Rana Daggubati
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Ramanaidu Daggubati, (; born 14 December 1984) known professionally as Rana Daggubati, is an Indian actor, film producer, and entrepreneur who primarily works in
Telugu cinema Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Cinema of India, Indian cinema dedicated to the production of Film, motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Based in Film N ...
, in addition to
Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
and
Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
films. He is a recipient of several accolades including a
National Film Award The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...
, two
Nandi Award The Nandi Awards are annual awards presented by the Government of Andhra Pradesh to recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, theatre, and television, as well as lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. The awards are named after the monolithic s ...
, six SIIMA Awards and three
Filmfare Awards South The Filmfare Awards South are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Telugu cinema, Tamil cinema, Malayalam cinema and Kannada cinema. They are presented by ''Filmfare'' magazine of The Times Group. When it was intr ...
. He made his acting debut with ''
Leader Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...
'' (2010), for which he won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. He later starred in the Hindi film '' Dum Maaro Dum'' (2011), alongside
Bipasha Basu Bipasha Basu (born 7 January 1979) is an Indian actress. Primarily known for her work in Hindi films, she List of awards and nominations received by Bipasha Basu, has received a Filmfare Awards, Filmfare Award. In the 2000s and 2010s, she was ...
, where he received positive reviews for his performance and won the Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut. In 2012, Rana gained prominence by starring in the hit Telugu film ''
Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum ''Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum'' () is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language action drama film directed by Krish and jointly produced by Saibabu Jagarlamudi and Rajeev Reddy on First Frame Entertainment. It has received universal acclaim for combining ...
''. In 2015, he played a notable supporting role in the successful Hindi film ''
Baby In common terminology, a baby is the very young offspring of adult human beings, while infant (from the Latin word ''infans'', meaning 'baby' or 'child') is a formal or specialised synonym. The terms may also be used to refer to Juvenile (orga ...
'' (2015). He later starred as Bhallaladeva, the main antagonist in the Telugu film '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' (2015), which recorded the second highest gross opening for an
Indian film The cinema of India, consisting of motion pictures made by the Indian film industry, has had a large effect on world cinema since the second half of the 20th century. Indian cinema is made up of various film industries, each focused on pr ...
. He then featured in a supporting role in the Tamil film '' Bangalore Naatkal'' (2016). In 2017, Rana later reprised his role as Bhallaladeva in '' Baahubali 2: The Conclusion'', which became the highest grossing Indian film of all time. He has also simultaneously starred in successful films such as ''
Rudramadevi Rudrama Devi (reigned 1262–November 1289), also known by her regnal name Rudra-deva Maharaja, was a Kakatiya Queen regnant who ruled substantial parts of present-day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in southern India. She was among the few s ...
'' (2015), '' Ghazi'' (2017), and ''
Nene Raju Nene Mantri ''Nene Raju Nene Mantri'' () is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language political action drama film written and directed by Teja, featuring Rana Daggubati and Kajal Aggarwal in the lead roles along with Catherine Tresa, Navdeep, and Ashutosh Rana in ot ...
'' (2017). As a
visual effects Visual effects (sometimes abbreviated as VFX) is the process by which imagery is created or manipulated outside the context of a live-action shot in filmmaking and video production. The integration of live-action footage and other live-action fo ...
producer, Rana won the State
Nandi Award The Nandi Awards are annual awards presented by the Government of Andhra Pradesh to recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, theatre, and television, as well as lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. The awards are named after the monolithic s ...
for Best Special Effects in 2006 for the Telugu film '' Sainikudu''. In 2006, he received the
National Film Award The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...
for co-producing '' Bommalata.'' Rana is also an established television personality, hosting award shows such as the
2nd IIFA Utsavam The 2nd IIFA Utsavam ceremony honouring the winners and nominees of the best of South Indian film industry, South Indian cinema in 2016 was an event held on 28 and 29 March 2017 at the Hyderabad, Telangana, India. The event, which is the second e ...
, the
South Indian International Movie Awards The South Indian International Movie Awards (SIIMA Awards) rewards the artistic and technical achievements of the South Indian film industry. It was launched in 2012 by Vishnu Vardhan Induri and Brinda Prasad Adusimilli to appreciate and hono ...
. He also hosted talk shows '' No. 1 Yaari with Rana'' (2017–2021) and '' The Rana Daggubati Show''. Alongside building a career in cinema, Rana is invested in businesses ranging from a business accelerator programme for technology startups, to an entertainment agency and a comic book company. Daggubati became the board member of
Mumbai Academy of the Moving Image The Mumbai Academy of Moving Image (MAMI) is a public trust that organises the MAMI Mumbai Film Festival in the city of Mumbai, India. Priyanka Chopra, Priyanka Chopra Jonas is the chairperson of the trust while Shivendra Singh Dungarpur serves ...
. Rana is described as one of the few actors in India who were able to achieve pan-Indian appeal, having taken up a variety of roles, from leading roles to supporting characters, in different languages.


