# Kunchacko Boban filmography
**Kunchacko Boban** (കുഞ്ചാക്കോ ബോബൻ), also known as Chackochan, is an Indian actor and producer who works mainly in [Malayalam cinema](https://www.edgepedia.org/malayalam-cinema). His filmography spans from a childhood appearance in *Dhanya* (1981) through a romantic-hero first stint, a mid-2000s sabbatical, and a second career built on content-driven and often unconventional roles. Database listings credit him with 123 acting films between 1981 and 2026, of which 112 had been released as of the most recent crawl[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors).
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| First screen appearance | Child actor in Fazil's *Dhanya* (1981), produced by his father Boban Kunchacko[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors) |
| Lead debut | *Aniyathipraavu* (1997), directed by Fazil, co-starring Shalini[2](https://www.malayalachalachithram.com/movieslist.php?a=5717&p=1&tot=105) |
| Career totals | 123 acting credits, 112 released, 7 unreleased, 1 dubbing film, 4 awaiting release; 46 years active[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors) |
| Sabbatical and return | Self-imposed break in 2005; returned to more mature roles[3](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/kunchacko-boban-i-feel-fired-up-to-do-new-daring-roles/articleshow/92624863.cms) |
| Highest-profile film | *2018: Everyone Is a Hero* (2023), India's official entry for Best Foreign Film at the 96th Academy Awards[4](https://fipresci-india.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Newsletter-Sept-2023.pdf) |
| Recent hit | *Officer on Duty* (2025), which he called his best performance[5](https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/others/kunchacko-boban-interview-performance-in-officer-on-duty-my-best-ever-101740471724536.html) |
| Industry | Malayalam only; he has not worked in any other film industry[6](https://www.ottplay.com/interview/kunchacko-boban-characters-like-nayattus-praveen-michael-stay-with-you-long-after-the-film-is-over/913) |
## Background and debut
[Kunchacko Boban](https://www.edgepedia.org/kunchacko-boban) was born into the Udaya Pictures family: he is the son of producer [Boban Kunchacko](https://www.edgepedia.org/boban-kunchacko) and the grandson of producer Kunchacko, a pioneering figure of Malayalam cinema[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors) • [7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0090283/). His birth year is reported differently by sources: Filmibeat gives 2 November 1979 in [Alappuzha](https://www.edgepedia.org/alappuzha), Kerala[8](https://www.filmibeat.com/celebs/kunchacko-boban/upcoming-movies.html), while MalayalaSangeetham gives 2 November 1976[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors).
He appeared as a child actor in Fazil's *Dhanya* in 1984, according to the MalayalaSangeetham profile, which lists the film's year as 1981[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors). Twelve years later, Fazil cast him as the lead of *Aniyathipraavu* (1997) opposite Shalini, a superhit that made him the poster boy of Malayalam romantic films[2](https://www.malayalachalachithram.com/movieslist.php?a=5717&p=1&tot=105) • [3](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/kunchacko-boban-i-feel-fired-up-to-do-new-daring-roles/articleshow/92624863.cms).
## First stint: the romantic-hero years (1997–2005)
Through the late 1990s and early 2000s Boban played romantic leads in films such as *Mayilppeelikkaavu* (1998), *Nakshathrathaaraattu* (1998), *Harikrishnans* (1998), *Niram* (1999), *Prem Poojaari* (1999), *Mazhavillu* (1999), *Priyam* (2000), and *Kalyanaraman* (2002)[9](https://malayalam.filmibeat.com/celebs/kunchacko-boban/filmography.html) • [1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors). Several of these paired him again with Shalini[2](https://www.malayalachalachithram.com/movieslist.php?a=5717&p=1&tot=105).
In a 2022 interview he described this period as a decade of chocolate romances, followed by a brief self-imposed sabbatical in 2005[3](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/kunchacko-boban-i-feel-fired-up-to-do-new-daring-roles/articleshow/92624863.cms).
