Akhil Akkineni | |
---|---|
Born | [1] San Jose, United States | April 8, 1994
Alma mater | University of South Florida |
Occupation | Actor |
Years active | 2015–present |
Parents | |
Relatives | Naga Chaitanya (brother) |
Family | See Daggubati–Akkineni family |
Akhil Akkineni (born April 8, 1994) is an actor based in India, who works primarily in Telugu cinema. Akhil was born in San Jose, California, United States, and was raised in Hyderabad, India. [2] [3] Akhil debuted as a child artist in the film Sisindri (1994), for which he won a Filmfare Special Award. He is also the captain of Telugu Warriors cricket team that competes in Celebrity Cricket League.
Akhil made his debut as a lead actor with Akhil (2015), which won him the Filmfare Best Male Debut. He later went on to star in Hello (2017) and Mr. Majnu (2019). He achieved his commercial breakthrough with the romantic comedy Most Eligible Bachelor (2021). Akhil is the younger son of Indian actors Nagarjuna and Amala.
Akhil Akkineni was born on April 8, 1994, in San Jose, California, United States, [1] [3] to actors Nagarjuna and Amala. He is of Telugu descent from his father's side, and has Bengali and Irish ancestry from his mother's side. [4] He is the grandson of actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao, and half-brother of Naga Chaitanya.
Akkineni studied at Chaitanya Vidyalaya, later headed to Australia for two years. He returned to complete his studies at Oakridge International School, Hyderabad. He pursued acting as a career at age 16 and enrolled in an acting course at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York. [5] He also holds a BBA from the University of South Florida. [2]
Later in his teens, he pursued cricket and became a member in his father's Nag Kings team, in the 2010 celebrity Tollywood Trophy, which was a fundraiser for the Movie Artistes' Association. His match-winning half-century in the final against Venkatesh's Venky Warriors, saw him secure the man-of-the-match and man-of-the-series awards. [6] His performance saw him get called up to play for the Telugu Warriors in the inaugural Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) in 2011. Since then he has regularly participated in the CCL tournament, winning the 2016 edition as captain of his team. [7]
As an infant, Akhil debuted in his father's production, Shiva Nageswara Rao's comedy, Sisindri (1995), an Indian adaptation of Baby's Day Out (1994). [8]
In 2014, Akhil appeared in a brief cameo appearance in the much loved family drama, Manam (2014), directed by Vikram Kumar. It featured three generations of actors from the Akkineni family. His cameo in the climax of the film was an instant rage with the audience. [9] He described his shoot for the film alongside his grandfather, father and half-brother, as "nervous and exciting". [10] Manam went on to become one of the most profitable Telugu films of 2014, whilst also considered to be one of the greatest Telugu films of all-time. Critics dubbed the film a "classic" en-route to it winning several awards, including Best Film at the Filmfare Awards. [11] [12] He subsequently went on to make appearances in several commercials, notably for Karbonn, Mountain Dew, and Titan. [13]
Akkineni's debut film, as a full-fledged lead, was in Akhil (2015), directed by V. V. Vinayak. It was produced by Nithiin and his family. [14] In order to prepare for the role, he enrolled in a stunt workshop with his personal trainer, Kicha, and attended workshops in Thailand, for two months. [5] The film began production in December 2014 and featured him alongside fellow debutante, Sayesha Saigal. [15] The film opened to a mixed response, and despite high expectations, it was a flop at the box-office. Following this, he went on a two-year hiatus.
In 2017, his second film, Hello (2017), directed by Vikram Kumar, was released along with Middle Class Abbayi and turned out to be a below-average grosser at the box-office, despite garnering generally positive reviews. [16] Following that, Akhil's third film was Mr. Majnu (2019), directed by Venky Atluri and co-starring Niddhi Agerwal. [17] Despite a great pre-release buzz and successful album, it opened to mixed reviews upon release. It eventually bombed commercially, becoming Akhil's third consecutive failure.
