Mar 30, 2026 10:30pm PT

Nagarjuna Akkineni on Four Decades as a Star, the Movies That Shaped Him, and Details of His 100th Film (EXCLUSIVE)

Naman Ramachandran

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Naman Ramachandran

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Annapurna Studios

Somewhere between his breakout in Mani Ratnam‘s ‘Gitanjali’ in the late 1980s and his forthcoming 100th film, Akkineni Nagarjuna has made four decades feel like a beginning.

The son of the legendary Akkineni Nageswara Rao – one of the all-time giants of Indian cinema – he built his own formidable career from the mid-1980s onward, with landmark films including Mani Ratnam’s 1989 Indian National Film Award-winning romantic drama “Gitanjali,” Ram Gopal Varma’s landmark 1989 action thriller “Shiva,” and the devotional epics “Annamaya” and “Sri Ramadasu.” He has also worked extensively in Bollywood, including Ayan Mukerji’s 2022 fantasy action film “Brahmastra,” taken on a leading role as a former CBI officer in Sekhar Kammula’s “Kuberaa” opposite Dhanush, and played the villain opposite Rajinikanth in Lokesh Kanagaraj’s “Coolie.” Alongside his acting career, he heads Annapurna Studios, one of India’s most storied production and technical facilities. Sitting down with Variety, he reflects on what shaped him, what still drives him, and a milestone project he is keen to unveil with maximum impact.