Rise of a Superstar

This is not due to a dearth of talent but because of a marked accent on routine; commercial fare that is served only to keep the frontbenchers satisfied. The industry, however,  continues to thrive, largely due to the deep pockets of producers. 

Telugu cinema boasts of a good crop of young heroes who can, if offered good scripts, effect a turnaround in the fortunes of the industry. One such leading man, who has been making waves on the commercial circuit, is Allu Arjun. His films are awaited with bated breath by a legion of fans and have had phenomenal runs at the box-office. Allu Arjun, who debuted with a small role in the film Daddy, which had megastar Chiranjeevi in the lead, is the grandson of the legendary Telugu comedian, Allu Ramalingaiah, and the son of producer Allu Aravind. 

His uncle, Chiranjeevi, has been hailed as the superstar of Telugu cinema and  Ramcharan Teja, Chiranjeevi’s son, whose blockbuster Magadheera was a runaway hit, is his first cousin. Although his latest film Badrinath, one of the costliest films made, was panned by critics, it still rocked the box-office, thanks to the marketing skills of his father Allu Aravind, the producer of the film. 

Intense actor

Badrinath saw Allu Arjun play an Indian samurai who has been entrusted with the job of guarding the famous Badrinath Temple. The actor took great pains to essay the role as it required a high degree of martial art skills and in tandem with stunt co-ordinator Peter Heyn, Arjun performed breathtaking stunt sequences with greater prowess in the art acquired in a two month hectic training schedule in Vietnam. 

Badrinath also saw him teaming with the petite Tamanna for the first time. The lavishly choreographed dance sequences and the foot tapping music became a rage. The film, however, suffered in comparison to Ramcharan Teja’s Magadheera and though the makers of Badrinath and the director, V V Vinayak, went to great lengths to point out that while Magadheera was a semi-period film, Badrinath was based on a contemporary theme, the damage had been done. 

Allu Arjun’s other renowned films include Parugu and Vedam with his intense portrayals in both the films getting him prestigious awards like the Filmfare and Nandi awards. 

Nicknamed Bunny by his fans for his role as Bunny in a film of the same name, Arjun has been extremely selective in picking roles and has made it a habit of sorting the chaff from the wheat. He has also taken care not to team with the same heroine in more than one film. Therefore, he has worked with almost all the leading heroines in Tollywood. He worked with Aditi Agarwal in Gangotri, Anu in Arya, Genelia D’Souza in Happy, Hansika Motwani in Desamadhuru, Sheela in Parugu and Kajal Agarwal in Arya 2.

Mass appeal

The actor’s forte has always been his dancing and marital art skills and he has now become a sought after star by producers, especially for such roles. But, despite an adroit selection of roles, the actor has not been able to avoid his share of flops and the failure of films like Varudu left him a little depressed. A film like Vedam, where he worked with the southern siren Anoushka Shetty, however, won him critical acclaim and his role, perfectly nuanced, garnered a lot of appreciation by the discerning audience. Desamadhuru is also one his many praised performances. 

Allu Arjun is all set to act in ace director Trivikram Srinivas’ forthcoming venture and is likely to be paired with the Telugu heartthrob, Ileana D’Cruz. Tamil actor Dhanush’s brother Selvaraghavan, one of the most popular directors in Tamil cinema whose films have been dubbed in Telugu and have been extremely successful at the box-office, has signed him for his new project and his co-star from Vedam, Anoushka Shetty. The grapevine has it that he has also been approached for a Bollywood film to be produced by Yash Raj Films.

Allu Arjun has always been an enigmatic and bankable star. Recently, he broke a million hearts when he settled for matrimony with Sneha Reddy. Like the new breed of actors, Ramcharan Teja and Junior NTR, Allu Arjun is in no hurry to sign on the dotted line every time a film is offered to him. In fact, with his father ready to bankroll all his films and with megastar Chiranjeevi being a constant source of encouragement, the young actor continues to bristle with confidence and appears to be eminently equipped to play a long innings in the Telugu cinema.