Nagarjuna, The King of Telugu Cinema, Turns 55

Telugu superstar Nagarjuna is taking things slow and steady as he turns 55. His last release Manam, which also featured his father and his son, was a superhit. Here's a look at his journey as he turns a year older.

Akkineni Nagarjuna was born to veteran actor Nageswara Rao Akkineni and Annapurna Akkineni, in Chennai on August 29, 1959.

The superstar is a mechanical engineer and also holds an M Sc (Automobile Engineering) from Eastern Michigan University.

Nagarjuna's acting career began as a child star in the 1967 Telugu film Sudigundalu at the age of eight. He then made his debut as a lead actor with Vikram in 1986. But it was Mani Ratnam's Geethanjali (1989), a love story, which made him a star.

The same year came Ram Gopal Varma's Telugu action film Shiva which became an instant hit and has been lauded for breaking new ground. Shiva earned Nagarjuna the Filmfare Best Actor Award (Telugu). Subsequently, Nagarjuna made his Bollywood debut with the remake of Shiva, which was also a hit.

A slew of action films like Killer,Chaithanya, Nirnayam and President Gari Pellam, followed.

Nagarjuna was also cast in Mahesh Bhatt's bi-lingual film Criminal. In 1994, he ventured into comedy for the first time with Hello Brother. It was later remade in Hindi as Judwaa starring Salman Khan.

In 1996, Nagarjuna produced and starred in Ninne Pelladatha. He followed this up by experimenting with a period film, portraying the 15th-century Telugu singer and poet Annamacharya. His powerful performance earned Nagarjuna his third Filmfare Best Actor Award (Telugu) and his first Nandi Award for Best Actor.

The 2002 rom-com Santosham opposite Shriya Saran and Gracy Singh won Nagarjuna his second Nandi Award for Best Actor. The blockbuster film was dubbed in Tamil as Santhosha Vanille and in Hindi as Pehli Nazar Ka Pehla Pyaar.

His 2005 release, Super was a heist film. The film, which also featured Ayesha Takia, became a major superhit riding high on the success of its music. The film also launched actor Anushka Shetty.

In 2007, he was seen in Don opposite Anushka Shetty. The film fared well at the box-office.

From 2008 to 2011, Nagarjuna's movies such as King (2008), Kedi and Ragada (2010) and Gaganam (2011), hit a lean patch at the box office. They couldn't go beyond average grossers. Shirdi Sai, which released in 2012, also met a similar fate. The only film which fared better was Ragada (2010), featuring Anushka Shetty again.

However, in November 2012, his movie Damarukam broke the jinx of average films and proved to be the biggest hit of his career.

He followed it up with action drama Bhai (2013) which also featured Richa Gangopadhyay, Sonu Sood, Rahul Dev and Mukul Dev. Unfortunately it was a flop.

In 2014, He appeared onscreen with his son Naga Chaitanya and his father ANR in Manam. The film, which was also his father's last onscreen outing, was a decent super hit. ANR passed away just days before its release after a long battle with illness.

Like other successful South stars, Nagarjuna tried his luck in Bollywood. He fared well too, working in several films such as Shiva (1989), Drohi (1992), Khuda Gawah (1992), Criminal (1994), Mr Bechara (1996), Zakhm (1998), Angaarey (1998), Agni Varsha (2002) and LOC Kargil (2003).

Apart from acting, Nagarjuna's other interests include TV, where he has produced the serial Yuva in 2007. The star is also a shareholder in Telugu channel Maa TV. He is currently hosting the Telugu version of Kaun Banega Crorepati titled KBC - Meelo Evaru Koteeswarudu.

In 1984, Nagarjuna married Lakshmi Daggubati, sister of Telugu actor Venkatesh and daughter of renowned film producer Dr D Ramanaidu. They have a son called Naga Chaitanya Akkineni, who is a successful Telugu actor himself. Their marriage lasted for six years and the two were divorced in 1990.

The actor married his Shiva co-actor Amala in 1992 and they have a son named Akhil Akkineni.

We wish the actor a very warm birthday and great success ahead.