Early life and family

Ramanaidu Daggubati was born on 14 December 1984 in a Telugu family to film producer D. Suresh Babu in
Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...
(present-day Chennai),
Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is the southernmost States and union territories of India, state of India. The List of states and union territories of India by area, tenth largest Indian state by area and the List of states and union territories of Indi ...
. He was named after his paternal grandfather and movie mogul D. Ramanaidu. A member of the Daggubati–Akkineni family, his paternal uncle Venkatesh and his cousin
Naga Chaitanya Akkineni Naga Chaitanya (; born 23 November 1986) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. Chaitanya is a recipient of several accolades including one Filmfare Awards South, Filmfare Award South and one Nandi Award for his work. Born in ...
are also actors. Rana revealed in 2016 that he is blind in his right eye, and his left eye is a transplanted one. The surgery was done in L. V. Prasad Hospital, Hyderabad. Another surgery was done on his right eye when he was 14, but was unsuccessful. Rana did his early schooling in Chennai at Chettinad Vidyashram. He later shifted to
Hyderabad, Telangana Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much of Hyderabad is sit ...
, where he studied at Nalanda Vidya Bhavan High School and The Hyderabad Public School, Begumpet. At Hyderabad Public School, he was classmates with
Ram Charan Konidela Ram Charan (born 27 March 1985) is an Indian actor, film producer, and entrepreneur who primarily works in Telugu cinema. He is one of the highest-paid actors in Indian cinema and is also known for his dancing. He has featured in '' ...
,
Sharwanand Myneni Sharwanand (born 6 March 1984), known mononymously as Sharwanand, is an Indian actor and producer who primarily works in Telugu films alongside a few Tamil films. He made his acting debut in 2004 with the film ''Aidho Tareekhu''. He i ...
,
Nikhil Siddharth Nikhil Siddhartha (born 1 June 1985) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. He played supporting roles in various films before being cast in ''Happy Days'' (2007) as one of the four male leads. The film was successful and became his bre ...
, and
Nag Ashwin Singireddy Nag Ashwin Reddy (born 23 April 1986), popularly 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 ...
. His collegiate studies were at St. Mary's College, Hyderabad. Rana holds a degree in Industrial photography. He lives with his family in
Film Nagar Film Nagar, also known as Tinsel Town or Tollywood, is a neighbourhood in the western part of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It is notable for its place as the home of the entertainment industry, including several of Telugu cinema's historic stu ...
Hyderabad. He also owns a flat in
Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
.


