Vijay Deverakonda | |
---|---|
Born | Deverakonda Vijay Sai 9 May 1989 Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India |
Alma mater | Badruka College of Commerce & Arts |
Occupations |
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Years active | 2011–present |
Relatives | Anand Deverakonda (brother) |
Deverakonda Vijay Sai (born 9 May 1989), professionally known as Vijay Deverakonda, [1] is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Telugu films. [2] [3] One of the highest-paid actors of Telugu cinema, he has featured in Forbes India 's Celebrity 100 list since 2018 and has received several accolades, including a Filmfare Award, a Nandi Award, and three SIIMA Awards. [4]
Deverakonda made his debut with Nuvvila (2011) and received praise for his role in the coming-of-age drama Yevade Subramanyam (2015). He rose to prominence as a leading film actor by starring in Pelli Choopulu (2016) and Arjun Reddy (2017), winning the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Telugu for his performance as a volatile surgeon in the latter. He further established himself with commercially successful films such as Mahanati (2018), Geetha Govindam (2018), and Taxiwaala (2018). [5] [6] This success was followed by a series of poorly received films such as the critically panned big-budget action film Liger (2022).
In 2019, Deverakonda launched his own production house King of the Hill Entertainment, which produced Meeku Maathrame Cheptha (2019) and Pushpaka Vimanam (2021). [7] [8] Beyond his film career, Deverakonda has designed his own fashion brand Rowdy Wear, which launched on Myntra in 2020, [9] and is the co-owner of the volleyball team Hyderabad Black Hawks. [10] Deverakonda is also a celebrity endorser for numerous products and supports various humanitarian causes.
Deverakonda Vijay Sai was born in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh (now Telangana) to Govardhan Rao and Madhavi. [11] [12] His family hails from Thummanpeta village of erstwhile Mahbubnagar district (now Nagarkurnool). [11] [13] His father was a television serial director who quit doing them due to lack of success.
Vijay completed his schooling from Sri Sathya Sai Higher Secondary School, Puttaparthi. [14] He then studied Intermediate at the Little Flower Junior College, Hyderabad. [15] He holds a Bachelor of Commerce degree from Badruka College of Commerce & Arts. [13] [16] His younger brother, Anand Devarakonda, is also an actor in Telugu cinema. [17]
Deverakonda made his debut with Ravi Babu-directed romantic comedy Nuvvila (2011). [18] He later appeared in Sekhar Kammula's Life is Beautiful (2012) in a minor role. [19] He was introduced to Nag Ashwin, who later cast him in a supporting role for the 2015 coming-of-age drama Yevade Subramanyam alongside actor Nani. [20] The film was produced by the daughters of Ashwini Dutt, a producer in the Telugu film industry; Priyanka Dutt backed him and once shooting started, Swapna Dutt signed him onto her company. [21] [22]
Deverakonda's first lead role was in Pelli Choopulu , a coming-of-age romance film directed by Tharun Bhascker. The film became commercially successful and won the Filmfare Award for Best Film – Telugu and the Best Feature Film in Telugu at the 64th National Film Awards. [23] [24] He starred in the masala film Dwaraka in 2017. He next starred in the romantic drama Arjun Reddy which received both praise and criticism for being bold and radical. [25] However, his portrayal of a self-destructive, short-tempered, and alcoholic surgeon received widespread critical acclaim, and won him the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Telugu. [26] [27] In 2019, Film Companion ranked Deverakonda's performance in Arjun Reddy in "100 Greatest Performances of the Decade". [28]
Deverakonda starred in multiple films in 2018, the first of which was the delayed Ye Mantram Vesave , which was initially supposed to release in 2013. He played a pivotal role in the notable biographical film Mahanati , based on the life of actress Savitri. Deverakonda's most successful release of 2018 was Geetha Arts' romantic comedy Geetha Govindam , in which he played a naive and nervous college professor alongside Rashmika Mandanna. The film received mixed-to-positive reviews upon release, and proved to his highest-grossing release grossing ₹130 crore worldwide. He next appeared in the Tamil political thriller NOTA , directed by Anand Shankar, which performed poorly at the box office. [29] His final film in 2018 was UV Creations' supernatural comedy thriller Taxiwaala , which garnered good box office returns. [30]
