Sai Durgha Tej (born Sai Dharam Tej; 15 October 1986) is an Indian actor who predominantly works in
Telugu films. Tej started his acting career with the box office success ''
Pilla Nuvvu Leni Jeevitham'' (2014), which earned him the
SIIMA Award for Best Male Debut – Telugu
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 giv ...
.
Post his debut, Tej appeared in films such as ''
Subramanyam for Sale
''Subramanyam For Sale'' is a 2014 Telugu language, Telugu-language action film, action romantic comedy film written and directed by Harish Shankar, produced by Dil Raju on Sri Venkateswara Creations banner. The film stars Sai Dharam Tej, Murali ...
'' (2015) and
'' Supreme'' (2016), which were box office successes. Back-to-back critical and commercial failures followed this. Tej then went onto establish himself with successful films
''Chitralahari'' (2019) and ''
Prati Roju Pandage'' (both 2019), ''
Solo Brathuke So Better'' (2020) and
''Republic'' (2021). In 2023, Tej appeared in two of the year's
highest grossing films — ''
Virupaksha'' and ''
Bro''.
Early life and background
Tej was born as Sai Dharam Tej to Vijaya Durga, the younger sister of
Telugu film actor-politician
Chiranjeevi
Konidela Chiranjeevi (born Konidela Sivasankara Varaprasad; 22 August 1955) is an Indian actor, philanthropist and former politician known for his work in Telugu cinema. Known as the "Mega Star", he is widely regarded as one of the most succe ...
, on 15 October 1986. Tej did his schooling from
Chettinad Vidyashram, Chennai and Nalanda School, Hyderabad and completed his graduation from
St. Mary's College, Hyderabad.
Actors
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 '' ...
,
Varun Tej
Konidela Sai Varun Tej, better known as Varun Tej (born 19 January 1990) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. He made his acting debut in 2014 with ''Mukunda''. He received praise for featuring in Krish (director), Krish's critically ...
and
Niharika Konidela
Niharika Konidela (born 18 December 1993) is an Indian actress and producer who works in Telugu cinema, Telugu films. She made her debut with the film ''Oka Manasu'' (2016). She produces films and web series under her banner Pink Elephant Pictur ...
are Tej's cousins. His younger brother
Vaisshnav Tej is also an actor.
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 ...
and
Nagendra Babu
Konidela Nagendra Rao (born 29 October 1961), popularly known as Nagendra Babu and Naga Babu, is an Indian actor, producer, and politician who works in Telugu cinema. He has received one National Film Award and two Nandi Awards for his work as ...
are his maternal uncles. Actors
Allu Arjun
Allu Arjun (born 8 April 1982) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu cinema. He is one of the highest-paid actors in Indian cinemaand has been featured in ''Forbes Indias Celebrity 100 list since 2014. Allu Arjun's accolades include a Na ...
and
Allu Sirish and their father,
Allu Aravind
Allu Aravind (born 10 January 1949) is an Indian film producer, film distributor, and businessman. He is regarded as one of the most successful producers in Cinema of South India, South Indian cinema. He is the founder of Geetha Arts, a majo ...
are related by marriage through Chiranjeevi.
In March 2024, he announced that he is changing his name from Sai Dharam Tej to Sai Durgha Tej. The changed name is derived from both his parents names respectively.
Career
Debut and early work (2014–2018)
Tej made his film debut with ''
Pilla Nuvvu Leni Jeevitham'', opposite
Regina Cassandra
Regina Cassandra (born 13 December 1990) is an Indian actress who primarily works in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films. Cassandra is a recipient of several accolades including a SIIMA Award and a CineMAA Award, along with a Filmfare OTT Award n ...
in 2014. The film was a hit at the box office. ''
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 ...
