When we ask somebody to name the top actors in India, the first few names that come in everybody’s minds are the 3 Khans. But now the trend is slowly changing. Try asking somebody the top movies of India. Baahubali will mostly stand at number 1 position all over the world. And with this, South Cinema, and hence Telugu Actors, have started gaining popularity all around.
Tollywood has proved that even though the 3 Khans are loved all over the world, nobody can beat Tamil industry once it decides to pick up speed. Back to back, they are releasing some highly awesome movies like Bahubali series, Vivegam, and Mersal. Not only are they breaking numerous records in India but are also giving tough competition to American movies. Although the movies have started gaining worldwide attention, Telugu actors still have a long way to go in order to gain worldwide popularity.
Popular Telugu Actors
Many South Indian actors today are working both in Telugu and Tamil industries. Even though they give superhits in both languages, there is still a different list of who are the top actors in Tamil and Telugu. So let’s have a look at who are the most popular actors in Tollywood.
Nagarjuna
Nagarjuna is mostly popular for doing biography movies. Some of his biographical hits include Annamayya, LOC Kargil, Sri Ramadasu, and many more. He made his Bollywood entry with the movie, Shiva. This movie also marked the debut of famous director Ram Gopal Verma. The movie was Hindi remake of Telugu action blockbuster, Siva. Over the years, he has delivered more than 90 movies in which he acted as the lead.
Mahesh Babu
Mahesh Babu is popular as the Prince of Tollywood. He is one of the most handsome men in India and has also been mentioned for the same in multiple lists and media. Among the audience, he is the Superstar of Telugu Cinema. Belonging to an actor family, he has been a part of movies right from his childhood. He has been a child actor in more than 8 movies. His first mega-hit as the main lead was Murari in 2001. And since then, he went on to give numerous back to back hits like Dookudu, Businessman, 1: Nenokkadine, etc. which went to become one of the highest grossing Telugu movies in India.
Prabhas
This actor does not require any introduction. Every person across the world would anywhere recognize this Bahubali superstar. Even though the actor already was among the top 10 Telugu actors, but the Bahubali series gave him a very high jump and made him popular across the globe. His movie Bahubali 2 went on to become the highest grossing Indian Movie till date. Prabhas is also famous for his roles in Mr. Perfect and Mirchi. He made his Bollywood debut with the movie Saaho, opposite Shraddha Kapoor.
Allu Arjun
Arjun marked his debut in the film industry with the movie Gangotri. Later he appeared in ‘Arya’, which gave him the much-needed recognition. It marked the breakthrough in his film career and also won him several awards. He is also one of the best dancers in India. Some of his other superhits include Vedam, Arya 2, Julayi, Happy, and many more.
N.T Rama Rao Jr.
Popular as Jr. NTR, he is a very famous actor, dancer, and a playback singer. He made his debut as an actor in 2001 with Ninnu Choodalani. He rose to stardom with the movie Aadi, which gave him a huge fan following. Being the grandson of famous Telugu actor N.T. Rama Rao, he was criticized for his acting a lot. He witnessed a lot of struggles before he became one of the top actors.
Ravi Teja
Ravi Teja is one of the most popular and highest paid Telugu actors in India. Some of his successful films are Chiranjeevulu (2001), Idiot (2002), Venky (2004), Bhadra (2005), Vikramarkudu (2006), Kick (2009), Power (2014), and many more.
Ram Charan
Ram Charan is also one of the most handsome men in India. His biggest blockbuster till date has been Magadheera (2009), which essayed the story on re-birth. Being just his 2nd movie, it gave a massive jump to Ram’s film career and established himself among the top 10 actors of Tollywood. He is the son of popular Telugu actor, Chiranjeevi (given below). Charan made his Bollywood debut with Zanjeer, opposite Priyanka Chopra.
Chiranjeevi
Over the years, Chiranjeevi has delivered solid punches in all his movies. Not only his punches, his powerful dialog delivery and amazing dance performances have also given him immense love by the audience. His break dancing skills have mesmerized the people to no extent. Mostly, he is popular for doing movies that carry a social message, such as Shubhalekha (dealing with the social stigma of dowry system). Chiranjeevi rose to the ladder of fame with his super hit movie, Khaidi, released in 1983. His movie Gharana Mogudu, released in 1992, was a mega-hit at the box office, making him one of the highest paid actors of that time.
Pawan Kalyan
Pawan is the younger brother of Chiranjeevi. His 1st major success was Tholi Prema (1998), which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu for that year. His movie Gabbar Singh, Telugu remake of Dabangg, became one of the highest grossing Telugu movies of all time. Some of his other mega hits include Attarintiki Daredi, Badri, Kushi, Jalsa, to name a few.
Rana Daggubati
Bhallaladeva of Bahubali, Rana Daggubati is also one of the top actors in Tollywood. His debut movie, Leader, proved to be a blockbuster and won him several awards. Other than Bahubali series, his other major successes are The Ghazi Attack and Nene Raju Nene Mantri.
