Ram Charan: A New Breed of Hero in Telugu Cinema

Ram Charan has stepped out of his father Chiranjeevi’s shoes.

Ram Charan, killing it as ‘Bhairava’ in Magadheera. (Photo: YouTube / The Quint)

Ram Charan is probably the first of a new breed of heroes in Telugu cinema, who's an all rounder. He's a director's actor, a fact that is clear from his stellar performance in Magadheera and Dhruva, and sleep-walk in Zanjeer.

He's one helluva dancer, capable of twisting inane moves into pop fads. He's also one of the fittest in the industry, right up there with Allu Arjun (his cousin) in the Telugu industry and Aarya in Kollywood. Please don't bother bringing in Salman to this list; he's old.

Before I tell you about this Telugu actor/producer who shares his birthday with Quentin Tarantino, let me tell you why.

But first, here’s Ram Charan taking on a hundred men from the ‘Shaitan ki Fauz’.

Why You Need to Know Him

If you don't speak Telugu, you probably haven't heard of Ram Charan, or even Chiranjeevi, his father, who's actually as huge as Rajinikanth. Telugu cinema isn't for everyone. Yes, I understand Baahubali is a national phenomenon. So let me rephrase: Not all Telugu cinema is for everyone. There are cultural nuances that might be misconstrued as cheesy dialogue fifty miles north of Hyderabad. Most movies also have their own pop idiosyncrasies that often fall under the category of vulgarity and misogyny.

And yet, Telugu cinema's reinventing itself. Not just in its approach to films (Leader, Makkhi, Janatha Garage, Dhruva), but the actors themselves.

And despite being the son of the megastar, Ram Charan has carved a niche, nay, a fast growing empire for himself, without a single 'recall' to his father, megastar Chiranjeevi, in his movies. Except in a small cameo in Magadheera.

Here’s Ram Charan dancing like he’s got moveable joints.

Walking in His Father's Footsteps...Not

Ram Charan Teja is not a Chiranjeevi lookalike. This might not be a big deal to the uninitiated, but dynasty is a huge thing in Telugu cinema.

Consider NT Ramarao, two-time chief minister of Andhra Pradesh and movie star whose film career spanned over forty three years. As of today, he has a minimum of five 'direct descendants' in the industry, all of whom have a fan following, simply based on the fact that they belong to the NTR bloodline. Facial similarities, ditto dialogue delivery and throwbacks to the 'Senior NTR' in every hero entry of every film – all of these are part of the continual, slightly dubious legacy.

Ram Charan doesn't look like his father. He doesn't talk like him, or share mannerisms. He's a brilliant dancer, just like his father, but doesn't share the same style.

Here’s Chiranjeevi, Ram Charan’s father in his comeback film. Do you find similarities?

A (Safe) Businessman

Ram Charan has his fingers in many pies, and comfortably so. He's an equestrian entrepreneur, he co-owns an obstacle running course, and turned producer with Khaidi No. 150, Chiranjeevi's comeback film, which performed phenomenally at the box office.

However, one is yet to see the actor in a role that's free from the tropes of mass-masala. No one still knows how good the actor in him can be, since all of the roles he's played so far can be described in a sentence that fits in a visiting card.

Let's hope he grows up this birthday, and takes wing.

(This article was originally published on 27 March 2017 and has been republished from The Quint’s archives.)