Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao Jr, better known by his screen name, Jr. NTR, is one of the most popular Indian actors and a playback singer who works mainly in the Telugu film industry. Jr. NTR made his foray into acting very young; he first appeared in the National Award-winning film Ramayanam as a child artist in 1996. As an adult, the actor made his debut in 2001 with S.S. Rajamouli’s Student No.1. He is also known for his works in several box office hits like Aadi (2002), Rakhi (2006), Brindavanam (2010), Baadshah (2013) and Nannaku Prematho (2016). With a huge fan following for his films, the actor is among India’s top 100 film celebrities. Besides his acting career, Jr. NTR is also actively involved in politics. During the general elections in 2009, he campaigned for his grandfather’s party, TDP (Telugu Desam Party). The actor has also been involved in various charity works.
Quick Info
Nickname | Jr. N.T.R. , Tarak, Young Tiger, Man of the Masses |
Age (in 2024) | 41 years old |
Date of Birth | 20 May 1983 |
Real Name | Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao Jr. |
Nationality | Indian |
Birthplace | Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh (now in Telangana), India |
Religion | Hinduism |
Early Life & Education
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao Jr., Also Known as Jr NTR, was born on 20 May 1983 in Hyderabad, India. He was raised in a prominent film and political family. He is the son of Nandamuri Harikrishna, a former Telugu film actor and politician. His mother’s name is Shalini Bhaskar Rao. She is an Indian Executive and political Personality based in Hyderabad, India. She is Nandamuri Harikrishna’s second wife.
Moreover, she is the daughter of famous businessperson Bhaskar Rao. His grandfather is N.T. Rama Rao is a veteran Telugu actor and former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister. Actor and producer Nandamuri Kalyan Ram is his half-brother, and actor Taraka Ratna and politician Nara Lokesh are his cousins.
The actor went to Vidyaranya High School in Hyderabad and later pursued his intermediate education from St. Mary’s College, Hyderabad. Since childhood, Jr NTR has had a keen interest in acting and dancing. However, due to his acting career, he could not continue his higher education and had to drop out of college. He started his acting career as a child artist at 10 with the film Brahmarshi Viswamitra (1991), in which he played the role of Lord Rama.
Personal Life
Jr NTR married Lakshmi Pranathi on 5 May 2011 in Hyderabad. Lakshmi Pranathi is the daughter of Narne Srinivasa Rao, who owns Telugu’s news channel, Studio N. The couple together have two sons. named Abhay and Bhargav.
Movie Career As an Actor
After Jr. NTR appeared as a child artist in the 1996 movie Ramayanam, the noted director Gunasekhar recommended S.S. Rajamouli cast him in his Student No.1. However, due to the production delays in Student No.1, Ninnu Choodalani, directed by V.R Prathap, was released first, marking his debut in a lead role. However, the movie failed to meet the audience’s expectations, and Jr. NTR received a lot of flak for his acting.
The actor next started working on his delayed project, Student No. 1, which was a box-office hit. Following his first success, the actor received several offers, and he signed up with V.V Vinayak for his directorial debut, Aadi, where he played the role of an action hero. The movie ran in theaters for over 200 days, giving the actor a huge fan following. His next two films, Allari Ramudu, directed by the veteran director B. Gopal, and Naaga, a political thriller directed by A.M. Rathnam, received average reviews, but both were commercial hits. Jr. NTR’s dance moves in the latter film became extremely popular among the masses.
In 2003, Jr. NTR once again collaborated with S.S. Rajamouli, who wanted to revamp the actor’s looks for his action film Simhadri. The film was a huge hit at the box office, grossing more than 35 crores INR. The movie won him the title of ‘Young Tiger.’ The following year, the actor starred in Puri Jagannadh’s action drama, Andhrawala. Before release, the film created a lot of hype since all of Puri Jagannadh’s previous movies were a hit, but the film turned out to be a commercial disaster. The film was later dubbed in Tamil as Velaa and Hindi as Barood: Man On Mission. Later, in 2004, the actor signed up for V.V. Vinayak’s Samba alongside Bhoomika Chawla, Genelia D`Souza, and Prakash Raj. The film focuses on the importance of education for Kids and was a box-office hit.
The actor`s first release in 2005 was Vara Mullapudi’s Naa Alludu, where Jr. NTR played a double role for the first in his career, a commercial and critical disaster. Following the Naa Alludu debacle, the actor lost his position among the top heroes of Tollywood and took a hiatus for one year. Later, in December 2006, the actor featured in Krishna Vamsi’s social drama, Rakhi. The film got favorable reviews and was an average earner. However, Jr. NTR’s performance in the movie was much appreciated by critics, who termed it as one of the finest performances of his career.