In 2019, Deverakonda was seen in Bharat Kamma's Dear Comrade , a romantic action drama, alongside Rashmika Mandanna. He later signed Hero, directed by Anand Annamalai co-starring Malavika Mohanan but the film was reportedly shelved after beginning production. [31] In 2020, he acted in Kranthi Madhav's romantic drama World Famous Lover opposite Raashii Khanna, Catherine Tresa, Aishwarya Rajesh, and Izabelle Leite which opened to negative reviews. [32] In 2022, he acted in the Hindi–Telugu bilingual film Liger which was directed by Puri Jagannadh and produced by Karan Johar which also opened to highly negative reviews. [33] [34] He then starred in Kushi which was directed by Shiva Nirvana and it opened to mixed reviews. [35] The film was an average grosser at the box office. [36] In 2024, Deverakonda starred in The Family Star , which was a box-office bomb. [37] Later, that year he was seen in a cameo appearance as the warrior Arjuna in Nag Ashwin's science-fiction epic Kalki 2898 AD . [38]
Deverakonda was the brand ambassador of food delivery app Zomato. [39] On 15 October 2018, he launched his fashion brand Rowdy Wear. [9] Later, in 2020 Rowdy Wear was launched on Myntra. [40]
Deverakonda has donated to relief funds, including a donation to families of victims in the 2019 Pulwama attack. [41] [42] [43] [44]
Deverakonda conceptualized and founded The Deverakonda Foundation, a nonprofit organisation in April 2019. [45] In early 2020, he donated ₹24,000 through the Foundation to help Ganesh Ambari, a kickboxer who won the Vaco Indian Open International Kick-boxing Championship Title 2020. [46]
An initiative was started to battle COVID-19 pandemic crisis. The foundation has successfully aided 17,000 middle-class families with their groceries and basic essentials, spending ₹1.7 crores, with the help of his Middle Class Fund (MCF). More than 8,500 volunteers donated over ₹1.5 crores to join his community effort. [47] [48] Organizers decided to end the initiative on 2 June 2020. [49] [50] Devarkonda opened his first multiplex theatre in Mahbubnagar in 2021. [51]
Deverakonda says his family used to call him a rowdy every time he did something that they did not approve of. Over time, he started using this term for himself and his fans. [53] [54]
Deverakonda is known to express his real, honest, and unfiltered opinions on stage or during interviews, for which he has gathered a lot of popularity and criticism, [55] as seen during his speech at the audio launch of Arjun Reddy, in 2017. [56] [57] [58]
Deverakonda placed 72nd in the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list of 2018. [59] He was ranked in The Times Most Desirable Men at No. 4 [60] in 2018, at No. 3 [61] in 2019, at No. 2 [62] in 2020. He was additionally featured by Forbes India in their 30 Under 30 list, [63] and became the most-searched South Indian actor according to Google's annual report. [64]
† | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2011 | Nuvvila | Vishnu | [65] | |
2012 | Life Is Beautiful | Ajay | ||
2015 | Yevade Subramanyam | Rishi | ||
2016 | Pelli Choopulu | Prashanth | ||
2017 | Dwaraka | Erra Srinu aka Sri Krishnananda Swamy | [66] | |
Arjun Reddy | Dr. Arjun Reddy Deshmukh | [67] | ||
2018 | Ye Mantram Vesave | Nikhil "Nikki" | Delayed film; shot in 2013 | [68] |
Mahanati | Vijay Anthony | [69] | ||
Geetha Govindam | Vijay Govind | Also singer for "What the Life" | [70] | |
NOTA | Varun Subramanyam | Tamil film | [71] | |
Ee Nagaraniki Emaindhi | Himself | Cameo | [72] | |
Taxiwaala | Shiva Rawaali | |||
2019 | Dear Comrade | Chaitanya "Bobby" Krishna | [73] | |
Meeku Maathrame Cheptha | Himself | Cameo; also producer | [74] | |
2020 | World Famous Lover | Gautham / Seenayya "Srinu" Prajapat | [75] | |
2021 | Jathi Ratnalu | Blue shirt guy | Cameo | [76] |
Pushpaka Vimanam | — | Producer only | [77] | |
2022 | Liger | Lion Tiger Balram Agarwal / Sashwath Agarwal (Liger) | Telugu-Hindi film | [34] |
2023 | Kushi | Viplav | [78] | |
2024 | The Family Star | Govardhan | [79] | |
Kalki 2898 AD | Arjuna | Cameo | [80] | |
2025 | VD12† | TBA | Filming | [81] |
Year | Song | Language(s) | Artist | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2024 | "Sahiba" | Hindi | Jasleen Royal | [82] |
Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | Nandi Awards | Special Jury Award | Yevade Subramanyam | Won | [83] |
2017 | Zee Golden Awards | Best Actor | Arjun Reddy | Won | [84] |
2018 | Filmfare Awards South | Best Actor – Telugu | Won | [85] | |
2018 | South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Actor (Telugu) | Nominated | [86] | |
2019 | Geetha Govindam | Nominated | [87] | ||
Best Actor (Critics) – Telugu | Won | [88] | |||
2019 | Filmfare Awards South | Best Actor – Telugu | Nominated | [89] | |
2022 | South Indian International Movie Awards | Youth Icon South (Male) | — | Won | [90] |
Pooja Hegde is an Indian actress who appears in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil films. She was the second runner-up at the 2010 Miss Universe India pageant. She made her acting debut with the Tamil film Mugamoodi (2012). She had her first Telugu release in Oka Laila Kosam (2014). Hegde is a recipient of four SIIMA Awards.