Acting career


2010–2012: Debut

Rana's debut film as an actor in Telugu was ''
Leader Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...
'' (2010), directed by Shekhar Kammula. It remains one of his highest grossers. In it, he plays the role of an aspiring
Chief minister of Andhra Pradesh The chief minister of Andhra Pradesh is the chief executive of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but '' de facto'' executive authority rests with the ch ...
. It opened to rave reviews from critics with his performance got much praise. A critic from ''
The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
'' stated that "Another lineage star Rana takes his first bow at the BO with an inspiring political saga, a far cry from the formula-ridden films that his ilk usually begin with including his uncle and star Venkatesh." His performance in the film fetched him two awards – Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut – South and CineMAA Award for Best Male Debut. Rana made his
Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
debut with the film '' Dum Maaro Dum'', alongside
Bipasha Basu Bipasha Basu (born 7 January 1979) is an Indian actress. Primarily known for her work in Hindi films, she List of awards and nominations received by Bipasha Basu, has received a Filmfare Awards, Filmfare Award. In the 2000s and 2010s, she was ...
,
Abhishek Bachchan Abhishek Bachchan (; born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan. From 2012 to 2016, Bachchan appeared in ...
and Prateik Babbar which released on 22 April 2011. where he received positive reviews for his performance and won the Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut.''
The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
'' called it a "dashing debut".
Taran Adarsh Taran Adarsh (born 13 June 1965) is an Indian film critic and trade analyst. He is best known for giving trade figures and box office updates on social media, as well as his reviews for Bollywood Hungama. Career Taran Adarsh started his journ ...
commented that "Much of the joy comes from watching Rana Daggubati infuse believability into his character. He's easy on the eyes and is a complete natural when it comes to acting." He won the Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut for his performance in the film. In his next Telugu film, ''
Nenu Naa Rakshasi ''Nenu Naa Rakshasi'' () is a 2011 Indian Telugu-language romantic action thriller film written and directed by Puri Jagannadh and produced by Nallamalupu Bujji. The film stars Rana Daggubati and Ileana D'Cruz. The film released on 28 April 20 ...
'' (2011)'','' he played a professional killer Abhimanyu alongside
Ileana D'Cruz Ileana D'Cruz (born 1 November 1986) is a Portuguese actress who primarily appears in Telugu and Hindi films. She is the recipient of several accolades including a Filmfare Award and a Filmfare Awards South. D'Cruz made her screen debut in 2 ...
, under
Puri Jagannadh Petla "Puri" Jagannadh (born 28 September 1966) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer, who works primarily in the Telugu film Industry. He made his directorial debut in 2000 with the Telugu film '' Badri'' starring Pawan Kaly ...
's direction It was a
box-office bomb A box-office bomb is a film that is unprofitable or considered highly unsuccessful during its theatrical run. Although any film for which the combined production budget, marketing, and distribution costs exceed the revenue after release has te ...
. A reviewer of ''NDTV'' wrote that "Rana's attempt to prove himself as a commercial hero has not taken off and he should wait for another break." Rana had three releases in 2012. His first release of the year was the romantic action film '' Naa Ishtam.'' ''
News 18 Network18 Media & Investments Limited, (d/b/a Network18 Group) is an Indian media conglomerate owned by the Reliance Industries, headed by Mukesh Ambani. Rahul Joshi is the managing director, chief executive officer and group editor-in-chief, a ...
'' credited it as Rana's first "full-length commercial film." Radhika Rajamani of ''
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'', in her review of the film, praised Rana' performance but criticised the screenplay. His next film was '' Department,'' directed by
Ram Gopal Varma Penmetsa Ram Gopal Varma (born 7 April 1962), often referred to by his initials RGV, is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer, primarily known for his work in Hindi cinema, Hindi and Telugu cinema, Telugu films.** * * Varma has dir ...
, alongside
Amitabh Bachchan Amitabh Bachchan (; 11 October 1942) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi cinema. He is often considered one of the greatest, most accomplished and commercially successful actors in the history of Indian cinema.* * * * * With a cinemati ...
and
Sanjay Dutt Sanjay Balraj Dutt (born 29 July 1959) is an Indian actor, playback singer and film producer who works in Hindi cinema in addition to a few Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Punjabi films. Dutt has won several accolades and acted in over 160 films. ...
. The film received mixed response from critics and was declared as a
box-office bomb A box-office bomb is a film that is unprofitable or considered highly unsuccessful during its theatrical run. Although any film for which the combined production budget, marketing, and distribution costs exceed the revenue after release has te ...
. His last release of the year was ''
Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum ''Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum'' () is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language action drama film directed by Krish and jointly produced by Saibabu Jagarlamudi and Rajeev Reddy on First Frame Entertainment. It has received universal acclaim for combining ...
'', directed by Krish, which became a box office success, also receiving critical acclaim. he plays the role of a theatre artist who later meets Devika (
Nayanthara Nayanthara (born Diana Mariam Kurian; 18 November 1984) is an Indian actress and producer known for her work in Tamil cinema, Tamil, Telugu cinema, Telugu and Malayalam cinema, Malayalam films. One of the highest-paid actresses in India, she ...
). an informer of the CBI, and takes revenge on Redappa/Chakravarthy (
Murali Sharma Murali Sharma (born 9 August 1972) is an Indian actor who works predominantly in Telugu language, Telugu and Hindi films. Sharma has starred in over 130 feature films including Telugu language, Telugu, Hindi, Tamil language, Tamil, Marathi lang ...
/
Milind Gunaji Milind Gunaji (born 23 July 1961) is an Indian actor, model, television presenter, writer and author, most known for his roles in Marathi and Hindi cinema. He made his first film appearance in 1993's ''Papeeha'' and has since performed in over ...
). A critic noted his performance as "brilliant" and "commendable". Karthik Pasupulate of ''
The Times of India ''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
'' felt that, his performance in the film is his best one to date and is a few notches above everything else he's done to date. In July 2012, Rana signed do a "special appearance" in the film '' Arrambam'', which his
Tamil cinema Tamil cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Tamil language, the main spoken language in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is nicknamed Kollywood, a portmanteau of the names Kodambakkam, a Ch ...
debut.


