Ravi was born in Chennai, India, to Tamil parents Mohan and Varalakshmi Mohan. His older brother, M. Raja, is a well-known film director whose films frequently include Ravi in the major part, while his younger sister, Roja Mohan, is a dentist. He went to Jawahar Vidyalaya in Ashok Nagar, Chennai, for his education. He learned to dance under Nalini Balakrishnan, a Bharatnatyam dancer, and performed his arangetram at the age of 12. He opted to pursue a career in film after graduating from Loyola College in Chennai with a degree in visual communication. He also received acting instruction at Mumbai's Kishore Namit Kapur Institute. He is a qualified Bharatanatyam teacher and a martial arts specialist.