A year later, in 2007, the actor collaborated with the stalwart director S.S. Rajamouli for the third time in his career for the social fantasy film Yamadonga. For his role in the movie, the actor had to lose more than 20 kg. Upon release, the film garnered extremely positive reviews, and for his stellar performance, Jr. NTR received a Filmfare Award for Best Actor in Telugu. The following year, he was signed by Meher Ramesh for his action thriller film Kantri. The film got mixed reviews and fared pretty well at the box office. After the movie, the actor took a year-long break to campaign for TDP during the 2009 general elections.
After a gap of Nine years, in 2010, the actor returned to acting in the romantic film Brindavanam, directed by Vamsi Paidipally, where he romanced two beauties, Kajal Aggarwal and Samantha Ruth Prabhu. The movie received rave reviews and emerged as one of the year’s highest-grossing movies. A year later, Jr. NTR once again collaborated with Meher Ramesh for his high-budget film Shakti. Despite a strong cast including Ileana D’cruz, Sonu Sood, Manjari Phadnis, Pooja Bedi, and Jackie Shroff, it tanked at the box office. Later, in 2011, the actor starred in an action thriller, Oosaravelli, directed by Surender Reddy. The film, also starring Tamannaah Bhatia, Murali Sharma, and Prakash Raj, was released across 1,800 screens worldwide, and it grossed 16.3 crores INR on the opening day itself. The film was later remade in Bengali as Rocky, with Mahaakshay Chakraborty and Pooja Bose playing the lead roles.
Jr. NTR started the year 2012 on a good note. In his first release of the year, Dammu. The movie received mixed reviews, but the critics highly appreciated Jr. NTR’s role. The following year, the actor starred in Baadshah, directed by Srinu Vaitla, who wanted to give the actor a new look; he asked the actor to grow a beard and straighten his curly hair to suit the role of a Don. The film, also starring Kajal Aggarwal, got highly positive reviews and became a sleeper hit; the film grossed more than 48 crores INR in just 50 days. Later, in 2013, the actor starred in Harish Shankar`s family drama Ramayya Vasthavayya opposite Shruti Haasan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu. There was a lot of hype around the film before its release. However, it failed to meet the expectations. However, the critics lauded Jr. NTR’s performance; the Times of India described his performance as “The film is packaged entirely around its hero with NTR looking uber cool and as stylish as ever. He got into the character’s skin and delivered a fantastic performance to shoulder the film.”
After featuring in a few flop films in 2015, the actor made a smashing comeback with Temper, directed by Puri Jagannadh, alongside Kajal Aggarwal and Prakash Raj. The film received positive reviews and was one of the year’s biggest hits, grossing over 74 crores INR worldwide. Jr. NTR had a good start in 2016 as his first film of the year, Nannaku Prematho. It was Jr. NTR’s 25th film and got decent reviews. His other release of 2016 is a bilingual film, Janatha Garage. His other releases include Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (2018) and RRR (2022).
As a Singer
Besides being an accomplished actor, Jr. NTR has sung songs in several movies. He made his debut as a singer in his 2007 movie Yamadonga. Other movies the actor has sung in include Kranti, Adhurs, Rabhasa, Nanaku Prematho, and the Kannada film Chakravyuha.
Height, Weight & Body Measurement
Body Measurements | 43-32-15 inches |
Height | 5 feet 6 inches (1.70 m) |
Weight | 78 kg (172lbs) |
Hair Color | Black |
Eye Color | Black |
Hobbies | Dancing, Singing, Reading, Cooking |
Jr NTR is around 5 feet 6 inches tall and muscular. He often sports a short, well-groomed beard and has a thick head of hair that he usually styles in a neat, trendy haircut. Jr NTR’s eyes are black, and have a charming smile.
Achievement of Jr NTR
Jr NTR has received several awards and accolades for his performances, including Five Nandi awards, three Filmfare awards for best actor, eight CineMAA Awards, five Santosham Film Awards, and four South Indian International Movie Awards.
Facts You Never Knew About Jr NTR
- Coincidence in the Jr NTR family is that his step-grandmother, stepmother, and wife have the same name.
- Jr NTR is well-trained in Kuchipudi dance.
- For the film Yamadonga Jr, NTR lost weights around 20 kgs.
- Jr NTR was the first choice for some blockbuster films, including Kick, but he declined the offers because he was busy.
- Besides, India Jr NTR has a tremendous fan following in Japan.