2013–2017: Breakthrough

The year 2013 was one of the busiest in his career. Rana made
cameo appearance A cameo appearance, also called a cameo role and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief guest appearance of a well-known person or character in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking on ...
s in three films –
Sundar C Vinayagar Sundar Vel (born 21 January 1968), known professionally as Sundar C, is an Indian actor, filmmaker, and playback singer who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. He has directed over 30 films and received the Kalaimamani#2009, Kalaim ...
's '' Something Something,''
Ayan Mukerji Ayan Mukerji (born 15 August 1983) is an Indian filmmaker who works in Hindi films. A member of the Mukherjee-Samarth family, he is known for his collaborations with actor Ranbir Kapoor under Karan Johar's production banner Dharma Productions. ...
's ''
Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani ''Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani'' (), also abbreviated as ''YJHD'', is a 2013 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age romantic comedy film directed by Ayan Mukerji, written by Mukerji and Hussain Dalal, and produced by Karan Johar under Dharma Produc ...
'' and Vishnuvardhan's '' Arrambam,'' with the latter being his
Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...
debut. The same year, he joined two big-budget productions,
Gunasekhar Gunasekhar (born 2 June 1964) is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his works in Telugu cinema. He has directed films in action, romance, mythological, and historical drama genres. He has won a National Film Award, multiple Nand ...
's '' Rudhramadevi'' and S. S. Rajamouli's '' Baahubali: The Beginning'', in which he is the lead antagonist. Both the films were released in 2015. Rana didn't have a single release in 2014. In 2015, he starred in the Hindi film ''Baby'', alongside
Akshay Kumar Akshay Hari Om Bhatia (born Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia; 9 September 1967), known professionally as Akshay Kumar (), is an Indian actor and film producer working in Hindi cinema. Referred to in the media as "Khiladi Kumar", through his career span ...
and
Taapsee Pannu Tapasee Pannu (born 1 August 1987), professionally known as Taapsee Pannu, is an Indian actress who works in Hindi, Telugu language, Telugu and Tamil language, Tamil films. Pannu is the recipient of two Filmfare Awards and a Filmfare OTT Award ...
. Rana played Bhallaladeva, the cousin of Baahubali (
Prabhas Uppalapati Venkata Suryanarayana Prabhas Raju (; born 23 October 1979), known mononymously as Prabhas, is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. One of the highest-paid actors in Indian cinema, he is known as Rebel Star in ...
), in the 2015 film '' Baahubali: The Beginning,'' which is part of ''Baahubali'' franchise. His character became widely popular and received unprecedented appreciation from critics. Rana was inspired by Daniel Day-Lewis to play the character. He described the film as "career-defining" for him. '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' was released worldwide in July 2015 and was the highest-grossing film in India at the time of its release. Made on a production budget of ₹ 180 crore, the film collected a worldwide gross of ₹650 crore at the
box office A box office or ticket office is a place where ticket (admission), tickets are sold to the public for admission to an event. Patrons may perform the transaction at a countertop, through a hole in a wall or window, or at a Wicket gate, wicket. ...
. The film gave him several awards, including the
Nandi Award for Best Villain The Nandi Award for Best Villain winners since 1985: See also * Nandi Awards * Cinema of Andhra Pradesh References {{DEFAULTSORT:Nandi Award For Best Villain Villain A villain (also known as a " black hat", "bad guy" or "baddy"; Th ...
and SIIMA Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role (Telugu). The film started a new film movement named Pan-India films. He next appeared in the film '' Rudhramadevi''. It is a 3D
biographical A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curric ...
action film The action film is a film genre that predominantly features chase sequences, fights, shootouts, explosions, and stunt work. The specifics of what constitutes an action film has been in scholarly debate since the 1980s. While some scholars such as D ...
based on the life of
Rudrama Devi Rudrama Devi (reigned 1262–November 1289), also known by her regnal name Rudra-deva Maharaja, was a Kakatiya Queen regnant who ruled substantial parts of present-day Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in southern India. She was among the few s ...
, in which he played the role of Chalukya Veerabhadra. Although, the film didn't performed well at the box-office, it received mixed reviews from the critics. Pranita Jonnalagedda felt that his character in the film is "underused". The same year, he appeared as himself in a
cameo role A cameo appearance, also called a cameo role and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief guest appearance of a well-known person or character in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking one ...
in '' Dongaata'' (Telugu)'',
Size Zero Size zero or size 0 is a dress size, women's clothing size in the US catalog sizes system. Size 0 and 00 were invented due to increasing body sizes and therefore the changing of clothing sizes over time (referred to as vanity sizing or size infla ...
