Playback singing Naveen’s playback singing debut came in 2013 with the feature film
Lucia, signifying a turning point in his career. The three songs composed by the debutante
Poornachandra Tejaswi: “Ede Olagina Tamate (Jamma Jamma),” “Helu Shiva,” and “Yako Barlilla,” gained widespread popularity and topped iTunes charts. For his rendition of "Jamma Jamma", he was awarded the
Karnataka State Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer in 2014. In 2015, he further expanded his singing credits across Kannada cinema with titles including
RX Soori,
Vascodigama, and
Jackson. Post this, he lent his voice to several mainstream films including
Akira,
Half Mentlu,
Bhujanga,
Ricky, and
Yen Nin Problemmu.
Music direction In addition to singing, Naveen expanded into music composition, first serving as music director in 2017 for
Yen Nin Problemmu. However, his breakthrough as a composer came with the
Duniya Vijay starrer,
Kanaka in 2018, for which he composed the entire soundtrack and background score, comprising 8 tracks including “Enne Namdu Oota Nimdu” and “Bara Moda Karagi.” He also lent his vocals to key songs like “Enne Namdu” and “Duniya Dalle Don”. This marked his first major venture as a composer, transitioning from vocal performance to creative helm of musical narratives. In 2020s, Naveen continued to diversify his musical portfolio with
Salaga and
Dear Vikram. His upcoming unreleased films include
Kusthi and
Lo Naveena.
Acting Naveen had roots in acting prior his entry into films. He was a part of the theatre troupe "Niranthara" in Mysore. Post
Lucia's success, he was offered acting roles in films and he had signed few of them which remains unreleased till date.. In 2019, it was announced that director Kumar had cast him opposite
Sanjana Anand in his directorial film
Charlie Chaplin. The project was shelved in the filming stage. In 2024, Naveen announced two projects under his home banner Naveen Sajju Studios. The film,
Lo Naveena features himself in the lead alongside composing the music.. The other project titled
Mansion House Muthu also features him in the lead role.
Television In 2018, Naveen entered
Bigg Boss house as an inmate and emerged as the first runner up towards the finale. Later, he took up the series
Chukki Thaare, aired on
Colors Kannada to be his first television acting assignment in 2024. He portrayed a father figure (Mallikarjuna) involved in a family-focused drama centered on the bond between two young girls. ==Discography==