Akhil Akkineni
Akhil Akkineni (born 8 April 1994) is an American born Indian actor known for his works in Telugu cinema. Akhil was born in San Jose, California, and was raised in Hyderabad, India. Akhil debuted into films as a child artist in the children's film Sisindri (1994), for which he won a Filmfare Special Award. He is also the captain of Telugu Warriors cricket team that competes in Celebrity Cricket League.
Akhil Akkineni | |
|---|---|
Akkineni in 2017 | |
| Born | 8 April 1994[1] |
| Alma mater | University of South Florida Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute |
| Occupation | Actor |
| Years active | 2015–present |
| Parents | |
| Family | See Daggubati–Akkineni family |
His first leading role as an adult came in the box office flop Akhil (2015), although it won him the Filmfare Best Male Debut. His first commercial success occurred in Most Eligible Bachelor (2021). Akhil is the son of Indian actors Nagarjuna and Amala.
Early life
Akhil Akkineni was born on 8 April 1994 in San Jose, California, U.S.[1][3] to actors Nagarjuna and Amala. He is of Telugu descent from his father's side, and has Irish and Bengali ancestry from his mother's side.[4] He is the grandson of actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao, and half-brother of Naga Chaitanya.
Akkineni studied at Chaitanya Vidyalaya, later headed to Australia for two years. He returned to complete his studies at Oakridge International School, Hyderabad. He pursued acting as a career at age 16 and enrolled in an acting course at the Lee Strasberg Theatre and Film Institute in New York.[5] He also holds a BBA from the University of South Florida.[2]
Later in his teens, he pursued cricket and became a member in his father's Nag Kings team, in the 2010 celebrity Tollywood Trophy, which was a fundraiser for the Movie Artistes' Association. His match-winning half-century in the final against Venkatesh's Venky Warriors, saw him secure the man-of-the-match and man-of-the-series awards.[6] His performance saw him get called up to play for the Telugu Warriors in the inaugural Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) in 2011. Since then he has regularly participated in the CCL tournament, winning the 2016 edition as captain of his team.[7]
Career
As an infant, Akhil debuted in his father's production, Shiva Nageswara Rao's comedy, Sisindri (1995), an Indian adaptation of Baby's Day Out (1994).[8]
In 2014, Akhil appeared in a brief cameo appearance in the much loved family drama, Manam (2014), directed by Vikram Kumar. It featured three generations of actors from the Akkineni family. His cameo in the climax of the film was an instant rage with the audience.[9] He described his shoot for the film alongside his grandfather, father and half-brother, as "nervous and exciting".[10] Manam went on to become as one of the most profitable Telugu films of 2014, whilst also considered to be as one of the greatest Telugu films of all-time. Critics dubbed the film as a "classic" en-route to it winning several awards, including Best Film at the Filmfare Awards.[11][12] He subsequently went on to make appearances in several commercials, notably for Karbonn, Mountain Dew, and Titan.[13]
Akkineni's debut film, as a full-fledged lead, was in Akhil (2015), directed by V. V. Vinayak. It was produced by Nithiin and his family[14] In order to prepare for the role, he enrolled in a stunt workshop with his personal trainer, Kicha, and attended workshops in Thailand, for two months.[5] The film began production in December 2014 and featured him alongside fellow debutante, Sayesha Saigal.[15] The film opened to a poor response, and despite high expectations, it was a disaster at the box-office. Following this, he went onto a two-year hiatus.
In 2017, his second film, Hello (2017), was directed by Vikram Kumar. It released along with Middle Class Abbayi and turned out to be a below-average grosser at the box-office, despite garnering generally positive reviews.[16] Following that, Akhil's third film, Mr. Majnu (2019), was directed by Venky Atluri and co-starred Niddhi Agerwal.[17] Despite a great pre-release buzz and successful album, it opened to mixed reviews upon release. It eventually failed, becoming Akhil's third consecutive failure.
