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Actor

1987-04-03 · Mumbai, India · Male

7 series in the catalog

Vikrant Massey (born 3 April 1987) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi films and television. Noted for his versatility, Massey is the recipient of a National Film Award and a Filmfare Award.

After completing his education from R. D. National College, Massey made his acting debut with the series Dhoom Machaao Dhoom (2007). He followed it up with notable roles in TV serials such as Dharam Veer (2008), Balika Vadhu (2009–2010) and Qubool Hai (2013). He progressed to Hindi cinema with supporting roles in Lootera (2013) and Dil Dhadakne Do (2015), but got his breakthrough with the independent drama A Death in the Gunj (2017).

Massey further starred in streaming series such as Mirzapur (2018), Broken But Beautiful (2018–2019) and Criminal Justice (2019). He continued to attain praise for his work in Chhapaak (2020), Haseen Dillruba (2021) and Love Hostel (2022). A turning point in his career came with the biographical film 12th Fail (2023), which emerged as a sleeper hit and earned him the National Film Award for Best Actor and Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor.

Early life

Massey was born on 3 April 1987 in Mumbai, to a Sikh mother and a Christian father, Meena and Jolly Massey. He has an older brother who took the name Moeen following his conversion to Islam at 17. Despite his multi-faith background, Massey himself is not religious, saying that "religion is man-made." Massey's parents were childhood sweethearts who eloped and got married. Belonging to a middle-class Christian family, originally from Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, Massey was born and raised by his parents in Mumbai, Maharashtra.

Massey's educational background consists of attending St. Anthony's High School in Versova with further studies being completed from R. D. National College of Arts & Science in Bandra, Mumbai. Being a well-trained dancer, he forayed onto stage with small-time dancing and theatre performances at the age of 7. With support and guidance from his teachers and school principal, he took up performing arts as a career choice at quite a young age. He enjoys travelling, playing cricket, and video games in his free time.

Career

Television career (2007–2013)

Massey began his acting career with television, portraying Aamir Hassan in Dhoom Machaao Dhoom (2007). He is also a trained contemporary or jazz dancer and has worked with Shiamak Davar, and was a choreographer on the show. In 2008, he played Dharam in Dharam Veer alongside Rajat Tokas.

Massey found success with his portrayal of Shyam Singh, a supportive husband opposite Veebha Anand in Balika Vadhu, where he continued from 2009 to 2010. In Baba Aiso Varr Dhoondo (2010–11), he played his first lead role of Murli Laal. In a 2011 Hindustan Times poll looking at "The Next Big Thing" among television actors, and judged by television veterans such as J. D. Majethia, Rajan Shahi and Varun Badola, Massey's name was the only one among the male actors to have been selected by all three.

In 2013, Massey played the parallel lead in Zee TV's Qubool Hai opposite Ketki Kadam. That same year, he hosted V The Serial and Yeh Hai Aashiqui. The 2014 show, Ajab Gajab Ghar Jamai, marked his final appearance on television before film debut.

Recognition in films and streaming series (2013–2023)

Massey made his Hindi film debut in Vikramaditya Motwane's Lootera (2013), in which he was featured as the friend of lead protagonist (Ranveer Singh). Taran Adarsh found him to be "first-rate" in his supporting part. Two years later, he had another supporting role alongside Singh in Zoya Akhtar's ensemble family drama Dil Dhadakne Do (2015), which was a box office victory.

Massey's first lead role occurred in Konkona Sen Sharma's debut directorial, the critically acclaimed independent drama A Death in the Gunj (2017). Film critic Rajeev Masand described his performance as a heartfelt one. He received a Filmfare Award for Best Actor (Critics) nomination. His other two releases of the year, Half Girlfriend and Lipstick Under My Burkha were box office averages. Ananya Bhattacharya of India Today found him to be "earnest", in his role in the former. In 2018, Massey ventured into web show with the highly-popular crime drama Mirzapur and also with the portrayal of a PTSD patient in the romantic drama Broken But Beautiful.

In 2019, Massey appeared as a murder accused in his third consecutive web show Criminal Justice directed by Tigmanshu Dhulia and Vishal Furia. Sanjukta Sharma of Scroll.in opined, "He slips into Aditya's skin without any effort showing, and makes his transformative journey compelling." He reprised his character in Broken But Beautiful 2 and also headlined Made in Heaven, a web series on two wedding planners in Delhi running an agency named Made in Heaven.

Massey began the new decade opposite Deepika Padukone in Meghna Gulzar's Chhapaak (2020), based on the life of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal. The film was a commercial failure, despite a positive critical reception; Sukanya Verma stated: "Vikrant embodies a dour faced, wry-natured activist in Fabindia kurtas quite effectively." He next appeared in Cargo, which also premiered at the 2019 MAMI Film Festival under the spotlight section. That year, he also headlined the Netflix films Dolly Kitty Aur Woh Chamakte Sitare opposite Bhumi Pednekar and Ginny Weds Sunny opposite Yami Gautam.

In 2021, Massey portrayed a man who visits home for his grandfather's tehrvi in Seema Pahwa's directorial debut Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi. After the unremarkable venture Switchh, he played an electrical engineer opposite Taapsee Pannu in the mystery thriller Haseen Dillruba, which emerged as the most-watched Hindi film on Netflix and earned him his second Filmfare nomination. Shubhra Gupta from The Indian Express opined: "The only one who tries valiantly to rise, and succeeds in most places is Vikrant Massey". His last release of 2021, 14 Phere, based on inter-caste marriage issue paired him with Kriti Kharbanda. Anita Aikara of Rediff.com was appreciative of his "delightfully simple role".

Massey next essayed a Muslim man in love with a Hindu girl (played by Sanya Malhotra) in Love Hostel (2022). Released on ZEE5, it received mixed to positive reviews. His next consecutive Zee5 release was Forensic, a remake of the 2020 Malayalam film of the same name. Bollywood Hungama stated that Massey gives a "confident" performance and "suits the part", but added that in some places, he "tries" to be too funny and "fails". His first film of 2023 was Gaslight, which received mixed to negative reviews. Anuj Kumar of The Hindu said, "Massey, as the manager of the missing Raja, keep the audience engaged till the big reveal arrives." He next played a youngster struggling in Mumbai in a delayed project Mumbaikar, which was released on JioCinema.

12th Fail and career progression (2023–present)

His last release of 2023, Vidhu Vinod Chopra's biographical drama 12th Fail, marked a significant point in Massey's career. He portrayed the real-life character of Manoj Kumar Sharma, who overcame extreme poverty to become an IPS officer. Monika Rawal Kukreja of Hindustan Times termed the film his "career-best" and noted, "Massey takes the cake for delivering a brilliant performance. At every step, he brings a myriad of shades to his character. He owns up Manoj's character in all aspects." Deepa Gahlot of Rediff.com praised Massey for giving a performance of such "unalloyed brilliance". The film emerged as a sleeper hit, grossing over ₹66 crore (US$6.9 million) worldwide, and won him the National Film Award for Best Actor (shared with Shah Rukh Khan for Jawan) and Filmfare Award for Best Actor (Critics).

In his first release of 2024, Massey played a crime reporter in Blackout alongside Mouni Roy and Ruhani Sharma, which received negative reviews from critics who were critical of his performance. Massey then reunited with Taapsee Pannu in Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba, reprising his character from the original…