'' noted, "... Tej’s rustic charm makes his actions believable. The actor is particularly quite impressive with his dance moves". ''
Deccan Chronicle
''Deccan Chronicle'' is an English-language daily newspaper based in Hyderabad, India. Founded in 1938, it was initially launched as a Weekly newspaper, weekly and later converted into a daily. The newspaper's name reflects its origins in the ...
'' stated, "Sai Durgha Tej delivers a mature performance. He entertains throughout the film with his performance and he has done this quite comfortably." He received
SIIMA Award for Best Male Debut - Telugu for his performance.
Tej had two releases in 2015. His first film was ''
Rey'' where he portrayed Rock opposite
Saiyami Kher
Saiyami Kher is an Indian actress who primarily works in Hindi and Telugu films. Kher made her acting debut with the Telugu film '' Rey'' (2015) and her Hindi debut with '' Mirzya'' (2016), for which she received Stardust Award for Superstar o ...
. ''
123telugu
Mallemala Entertainments is an Indian media and entertainment company which produces films and television programs. Its television productions include reality TV
Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purpo ...
'' said, "Sai Durgha Tej’s electrifying performance is the major asset of this film." Tej's second release in 2015 was ''
Subramanyam for Sale
''Subramanyam For Sale'' is a 2014 Telugu language, Telugu-language action film, action romantic comedy film written and directed by Harish Shankar, produced by Dil Raju on Sri Venkateswara Creations banner. The film stars Sai Dharam Tej, Murali ...
'', which was successful 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. ...
, grossing over ₹33.95
crore
Crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes the quantity ten million (107) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. In many international contexts, the decimal quantity is formatted as 10,000,000, but when used in the context of the India ...
. He starred alongside Regina Cassandra, for the second time, after ''Pilla Nuvvu Leni Jeevitham'' (2014). Although various critics called it "routine", Tej's portrayal was cited as "improved performance", "spontaneous", and "stunning".
Resurgence and other work (2016–2018)
Tej's
action comedy
The action comedy is a film genre that applies to action films where humor plays a much more central role. While early films feature stuntwork and humor, academic Cynthia King wrote that the genre only came into its own as a mainstay of the America ...
''
Supreme'' which released the following year, was also financially successful and is one of his best movies. Following ''Supreme,'' Tej went onto star in five films (in lead), including ''
Thikka'' (2016), ''
Winner'' (2017), ''
Jawaan
''Jawaan'' () is a 2017 Indian Telugu language, Telugu-language action thriller film directed by B. V. S. Ravi and produced by Krishna Kommalapati, under Arunachal Creations. It stars Sai Dharam Tej and Mehreen Pirzada while Prasanna (actor), ...
'' (2017), ''
Inttelligent'' (2018) and ''
Tej I Love You'' (2018). Tej was criticized for selecting similar and regular stories in his films.
Commercial success and progression (2019–present)
''
Chitralahari'' was his first release of 2019. The film was a
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. ...
success with critics praising his performance and Tej giving one of his career best performances. ''
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 ...
'' had called the character Vijay in the film, the best in Tej's career so far. About his role in the film, ''Deccan Chronicle'' reported "Sai Tej has put on weight and with a beard looks fresh and fits the character. For this role, he has completely set aside his mass image". His next film of the year, ''
Prati Roju Pandage'' was also successful. Murali Krishna CH of ''
The New Indian Express
''The New Indian Express'' is an Indian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper published by the Chennai-based Express Publications. It was founded in 1932 as ''The Indian Express'', under the ownership of Chennai-based P. Varadarajulu Naidu ...
'' in his review of the film, wrote that "The film definitely Sai Tej’s canvas and he delivers his standard chops with flamboyance". Later in 2020, his film ''
Solo Brathuke So Better'' was released following 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 ...
. Despite the restriction of 50% occupancy in cinemas, the film was successful at the box office.
''Idlebrain'''s Jeevi appreciated Tej's performance, particularly his comedy timing and acting in the emotional scenes of the film. In contrast, Y Sunita Chowdhary of ''
The Hindu
''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was founded as a weekly publication in 1878 by the Triplicane Six, becoming a daily in 1889. It is one of the India ...