'' (Telugu) and ''Inji Iduppazhagi'' (Tamil). The following year, he was a part of the
ensemble cast In a dramatic production, an ensemble cast is one that comprises many principal actors and performers who are typically assigned roughly equal amounts of screen time.Random House: ensemble acting Linked 2013-07-17 Structure In contrast to the po ...
of the Tamil film '' Bangalore Naatkal'', a remake of the 2014
Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...
film '' Bangalore Days.'' In 2017, he starred in India's first submarine based Telugu-Hindi bilingual film, ''Ghazi''. The film's plot is based on the mysterious sinking of PNS ''Ghazi'' during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, in which he played Lieutenant Commander Arjun Varma. He shot for 18 days in a specially constructed underwater set. ''
Hindustan Times ''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media Limited, an entity controlled by the Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia, the daughter o ...
'''s Gautaman Bhaskaran wrote that "Daggubati is wonderfully restrained – a complete changeover from the kind of parts he has been playing so far". Several other critics also praised his performance in the film. Rana reprised his role in the second part of the film series of ''Baahubali'' franchise, '' Baahubali 2: The Conclusion.'' The film started the 1000 Crore Club in
Indian cinema The cinema of India, consisting of motion pictures made by the Indian film industry, has had a large effect on world cinema since the second half of the 20th century. Indian cinema is made up of various film industries, each focused on p ...
. It is currently the second highest-grossing Indian film and the 39th highest-grossing film of 2017 with a gross of ₹1,810 crore. He spent a total of 250 days shooting both the films of the series over five years. His performance as Bhallaladeva was well praised, with critics calling it "terrific", "scheming villain". A critic of ''
News18 Network18 Media & Investments Limited, ( d/b/a Network18 Group) is an Indian media conglomerate owned by the Reliance Industries, headed by Mukesh Ambani. Rahul Joshi is the managing director, chief executive officer and group editor-in-chief ...
'' stated that he has "made an indelible impact on the viewers." He won two major awards,
Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – Telugu The Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – 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 South Filmfare Awards in 2002, with Praka ...
and SIIMA Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role (Telugu). He next did a Telugu film ''
Nene Raju Nene Mantri ''Nene Raju Nene Mantri'' () is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language political action drama film written and directed by Teja, featuring Rana Daggubati and Kajal Aggarwal in the lead roles along with Catherine Tresa, Navdeep, and Ashutosh Rana in ot ...
'' in which he plays a politician with grey shades, alongside Kajal Aggarwal. In an interview to ''
Gulf News ''Gulf News'' is a daily English language newspaper published from Dubai, United Arab Emirates. First launched in 1978, it is distributed throughout the UAE and also in other Persian Gulf countries. Its online edition was launched in 1996. Thro ...
'', director Teja said that "I wanted Joginder to dress like
M. G. Ramachandran Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran (17 January 1917 – 24 December 1987), popularly known by his initialism M.G.R. and as Makkal Thilagam/Puratchi Thalaivar, was an Indian actor, politician, and philanthropist who served as the chief minister of ...
and have included some traits of MGR in Joginder's life". This film received some mixed reviews but Rana's acting and screen presence were praised. Hemanth Kumar, writing for ''Firstpost'', called his performance "terrific" and added that "it is a performance that we won't forget anytime soon." Rana next began shooting for the Telugu-Tamil bilingual film ''
1945 1945 marked the end of World War II, the fall of Nazi Germany, and the Empire of Japan. It is also the year concentration camps were liberated and the only year in which atomic weapons have been used in combat. Events World War II will be ...
''. However, in September 2019, he called it an "unfinished film," while also adding that: "producer defaulted on money." He also signed the mythological film ''Hiranyakashyapa'' directed by
Gunasekhar Gunasekhar (born 2 June 1964) is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his works in Telugu cinema. He has directed films in action, romance, mythological, and historical drama genres. He has won a National Film Award, multiple Nand ...
, in 2017. Estimated to be made on a production budget of , the film features Rana in the titular role of
Hiranyakashipu Hiranyakashipu (, ), also known as Hiranyakashyap, was a daitya king of the asuras in the Puranas. In Hinduism, Hiranyakashipu's younger brother, Hiranyaksha, was slain by the Varaha (boar) avatar of Vishnu. Angered by this, Hiranyakashipu ...
. Although as of October 2020, the film stood temporarily shelved owing to the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
. He announced his next film '' Kaadan'' (in Tamil; ''Aranya'' in Telugu; ''Haathi Mere Saathi'' in Hindi) on 14 December 2017, directed by
Prabhu Solomon Prabhu Solomon (born 7 May 1969) is an Indian film director who has primarily worked on Tamil films. After making his directorial debut in 1999 with ''Kannodu Kanbathellam'', he had a middling career before rising to prominence with the success ...
.


