Rashmika Mandanna

Rashmika Mandanna (born 5 April 1996) is an Indian actress who primarily works in Telugu and Hindi films. Her accolades include four SIIMA Awards and a Filmfare Award South. One of South India's highest-paid actresses, she was featured in Forbes India's 2024 list of "30 Under 30". After a brief modelling career in 2014, Mandanna made her acting debut with the Kannada romantic comedy Kirik Party (2016) and gained further commercial success with the action film Anjani Putra and the romantic drama Chamak (both 2017). She expanded into Telugu cinema in 2018 with the comedy drama Chalo and achieved her breakthrough with the romantic comedy Geetha Govindam, which earned her the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress – Telugu. She went on to star as the leading lady in the action comedies Sarileru Neekevvaru and Bheeshma (both 2020). Mandanna gained wider recognition with the pan-India success of the Telugu action film Pushpa: The Rise (2021). She played a supporting role in the period drama Sita Ramam (2022) and starred as the lead in the Tamil film Varisu (2023) before venturing into Hindi cinema with two unsuccessful releases. She achieved her highest-grossing films with the action dramas Animal (2023), Pushpa 2: The Rule (2024)—for which she earned the SIIMA Award for Best Actress—and Chhaava (2025). While her recurring roles in androcentric narratives have drawn criticism for constraining her acting range, she garnered critical praise for her portrayal of a woman in a toxic relationship in The Girlfriend (2025).