Singireddy Nag Ashwin commonly known as Nag Ashwin, is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his work in Telugu cinema. He is the recipient of a National Film Award, a Nandi Award, and a Filmfare Award. A graduate of the New York Film Academy, Ashwin began his career as an assistant director to Sekhar Kammula. He made his directorial debut in 2015 with the coming-of-age film Yevade Subramanyam, which earned him the Nandi Award for Best Debut Director.
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Pelli Choopulu (transl. Matchmaking) is a 2016 Indian Telugu-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Tharun Bhascker and produced by Raj Kandukuri and Yash Rangineni. It features Vijay Deverakonda and Ritu Varma in the lead roles. Partly based on a real-life incident of "Spitfire BBQ" food truck, the film revolves around a boy and a girl who meet during match-making and how their aspirations that bring them together form the rest of the story.
SIIMA Award for Best Actor – 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 Telugu films. The award was first given in 2012 for films released in 2011. Mahesh Babu is the most nominated with 8 nominations and most awarded, winning four times.
SIIMA Award for Best Actress – Telugu is presented by Vibri media group as part of its annual South Indian International Movie Awards, for best acting done by an actress in Telugu films. The award was first given in 2012 for films released in 2011. Shruti Haasan is the most awarded with 3 times winning the award and Samantha is the most nominated with 9 nominations.
Rashmika Mandanna is an Indian actress who works in Telugu, Kannada, Hindi and Tamil films. She has received several accolades including four SIIMA Awards and a Filmfare Award. One of South India's highest-paid actresses, she was featured in Forbes India's 2024 list of "30 Under 30".
Arjun Reddy is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language romantic drama film written and directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, and produced by his brother Pranay Reddy Vanga's company Bhadrakali Pictures. It stars Vijay Deverakonda and Shalini Pandey while Rahul Ramakrishna, Jia Sharma, Sanjay Swaroop, Gopinath Bhat, Kamal Kamaraju and Kanchana appear in supporting roles. The film tells the story of Arjun Reddy Deshmukh (Deverakonda), a wealthy high-functioning alcoholic surgeon with anger management problems. Arjun is on a self-destructive path after the marriage of his girlfriend Preethi Shetty (Pandey); the film focuses on his downfall and subsequent resurgence.
Shalini Pandey is an Indian actress who works in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi films. She made her acting debut in the Telugu film Arjun Reddy (2017), and has since acted in the Tamil film 100% Kadhal (2019), the Telugu films Mahanati (2018) and 118 (2019), and the Hindi films Jayeshbhai Jordaar (2022) and Maharaj (2024).
Rahul Ramakrishna is an Indian actor, writer and journalist. He made his debut with the short film, Sainma. He became popular with his role in the 2017 Telugu film, Arjun Reddy.
Sandeep Reddy Vanga is an Indian film director, screenwriter and editor known for his works in Telugu and Hindi cinema. He is known for his gritty and intense dramas, with a blend of dark psychological themes and complex characters with the lead character often depicting misogyny.
Geetha Govindam is a 2018 Indian Telugu-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Parasuram. Produced by GA2 Pictures, the film stars Vijay Deverakonda and Rashmika Mandanna in lead roles. Released on 15 August 2018, it is a huge commercial success, grossing ₹132 crore on a budget of ₹5 crore. Though critics felt that it was a "tried and tested story," the film received praise for its direction, performances, and production values.
Dear Comrade is a 2019 Indian Telugu-language romantic action drama film written and directed by Bharat Kamma. It is produced by Mythri Movie Makers and Big Ben Cinemas. The film stars Vijay Deverakonda, Rashmika Mandanna and Shruti Ramachandran. Principal photography for the film commenced in August 2018. The film was theatrically released on 26 July 2019 in Telugu along with dubbed versions in Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada. Upon release, the film received mixed reviews from critics in Telugu and mostly negative reviews in Tamil.
World Famous Lover is a 2020 Indian Telugu-language romantic drama film written and directed by Kranthi Madhav. The film stars Vijay Deverakonda in a double role alongside, Raashii Khanna, Aishwarya Rajesh, Catherine Tresa and Izabelle Leite. It is produced by K. A. Vallabha under the banner of Creative Commercials. The film was panned by the critics and audience though Aishwarya Rajesh's performances was praised.The film was a box office disaster.
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.
SIIMA Award for Best Male Debut – 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 leading role in his debut Telugu film. The award was first given in 2012 for films released in 2011.
SIIMA Critics Award for Best Actress – Telugu is presented by Vibri media group as part of its annual South Indian International Movie Awards, for best acting done by an actress in Telugu films, who are selected by the jury. The award was first given in 2013 for films released in 2012.
Arjun Reddy is the soundtrack to the 2017 film of the same name directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga. The album featured seven songs composed by Radhan with lyrics penned by Ananta Sriram, Rambabu Gosala, Shreshta and Mandela Pedaswamy. The album was released on 21 August 2017 through Aditya Music and preceded with four singles. Although most of the song were composed by Radhan, Shrestha who penned lyrics for "Madhurame" and "Gundelona"; composed the latter's tune that lacked instrumental support.