Prabhas

Uppalapati Venkata Suryanarayana Prabhas Raju ([pɾabʱaːs]; born 23 October 1979), known mononymously as Prabhas, is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. He is one of the highest-paid actors in Indian cinema and has been featured in Forbes India's Celebrity 100 list since 2015. Referred to in the media as Rebel Star, he has appeared in over 20 films, and has received seven Filmfare Awards nominations, a Nandi Award, and a SIIMA Award.

Prabhas made his acting debut with the drama Eeswar (2002), and later attained his breakthrough with the action romance Varsham (2004). He went on to act in other commercially successful films such as Chatrapathi (2005), Bujjigadu (2008), Billa (2009), Darling (2010), Mr. Perfect (2011), and Mirchi (2013), winning the Nandi Award for Best Actor for his performance in the lattermost.

Prabhas then starred in a dual role in the blockbuster epic action duology Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and its sequel Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017), with the latter emerging as the highest-grossing Indian film of all time at that point. Prabhas became the first pan-Indian star and earned international recognition for his performance in the films. He has since starred in the action thriller Saaho (2019), the action drama Salaar: Part 1 – Ceasefire (2023), and the science fiction film Kalki 2898 AD (2024), all of which rank among the highest-grossing Indian films.

Prabhas is the only Indian actor to have six films with a worldwide gross opening of over ₹100 crore. He is also the only South Indian actor with six films that have crossed the ₹100 crore nett mark in the Hindi market. Furthermore, Prabhas is the first Indian actor to have a film gross over ₹1000 crore worldwide. Additionally, he is the first South Indian actor to receive a wax sculpture at a Madame Tussauds' museum.

Prabhas was born on 23 October 1979 in a Telugu family to film producer Uppalapati Surya Narayana Raju and Siva Kumari in Madras (now Chennai). The youngest of three children, he has an elder brother, Prabodh, and elder sister, Pragathi. He is the nephew of Telugu film actor Krishnam Raju. His family hails from Mogalthur, near Bhimavaram of West Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh.

Prabhas did his schooling at Don Bosco Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Chennai, and at DNR High School, Bhimavaram. He then completed his intermediate education from Nalanda College, Hyderabad. He later went on to pursue Bachelor of Technology (B.Tech) from Sri Chaitanya College, Hyderabad.^{[citation needed]} He is also an alumnus of Satyanand Film Institute, Visakhapatnam.

Prabhas made his debut with the 2002 action drama Eeswar. In 2003, he followed up with Raghavendra, which received mixed reviews while Idlebrain stated that Prabhas is so good in this film that you can watch it only for him, he is the superstar in making, and all he needs is the right director and right break. He attained his breakthrough with the action romance Varsham (2004), which went on to be a blockbuster and one of the highest grossing Telugu films of the year. He received his first nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Telugu. He appeared in Adavi Raamudu (2004), the same year which received mostly negative reception from the critics and audience alike. In 2005, he appeared in Chakram, which received mixed reviews and went on to win two Nandi Awards. Prabhas portrayed the role of a refugee, exploited by goons, in S. S. Rajamouli's action drama Chatrapathi, the same year. It emerged as a blockbuster and had a 100-day run in 54 centers. Idlebrain.com stated that "he had a unique style and macho charm in his screen presence". Chatrapathi earned him his second nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Telugu.

In 2006, Prabhas starred in the musical drama Pournami, which garnered mixed critical reception but earned praise for the cast's performances. In 2007, he starred in action drama Yogi and Munna, both of which received lukewarm response from both audience and fans alike. In 2008, Prabhas collaborated with the director Puri Jagannadh for action-comedy Bujjigadu which gave him a much needed box-office comeback and he received critical acclaim for his performance. In 2009, Prabhas played a dual role in the action thriller Billa (2009), which went on to be a blockbuster at box-office. Later that year, he starred in Ek Niranjan (2009), which opened to mixed reviews, and earned him his third nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Telugu.