Imagine being one of the most popular names in the country yet facing the threat of being banned from your home industry… The industry from which your cinema journey began, and yet, rising against all odds becoming one of the most sought-after actresses in the country.
That is precisely what happened with Rashmika Mandanna. The actress, who made her debut in 2016 with the Kannada film Kirik Party has since then left a mark in various other industries including Telugu, Tamil and Hindi. However, her journey has not been easy, as in 2022, there were several rumors floating around that Rashmika would face a ban from her home industry. Why? Let’s take a deeper look.
Rashmika’s humble beginnings
Rashmika Mandanna was born in the Kodagu district of Karnataka, with her father being a businessman. As is the case with most children, young Rashmika too dreamed of one day being a part of the magical world of cinema.
Despite initial hesitation, her parents eventually permitted her to follow her passion for cinema, with the first step being a model. Following her degree in Psychology, Journalism and English Literature, Rashmika had a small stint in the modeling world, which acted as a stepping stone to her film career.
It was during Rashmika’s modeling days that she was noticed by Rishab Shetty, who offered her a role in his debut directorial, Kirik Party, which featured Rakshit Shetty in the lead. The film was a blockbuster hit, and one thing, in particular, was evident – Rashmika Mandanna was here to stay.
Rashmika Mandanna’s shot to fame
Kirik Party was just the beginning of Rashmika’s journey to fame. The actress was seen in two more Kannada films the following year, namely Anjani Putra, which had Puneeth Rajkumar in the lead role, and Chamak, which had Ganesh as the lead. Both the films did really well at the box office with Rashmika’s performances gaining widespread attention.
In 2018, the actress ventured into Telugu with Venky Kodumula’s debut venture Chalo, which featured Naga Shaurya in the lead. The film garnered positive reviews from fans and critics alike. Nonetheless, the film that can be credited as being the catalyst in Rashmika’s journey is the 2018 film Geetha Govindam, helmed by Parasuram.
Geetha Govindam was Rashmika’s first collaboration with Vijay Deverakonda, a combination that would go on to become a fan-favorite one. The romantic comedy film was a massive success, with critics praising the on-screen chemistry shared by the two lead actors. The film was one of the highest grossing Telugu films of 2018, and is considered to be one of the best in Rashmika’s career as well.
Since then, the actress featured in a bunch of Telugu and Kannada films, and acted alongside some of the biggest names in the industries like Nani, Nagarjuna, Darshan, Mahesh Babu, Dhruva Sarja and even Allu Arjun, with whom she featured in the 2021 National Award winning film Pushpa: The Rise.
In 2021, Rashmika also had an extraordinary venture into the Tamil film industry, where she was seen alongside Karthi in the action drama film Sulthan. The film garnered highly positive reviews as well. While it seemed she couldn’t have asked for a better debut in any film industry, things were only about to get better.
Just two years later, Rashmika made her Bollywood debut, where she was seen alongside none other than the Shahenshah of Bollywood, Amitabh Bachchan himself, in the family comedy drama film Goodbye. The film was helmed by Vikas Bahl, and also had Neena Gupta, Sunil Grover and more in crucial roles.
There was no turning back for the Dear Comrade actress now. She was seen in highly successful films like Varisu, alongside Thalapathy Vijay, Mission Majnu, Animal and many more. In a short span of just 8 years, Rashmika Mandanna had grown to be one of the most sought after actresses across various industries in the country.
Rashmika at the center of controversies
Right from the beginning of her career, all seemed rosy for Rashmika Mandanna, however, it would not last for long. While working on her debut film, Kirik Party, the actress began dating her co-actor Rakshit Shetty. In 2017, the duo got engaged to be married.
Unfortunately, in 2018, the duo broke their engagement citing compatibility issues. The sudden news of their break-up came as a shock for fans, as well. Nonetheless, they continued to remain good friends, with the Charlie 777 actor mentioning that they even talk to each other once in a while.
In 2022, the actress found herself at the center of controversy yet again. During a promotional interview for her Hindi debut Goodbye, the actress recalled her journey. While talking about her desire to become an actress and how she got her break with Kirik Party. However, she refrained from mentioning the name of the production house behind the film, Paramvah Studios, which was co-founded by her ex-fiance, Rakshit Shetty.
As expected, this irked a number of fans of the Kannada actor, who mentioned that Rashmika was being ungrateful and had forgotten her beginnings. Further, Rishab Shetty, who directed Kirik Party also took an indirect jab at Rashmika, in an interview, as he mimicked her antics while answering a question. The issue escalated further when the Animal actress mentioned that she had not seen Rishab Shetty’s magnum opus film Kantara.
However, the actress later clarified the issue, and mentioned that she was asked the question within two or three days of Kantara’s release, and that she hadn’t gotten time to watch the film. Nonetheless, she said that she did watch it later on, and had texted the film’s makers, who responded with a “thank you” as well.
With these controversies going on, it was even speculated that Rashmika would face a ban from the Kannada film industry. However there was no official ban on the actress, and her films continued to do fairly well at the Karnataka box office as well.
Rumored relationship with Vijay Deverakonda
It is no new secret that Rashmika Mandanna has been rumored to be dating Vijay Deverakonda for quite some time now. The rumors initially started when their film, Geetha Govindam was released. It was also around the time when the actress broke her engagement with Rakshith Shetty.
Since the onset of the rumors, both the actors have often teased their fans via social media, sharing images with similar backgrounds. Fans quickly caught on, and speculated that the duo often spend vacations together as well.
Deepfake incident
In November 2023, Rashmika made the headlines for the wrong reasons, as an AI generated deepfake video of hers was circulated online, and went viral as well. Hers was the first of a string of similar AI generated videos of celebs including Alia Bhatt, Kajol and even Sachin Tendulkar.
The incident kick-started conversations around the misuse of AI, with several fans and celebrities coming out in support of the actress, and even demanding stricter laws against the misuse of AI. In January 2024, a 24 year old named Eemani Naveen was arrested by the Delhi Police, who confessed to the crime as well. He mentioned that he ran a fan-page for the actress on social media, and created the video as a means to get more followers.
Rashmika on the workfront
Rashmika, who was last seen alongside Ranbir Kapoor in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s latest venture Animal, will next be seen in the highly awaited sequel of the 2021 film Pushpa, titled Pushpa 2: The Rule. The film, helmed by Sukumar, also has Allu Arjun and Fahadh Faasil reprising their roles of Pushpa Raj and Bhanwar Singh Shekhawat. The film is scheduled to release on Independence Day this year.
Apart from that, the actress is also a part of two Telugu ventures, namely Dev Mohan starrer Rainbow, as well as Dheekshith Shetty starrer The Girlfriend, both of which are expected to release later this year. Further, she will also be seen alongside Vicky Kaushal in the upcoming Hindi film Chaava.
Rashmika Mandanna is also filming for Sekhar Kammula’s upcoming film with Dhanush and Nagarjuna in the lead, titled Kubera. The actress was seen earlier this year filming with Dhanush for the upcoming film, which is touted to be a Tamil – Telugu bilingual film.
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