Tollywood’s ‘Power Star’ is a master of multiple roles

When he set out on his Tollywood career, Pawan Kalyan was more famous as 'Megastar' Chiranjeevi's kid brother.

Telugu cinema’s ‘Power Star’, style icon and social reformer — Pawan Kalyan manages to fit into each descriptor seamlessly.

As he turned 50 on Thursday, the day has been seeing a frenzy of celebrations across Tollywood and beyond — his fans are organising birthday parties in his honour; as many as 100 theatres across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana are running the re-release of his blockbuster movie ‘Gabbar Singh’; there’s been a song launch from his latest movie outing; and of course, celebrity best wishes for the star are trending on social media.

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“Many many happy returns of the day to my @PawanKalyan garu. May this day and the coming year bring you more n more peace and happiness,” tweeted Allu Arjun. Others who joined in included his nephews, fellow actors and public figures.

When he set out on his Tollywood career, Pawan Kalyan was more famous as ‘Megastar’ Chiranjeevi’s kid brother. But over the years, ‘Power Star’ Pawan Kalyan is a big name in his own right.

The heart-throb of movie-goers and the youth icon of Telugu land, Konidela Kalyan Babu, better known as Pawan Kalyan, has donned many hats with panache, and continues to do so. Actor, director, writer, producer, real-life do-gooder, Pawan Kalyan has been there and done it all.

Born on September 2, 1970, in Bapatla, Andhra Pradesh, the third son of a police official, Pawan Kalyan watched from the wings as his eldest brother Chiranjeevi clawed his way to the top rungs of Telugu filmdom.

Surprisingly, it was not acting but directing that caught young Pawan Kalyan’s fancy. But he made his acting debut in 1996 with ‘Akkada Abbayi, Ikkada Ammaayi’, which did not create much of an impact at the box-office.

Unfazed by this initial setback, he went on to deliver hits such as ‘Gokulamlo Seeta’ and ‘Suswagatam’. By this time, the audiences, especially youngsters, started empathising with his laconic portrayals of young people and their emotional issues.

With the superhit ‘Tholi Prema’ in 1998, Pawan Kalyan had truly arrived and there has been no looking back since then — no matter what. A series of hit movies such as ‘Thammudu’, ‘Badri’ and ‘Khushi’ only added to his allure.

Not content with acting, he dabbles in other departments of filmmaking, notably choreographing movie stunts.

In 2013, he married Anna Lezhneva, who acted with him in ‘Teen Maar’. They have a son and a daughter. Pawan Kalyan also has a son and daughter from his previous marriage with Renu Desai, who starred with him in Telugu movies.