'' opined that "Tej could have benefited from a better script."
In his next film
''Republic'' (2021), directed by
Deva Katta
Deva Katta is an Indian American film director and screenwriter who works in Telugu cinema. He directed cult classic Telugu movies such as ''Vennela'' (2005), '' Prasthanam'' (2010), '' Autonagar Surya'' (2014), and ''Republic'' (2021). In 2010 ...
, Tej played the role of an
IAS officer
The Indian Administrative Service (IAS) is the administrative arm of the All India Services of Government of India. The IAS is one of the three All India Services along with the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Indian Forest Service (IFS). ...
.
The film, a
political drama
A political drama can describe a Theatre, play, film or TV program that has a politics, political component, whether reflecting the author's political opinion, or describing a politician or series of political events.
Dramatists who have written p ...
, opened to positive reviews, with critics calling his performance "matured" and the film was well received by audience and became a 'hit'. Prakash Pecheti of ''
Telangana Today
''Telangana Today'' is a registered English-language Indian daily newspaper headquartered in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. The publication focuses mainly on politics and developments in the state of Telangana. The newspaper is published by Telanga ...
'' stated: "''Republic'' surely adds a cap in the feather for Sai Dharam Tej."
Tej's 15th film, ''
Virupaksha'', a socio-fantasy thriller directed by Karthik Varma Dandu of ''
Bham Bolenath'' fame, opened to generally positive reviews and became the highest-grossing film of his career. He next acted with his maternal uncle,
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 the remake of ''
Vinodhaya Sitham'', ''
Bro'', directed by
Samuthirakani
P. Samuthirakani (born 26 April 1973) is an Indian actor and film director who works predominantly in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films. He worked as an assistant to director K. Balachander, in '' Paarthale Paravasam''. He won the National F ...
, who also directed the original. It released in July 2023. He has also signed films with debutant Jayanth Panuganti and
Sampath Nandi.
Motorbike accident
In September 2021, Tej was in a single-vehicle
motorcycle accident near the
Durgam Cheruvu Bridge
The Durgam Cheruvu Cable Bridge is an extradosed bridge in Hyderabad, Telangana, India. The bridge is located near Inorbit Mall at Madhapur. The bridge connects Jubilee Hills with HITEC City and eases traffic congestion to Madhapur across Durga ...
in Hyderabad. He was admitted to
Apollo Hospitals
Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited is an Indian multinational healthcare group headquartered in Chennai. It is the largest for-profit private hospital network in India, with a network of 71 owned and managed hospitals. Along with the eponym ...
whose doctors announced that he sustained soft tissue injuries and a
collar bone
The clavicle, collarbone, or keybone is a slender, S-shaped long bone approximately long that serves as a strut between the shoulder blade and the sternum (breastbone). There are two clavicles, one on each side of the body. The clavicle is the ...
fracture but was out of danger. He announced a six-month career break in July 2023 to focus on fitness and get back into form.
Media image
Tej stood at the 25th place on
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 most influential stars on Instagram in South cinema for the year 2021. He ranked 24th in
Hyderabad Times Most Desirable Men list of 2016.
Tej turned brand ambassador for ‘Sky Zone Park’. He also became an ambassador for charity organisation 'Think Peace'.
Filmography
Films
Television
Accolades
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tej, Sai Dharam
1986 births
Sai Dharam Tej
Sai Durgha Tej (born Sai Dharam Tej; 15 October 1986) is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Telugu cinema, Telugu films. Tej started his acting career with the box office success ''Pilla Nuvvu Leni Jeevitham'' (2014), which earned him t ...
Living people
Male actors from Hyderabad, India
Male actors in Telugu cinema
Indian male film actors
21st-century Indian male actors
South Indian International Movie Awards winners
Santosham Film Awards winners
Telugu male actors
CineMAA Awards winners