2018–present: Experimental roles

In 2018, he made a
cameo appearance A cameo appearance, also called a cameo role and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief guest appearance of a well-known person or character in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking on ...
in the Hindi
comedy film The comedy film is a film genre that emphasizes humor. These films are designed to amuse audiences and make them laugh. Films in this genre typically have a happy ending, with dark comedy being an exception to this rule. Comedy is one of the o ...
''Welcome to New York''. In March 2018, he joined the production of two-part
N. T. Rama Rao Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (28 May 1923 – 18 January 1996), often referred to by his initials NTR, was an Indian actor, film director, film producer, screenwriter, film editor, philanthropist, and politician who served as the Chief Minister o ...
biographical film series. He played the role of
chief minister of Andhra Pradesh The chief minister of Andhra Pradesh is the chief executive of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but '' de facto'' executive authority rests with the ch ...
N. Chandrababu Naidu in two films – '' NTR: Kathanayakudu'' and '' NTR: Mahanayakudu'', which were released in January 2019 and February 2019. Both the films were commercial failures and received mixed reviews from the critics. He next appeared in a
dual role A dual role (also known as a double role) refers to one actor playing two roles in a single production. Dual roles (or a larger number of roles for an actor) may be deliberately written into a script, or may instead be a choice made during produc ...
in the Hindi film '' Housefull 4'' and made a cameo appearance in the song "Naan Pizhaippeno" of the Tamil film '' Enai Noki Paayum Thota''. Rana's much awaited film, '' Kaadan'' (in Tamil; ''Aranya'' in Telugu) released in March 2021, after twice rescheduling its release date. Owing to the
COVID-19 pandemic in India The COVID-19 pandemic in India is a part of the COVID-19 pandemic, worldwide pandemic of COVID-19, coronavirus disease 2019 () caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). As of , according to Indian government ...
, the release of Hindi version ''Haathi Mere Saathi'' too was postponed. Tamil and Telugu versions however released as scheduled. Rana shed 30 kilograms to look lean for his role in the film. Haricharan Pudipeddi of ''
Hindustan Times ''Hindustan Times'' is an Indian English language, English-language daily newspaper based in Delhi. It is the flagship publication of HT Media Limited, an entity controlled by the Birla family, and is owned by Shobhana Bhartia, the daughter o ...
'' appreciated Rana's performance, calling it "one of his best till date."' ''
The Hans India ''The Hans India'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper published in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana as well as in New Delhi. The newspaper was launched on 15 July 2011 and is owned to Hyderabad Media House Ltd., which also ...
'' called his performance "exceptional". Rana had two film releases in 2022, the action thriller '' Bheemla Nayak'' and period action drama '' Virata Parvam''. He began filming for the ''Bheemla Nayak'', co-starring
Pawan Kalyan Konidela Pawan Kalyan (born Konidela Kalyan Kumar; 2 September 1971) is an Indian politician, actor, philanthropist, and martial artist serving as the List of deputy chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh, 11th Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Prade ...
in January 2021. Rana was most recently seen co starring in the
Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...
series '' Rana Naidu'' alongside his uncle Venkatesh. It is an official adaptation of the American crime drama series ''
Ray Donovan ''Ray Donovan'' is an American crime drama television series created by Ann Biderman for Showtime. The drama, starring Liev Schreiber in the title role, is set primarily in Los Angeles (during seasons 1–5) and in New York City (during seaso ...
''.


Production

Before his debut as an actor in 2010, he started his own production company, Spirit Media, which made the
National Film Award The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...
winning animation film, '' Bommalata'' (2004). He is also a partner in his family's production house,
Ramanaidu Studios Suresh Productions (also known as Suresh Movies, Vijaya Suresh Combines) is an Cinema of India, Indian film production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company known for its works in Telugu cinema. It is established in 19 ...
. He is also invested in many other ventures as well.