In October 2021, his fourth film, the rom com, Most Eligible Bachelor was released. It co-starred Pooja Hegde and was directed by Bommarillu and Parugu fame, Bhaskar. It was produced by Bunny Vas and Vasu Varma, under GA2.[18] It became a hit and gave Akhil a long-awaited box office success.[19]
Personal life
In 2016, Akhil was engaged to Shriya Bhupal, grand-daughter of the business tycoon, G. V. Krishna Reddy. Their wedding was planned in 2017, however, it was later called-off, for undisclosed reasons.[20][21]
Filmography
| Denotes films that have not yet been released |
| Year | Title | Role(s) | Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | Sisindri | Sisindri | Child artist | [8] |
| 2014 | Manam | Akhil | Cameo appearance | [22] |
| 2015 | Akhil | Akhil | Debut as lead role | [14] |
| 2016 | Aatadukundam Raa | Himself | Special appearance in title song | [23] |
| 2017 | Hello | Avinash / Seenu | Also singer for "Yevevo" | [24] |
| 2019 | Mr. Majnu | Vikram "Vicky" Krishna | [17] | |
| 2021 | Most Eligible Bachelor | Harsha | [18] | |
| 2023 | Agent | Johnny | Post-Production; Releasing on 28 April 2023 | [25] |
Awards and nominations
| ||||||||
| Totals[a] | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wins | 6 | |||||||
| Nominations | 6 | |||||||
Note
| ||||||||
| Year | Award | Category | Film | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | 43rd Filmfare Awards South | Special Award (Child actor) | Sisindri | Won | [26] |
| 2016 | 63rd Filmfare Awards South | Best Male Debut – South | Akhil | Won | [27] |
| 5th South Indian International Movie Awards | Best Male Debut – Telugu | Won | [28] | ||
| CineMAA Awards 2016 | Best Male Debut | Won | [29] | ||
| 14th Santosham Film Awards | Best Debut Actor | Won | [30] | ||
| 2019 | TSR – TV9 National Film Awards | Special Jury Award | Hello | Won | [31] |
References
- ^ a b "Tollywood's rising stars under 30". The Times of India. 29 October 2018. Retrieved 14 August 2020.
- ^ a b Hooli, Sekhar H. (17 February 2015). "VV Vinayak Treats Akhil Akkineni Like Prince on Sets of his Debut Movie?". IB Times.
- ^ a b Vemuri Radhakrishna and Nagarjuna (24 July 2019). Akkineni Nagarjuna Open Heart With RK Full Episode | Nagarjuna Reveals About Remake Of Gundamma Katha (in Telugu). ABN Andhra Jyothi.
Akhil was born in the U.S.
- ^ "Amala Akkineni can't speak Bengali – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 3 December 2020.
- ^ a b Sangeetha Devi Dundoo (15 November 2015). "Akhil Akkineni: There's no guarantee for success". The Hindu.
- ^ "Nag Kings lift Tollywood trophy". The Hindu. 14 June 2010. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 12 June 2021.
- ^ . indiaglitz.com. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015.
- ^ a b "Mama's boy". The Hindu. 5 December 2009. ISSN 0971-751X.
- ^ "Samantha's tweet has Nag fuming". Bangalore Mirror.
- ^ . timesofap.com. Archived from the original on 5 September 2019. Retrieved 5 November 2015.
- ^ . Sify. Archived from the original on 10 February 2015.
- ^ "Winners: 62nd Britannia Filmfare Awards (South)". The Times of India.
- ^ "Nagarjuna's son Akhil Akkineni to make his debut". Rediff. 25 December 2014.
- ^ a b "I was mobbed by girls a few times: Akhil". The Times of India.
- ^ "Nagarjuna's son Akhil's debut film launched". The Hindu – via Inter Asian News Service.
- ^ "Hello movie review". Times of India.
- ^ a b kavirayani, suresh (26 January 2019). "Mr Majnu movie review: Akhil steals the show!". Deccan Chronicle.
- ^ a b "Akhil Akkineni-Pooja Hegde's Most Eligible Bachelor to hit screens on October 8". Cinema Express. 28 August 2021.
- ^ "Most Eligible Bachelor hits half century at box office". Times of India.
- ^ "Akhil Akkineni-Shriya Bhupal wedding called off: Is this the reason?". India Today. 23 February 2017. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
- ^ "Real reason why Nagarjuna's son Akhil Akkineni, Shriya Bhupal called off wedding?". The Indian Express. 23 February 2017. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
- ^ "Nagarjuna's son Akhil Akkineni debuts in 'Manam'". Deccan Chronicle. 25 May 2014.
- ^ "Akhil Cameo Role Teaser – Aatadukundam Raa Movie – Sushanth, Sonam Bajwa". ap7am.com. 18 August 2016.
- ^ "Hello movie review: Akhil Akkineni and Kalyani Priyadarshan starrer leave us with a heart full of good feelings". The Indian Express. 23 December 2017.
- ^ "Akhil Akkineni's 'Agent' gets new release date. Check details here". The Economic Times. 4 February 2023. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
- ^ Sisindri Awards: List of Awards won by Telugu movie Sisindri, retrieved 12 February 2021
- ^ "Winners of 63rd Britannia Filmfare Awards South 2016 (Telugu)". The Times of India. 16 January 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2019.
- ^ . International Business Times. Archived from the original on 26 May 2016.
- ^ "List of Winners CineMAA Awards 2016 – Complete Details". Scooptimes. 12 June 2016. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
- ^ "List of Winners Santosham Awards 2016 – Complete Details". Scooptimes. 16 August 2016. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
- ^ "Balakrishna, Nagarjuna and Keerthy Suresh among TSR-TV9 film award winners". The News Minute. 16 February 2019. Retrieved 17 December 2019.