**Ravi Kale** (born October 28, 1973) is an Indian actor who works extensively across Kannada, Hindi, Marathi, Telugu, and Tamil cinema. Renowned for his gritty intensity, piercing gaze, and grounded realism, he has built an extensive filmography playing menacing antagonists, corrupt officials, and layered character roles. Born in Ghodegaon, Maharashtra, Kale began his acting career in Marathi theatre and cinema. He gained national attention through his frequent collaborations with filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma, who cast him in notable Hindi crime dramas such as *Sarkar* (2005) and its sequel *Sarkar Raj* (2008), where his turn as the loyal henchman Chander left a lasting impression. He also appeared in critically acclaimed Hindi films like Anurag Kashyap's *Black Friday* (2007) and Milan Luthria's *Baadshaho* (2017). In South Indian cinema, Kale carved out a massive presence, particularly in the Kannada film industry. His chilling portrayal of mastermind Sivarasan in A. M. R. Ramesh's docudrama *Cyanide* (2006) received widespread acclaim and established him as a premier character artist in Sandalwood. He consolidated his reputation with raw, menacing performances as Hanuma in the hit crime franchise *Dandupalya* (2012), *Dandupalya 2* (2017), and *Dandupalya 3* (2018), while delivering impactful supporting turns in mainstream favorites such as *Jackie* (2010), *Attahasa* (2013), *Mythri* (2015), and *Hebbuli* (2017). Kale has maintained an equally active profile across Telugu and Tamil productions, appearing in films like *Drushyam* (2014), *Krishna Gaadi Veera Prema Gaadha* (2016), and Rajinikanth's *Kaala* (2018), along with digital series such as *Shaitan* (2023). With hundreds of appearances across five languages, he remains one of Indian cinema's most dependable and formidable character actors.