In October 2021, his fourth film, the rom com, Most Eligible Bachelor was released. It co-starred Pooja Hegde and was directed by Bommarillu and Parugu fame, Bhaskar. It was produced by Bunny Vas and Vasu Varma, under GA2. [18] It became a hit and gave Akhil a long-awaited box office success. [19]
Akhil's next film, Agent , directed by Surender Reddy and produced by Anil Sunkara, released on April 28, 2023. It was made on a huge budget of 80 crores.upon release, it received highly negative reviews from both the critics and audience, alike. It had an extremely low opening and was a commercial disaster. [20]
In 2016, Akhil was engaged to Shriya Bhupal, grand-daughter of the business tycoon, G. V. Krishna Reddy. Their wedding was planned in 2017, however, it was later called-off, for undisclosed reasons. [21] [22]
Akhil became engaged to Mumbai-based artist Zainab Ravdjee, the daughter of industrialist Zulfi Ravdjee, on November 26, 2024. [23] [24]
† | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
1995 | Sisindri | Sisindri | Child artist | [8] |
2014 | Manam | Akhil | Cameo appearance | [25] |
2015 | Akhil | Debut as lead role | [14] | |
2016 | Aatadukundam Raa | Himself | Special appearance in title song | [26] |
2017 | Hello | Avinash / Seenu | Also singer for "Yevevo" | [27] |
2019 | Mr. Majnu | Vikram "Vicky" Krishna | [17] | |
2021 | Most Eligible Bachelor | Harsha | [18] | |
2023 | Agent | Ramakrishna "Ricky" / "Wild Saala" | ||
| ||||||||
Totals [a] | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Wins | 6 | |||||||
Nominations | 6 | |||||||
Note
|
Year | Award | Category | Film | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1995 | 43rd Filmfare Awards South | Special Award (Child actor) | Sisindri | Won | [28] |
2016 | 63rd Filmfare Awards South | Best Male Debut – South | Akhil | Won | [29] |
5th South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Male Debut – Telugu | Won | [30] | ||
CineMAA Awards 2016 | Best Male Debut | Won | [31] | ||
14th Santosham Film Awards | Best Debut Actor | Won | [32] | ||
2019 | TSR – TV9 National Film Awards | Special Jury Award | Hello | Won | [33] |
Akkineni Nageswara Rao, known as ANR, was an Indian actor and film producer in Telugu cinema. Over his seven decade career, he became a prominent figures in the industry. Nageswara Rao received seven state Nandi Awards, five Filmfare Awards South and a Tamil Nadu State Film Award. He was honoured with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest recognition in Indian cinema, in 1990. Additionally, he was awarded the Padma Vibhushan (2011), Padma Bhushan (1988) and Padma Shri (1968), by the Government of India for his contributions to art and cinema.
Akkineni Nagarjuna Rao is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work primarily in Telugu cinema, as well as in a few Hindi and Tamil films. He has appeared in over 90 films and is a recipient of two National Film Awards for Ninne Pelladata (1996) and Annamayya (1997). Nagarjuna has also won ten Nandi Awards and three Filmfare Awards South.
Yarlagadda Sumanth Kumar, known mononymously as Sumanth, is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He is the eldest grandson of Telugu actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao. He is also a partner in Annapurna Studios.
Santosham Film Awards, currently known as Santosham South Indian Film Awards are one of the most popular awards given for Tollywood films and Telugu Music Artistes.
The Santosham Best Villain Award is given by Santosham Film as part of its annual Santosham Film Awards for Telugu films.
The Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress Award – Telugu is given by the Filmfare magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Telugu films. The award was introduced and first given at the 50th Filmfare Awards South in 2002.
Amala Akkineni is an Indian actress, Bharatanatyam dancer, and activist. She has predominantly worked in Tamil films, in addition to Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam, and Kannada-language films. She was a leading actress in the Tamil film industry from 1986 to 1992 and has appeared in many blockbusters in Tamil and other languages. She has won two Filmfare Awards South, namely Best Actress – Malayalam for the 1991 film Ulladakkam and Best Supporting Actress – Telugu for the 2012 film Life Is Beautiful. Amala is the co-founder of Blue Cross of Hyderabad, a non-government organisation (NGO) in Hyderabad, India, which works towards the welfare of animals and preservation of animal rights in India.
Sisindri is a 1995 Indian Telugu-language comedy film directed by Siva Nageswara Rao and produced by Nagarjuna. The film stars Nagarjuna's son Akhil Akkineni. Nagarjuna Akkineni, Giri Babu, Tanikella Bharani, Sudhakar, Aamani, Sarath Babu and Subhalekha Sudhakar play supporting roles. Music is composed by Raj, his debut film. The film is inspired by the American film Baby's Day Out (1994).
Naga Chaitanya Akkineni ', , is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. He has received several accolades including one Filmfare Award South and one Nandi Award for his work.
Vikram K. Kumar is an Indian film director and screenwriter who works in Telugu and Tamil cinema. In 1998, he directed his breakthrough non-feature film, Silent Scream, for which he won the National Film Award For Best Instructional Film. He made his directorial debut in Telugu cinema industry with Ishtam in 2001, and then directed the Tamil movie, Yavarum Nalam.
