Meet first Indian actor to give Rs 1000 crore film, illness ruined career; it's not Shah Rukh, Salman, Aamir, Ranbir

The 100-crore club started as a novelty in the film trade circles almost two decades ago. When Ghajini crossed Rs 100 crore net in domestic earnings in India, it marked a new milestone in Indian cinema. Since then, over a hundred Indian films from Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada have joined the ranks. The earnings of Indian films have increased so much that Rs 100 crore net is considered low for many films. This has led to the birth of the even more elite 1000-crore club.

The first Indian actor to give Rs 1000 crore film was...

The first Indian film to cross Rs 1000 crore gross worldwide was SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali 2: The Conclusion. The sequel to Baahubali: The Beginning, the 2017 release became the highest-grossing Indian film for a while, grossing Rs 1600 crore across the globe. Among the actors headlining the film was Rana Daggubati, who played the film’s antagonist Bhallaladeva and hence, was one of the two leads of the film, along with Prabhas. The two actors hold the joint distinction of being the first Indian actors to lead a Rs 1000-crore film.

Rana beat heavyweights of the industry like Shah Rukh Khan (who would enter the Rs 1000 crore club only in 2023) as well as Salman Khan, Ranbir Kapoor, Rajinikanth, and Akshay Kumar, none of whom have a film in the 1000-crore club. Aamir Khan eventually surpassed Rana and Prabhas when his film Dangal grossed over Rs 2000 crore, becoming the only Indian film to do so.

Rana Daggubati’s health struggles

Since his Baahubali success, Rana Daggubati has largely worked in non-blockbuster films such as Kaadan, 1945, and Bheemla Nayak. He has also done supporting roles in films like Housefull 4 and the two NTR biopics. Much of Rana’s reluctance to take on bigger projects has been due to an illness. The actor had a kidney ailment, which pushed him close to death. He eventually had to get a kidney transplant, shedding a lot of weight, and staying away from acting for a prolonged period of time. The actor has now signed on to do a supporting role in Rajinikanth’s upcoming film Vettaiyan, which releases in October.

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