Prabhas

Noted for his charismatic screen presence, actor Prabhas is a pioneer of the “pan-India film” (a 2020s practice of making movies in multiple Indian languages). Indeed, he is regarded by many as the first “pan-India superstar,” a status he achieved with the release of the two-part fantasy epic Baahubali (The Beginning [2015], The Conclusion [2017]; baahubali meaning “one with strong arms”). Baahubali, which was made in Tamil and Telugu, and dubbed in Malayalam and Hindi, blurred the linguistic demarcations that had previously segmented Indian cinema by region. Prabhas’s early work is in Telugu cinema, and his post-Baahubali films have been largely released in more than one language. His specialty is in the action genre, and some of his movies feature on the list of highest grossing Indian films. Notoriously private, he is popularly called “Rebel Star” by his fans.

Early life and debut

Venkata Suryanarayana Prabhas Raju Uppalapati was born in Madras (now Chennai), Tamil Nadu, to Telugu film producer Uppalapati Surya Narayana Raju and Siva Kumari. His uncle, Krishnam Raju, is a Telugu actor and politician. Despite belonging to a family with connections in the filmmaking industry, he secured a degree in engineering from Sri Chaitanya College in Hyderabad (now in Telangana) before joining the Satyanand Film Institute in Vishakhapatnam. Using the mononym Prabhas, he debuted in Telugu films starting with Eeshwar (2002), followed by Raghavendra (2003); both are action movies.

Rise to stardom

The release of the action-romance Varsham (2004; “Rain”), costarring Trisha Krishnan, gave Prabhas his breakthrough hit. Over the next few years he had mixed success with a series of releases, primarily in the action genre. Chatrapathi (2005), in which he was cast as a Sri Lankan refugee separated from his family, established him as an action hero to reckon with. It was also his first film with director S.S. Rajamouli. He played a dual role in Billa (2009), which was a remake of the Bollywood film Don (1978). It was his first collaboration with actress Anushka Shetty, with whom he was subsequently paired in Mirchi (2013; “Chilly”) and the Baahubali films. Billa also costarred Prabhas’s uncle Krishnam Raju, who was known to fans as “Rebel Star.” The nickname passed to Prabhas, who was originally called “Young Rebel Star”; the qualification was eventually dropped. The revenge thriller Rebel (2012) capitalized on the honorific, and Prabhas is also called “Darling,” after the 2010 film of the same name, another of his hits.

Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.

SIGN UP

By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

Baahubali and superstardom

Prabhas had been a celebrity in southern India for a decade whenBaahubali: The Beginning released in 2015, gaining him an India-wide following and elevating him to superstardom. It was the first of Rajamouli’s two films relating the adventures of Sivudu, who possesses superhuman strength and discovers that he is actually Mahendra, the rightful ruler of the kingdom of Mahishmati. Prabhas portrayed the dual roles of Mahendra and his father, Amarendra. The film’s cliffhanger ending, in which Amarendra was murdered by his hitherto loyal general Katappa, heightened audience anticipation of the second part, which released in 2017. Baahubali: The Beginning was a blockbuster, earning 650 crore rupees (about $103 million) worldwide, and its success was spectacularly multiplied by Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, which became the second highest-grossing Indian film (after Aamir Khan’s Dangal [2016; “Wrestling Bout”] ) with earnings of 1,788 crore rupees (about $277 million) worldwide.

The Adipurush debacle

There was only one way for Prabhas to go from the pinnacle of box office glory and that was down. Unsurprisingly, Baahubali proved a hard act to follow, and his next films, Saaho (2019; “May Victory Be Yours”) and Radhe Shyam (2022), released in the shadow of their blockbuster predecessors and struggled at the box office. These were followed by the disastrous Adipurush (2023; “The First Man”), a controversial retelling of the Ramayana, starring Prabhas as Raghav (a name for the Hindu deity Rama), Kriti Sanon as Janaki (the goddess Sita), and Saif Ali Khan as Lankesh (the demon king Ravana). The film was savaged by critics, performed poorly at the box office, and was widely criticized for the inelegance of its dialogues. So severe was the backlash that several lines were rewritten and dubbed into the film after it released.

Superstardom restored

Prabhas’s box office worthiness hung in balance after the disenchantment with Adipurush. He needed to deliver a hit as proof that his appeal had not been diminished, and he did just that with Salaar: Part 1—Ceasefire (2023), which released some months after Adipurush and collected 617 crore rupees (about $74 million) worldwide. His credentials as a “pan-India superstar” were reinforced by the release of the dystopian fantasy Kalki 2898 AD (2024), which costarred some of Indian cinema’s biggest names: Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Haasan, and Deepika Padukone. The futuristic Kalki 2898 AD returned Prabhas to his comfort zone of action—he played the bounty hunter Bhairava, who pursues a pregnant female subject of a post-apocalyptic city (Padukone) and clashes with her guardian (Bachchan), revealed to be Ashwatthama, an ancient warrior from the Mahabharata who is cursed with immortality. Its worldwide earnings of 1,042 crore rupees (about $124 million) placed it among the 10 highest-grossing Indian films.

In January 2026 Prabhas played the lead role in The Raja Saab, a horror comedy costarring Sanjay Dutt. His lineup of releases includes Spirit, and the sequels to Kalki 2898 AD and Salaar: Part 1—Ceasefire.

Explore Britannica Premium!

The trusted destination for professionals, college students, and lifelong learners.

SUBSCRIBE