Abhilash Thapliyal

Abhilash Thapliyal
Born
Abhilash Thapliyal

(1987-11-24) 24 November 1987
India
OccupationsActor, radio jockey, television host
Years active2006–present
SpouseAnubhooti Panda

Abhilash Thapliyal[1][2][3] (born 24 November) is an Indian film actor, radio jockey and TV host. He is known for his prominent roles in 'Aspirants (2021)' as Shwetketu (SK), 'Kennedy (2023)' as Chandan, 'TVF Inmates (2017)' as Sukesh, 'Faadu - A Love Story (2022)' as Roxy and 'Raksha Bandhan (2022)' as Swapnil. He has been associated with a few Indian and global radio stations,[4] as well as a few television channels as a voice actor.[5][6] After being a part of Red FM, Abhilash took a break as a Radio Jockey,[7] and appeared in Aleya Sen Sharma's directorial debut film, Dil Juunglee,[8][9] alongside Taapsee Pannu and Saqib Saleem.[10]

The film Kennedy, directed by Anurag Kashyap, premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2023.[11]

Early life and education

Thapliyal belongs to Pauri Garhwal in Uttarakhand.[12]

His father served as an officer in the Indian Army while his mother is a homemaker.[13]

He completed his schooling at Army Public School and Kendriya Vidyalaya and later graduated in journalism and mass communication from the University of Delhi.[14]

Career

Radio career

Thapliyal began his career in radio while studying at Delhi University.[15]

He worked with radio stations including Radio Tarang, Radio One, Fever 104 FM and Red FM 93.5.[16]

Between 2010 and 2015 he hosted the radio show Dilli Ke Do Dabangg on Fever 104 FM.[17]

With an evening drive time slot on 92.7 Big FM, he is known as the Mumbai Ka Sabse Bada Struggler with a dedicated listener-ship base of more than 2 million everyday. [18]

Acting career

Thapliyal made his Hindi film debut in Dil Juunglee (2018) alongside Taapsee Pannu and Saqib Saleem.[19]. He gained recognition for portraying Shwetketu “SK” Jha in the web series Aspirants (2021).[20]. He later appeared in films including Raksha Bandhan and Blurr in 2022. In 2023 he appeared in Kennedy, directed by Anurag Kashyap, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival.[21] He later appeared in the sports drama film Maidaan (2024) starring Ajay Devgn.[22]

Aspirants Season 3

In 2026 he reprised his role as Shwetketu “SK” Jha in the third season of Aspirants, which premiered on Amazon Prime Video.[23]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role
2018 Dil Juunglee Prashant
2022 Raksha Bandhan Swapnil
2022 Blurr Chander
2023 Kennedy Chandan
2024 Maidaan Dev Matthew

Web series

Year Title Role
2017 TVF Inmates Sukesh
2021–present Aspirants Shwetketu “SK” Jha
2022 Faadu – A Love Story Roxy
2023 Shehar Lakhot Antariksh Tyagi
2023 SK Sir Ki Class Shwetketu “SK” Jha

Television

Year Title Role
2014 World Kabaddi League (Sony Six) Host
2016 He Thand Rakh (MTV) Actor
2018 Entertainment Ki Raat (Colors TV) Actor
2018 Comedy Circus (Sony Entertainment Television) Actor
2019 Apna News Aayega (Sony SAB) Actor
2022 The Kapil Sharma Show Guest

Radio

Year Station Role
2006 BIG FM 92.7 RJ Hunt finalist
2007 Radio Tarang Radio jockey
2008–2010 UTV Voice actor
2010 Radio One Creative writer / promo producer
2010–2015 Fever 104 FM Radio jockey
2016–2017 Red FM 93.5 Radio jockey
2019–present BIG FM 92.7 Radio jockey

Awards and recognition

Year Award Organisation Notes
2013 New York Festivals Award Fever 104 FM Radio programming
2014 New York Festivals Award Fever 104 FM Radio programming
2015 Abby Award Goa Fest Radio
2017 Promax Award MTV India Actor
2018 Vdonxt Award The Quint Digital performance
2025 State recognition for contribution to entertainment Government of Uttarakhand

References

  1. ^ "With stars in his eyes". Deccan Herald. 6 May 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  2. ^ "Abhilash Thapliyal - Biography". IMDb. Retrieved 22 October 2023.
  3. ^ "Abhilash Thapliyal, The Muffler Man is now Bollywood-bound". Mid-day.com. 25 January 2018. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  4. ^ "RJ Abhilash gets Purab Kohli furious". Radioandmusic.com. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  5. ^ "I am not just a radio jockey, I am more than that: Abhilash Thapliyal". Radioandmusic.com. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  6. ^ Gupta, Soumya. "Radio Jockey Abhilash Starring In 'Makhna' With Taapsee Pannu". Businessworld.com. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  7. ^ "RJ Abhilash moves out of Red FM for experimenting new things?". Radioandmusic.com. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  8. ^ "Taapsee Pannu, Saqib Saleem and I bonded over Delhi: Makhna actor Abhilash Thapliyal". Indianexpress.com. 12 March 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  9. ^ "Celebs playing Cupid". Asianage.com. 14 February 2017. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  10. ^ "Internet sensation MufflerMan bags movie with Taapsee Pannu". Mumbaimirror.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  11. ^ "Abhilash Thapliyal makes Cannes debut". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
  12. ^ "Actor Abhilash Thapliyal background". Dainik Jagran. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
  13. ^ "Abhilash wanted to join army". The Times of India. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
  14. ^ "Interview with RJ Abhilash". Firstpost. Retrieved 9 March 2026.
  15. ^ "Abhilash Thapliyal reveals why he chose to quit radio". The Times of India.
  16. ^ "RJ Abhilash career". Radio and Music.
  17. ^ "RJ Abhilash radio show". Radio and Music.
  18. ^ "Abhilash Thapliyal". IMDb. Retrieved 11 March 2026.
  19. ^ "Dil Juunglee debut". The Indian Express.
  20. ^ "SK character". The Quint.
  21. ^ "Cannes debut". Hindustan Times.
  22. ^ "Abhilash Thapliyal discusses Maidaan". DNA India.
  23. ^ "Aspirants Season 3 release". The Hindu.