Award nomination and established him as one of the most promising talents in the industry.
Starting his career in Kannada television with shows like Naagini and Preethi Endarenu, Shetty transitioned to films and later expanded into Telugu cinema with notable roles in Mugguru Monagallu (2021) and the blockbuster Dasara (2023) , for which he won the SIIMA Award for Best Supporting Actor – Telugu.[3] Shetty won the SIIMA Award for Best Supporting Actor – Telugu for his performance in Dasara (2023).[4]
Career
[edit]Television beginnings (2016–2019)
[edit]Dheekshith Shetty began his acting career in Kannada television with the soap operas Preethi Endarenu and Saakshi in 2016. His breakthrough came with the supernatural drama Naagini (2016–2020) on Zee Kannada, where he portrayed Arjun/Partha opposite Deepika Das.[5] The show's popularity made him a household name in Karnataka. In 2017, he participated in the reality show Dance Karnataka Dance and emerged as the winner, further boosting his visibility.[6]
Film debut and rise in Kannada cinema (2020–2022)
[edit]Shetty made his feature film debut with K. S. Ashoka's romantic drama Dia (2020), playing Rohit.[7] The film was a critical and commercial success, and his nuanced performance earned him a SIIMA nomination for Best Supporting Actor – Kannada. This role established him as one of the most promising talents in Sandalwood. He also appeared in short films like Oh Fish and Navabelaku during this period.
Entry into Telugu cinema and breakthrough (2021–2023)
[edit]In 2021, Shetty debuted in Telugu cinema with Mugguru Monagallu and later starred in The Rose Villa. His major breakthrough came in 2023 with Dasara, directed by Srikanth Odela, where he played Siddham "Suri" alongside Nani, Keerthy Suresh and Shine Tom Chacko.[8][9] The film was a box-office hit, and Shetty won the SIIMA Award for Best Supporting Actor – Telugu, also earning a Filmfare nomination.
He also appeared in the anthology series Meet Cute produced by Nani.[10][11]
Recent work and experimentation (2024–present)
[edit]In 2024, Shetty starred in KTM, portraying four different avatars to depict a character's journey from teenage years to adulthood, showcasing his versatility.[12] He also appeared in Blink, an experimental Kannada film inspired by the Oedipus myth, which received glowing reviews for its bold narrative and Shetty's performance.[13][14]
Shetty's 2025 projects include The Girlfriend in Telugu co-starring Rashmika Mandanna. Upon release, the film garnered mixed reviews with Sruthi Ganapathy Raman of The Hollywood Reporter India writing, "The Girlfriend, led skilfully by Mandanna and Shetty, might be about toxic relationships and revolve around a conventional heteronormative couple with an alpha-beta equation, but it always makes sure to keep its characters accountable."[15] His next Kannada film, Bank of Bhagyalakshmi and web series Touch Me Not is set for release.
Filmography
[edit]Film
[edit]| † | Denotes film or TV productions that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Role | Language | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Oh Fish | Kannada | Short film | [16] | |
| Dia | Rohit | [17][18] | |||
| 2021 | Mugguru Monagallu | Chandrathreya Kishore Varma | Telugu | [19] | |
| The Rose Villa | Ravi | [20] | |||
| 2022 | Navabelaku | Kannada | Short film | ||
| Smile | |||||
| 2023 | Dasara | Siddham Suryam "Suri" | Telugu | [21] | |
| 2024 | KTM | Karthik | Kannada | [22] | |
| Blink | Apoorva | [23] | |||
| 2025 | The Girlfriend | Vikram / Vicky | Telugu | [24] | |
| Bank of Bhagyalakshmi | Kanaka | Kannada | [25] | ||
| TBA | Sheegrameva Kalyana Praptirasthu † | Sagar | Kannada | Filming | [26] |
| TBA | Strawberry † | TBA | Post-production | [27] | |
| TBA | KJQ † | TBA | Telugu | Filming | [28] |
| TBA | Oppees † | TBA | Malayalam | Filming | [29] |
Television
[edit]| Year | Title | Role | Network | Language | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | Preethi Endarenu | Star Suvarna | Kannada | |||
| Saakshi | Udaya TV | |||||
| 2016–2020 | Naagini | Arjun/Partha | Zee Kannada | [30] | ||
| 2017 | Dance Karnataka Dance | Contestant | Winner | [31] | ||
| 2021 | Kamali | Cameo | [32] | |||
| 2022 | Meet Cute | Siddharth | SonyLIV | Telugu | Segment: "In L(aw)ove" | [33] |
| 2025 | Touch Me Not | Rishi | JioHotstar |
Awards and nominations
[edit]| Year | Award | Category | Work | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 9th South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Supporting Actor – Kannada | Dia | Nominated | [18] |
| 2024 | 69th Filmfare Awards South | Best Supporting Actor – Telugu | Dasara | Nominated | [34] |
| 12th South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Supporting Actor – Telugu | Won | [4] |
References
[edit]- ^ "The Girlfriend - Dheekshith Shetty roped in for Rashmika Mandanna, Rahul Ravindran's next". OTTPlay.
