Prabhas is one of the biggest stars of Tollywood, known amongst his fans as Darling and Young Rebel Star. Besides being one of the best actors in the film industry, he is also loved by thousands in India and even overseas for his down-to-earth, simple, and shy personality. As his birthday approaches, let’s find out in-depth about the actor and his journey into cinema. Read on!
Early Life
Prabhas was born on 23rd October 1979 as Uppalapati Venkata Suryanarayana Prabhas Raju to father, Uppalapati Surya Narayan Raju, a film producer, and mother, Siva Kumari, in Madras, Tamil Nadu. He has an elder sister, Pragathi, and an elder brother, Prabodh.
Prabhas completed his schooling at Don Bosco Matriculation Secondary School, Chennai, and his intermediate education at Nalanda College in Hyderabad.
Acting career
Early on, even though his father was a film producer, Prabhas wasn’t keen on having a career in films. Instead, he wanted to become a businessman. His uncle Uppalapati Krishnam Raju encouraged him to try his luck in movies.
Prabhas debuted in the Telugu film industry in 2002 with the film Eeshwar and then a second movie, Raghuvendra, and both failed to impress the audience. In 2004, Prabhas finally touched stardom when he starred in Varsham opposite Trisha Krishnan and Gopichand. The film was a massive box office success, leading Prabhas to win Best Young Performer at the Santosham Film Awards.
Prabhas’s next release was a highly anticipated; however, it received average feedback from the audiences. But, he gained his audience’s love back by giving a blockbuster hit, S S Rajmouli’s Chatrapati. Due to this movie’s huge success, it ran for 100 days in 54 theatres.
He then appeared in a few more films like Yogi in 2007 and Munna in 2009, which did very well at the box office. Prabhas also starred in romantic comedies like Darling and Mr. Perfect in 2011 and 2012, respectively. In 2014, he debuted his Bollywood with a cameo in a film directed by Prabhudeva, Action Jackson.
In 2014, Prabhas accepted his role in S S Rajamouli’s Bahubali: The Beginning. Prabhas took a risk with this film as he dedicated his entire two years and didn’t even sign any other films. He also went on a strict diet, including eating 40 egg whites in a day and participating in many exercises, including rock climbing.
His hard work had paid off, as Bahubali: The Beginning till date is the fourth highest-grossing film in India. Prabhas then reprised his role in Bahubali 2: The Conclusion, which became the first Indian film to gross over Rs. 1,000 crores and became the second highest-grossing film within 10 days of its release in theatres. The film was a giant success across the country and even abroad and won the National Award for Best Special Effects. Prabhas even won the best actor for his remarkable work in Bahubali 2.
Following massive success after the Bahubali franchise, Prabhas became an Indian actor, working in various film languages like Hindi and Tamil.
Some of his upcoming films include Kalki 2898 AD, which has a star-studded cast including Amitabh Bachchan, Deepika Padukone, Kamal Haasan, and Disha Patani. He is also working on a horror comedy flick, Raja Deluxe, directed by Maruthi.
Awards and accolades
| Year | Film | Award | Category |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | Varsham | Santosham Film Awards | Best Young Performer |
| 2010 | Darling | CineMAA Awards | Best Actor (Critics) |
| 2013 | Mirchi | Nandi Awards | Best Actor – Telugu |
| 2015 | Bahubali 1 | Santosham Film Awards | Best Actor – Telugu |
| 2017 | Bahubali 2 | South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Actor – Telugu |
Besides receiving awards in films, Prabhas is the first actor from South India to have a wax sculpture at Madame Tussaud’s wax museum. Since 2015, he has been mentioned thrice in Forbes India’s Celebrity 100 List based on his popularity and income.
Philanthropy
Apart from having a thriving career in acting, Prabhas also gives back to the community with donations and promotes humanitarian and philanthropic causes. The actor ranked seventh in the UK’s South Asian celebrity list for his efforts during the Covid-19 pandemic. Prabhas donated Rs. 4 crore to the government to fight against the pandemic and Rs.50 Lakh to Corona Crisis Society.
Giftalove wishes a very happy birthday to Prabhas and lots of success in his future endeavors!