Business ventures and other works

Five years before becoming an actor, in 2005, Rana entered the visual effects business with Spirit Media. The company specialised in animation and VFX, and worked on over 70 films. Along with films, he also starred in a web series called ''Social''. Since 2017, Rana is the host of the Telugu Television talk-show '' No. 1 Yaari''. The show has completed four seasons over a span of five years, hosting celebrities such as Vijay Deverakonda, S.S. Rajamouli, Nani, Kajal Aggarwal,
Naga Chaitanya Akkineni Naga Chaitanya (; born 23 November 1986) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. Chaitanya is a recipient of several accolades including one Filmfare Awards South, Filmfare Award South and one Nandi Award for his work. Born in ...
,
Tamannaah Tamanna Bhatia (born 21 December 1989), known professionally as Tamannaah Bhatia, is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Telugu, Tamil and Hindi films. Having appeared in 88 films, she has received several awards, including two Sa ...
,
Rakul Preet Singh Rakul Preet Singh (born 10 October 1990) is an Indian actress who predominantly works in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil films. Singh is a recipient of several accolades including a SIIMA Award, in addition to four nominations at the Filmfare Award ...
, Ram Pothineni,
Navdeep Navdeep Pallapolu (born 26 January 1986) is an Indian actor and television personality who predominantly appears in the Telugu film industry alongside Tamil and Hindi works. He made his film debut in 2004 with the patriotic sports drama '' Jai ...
,
Nikhil Siddharth Nikhil Siddhartha (born 1 June 1985) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. He played supporting roles in various films before being cast in ''Happy Days'' (2007) as one of the four male leads. The film was successful and became his bre ...
, and others''.'' He also dubbed for the character
Thanos Thanos () is a supervillain appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics. Created by writer-artist Jim Starlin, the character first appeared in '' The Invincible Iron Man'' #55 (cover date February 1973). An Eternal– Devia ...
in the Telugu dubbed version of '' Avengers: Infinity War.'' In 2018, he entered into a
joint venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acce ...
with Kwan Entertainment and Marketing Solutions. Set up as a studio style agency, Kwan South's divisions include talent management, casting, live performances and appearances, film packaging, production support- TV and Commercials, brand associations- endorsements, digital and film partnerships. It was expanded with an office in Chennai. Following the business venture, in the same year, he tied up with Anthill Ventures, an investment and scaling platform for early growth stage start-ups, to launch Anthill Studio. Anthill Studio is a business accelerator program focused on technology startups in Media & Entertainment. The studio supports and mentors disruptive startups in leading-edge technologies such as
Artificial intelligence Artificial intelligence (AI) is the capability of computer, computational systems to perform tasks typically associated with human intelligence, such as learning, reasoning, problem-solving, perception, and decision-making. It is a field of re ...
(AI),
augmented reality Augmented reality (AR), also known as mixed reality (MR), is a technology that overlays real-time 3D computer graphics, 3D-rendered computer graphics onto a portion of the real world through a display, such as a handheld device or head-mounted ...
and
virtual reality Virtual reality (VR) is a Simulation, simulated experience that employs 3D near-eye displays and pose tracking to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video gam ...
(AR/VR),
blockchain The blockchain is a distributed ledger with growing lists of Record (computer science), records (''blocks'') that are securely linked together via Cryptographic hash function, cryptographic hashes. Each block contains a cryptographic hash of th ...
, visual effects (VFX), cloud rendering,
machine learning Machine learning (ML) is a field of study in artificial intelligence concerned with the development and study of Computational statistics, statistical algorithms that can learn from data and generalise to unseen data, and thus perform Task ( ...
(ML),
internet of things Internet of things (IoT) describes devices with sensors, processing ability, software and other technologies that connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet or other communication networks. The IoT encompasse ...
(IoT) and big data and analytics. In 2019, he bought a stake in the one of India's leading comic book companies,
Amar Chitra Katha Amar Chitra Katha (ACK Comics) is an Indian comic book publisher, based in Mumbai, India. The company was founded in 1967 by Anant Pai. Most of its comics are based on religious legends and epics, historical figures and biographies, folktale ...
and became director of the company, backed by Future Group. In March 2019, he opened a learning center for art and design, life skills, performing arts and vedic science and ethics in Hyderabad. The same year, he acquired the co-ownership of Hyderabad FC, a professional football club based in Hyderabad. The club competes in the
Indian Super League The Indian Super League (ISL) is a professional association football league in India and the highest level of the Indian football league system. Administered by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) and its commercial partner Football Sport ...
. After acquiring ownership, Rana stated "Hyderabad has a great legacy with the sport. This team, therefore, is a chance to rekindle that legacy." Rana has launched his own
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
channel SouthBay. Live on 15 November 2020. Reportedly, the channel streams various content including podcasts, fiction and non-fictions unscripted shows, live chat shows, music, animation, etc. In 2022, Rana launched a men's grooming platform named DCRAF in association with Roposo. DCRAF is a part of Roposo's Glance digital initiative.


Personal life and public image

Rana got engaged to his girlfriend, Miheeka Bajaj, founder of Dew Drop Design Studio, on 20 May 2020 at Ramanaidu Studios. They married on 8 August 2020 at Ramanaidu Studios. He is a non-vegetarian. Rana has appeared in ''
Forbes India ''Forbes India'' is the Indian edition of ''Forbes'', which is managed by the Reliance Industries-owned media conglomerate, Network 18. History and profile Since its founding in 2008, ''Forbes India'' has achieved a circulation of 50,000 copies ...
''s Celebrity 100 list in 2017 at the 36th position. He was ranked twentieth on the Times' 50 Most Desirable Men for the year 2011, tenth in 2012, thirteenth in 2013, seventeenth in 2014, eleventh in 2015, twenty-fourth in 2016, seventh in 2017, nineteenth in 2018, thirteenth in 2019, and twenty-eighth in 2020. For the year 2011, he was voted "The Most Promising Newcomer of 2011" for the same poll. He was ranked twenty-ninth in '' Eastern Eye''s "Sexiest Asian Men", in 2015. In 2011, he was featured in '' GQ'' India's Best Dressed Men list. He was the eleventh most searched celebrity in 2017, on
Google Search Google Search (also known simply as Google or Google.com) is a search engine operated by Google. It allows users to search for information on the World Wide Web, Web by entering keywords or phrases. Google Search uses algorithms to analyze an ...
. Rana have signed endorsement deal with Upon in 2020 and with CEAT in 2021. In addition, he has been the brand ambassador of
Telugu Titans Telugu Titans is a professional kabaddi team based in Hyderabad, Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Decca ...
in the
Pro Kabaddi League The Pro Kabaddi League (PKL) is an Indian professional Kabaddi league for men. It premiered in 2014 and airs on Star Sports. It is the most popular kabaddi league in the world and the third most watched sports league in India after the India ...
. On 1 June 2021,
Sony Pictures Networks India Culver Max Entertainment Pvt. Ltd., trading as Sony Pictures Networks India (SPN or SPNI), is an Indian media conglomerate owned by Sony Pictures Television. SPN manages and operates 26 television channels, the streaming media platform SonyLIV ...
have launched the sports channel Sony Ten 4, for which Rana was signed as the brand ambassador and promoter. In March 2025, an FIR was filed against him for the alleged promotion of betting apps and platforms.


