Kunchacko Boban (born 2 November 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer who works in the Malayalam film industry. He is referred to as Chackochan, and during the early 2000s, he was called "chocolate boy" because of his romantic image. He has acted in more than 100 films in more than two decades. He is a member of the Kunchacko family.
Kunchacko's debut was as a child in the film Dhanya (1981) produced by his father Boban Kunchacko. He debuted as an adult leading role in Fazil's 1997 romantic drama Aniyathipraavu opposite Shalini, which became the highest-grossing Malayalam film till that point, establishing him as a bankable actor overnight. He appeared in a brief role in Harikrishnans (1998) starring Mohanlal and Mammootty, which was the top Malayalam box office grosser of the year. Kunchacko and Shalini joined again in the successful romantic films Nakshatratharattu (1998), Niram (1999) and Prem Poojari (1999). Niram emerged as one of the highest-grossing films of the year, spawning several remakes. By then he had created a "romantic hero" image in Malayalam cinema, nevertheless, he also had success in other genres, as a villager in the comedy Narendran Makan Jayakanthan Vaka (2001) and as a son to a debt-ridden family in the drama Kasthooriman (2003). His career took a setback after few box office failures during the mid-2000s. He took a break from films in 2006 and moved on to business.
Post a hiatus of three years he returned to films with the 2009 comedy Gulumal: The Escape, a commercial success. After his comeback, Kunchacko completely changed his romantic hero image and he proved his versatility as an actor by doing various different roles. He regained his stardom with commercially successful films and reestablished himself as one of the popular lead actors of Malayalam cinema. His roles in critically and commercially acclaimed films like Traffic (2011), How Old Are You? (2014), Take Off (2017), Vettah (2016), Virus (2019), Anjaam Pathiraa (2020), Nayattu (2021), Pada (2022), Nna Thaan Case Kodu (2022), 2018 (2023), Bougainvillea (2024) and Officer on Duty (2025) were widely appreciated. He won the Kerala State Film Award for his performance in the satire, Nna Thaan Case Kodu and the ensemble survival thriller 2018 (2023) became the highest grossing Malayalam film up to that point. He is also known for his dancing skills.
In 2016, Kunchacko produced the comedy drama film Kochavva Paulo Ayyappa Coelho through Udaya Studios, in the process of reviving the studio after a 30-year hiatus. He also launched another production house, Kunchacko Boban Productions, debuting with the Mahesh Narayanan directorial, Ariyippu (2022), which premiered in the Concorso internazionale of the 75th Locarno Film Festival on 4 August 2022, where it was nominated for Golden Leopard.
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Early life and family
Kunchacko Boban (also known as Chackochan) was born in Alappuzha, Kerala. His father, Boban Kunchacko, was also an actor, director, and producer. His mother, Molly, is a housewife and he has two younger sisters, Anu and Minu.
Kunchacko hails from the Maliampurakal family, he was named after his grandfather, the legendary film producer Kunchacko, who established the first film studio in Kerala, Udaya Studios.
His great-grandfather, M. M. Chacko, started the first boat service in Kuttanad. Chacko's son is Navodaya Appachan who established Navodaya Studios. Through Appachan, Kunchacko is also related to Jijo Punnose, who is a film director.
After completing his pre-degree from St. Berchmans College, in 1996, Kunchacko graduated with a first-class in B.Com from Sanatana Dharma College, in 1997.
Kunchacko was an avid sports enthusiast, he played cricket, table tennis, basketball, and was known for his skill in badminton. He was trained in Bharatanatyam during his childhood.
Personal life
Kunchacko Boban married Priya Ann Samuel, on April 2, 2005, at the Little Flower Syro-Malabar Catholic Church in Ernakulam. Their son Izahaak Boban Kunchacko was born on April 16, 2019.
Acting career
1997–2006
Kunchacko Boban was introduced into the Malayalam film industry by versatile director Fazil. His debut film, Aniyathipraavu (1997), co-starring Shalini, and directed by Fazil, turned out to be the highest-grossing Malayalam film ever and Kunchacko Boban's performance as Sudhi, the lead character was well received by young audiences and families. The Kunchacko Boban - Shalini pair was considered one of the best star pairs of the Malayalam film industry.|
Following the success of Aniyathipraavu, Kunchacko Boban was cast in hit films such as Nakshathrathaarattu (1998), Mayilpeelikkavu (1998) and Niram (1999), which was among 1999's highest-grossing Malayalam films and songs of "Niram" are still very popular. The actor reunited with his debut film's director Fazil in Harikrishnans, where he played a cameo, which marked the reunion of Mohanlal and Mammootty after eight years and it was the highest-grossing Malayalam film of the year.| Then he appeared in commercially successful films such as Priyam (2000), Sathyam Sivam Sundaram (2000), Dosth (2001), Narendran Makan Jayakanthan Vaka (2001) and Kalyanaraman (2002).
In 2005, after his marriage, he took a break from films.
2008–present
Kunchacko Boban returned to films in 2008 with a special appearance in a song in Twenty:20 and later acted in Shafi's LollyPop. His real comeback was in 2009 with comedy film Gulumal: The Escape, directed by popular ad filmmaker and director V. K. Prakash. Gulumal was followed by a string of successful films which established him as one of the most successful actors of the last decade and he made a complete makeover of his screen image in his comeback.
In 2010 he played the lead role in the films such as Jeethu Joseph's Mummy & Me, Sakudumbam Shyamala and Lal Jose's Elsamma Enna Aankutty, all of which were commercial successes and reviewers praised Kunchacko Boban for his performance in Elsamma Enna Aankutty.
In 2011, he played the central character in the road thriller film Traffic. The film's success and wide critical acclaim ushered in a trend that followed in Malayalam cinema, dubbed the New generation movies. This was followed by another film Seniors where for the first time he took on a negative role playing a criminal, which was commercial success at the box office and he won SIIMA Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role - Malayalam. In the same year he acted again in films like Three Kings, Sevens and Doctor Love. He also won the Youth Icon award at Asianet Film Awards.
In 2012, he was featured in three films, Lal Jose's Spanish Masala, Ordinary and Mallu Singh. In Spanish Masala he played a full-length negative role which had Dileep as main lead. Ordinary had a high opening at the Kerala box office and had 10,000 showings in theatres before reaching the 50-day mark. Mallu Singh is credited as 50th film of Kunchacko Boban. Ordinary and Mallu Singh both films became major commercial success at the box office.
His started 2013 with comedy thriller Romans, which was a blockbuster at the box office and later, 3 Dots, God for Sale: Bhakthi Prasthanam, Kadhaveedu, Vishudhan, and Pullipulikalum Aattinkuttiyum, a commercial success.
Kunchacko Boban also gained critical acclaim for his performance, in films such as God for Sale: Bhakthi Prasthanam (2013), Vishudhan (2013), Kadhaveedu (2013), How Old Are You (2014), Madhura Naranga (2015), Valiya Chirakulla Pakshikal (2015) and Vettah (2016).
Other works
Besides films and business, Kunchacko support social causes. In 2014 Kunchacko Boban, launched Celebrity Cricket Club (C3). He is the chairman of the organisation C3, and a group of celebrities came together to pledge their time and effort for charity initiative. The club stands for cricket, charity and comradeship.
In 2015, he opened Al Fasht Medical Centre in Sharjah, a medical centre providing comparatively low-cost health care for child behaviour, autism, and adult psychiatry.
