Seasoned Tollywood star Nagarjuna has consistently avoided negative roles throughout his career preferring to portray protagonists. His choice reflects his desire to maintain a positive image and cater to his dedicated fan base.
For instance, Nagarjuna was considered for the role of Arvind Swamy in Dhruva the Telugu remake of the Tamil film Thani Oruvan opposite Ram Charan. Director Surender Reddy personally approached Nagarjuna pitching a stylized dark role with a unique presentation. However Nagarjuna declined the offer staying true to his inclination towards positive characters.
Similarly director Lokesh Kanagaraj reportedly offered Nagarjuna a negative role in the upcoming film Coolie starring Rajinikanth. Despite the high-profile project Nagarjuna chose to stay away from the negative role adhering to his career-long stance. His decision is influenced by preference of his fans who enjoy seeing him in positive and energetic roles.
Nagarjuna's recent success with Naa Saami Ranga has also shown his ability to bounce back and maintain his popularity in Tollywood. His passion in creating rural-centric films has been evident in recent hits like Bangarraju and Sogade Chinni Nayana. These films have enhanced his reputation as an actor who excels in portraying positive characters.
Nagarjuna Akkineni's most recent lead role was in Naa Saami Ranga directed by Vijay Binni in his directorial debut. This period drama is a Telugu remake of the 2019 Malayalam film "Porinju Mariam Jose." The cast includes Allari Naresh, Raj Tarun, Ashika Ranganath, Shabeer Kallarakkal, Mirnaa Menon, Rukshar Dhillon and Nassar in significant roles.
Released during Sankranti this year the film focusing on themes of brotherhood and revenge received mixed-to-positive reviews from critics and became a hit.
Nagarjuna Akkineni's next project is Kubera starring Dhanush and directed by Sekhar Kammula. This upcoming drama has been generating intrigue with each new update. A recently released glimpse featured Nagarjuna in an interesting scenario.
In addition to Dhanush and Nagarjuna the film features Rashmika Mandanna, Jim Sarbh and Dilip Tahil in key roles.
