Naveen Kasturia is an Indian actor, who gained immense popularity with the Hindi web series ‘TVF Pitchers’ (2015) as Naveen Bansal and ‘TVF Aspirants’ (2021) as Abhilash Sharma.
Wiki/Biography
Naveen Kasturia was born on Saturday, 26 January 1985 (age 37 years; as of 2022) in Otukpo, Benue State, Nigeria. When he turned one, his family moved from Nigeria to Delhi. His zodiac sign is Aquarius. He did his schooling at Birla Vidya Niketan, Pushp Vihar, New Delhi. He then pursued a bachelor’s degree in the manufacturing process and automation engineering from Netaji Subhas University of Technology, Delhi. He used to perform and write theatre plays while he was in college. One of his theatre plays ‘Lo Kr Lo Ji Baat’ became very popular in his college.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 8″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Brown
Family
Naveen belongs to a Punjabi family.
Parents & Siblings
His father, Santosh Kasturia, used to work as a Maths teacher. His mother, Veena Paul Kasturia, participates in various marathon races. He has a sister named Neha Kasturia.
Naveen Kasturia with his parents and sister
Relationships/Affairs
In 2020, there were rumours that Naveen was dating the Indian actress Harshita Gaur. In an interview, when Harshita was asked about dating Naveen, she replied,
That’s okay, as long as people have something to talk about you. But I find it really amusing. Honestly, such link-ups don’t bother me. Naveen and I were doing a series, where the couple is madly in love and doing everything to get married and while shooting, we became really good friends. So, I think the vibe was created like that. Even today he is very special to me and I have learned a lot from him. We are still in touch as very good friends.”
Naveen Kasturia with Harshita Gaur
Career
Theatre
In 2007, Naveen, along with his college friends, started a theatre group named ‘Right Click Entertainment.’ He wrote and directed various theatre plays for the group.
Corporate Job
After completing his engineering, in 2006, he started working at a private company Inductis, Gurgaon, as a finance analyst. He worked there for almost two years. He then applied for a job in the financial services company J.P. Morgan Chase in Mumbai. In an interview, he shared that it was his father’s instruction that if he wanted to go to Mumbai for pursuing his career as a film director, he must have a corporate job there. However, later, he quit his job.
Assistant Director
While he was working at J. P. Morgan in Mumbai, he met someone who gave him a few contact numbers of Indian film production houses. Naveen then got an offer from Vishhesh films, and they asked him to join them as assistant-to-assistant director for the Hindi film ‘Jashnn’ (2009).
‘Jashnn’ (2009) film poster
He has worked as an assistant director in a few Hindi films such as ‘Love Sex Aur Dhokha’ (2010), ‘Shanghai’ (2012), and ‘Tigers’ (2014).
Shanghai (2012) film poster
He then applied at Dharma Productions to work as an assistant director in the Hindi film ‘Agneepath’ (2012). However, he was rejected.
TV Commercials
Naveen then met the Indian film director Dibakar Banerjee, who offered Naveen a TV commercial for Coke. After featuring in the Coke ad, he appeared in various TV commercials like Vodafone, Mahindra, Tapzo app, Marathe Jewellers, and True Value. As of 2022, he has been featured in more than 50 TV commercials.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vcG1ONQHUVc[/embed]
Actor
Film
In 2012, he made his Bollywood debut with the Hindi film ‘Shanghai’ in which he played the role of Ranjan.
A still of Naveen Kasturia from the film Shanghai
In 2014, he made his debut as a lead actor in the Hindi film ‘Sulemani Keeda’ in which he played the role of Dulal.
Sulemani Keeda film poster
He has acted in a few Hindi films like ‘Loveshhuda’ (2016), ‘Hope Aur Hum’ (2018), ‘Turtle’ (2018), ‘Sone Bhi Do Yaaro’ (2018), and ‘Waah Zindagi’ (2019).
‘Sone Bhi Do Yaaro’ (2018)
Short Film
In 2013, Naveen played the role of Sanjay in his debut Hindi short film ‘Skin Deep.’
Skin Deep (2013)
He has acted in various Hindi short films like ‘Stunt Boy’ (2014), ‘Pure-Veg’ (2016), ‘Half Ticket’ (2016), ‘Maya’ (2018), and ‘Malgook Bidro’ (2019).
Half Ticket (2016)
Web Series
TVF
In 2013, he made his web series debut with the Hindi TVF series ‘Chai Sutta Chronicles’ in which he played the role of Siddharth.
Chai Sutta Chronicles (2013)
In 2015, he acted in the Hindi web series ‘TVF Pitchers’ as Naveen Bansal. He gained immense popularity with the web series.
TVF Pitchers (2015)
In 2021, he acted in the Hindi web series ‘TVF Aspirants’ in which he played the role of Abhilash Sharma. He received critical acclaim for his performance in the web series.
TVF Aspirants (2021)
MX Player
Naveen has acted in a few MX player Hindi web series like ‘Thinkistan’ (2019), ‘Aapkey Kamrey Mein Koi Rahta Hai’ (2021), ‘Pati Patni Aur Panga’ (2021), and ‘Runaway Lugai’ (2021).
Thinkistan (2019)
Other OTT Platforms
Some of his other Hindi web series are ‘Bose: Dead/Alive’ (2017; ALTBalaji), ‘Happily Ever After’ (2019; Zoom Studios), ‘Kota Factory Season 2’ (2021; Netflix), ‘Breathe: Into the Shadows 2’ (2022; Amazon Prime Video).
Happily Ever After (2019)
Podcast
In June 2021, he was invited as a guest in the podcast show of popular Indian YouTuber Ranveer Allahbadia. In 2022, he played the role of Bhaskar Bose from a parallel world in the Spotify podcast ‘Bhaskar Bose: A Perfect World.’
Bhaskar Bose- A Hindi Thriller Podcast
Awards
- 2018: Talentrack Award for Best Actor Special Jury Mention for the film Bose: Dead/Alive
- 2019: Talentrack Award for Best Jodi along with Maanvi Gagroo
Naveen Kasturia with his award
- 2022: IWM Digital Awards for Most Popular Actor in a Web Series for Aspirants
Facts/Trivia
- Since childhood, he has been a movie buff. In an interview, he shared a memory of his childhood in which he said that when he was in class 2 or 3, he danced at the India gate to the song “Choli Ke Peeche Kya Hai” from the Hindi film ‘Khal Nayak’ (1993).
- He is often spotted drinking alcohol at various parties and events.
Naveen Kasturia holding a bottle of beer
- In 2015, he was invited as a guest speaker on the talk show TEDx Talks.
- He is considered the doppelganger of the Indian VJ-actor Rannvijay Singha.
Naveen Kasturia’s Facebook post