## Second phase: comeback and reinvention (2008 onward)
After returning, Boban took on more mature and varied characters. He has cited *[Traffic](https://www.edgepedia.org/traffic-2011-film)* (2011), in which he played a character with gray shades, and *Seniors* (2011), in which his character had psychological issues, as the films that changed his image[10](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/im-taking-my-films-more-seriously-now-kunchacko-boban/articleshow/38743585.cms). By his own account he wanted to be an actor rather than a star, and accepted second-fiddle roles opposite heroines in films such as *Kasthuriman*, *Elsamma Enna Aankutty*, *How Old Are You*, and *Take Off*[10](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/im-taking-my-films-more-seriously-now-kunchacko-boban/articleshow/38743585.cms).
The late 2010s and early 2020s produced his most critically noted work. In the space of three years he appeared in *[Virus](https://www.edgepedia.org/virus-2019-film)* (2019), *Anjaam Pathiraa* (2020), and *Nayattu* (2021), all critically and commercially acclaimed, and in 2021 three of his films, *Nayattu*, *Nizhal*, and *Mohan Kumar Fans*, released on OTT within two weeks[6](https://www.ottplay.com/interview/kunchacko-boban-characters-like-nayattus-praveen-michael-stay-with-you-long-after-the-film-is-over/913). In Kamal KM's *Pada* (2022) he played Rajesh Kanjangadu, a firebrand activist inspired by a real-life figure, a role with no resemblance to his earlier image[11](https://www.onmanorama.com/entertainment/interviews/2022/03/15/interview-kunchacko-boban-pada-movie.html). The political satire *Nna, Thaan Case Kodu* (2022), directed by [Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval](https://www.edgepedia.org/ratheesh-balakrishnan-poduval), was another turning point that he has described as part of the best phase of his career[12](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/amp/story/malayalam/interviews/2022/Aug/31/kunchacko-boban-i-want-to-do-roles-that-people-thought-i-couldnt-34286.html).
## Recent and upcoming films (2023–2026)
The 2023 disaster film *2018: Everyone Is a Hero*, directed by [Jude Anthany Joseph](https://www.edgepedia.org/jude-anthany-joseph) and starring [Tovino Thomas](https://www.edgepedia.org/tovino-thomas), Kunchacko Boban, Tanvi Ram, and Aparna Balamurali on a budget of about Rs. 300 million (Rs. 30 crores), earned more than Rs. 2 billion (Rs. 200 crores) at the box office and was selected as India's official entry to the Best Foreign Film category of the 96th Academy Awards[4](https://fipresci-india.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Newsletter-Sept-2023.pdf). A ranking of his credits places *Pada* (2022) first with a Movie Echo Score of 90, ahead of *Anjaam Pathiraa* (86) and *2018* (85), and names *2018* his biggest box-office hit at $4.57 million worldwide[13](https://www.whatsafterthemovie.com/person/kunchacko-boban/top-movies).
In 2024 he appeared in Jay K's *[Grrr](https://www.edgepedia.org/grrr-film)...* and [Amal Neerad](https://www.edgepedia.org/amal-neerad)'s *Bougainvillea*[8](https://www.filmibeat.com/celebs/kunchacko-boban/upcoming-movies.html). *Officer on Duty* (2025), Jithu Ashraf's directorial debut, became a hit within days of release; Boban called his performance as the emotionally fragile cop Harishankar his best ever[5](https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/others/kunchacko-boban-interview-performance-in-officer-on-duty-my-best-ever-101740471724536.html) • [14](https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/others/other-industries-envy-malayalam-cinema-for-its-content-says-kunchacko-boban-on-why-he-hasnt-worked-in-other-languages-101744537492989.html).
