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 a SIIMA Award.[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 the blockbusters 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 (2023).
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]
Following Arjun Reddy he starred in Ye Mantram Vesave, which was supposed to release in 2013 but released in 2018. He then starred in Mahanati, a biographical film revolving around the life of actress Savitri. Deverakonda's next release in 2018 was Geetha Arts' romantic comedy Geetha Govindam, in which he starred as a naive and nervous college professor. The film received mixed-to-positive reviews upon release, and proved to be a major commercial success at the box office. Deverakonda got his second nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Telugu for his performance in the film. His next film was the Tamil political thriller NOTA, directed by Anand Shankar, which performed poorly at the box office.[29] His next project was UV Creations' supernatural comedy thriller Taxiwaala.[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] Deverakonda's next film was The Family Star, which was a box-office bomb.[37]
Deverakonda was the brand ambassador of food delivery app Zomato.[38] On 15 October 2018, he launched his fashion brand Rowdy Wear.[9] Later, in 2020 Rowdy Wear was launched on Myntra.[39]
Deverakonda has donated to relief funds, including a donation to families of victims in the 2019 Pulwama attack.[40][41][42][43]
Deverakonda conceptualised and founded The Deverakonda Foundation, a nonprofit organisation in April 2019.[44] 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.[45]
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.[46][47] Organisers decided to end the initiative on 2 June 2020.[48][49] Devarkonda opened his first multiplex theatre in Mahbubnagar in 2021.[50]
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.[52][53]
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,[54] as seen during his speech at the audio launch of Arjun Reddy, in 2017.[55][56][57]
Deverakonda placed 72nd in the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list of 2018.[58] He was ranked in The Times Most Desirable Men at No. 4[59] in 2018, at No. 3[60] in 2019, at No. 2[61] in 2020. He was additionally featured by Forbes India in their 30 Under 30 list,[62] and became the most-searched South Indian actor according to Google's annual report.[63]
† | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
2011 | Nuvvila | Vishnu | [64] | |
2012 | Life Is Beautiful | Ajay | ||
2015 | Yevade Subramanyam | Rishi | ||
2016 | Pelli Choopulu | Prashanth | ||
2017 | Dwaraka | Erra Srinu/Sri Krishnananda Swamy | [65] | |
Arjun Reddy | Dr. Arjun Reddy Deshmukh | [66] | ||
2018 | Ye Mantram Vesave | Nikhil "Nikki" | [67] | |
Mahanati | Vijay Anthony | [68] | ||
Geetha Govindam | Vijay Govind | Also singer for "What the Life" | [69] | |
NOTA | Varun Subramanyam | Tamil film | [70] | |
Ee Nagaraniki Emaindhi | Himself | Cameo | [71] | |
Taxiwaala | Shiva Rawaali | |||
2019 | Dear Comrade | Chaitanya "Bobby" Krishna | [72] | |
Meeku Maathrame Cheptha | Himself | Cameo; also producer | [73] | |
2020 | World Famous Lover | Gautham/Seenayya "Srinu" Prajapat | [74] | |
2021 | Jathi Ratnalu | Blue shirt guy | Cameo | [75] |
Pushpaka Vimanam | — | Producer only | [76] | |
2022 | Liger | Sashwath Agarwal (Liger) | Simultaneously shot in Hindi | [34] |
2023 | Kushi | Viplav | [77] | |
2024 | The Family Star | Govardhan | [78] | |
VD12 † | TBA | Filming | [79] |
Year | Shows | Role | Channel | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
2017 | Bigg Boss 1 | Himself | Star Maa | Guest Contestant |
2019 | Bigg Boss 3 | Himself | Guest Contestant |
Year | Award | Category | Title | Result | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2015 | Nandi Awards | Special Jury Award | Yevade Subramanyam | Won | [80] |
2017 | Zee Golden Awards | Best Actor | Arjun Reddy | Won | [81] |
2018 | Filmfare Awards South | Best Actor – Telugu | Won | [82] | |
2018 | South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Actor (Telugu) | Nominated | [83] | |
2019 | Geetha Govindam | Nominated | [84] | ||
Best Actor (Critics) – Telugu | Won | [85] | |||
2019 | Filmfare Awards South | Best Actor – Telugu | Nominated | [86] | |
2022 | South Indian International Movie Awards | Youth Icon South (Male) | — | Won | [87] |