At 42, Prabhas is a national success story and an eligible bachelor

Thanks to 'Bahubali', he is a household name across India. As he turns 42 on Saturday, Telugufilm star-turned-national sensation Prabhas is probably the only South Indian male actor to have successfully transitioned to the national scene — read Bollywood — and stood his ground so far.

Till date, very few male movie stars from any of the four South Indian film industries have forayed into Bollywood. The few who did try their luck have returned after one or two movies.

While 'Bahubali' gave him the big break on the national scene, Prabhas has managed to bag quite a few big-ticket Hindi movies in Bollywood. Although his first Hindi movie 'Saho' didn't exactly set the box-office on fire, he retains his magic. All eyes are now on 'Radhe Shyam', the latest teaser of which was shared on Saturday to coincide with Prabhas's birthday.

Although he is basking in the limelight now, it hasn't been smooth sailing all the way for the stylish star of Telugu filmdom. Ever since his debut in 2002, it's been an arduous trek up the way to box-office success. Despite coming from a powerful film family — his uncle is the famous senior Telugu movie star and former Union minister Krishnam Raju — Uppalapati Venkata Satyanarayana Prabhas Raju had to experience the tribulations of building up a career in the film industry.

His debut movie 'Eeswar', directed by Jayant Paranji, did not click at the box-office. Even his second movie 'Raghavendra' turned out to be a flop. But his towering frame, chiselled physique and stylish outfits endeared him to youngsters.

Most others would have left the industry in despair, but Prabhas persevered and struck gold with his third movie 'Varsham', which has acquired something of a cult status. Thereafter, a stream of blockbuster movies followed, such as 'Chhatrapati', 'Mirchi' and 'Billa'. These cemented his position as a bankable star at the box-office.

And then came along 'Bahubali'. Thrilled by the concept, and not fazed by the commitment expected from him, Prabhas jumped headlong into the movie directed by ace director Rajamouli. Prabhas did not hesitate to commit five years to the movie. Throughout the making of the epic movie, he did not take up any new film assignments.

When Bahubali released in 2015, it was payback time for Prabhas. But he still had to wait for the sequel to release in 2017. Grossing more than Rs 2,600 crore in all, the movie made history in terms of box-office collections. Although the Covid-19 pandemic put the brakes on his career graph in the past two years, Prabhas has been a busy man, with a few movies in different stages of production.

A down-to-earth person, Prabhas is a foodie, enjoys playing volleyball, and watching Rajkumar Hirani directorials. And he idolises his paternal uncle, Krishnam Raju.

Prabhas has been romantically linked to his 'Bahubali' co-star Anushka Shetty, but the two have not reacted till date to the news swirling around them. For the moment, Prabhas remains an eligible bachelor. (IANS)