Awards and nominations

;
National Film Awards The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...
* Best Feature Film in Telugu – Co-producer (Spirit Media) – '' Bommalata'' (2006) ;
Filmfare Awards South The Filmfare Awards South are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Telugu cinema, Tamil cinema, Malayalam cinema and Kannada cinema. They are presented by ''Filmfare'' magazine of The Times Group. When it was intr ...
* Best Male Debut – ''
Leader Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...
'' (2010) * Best Supporting Actor – Telugu – '' Baahubali 2: The Conclusion'' (2018) * Best Supporting Actor – Telugu – '' Bheemla Nayak'' (2024) ;
Nandi Awards The Nandi Awards are annual awards presented by the Government of Andhra Pradesh to recognise excellence in Telugu cinema, theatre, and television, as well as lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. The awards are named after the monolithic ...
* Best Special Effects (Spirit Media) – '' Sainikudu'' (2006)The multifaceted 'leader'
The Hindu (12 February 2012). Retrieved 23 April 2016.
* Best Villain – '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' (2015), '' Baahubali 2: The Conclusion'' (2017) ;
Zee Cine Awards The Zee Cine Award (ZCA) is an annual Indian awards ceremony for the Hindi film industry. They were instituted in November 1997 to award "Excellence in cinema – the democratic way". They were first held in Mumbai until 2004, when the ZCA w ...
* Best Male Debut – '' Dum Maro Dum'' (2011) ; SIIMA Awards * Youth Icon of South Indian Cinema (2011) * Best Actor Critics' – Telugu – ''
Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum ''Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum'' () is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language action drama film directed by Krish and jointly produced by Saibabu Jagarlamudi and Rajeev Reddy on First Frame Entertainment. It has received universal acclaim for combining ...
'' (2012) * Best Actor in a Negative Role – Telugu – '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' (2016) * Best Actor in a Negative Role – Telugu – '' Baahubali 2: The Conclusion'' (2018) *Entertainer of the Year – ''Baahubali 2: The Conclusion'' / ''Ghazi'' / ''Nene Raju Nene Mantri'' * Best Supporting Actor – Telugu – '' Bheemla Nayak'' (2023)
IIFA Utsavam The IIFA Utsavam rewards the artistic and technical achievements of the South Indian film industry. The ceremony is organised by Wizcraft International, the team behind the IIFA Awards, and represents Tamil cinema, Telugu cinema, Malayalam cine ...
* Best Actor in a Negative Role – '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' (2016) Asiavision Movie Awards *Best Actor (From south) – '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' (2015)
CineMAA Awards The CineMAA Awards are presented annually by the Maa TV Group to honour artistic and technical excellence of professionals in Telugu cinema. The awards were introduced in 2004. The CineMAA Awards are voted for by both the public and a committee ...
* Best Male Debut – ''
Leader Leadership, is defined as the ability of an individual, group, or organization to "", influence, or guide other individuals, teams, or organizations. "Leadership" is a contested term. Specialist literature debates various viewpoints on the co ...
'' (2010) * Best Villain – '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' (2016)
Santosham Film Awards 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. Background The awards first began in 2004 by the annual ''Santosham'' magazine ...
* Best Villain Award – '' Baahubali: The Beginning'' (2016)


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Daggubati, Rana
Rana Daggubati Ramanaidu Daggubati, (; born 14 December 1984) known professionally as Rana Daggubati, is an Indian actor, film producer, and entrepreneur who primarily works in Telugu cinema, in addition to Tamil cinema, Tamil and Hindi cinema, Hindi films. H ...
Indian male film actors Nandi Award winners Indian visual effects artists Visual effects supervisors Special effects coordinators Indian male voice actors Male actors in Telugu cinema Male actors in Tamil cinema 1984 births Living people Filmfare Awards South winners Male actors from Chennai Indian people with disabilities Actors with disabilities 21st-century Indian male actors Telugu film producers Film producers from Chennai Santosham Film Awards winners Zee Cine Awards winners Male actors from Hyderabad, India South Indian International Movie Awards winners Indian television talk show hosts IIFA Utsavam winners