- ^ "Post lockdown Dheekshith Shetty spends time farming and swimming at his hometown". 5 May 2021 – via The Economic Times - The Times of India.
- ^ Nachiyar, Nalme (25 March 2023). "An actor prepares: Dheekshith Shetty on 'Dasara' and a career of experimentation". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ a b "SIIMA Awards 2024: Dasara, Hi Nanna, Kaatera and Sapta Sagaradaache Ello win big on Day 1". The Indian Express. 15 September 2024. Retrieved 15 September 2024.
- ^ "Kannada TV show Naagini completes 900 episodes; actors Deepika and Deekshith thank the viewers". The Times of India. 8 July 2019. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "Naagini team wins Dance Karnataka Dance show". The Times of India. 4 December 2017. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "Dia completes two years of its release". The Times of India. 7 February 2022. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "Pan-Indian actors have a lot more options to choose from: Dheekshith Shetty". The Times of India. 26 December 2023. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ V, DHNS, Vivek M. "'Dasara' and Dheekshith's triumph of hard work". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "Exclusive! Dia star Dheekshith Shetty's next is the Telugu anthology 'Meet Cute'". OTTPlay. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "Dheekshith Shetty bags a Telugu film backed by Nani". The Times of India. 19 September 2021. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ S, Pranati A. "'KTM' movie review: No good reason to watch this shoddy movie". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ M.V, Vivek (9 March 2024). "'Blink' movie review: Srinidhi Bengaluru makes a solid debut with a gripping time-travel drama". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "Blink - Dheekshith Shetty on playing a character with Oedipus complex". OTTPlay. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
- ^ "'The Girlfriend' Movie Review: An Important, Introspective Relationship Drama". The Hollywood Reporter India. 7 November 2025.
- ^ "Dheekshith Shetty and Vainidhi Jagdish's short film to release this Friday". The Times of India. 25 August 2020. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
- ^ "Dia movie review: Director Ashoka delivers a heart-warming, unique love story". Cinema Express. 18 January 2021. Archived from the original on 15 February 2020. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
- ^ a b "The 9th South Indian International Movie Awards Nominations for 2020". South Indian International Movie Awards. Archived from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
- ^ "Mugguru Monagallu Telugu Movie Review". 123telugu.com. 6 August 2021. Archived from the original on 4 October 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
- ^ "The Rose Villa – Official Trailer". The Times of India. 30 September 2021. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
- ^ "Dheekshith Shetty bags a film alongside Telugu star Nani". The Times of India. 23 March 2022. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
- ^ M.V., Vivek (16 February 2024). "'KTM' movie review: Dheekshith Shetty gives his all in a film stuck in a time warp". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 17 February 2024.
- ^ S, Pranati A. "'Blink' movie review: Brilliantly executed time-travel sci-fi drama". Deccan Herald. Retrieved 10 March 2024.
- ^ "The Girlfriend: Dheekshith Shetty to be the boyfriend of Rashmika mandana". 20 February 2024.
- ^ "I am happy to take on a different genre with 'Bank of Bhagyalakshmi': Dheekshith Shetty". 20 May 2024.
- ^ "Dheekshith Shetty talks about his bustling career". Deccan Herald. 9 October 2021. Archived from the original on 27 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
- ^ "Mangaluru: Arjun Lewis directorial Kannada movie 'Strawberry' poster released". daijiworld. 9 February 2022. Archived from the original on 26 April 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
- ^ "Dasara actor's new Telugu movie titled KJQ". 20 February 2024.
- ^ "Dheekshith Shetty To Make His Malayalam Debut With OPPEES". 27 December 2023.
- ^ "Dheekshith Shetty gets nostalgic recalling Naagini days". The Times of India. 11 February 2022. Archived from the original on 14 May 2022. Retrieved 14 May 2022.
- ^ "Naagini team wins Dance Karnataka Dance show". The Times of India. 4 December 2017. Archived from the original on 10 July 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
- ^ "Dheekshith Shetty plays a cameo in a television serial - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 6 June 2021.
- ^ "Nani's Film Locks OTT Platform For Direct Release". Mirchi 9. 26 April 2022. Archived from the original on 28 May 2022. Retrieved 10 July 2022.
- ^ "Nominations for Filmfare Awards Telugu 2024 are out!". Filmfare. Retrieved 17 July 2024.