Manchu Manoj Kumar (born 20 May 1983) is an Indian actor who works in

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode ...

films. He first appeared at the age of ten as a child artist in '' Major Chandrakanth''. He made his film debut in a leading role with ''

Donga Dongadi ''Donga Dongadi'' is a 2004 Indian Telugu-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Subramaniam Siva, produced by NV Prasad and Sanam Naga Ashok Kumar under Sri Saideva Productions banner and starring Manoj Manchu and Sadaf while ...

'' in 2004. He received the state

Nandi Special Jury Award The Nandi Special Jury Award is given by the state government as part of its annual Nandi Awards for Telugu films Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the ...

for his performance in box-office success '' Bindaas'' (2010). He also starred in '' Vedam'' (2010), '' Potugadu'' (2013), and ''

Pandavulu Pandavulu Thummeda ''Pandavulu Pandavulu Tummeda'' () is a 2014 Indian Telugu-language comedy drama film featuring an ensemble cast composed of Mohan Babu, Manchu Vishnu, Manchu Manoj, Raveena Tandon, Hansika Motwani, Pranitha Subhash, Varun Sandesh and Tanish. ...

'' (2014).

Early life

Manchu Manoj was born on 20 May 1983, to film actor

Mohan Babu Manchu Bhakthavatsalam, credited and also known as Mohan Babu, is an Indian actor and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. An alumnus of the Madras Film Institute, Mohan Babu has acted in more than 500 films in lead, su ...

and Nirmala Devi. He has an elder sister

Lakshmi Lakshmi (; , sometimes spelled Laxmi, ), also known as Shri (, ), is one of the principal goddesses in Hinduism. She is the goddess of wealth, fortune, power, beauty, fertility and prosperity, and associated with '' Maya'' ("Illusion"). A ...

and an elder brother

Vishnu Vishnu ( ; , ), also known as Narayana and Hari, is one of the principal deities of Hinduism. He is the supreme being within Vaishnavism, one of the major traditions within contemporary Hinduism. Vishnu is known as "The Preserver" withi ...

, who are both actors. He received his bachelor's degree from

Southeastern Oklahoma State University Southeastern Oklahoma State University (Southeastern, SE, or SOSU) is a public university in Durant, Oklahoma. It had an undergraduate enrollment of 4,824 in 2019. History On March 6, 1909, the Second Oklahoma State Legislature approved an ac ...

Career

Child actor

Manoj was familiar to the

audience right from his childhood. He played many roles as a child actor in his own banner movies where his father

is shown as a child in flashbacks. He was well received for the role he played in the film ''Major Chandrakanth'' starred by his father.

2004–present

He started his career as a hero in 2004 with a movie called ''

''. In 2005, he appeared in the movie ''

Sri Shri (; , ) is a Sanskrit term denoting resplendence, wealth and prosperity, primarily used as an honorific. The word is widely used in South and Southeast Asian languages such as Marathi, Malay (including Indonesian and Malaysian), Javanes ...

'' and next in ''

Raju Bhai ''Raju Bhai'' is a 2007 Indian Telugu-language drama film directed by Surya Kiran, starring Manoj Manchu and Sheela Kaur, with Dhandapani, Tanikella Bharani and Brahmanandam in supporting roles. The film, a remake of the successful 2006 Ta ...

'' in 2007. His movie '' Nenu Meeku Telusa...?'' was an average grosser, but was known for its melodious music. In 2009, his first movie '' Prayanam'', under the direction of

Chandra Sekhar Yeleti Chandra Sekhar Yeleti (born 4 March 1973) is an Indian film director known for his works in Telugu cinema. He made his directorial debut with the Neo-noir crime film, ''Aithe'', which received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Te ...

did moderately well. His first movie in 2010, '' Bindaas'', turned out to be the biggest hit of his career. Another movie in 2010, '' Vedam'', was a critical and commercial success. He gained accolades for his role in '' Vedam''. In 2012, he starred in ''

Mr. Nookayya ''Mr. Nookayya'' (originally titled ''Mr. Nokia'' and later released as ''Mr. Nookayya Re-loaded'') is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film written and directed by Ani Kanneganti, produced by D. S. Rao under Shri Shailendra Cinemas ba ...

'' and '' Uu Kodathara? Ulikki Padathara?''. In March 2013, he announced 5 films. His subsequent releases were '' Potugadu'', ''

'' and ''

Current Theega ''Current Theega'' () is a 2014 Indian Telugu-language romantic comedy action film produced by Manchu Vishnu on 24 Frames Factory banner and directed by G. Nageswara Reddy. It stars Manchu Manoj, Rakul Preet Singh and Jagapathi Babu. The fil ...

''.

Personal life

In May 2015, Manoj married his girlfriend Pranathi Reddy. He confirmed divorce from his wife in October 2019.

Filmography

Initiatives

Manoj Kumar's Unity

In 2017, Manoj started a foundation called Manoj Kumar's Unity to collect funds for the development of farmers. It works by way of one donor nominating others on social media to do so.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Manchu Manoj Indian male film actors Living people 1983 births Nandi Award winners People from Rayalaseema People from Chittoor district