Happy Birthday Jr NTR: Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao Jr., also known as Jr. NTR, is a global celebrity, thanks to SS Rajamouli-directed RRR, which featured him in the lead role alongside Ram Charan. He shot to worldwide fame this year with the song Naatu Naatu, which won an Oscar for India.
Jr NTR’s charming performances and humble personality have helped him rise to the heights of success and garner a lot of love not only from the Indian audience but also from the global cinephiles. His long career in the industry is a testimony to his contribution to Indian cinema and we couldn’t be more grateful for the pleasure of watching his work on the big screen.
As the RRR actor is all set to celebrate his 40th birthday this year, here are some interesting things about him that you might not have known:
1. Junior NTR was born on 20 May 1983 in Hyderabad.
2. His father Nandamuri Harikrishna was a Telugu film actor and politician and his mother Shalini Bhaskar Rao hailed from Kundapur, Karnataka.
3. Junior NTR is the grandson of veteran Telugu actor and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister NT Rama Rao.
Read also: Happy Birthday Jr NTR: From RRR to Devara, the Telugu superstar’s latest and upcoming movies
4. He was named Tarak after his great grandfather.
5. Jr NTR made his first appearance as a child artist in 1991 in Grandpa Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao’s Brahmarshi Vishwamitra.
6. Then, he acted in filmmaker Gunasekhar’s Bala Ramayanam. The film also won the National Film Award for Best Children’s Film and two Nandi Awards.
7. His first feature film as an adult was Ninnu Chudalani which released in 2001.
8. Jr NTR married Lakshmi Pranathi in 2011.
9. Pranati is the daughter of businessman Narne Srinivasa Rao and her mother is the niece of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu.
10. Jr. NTR and Pranati have two sons Nandamuri Abhay Ram and Nandamuri Bhargav Ram.
11. The actor earned a Critics’ Choice Super Award nomination for his role in RRR.
12. Debutant V.V. Jr. NTR’s film Aadi (2002), directed by Vinayak, was one of the highest-grossing films of 2002 after Chiranjeevi’s Indra.
13. Do you know Jr NTR is a trained Kuchipudi dancer? He is a skilled artist and can choreograph without practice.
14. Be it any dance form, the actor excels in every genre earning him the status of one of the best dancers in Telugu cinema.
15. Jr NTR’s film Andhravala had a grand audio function event, one of the biggest film events in Telugu cinema.
16. It was no less than a festival as lakhs of people gathered to see the entire cast and crew of the film.
17. In an even bigger shock, ten special trains were run by the Indian Railways to carry around one million people to the launch event.
18. Superstar Junior NTR has a huge fan following in Japan.
19. He gained popularity in Japan after the release of Badshah in which he played the protagonist.
20. Jr NTR is all set to make his Hindi debut with War 2.
21. He was included in the Forbes India Celebrity list in 2012 and 2016.
22. Junior NTR is a skilled actor and dancer as well as a good singer.
23. He recorded his first Telugu song in 2007 for his film Yamadonga.
24. Later on, he also sang super hit songs like 1,2,3 Nenoka Kantri in Kantri, Chari in Adhur, Sri Anjaneyam in Usarveli, Rakasi Rakasi in Rabhasa and many more.
25. Jr NTR has also earned a Filmfare nomination for his song Follow Follow in the film Nannaku Prematho.
26. The actor also believes in numerology and considers 9 as his lucky number.
27. Needless to say, the license plate number of the BMW 7 Series car owned by Jr NTR is 9999. He paid Rs 10.5 lakh for the custom plate.
28. Interestingly, each vehicle owned by Jr NTR is registered under the same number.
29. He shares a special bond with director SS Rajamouli.
30. NTR’s first major hit was in 2001 with SS Rajamouli’s Student No.1.
31. Simhadri, his second collaboration with Rajamouli, was one of the highest-grossing Telugu films of 2003.
32. Rajamouli and Jr NTR have collaborated on several successful films including the director’s magnum opus RRR.
33. In the film RRR, he played the role of 20th century freedom fighter Komaram Bheem.
34. The actor has also hosted the Telugu version of reality show Bigg Boss that aired on Star Maa channel.
35. His entry into television brought record ratings for the channel.
36. Jr. NTR is the nephew of actor and politician Nandamuri Balakrishna. He is also related to N Chandrababu Naidu, former Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.
37. Actors Tarak Ratna, Nara Rohit and politician Nara Lokesh are cousins of Jr. NTR.
38. As an actor from a political background, he was a campaigner for the Telugu Desam Party in the 2009 Indian general election in Andhra Pradesh.
39. In 2009, NTR donated Rs 20 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund to help with relief work for flood victims in Andhra Pradesh.
40. In 2014, NTR donated Rs 20 lakh to the Chief Minister’s Relief Fund for the victims of Cyclone Hudhud in Andhra Pradesh.