A mania called Mahesh

Being the son of a Superstar is not easy, standards are a level high and expectations bound to be altitudinous, failing to meet which can chuck one out of the center stage. One such thespian who rose like a phoenix bird every time he fell was Mahesh Babu, the quintessential superstar of Telugu cinema. From Nandi for best male debut in 1999 to the Times 2nd most desirable man of India in 2012, awards and laurels kept meeting him more often than not. His charming looks perfected with suave manners gave him the second name ‘Prince’. Here is an attempt to look back in time at his journey as an actor and a social campaigner, and what it takes to be the South India’s top most brand ambassador and to make a cut to Forbes India top celebrities list.

His alluring personality gives sleepless nights to young girls. His charismatic persona sends vibrations across the millions of fans worldwide. Best known as director’s actor in the industry Mahesh did achieve a page in Telugu cinema history books. He showed new ways of business by tapping overseas market on par with Bollywood movies. His stardom is visible only in films, offscreen he’s otherwise likes to be simple and reserved. You will find him either working on sets or at home spending time with his son Guatam and daughter Sitara. On his 38th birthday today here’s wishing him eternal happiness and even more success on his way.

Born on 9th August 1975 to the then tollywood Superstar Krishna, his foray into acting started as early as when he was just four in the film ‘Needa’. His dual role in ‘Koduku Diddina Kapuram (1989)’ presented him with an unprecedented hero image at very young age. However his re-introductory film in a leading role was K Raghavendhra Rao’s aptly titled ‘Rajakumarudu’ which went on to become a runaway hit. Mahesh duly admits that to his father and to inherit his fans was a benediction. With ’Murari’ he proved his versatility as an actor in a role that has varied emotional peaks

His cowboy antics in ‘Takkari Donga’ couldn’t scale to the pre-release hype created around it. During that time director Gunasekhar in a pursuit of an adaptable actor for a project with M S Raju favoured him. Result? Bang came ‘Okkadu’ with Hyderabad old city as main backdrop. Mahesh’s acting as a kabaddi player; his brave endeavors to save a girl from the clutches of a womanizer; and breezy screenplay made it the biggest blockbuster of the times. It claimed him the first Filmfare award for Best Male Actor in Telugu, opening the floodgates for a spree of awards that would follow later. He then experimented with offbeat films like ‘Nijam’ and ‘Naani’ but only to regret later.

Mahesh married his love interest Namrata Shirodkar on 10 February 2005 in a simple private event in Mumbai. Lady luck turned tables for Mahesh with Trivikram’s cult classic ‘Athadu’. MAA TV wouldn’t have imagined its luck when it bought broadcasting rights of this family entertainer; it still yields high TRPs whenever it is aired on television. After ‘Athadu’ Puri Jagannath foresaw a mass element in Mahesh and gave him a makeover of sorts in ‘Pokiri’. Rest is history, a superstar is born, Pokiri expunged all records that could have been possible for a regional movie by celebrating Silver Jubilee in 63 centers which is still untouched to date. Mahesh’s plans to take a short break to come out of Pokiri mode in an endeavor to reinvent himself with ‘Khaleja’ resulted in a long pause for three years without a film. Although Khaleja fetched him critical acclaim it failed to satisfy fans that were halted at Pokiri’sq delirium. Enter Sreenu Vaitla, a self-proclaimed fan of Krishna, created sensation with his action-comedy flick ‘Dookudu’. It ended the longest drought for a hit movie in the Telugu Film Industry (TFI) at a time when dubbed movies were the only go-to options for Telugu movie goers. Since then it’s all been purple patch for Mahesh bagging hat-trick along the way with the successes of ‘Businessman’ and ‘Seethamma Vaakitlo Sirimalle Chettu (SVSC)’. His pronouncement to act in a multi-starrer like SVSC was highly appreciated. He is currently busy with Sukumar’s ‘1-Nenokkadine’ in London and is expected to celebrate his birthday there. After this, Srinu Vaitla, Krish and Koratala Siva’s films are in pipeline for 2014.

Ever since Chiranjeevi took break in acting for politics, debates on his successor have risen time and time again. It’s Mahesh who is seen as the star best fit to that elusive number one position in Tollywood with 8 Nandis and 3 Filmfares to his name. A dozen endorsements, an uncontroversial persona and a gargantuan fan-base asserted it. Thanks mainly to his consistent hits in recent times, and to pan India recognition he gained by first replacing Chiranjeevi in AP as Thumbs Up brand ambassador, and Akshay Kumar countrywide in 2012. Salman Khan now leads the nationwide campaign while Mahesh still holds tight in AP. With his other active endorsements in Royal Stag, Idea Cellular, Provogue, Jos Alukkas, Vivel, Mahindra Tractors, Santoor, South India Shopping Mall, Rainbow Hospitals and TVS, Mahesh has become the numero uno figure in South India for commercials ads. Mahesh was listed 2nd in the Times most desirable men in India for the year 2012 beating the likes of bollywood bigwigs. A first of its kind by a South Indian. Mahesh is at #31 in Forbes India’s top 100 celebrities with earnings of ~40-45 crores per annum.
Along with his wife Namrata, he campaigned for stem cell preservation. He recently joined hands with Farhan Akthar to drive MARD (Men Against Rape and Discrimination) movement and has given his voice for Telugu version of its poem. Mahesh also featured in India’s patriotic documentary ‘Mile Sur Mera Thumhara’ representing Andhra Pradesh.