Films listed for 2026 include *[Patriot](https://www.edgepedia.org/patriot-film)* ([Mahesh Narayanan](https://www.edgepedia.org/mahesh-narayanan)), *Oru Durooha Saahacharyathil* (Ratheesh Balakrishnan Poduval), *[Unmadham](https://www.edgepedia.org/unmadham)* (Kiran Das), *Hail Mary*, *Bachelor Party D'eux* (Amal Neerad), *Nere Chovva*, and *40 Days of House Party*[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors) • [8](https://www.filmibeat.com/celebs/kunchacko-boban/upcoming-movies.html) • [7](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0090283/).
## Production work
Boban also produces. He is credited as a producer on *Aravappu* (2022, listed as അറിയിപ്പ്/Ariyippu, directed by Mahesh Narayanan), *Nna, Thaan Case Kodu* (2022), *[Bougainvillea](https://www.edgepedia.org/bougainvillea-film)* (2024), and *Oru Durooha Saahacharyathil* (2026)[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors) • [9](https://malayalam.filmibeat.com/celebs/kunchacko-boban/filmography.html). His most frequent collaborating director is Shafi, and his most frequent producer is Listin Stephen[1](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors).
## References
1. [Kunchacko Boban profile, MalayalaSangeetham.Info](https://www.malayalasangeetham.info/displayProfile.php?artist=Kunchacko+Boban&category=actors)
2. [List of Malayalam Movies acted by Kunchacko Boban, Malayala Chalachithram](https://www.malayalachalachithram.com/movieslist.php?a=5717&p=1&tot=105)
3. [Kunchacko Boban: I feel fired up to do new, daring roles, Times of India (2022)](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/kunchacko-boban-i-feel-fired-up-to-do-new-daring-roles/articleshow/92624863.cms)
4. [FIPRESCI-India Newsletter, September 2023](https://fipresci-india.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/Newsletter-Sept-2023.pdf)
5. [Kunchacko Boban interview: 'Performance in Officer on Duty my best ever', Hindustan Times (2025)](https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/others/kunchacko-boban-interview-performance-in-officer-on-duty-my-best-ever-101740471724536.html)
6. [Kunchacko Boban interview, Ottplay (2021)](https://www.ottplay.com/interview/kunchacko-boban-characters-like-nayattus-praveen-michael-stay-with-you-long-after-the-film-is-over/913)
7. [Kunchacko Boban, IMDb](https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0090283/)
8. [Kunchacko Boban Upcoming Movies, Filmibeat](https://www.filmibeat.com/celebs/kunchacko-boban/upcoming-movies.html)
9. [കുഞ്ചാക്കോ ബോബൻ അഭിനയിച്ച സിനിമകള് | Kunchacko Filmography in Malayalam - Filmibeat Malayalam](https://malayalam.filmibeat.com/celebs/kunchacko-boban/filmography.html)
10. [I'm taking my films more seriously now: Kunchacko Boban, Times of India (2014)](https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/malayalam/movies/news/im-taking-my-films-more-seriously-now-kunchacko-boban/articleshow/38743585.cms)
11. [Evolving as an actor with each film: Interview with Kunchacko Boban, Onmanorama (2022)](https://www.onmanorama.com/entertainment/interviews/2022/03/15/interview-kunchacko-boban-pada-movie.html)
12. [Kunchacko Boban: I want to do roles that people thought I couldn't, Cinema Express (2022)](https://www.cinemaexpress.com/amp/story/malayalam/interviews/2022/Aug/31/kunchacko-boban-i-want-to-do-roles-that-people-thought-i-couldnt-34286.html)
13. [Best Kunchacko Boban Movies, Ranked, What's After the Movie](https://www.whatsafterthemovie.com/person/kunchacko-boban/top-movies)
14. [Other industries envy Malayalam cinema for its content, says Kunchacko Boban, Hindustan Times (2025)](https://www.hindustantimes.com/entertainment/others/other-industries-envy-malayalam-cinema-for-its-content-says-kunchacko-boban-on-why-he-hasnt-worked-in-other-languages-101744537492989.html)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Film people and crafts › Film actors and performers › Actor filmographies and performer list articles*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 18, 2026; Sep 20, 2026; Sep 30, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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