Recognised for his role of Tiger Memon in the 2004 movie Black Friday, Pavan Malhotra is a Hindi film and television actor who gained popularity with lead roles in the movies Bagh Bahadur and Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro. Winning the Filmfare Best Villain Award (Telugu) for his role of a cold-blooded mafia don Irfan Khan in the Telugu movie Aithe established him as one of the best villain characters in the industry. An actor known for playing various versatile roles, he is most appreciated for his work in the movies Jab We Met (2007), Don (2006), Delhi-6 (2009), Badmaash Company (2010), Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013), Punjab 1984 (2014), and Rustom (2016). He is also a familiar face among the television audiences with appearances in shows like Nukkad, Circus, Laagi Tujhse Lagan and Khidki, to name a few.

His 2017 venture includes director Anurag Singh`s action comedy film Super Singh, starring Pavan as one of the leads opposite Diljit Dosanjh and Sonam Bajwa. As of 2018, he is associated with Manmarziyan, directed by Anurag Kashyap. His 2019 release includes Setters, directed by Ashwini Chaudhary.