Oviya (born Helen Nelson) is an Indian actress born on 29 April 1991 in Thrissur, Kerala, into a Syrian Christian family. She completed a BA in Functional English from Vimala College, Thrissur. She began her acting career with supporting roles in Malayalam films including Kangaroo (2007) and Puthiya Mukham (2009) before Tamil director Sarkunam spotted her photo online and cast her in the lead of Kalavani (2010) - a rural romantic comedy that became a sleeper hit and earned Oviya widespread praise. Her subsequent Tamil career included Marina (2012), Kalakalappu (2012), Moodar Koodam (2013), and Yaamirukka Bayamey (2014). She also made a brief Hindi appearance in Yeh Ishq Safira (2015). In June 2017, she entered Bigg Boss Tamil Season 1. Her raw honesty, emotional vulnerability, fierce responses to bullying by fellow housemates, and one-sided affection for season winner Arav created an unprecedented fan phenomenon - the 'Oviya Army' - that trended consistently on social media. The Tamil film Balloon (2017) included a song 'Neenga Shut Up Pannunga' dedicated to her mid-season. On Day 40, she voluntarily left the show on medical grounds after emotional distress, becoming one of the most iconic voluntary exits in Indian reality TV history. Post-Bigg Boss, she appeared in Kalavani 2 (2019), 90ML (2019), and Kanchana 3 (2019). She received the Darling of Tamil Nadu award at the 2018 Aval Awards.

Breakout role as Maheshwari in rural romantic comedy Kalavani (2010, dir. Sarkunam); films Marina (2012), Kalakalappu (2012), Moodar Koodam (2013), and Yaamirukka Bayamey (2014); cult-level fame during Bigg Boss Tamil Season 1 as the head of the 'Oviya Army' fan movement.

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