Allu Sirish is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Telugu films. He is the brother of leading Telugu cinema actor Allu Arjun. He debuted as a lead actor with Gouravam (2013) and later went to appear in films such as Kotha Janta (2014), Srirastu Subhamastu (2016), Okka Kshanam (2017) and Urvasivo Rakshasivo (2022).
The Akkineni–Daggubati family is a prominent Indian film family with a history predominantly in Telugu cinema. Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Daggubati Ramanaidu are the prominent heads of both families. Members of the family include actors, film directors, and producers.
Manam (transl. Us) is a 2014 Indian Telugu-language fantasy drama film written and directed by Vikram Kumar, and produced by the Akkineni Family under the Annapurna Studios banner. The film stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Nagarjuna, Naga Chaitanya, Samantha Ruth Prabhu and Shriya Saran. The film is set in various time periods, over the course of a hundred years up until 2013, and deals with the concepts of rebirth and eternal love. The plot features a wealthy businessman, Nageswara Rao (Nagarjuna), attempting to bring a young couple together resembling his deceased parents and the elderly Chaitanya's attempts to bring the businessman and a doctor together. They resemble Chaitanya's deceased parents, who died because of a mistake committed by him in his childhood.
Manam is the feature film soundtrack album composed by Anup Rubens for the 2014 Telugu Period drama film of the same name directed by Vikram Kumar which featured Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Nagarjuna and Naga Chaitanya along with Shriya Saran and Samantha in the lead roles. The film, which marks Akkineni Nageswara Rao's last on screen appearance is also Anup Rubens' 25th film as a Music Director.
Akhil: The Power of Jua is a 2015 Indian Telugu-language action fantasy film directed by V. V. Vinayak and produced by Nithin and M. Sudhakar Reddy under Sresht Movies banner. The film stars Akhil Akkineni and Sayyeshaa in their debut. The film features score composed by Mani Sharma with soundtrack by Anup Rubens and S. Thaman. Vinayak wrote the screenplay from the story given by Veligonda Srinivas along with dialogue by Kona Venkat. Releasing on 11 November 2015 amidst huge hype and expectations, the film was a commercial failure.
Nirmala Convent is a 2016 Indian Telugu-language romantic drama film directed by G. Naga Koteswara Rao, and produced by Akkineni Nagarjuna and Nimmagadda Prasad on Annapurna Studios and Matrix Team Works. The film features Roshan Meka and Shriya Sharma in their debut in lead roles while Nagarjuna appears as himself in a crucial role. It has music composed by Roshan Saluri.
Hello! is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language romantic action film directed by Vikram Kumar and produced by Akkineni Nagarjuna under Annapurna Studios. The film stars Akhil Akkineni, Kalyani Priyadarshan, Jagapati Babu and Ramya Krishnan. This film marks Kalyani Priyadarshan's film debut. The music is composed by Anup Rubens. Hello was released on 22 December 2017.
Samantha Ruth Prabhu is an Indian actress who has appeared predominantly in Telugu and Tamil films. She made her acting debut with a small role in Gautham Vasudev Menon's Tamil film Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa. She had her first lead role in 2010 with Gautham Vasudev Menon's Telugu romance film Ye Maaya Chesave. The film earned her the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South and a Nandi Award. In 2012, Samantha featured in live action Telugu-Tamil bilingual project Eega. The film received positive reviews in both Telugu and Tamil languages and it was one of the highest-grossing Telugu films of the year, earning ₹1.15 billion globally. Her performance as a micro artist who runs a NGO and takes revenge for the murder of her lover earned her the Filmfare Award for Best Telugu Actress. In the same year, she appeared in the trilingual romantic drama Neethaane En Ponvasantham (2012). The film earned her praise from critics, and Samantha won her first Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actress. 2012 became her most prolific award-winning year and she secured further recognition for Best Actress at the Vijay Awards, Santosham Film Awards and the CineMAA Awards. Popular playback singer and dubbing artist Chinmayi Sripada has been the voice of Samantha in most of her Telugu language films right from her debut in Ye Maaya Chesave. She has also dubbed for Samantha in a few of her Tamil and Hindi language films.
SIIMA Award for Best Supporting Actress – Telugu is presented by Vibri media group as part of its annual South Indian International Movie Awards, for the best acting done by an actor in a supporting role in Telugu films. The award was first given in 2013 for films released in 2012. Jayasudha is the most nominated with 5 nominations and Anasuya Bharadwaj most awarded with 2 times winning the award.
Akhil was born in the U.S.