Karthi - Early Life

Early Life

Karthi was born on 25 May 1977 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. He was educated at Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan, and later at St. Bede's Anglo Indian Higher Secondary School, Chennai. He gained a Bachelor of Engineering in Mechanical Engineering from the Crescent Engineering College, Chennai. After graduating, he worked as an Engineering consultant in Chennai and considered higher studies abroad. "I was earning about ₹ 5000, per month and found the work monotonous. That was when I thought, I should do something more", he recalls. Karthi got a scholarship for his higher studies in the United States, and enrolled at Binghamton University, New York, where he earned his Master of Science in Industrial Engineering. While pursuing his masters, he also attended lectures on filmmaking.

He worked part–time as a graphic designer in New York for a short period, then decided to pursue a career in film–making. He attended two courses in basic film–making at State University of New York before entering films. He stated, "I always knew I wanted to be in films but I did not know exactly what I wanted to do. I loved movies and watched a lot of them. But my father insisted that I get a good education before I joined the film industry".