Meghana Raj

Meghana Sunder Raj (born 3 May 1990) is an Indian film actress who works in Malayalam and Kannada Cinema along with a few Telugu and Tamil films. She made her acting debut in the 2009 Telugu film Bendu Apparao R.M.P.[1][2]

Meghana Raj
Born
Meghana Sunder Raj

3 May 1990 (age 30)
Alma materChrist University
Years active2009–present
Spouse(s)
​
(
m. 2018; died 2020)
Parent(s)
RelativesDhruv Sarja (brother-in-law)

Early life

Meghana Raj is the only daughter to film actors Sundar Raj and Pramila Joshai. Her father Sundar has acted in more than 180 films, predominantly in Kannada language,[3] while her mother Pramila Joshai is a noted Kannada film actress[4] and film producer.[2] She completed her schooling from Baldwin Girls' High School and holds Bachelor's degree in psychology at Christ University, Bangalore.[5]

Acting career

2009–11: Debut, breakthrough and setback

Meghana Raj debuted as a theatre artist, when she was a child, acting alongside her father Sunder Raj in the play Jokumaraswamy. During the audio launch function of the Tamil film Poi in February 2006, she was invited by its director K. Balachander to pursue an acting career, starring in one of his forthcoming films. Accepting his offer, she was given the lead female role in the Tamil film Krishnaleelai, a Balachander production, directed by Selvan.[6] However, despite continuing shooting throughout 2008, which was completed in early 2009, the film got stuck in production hell, and its release got delayed for various reasons.

Even before the release of that film, she commenced shooting for a Telugu film Bendu Apparao R.M.P, which would eventually be her first feature film release. She played the character of a school teacher in the comedy entertainer, starring Allari Naresh and Kamna Jethmalani as well, which released in October 2009 and went on to become highly successful at the box office.[7] She debuted in the Kannada films by enacting the female lead role in Punda, a remake of the 2007 Tamil film Polladhavan.[5] Meghana's next release was her debut Tamil film, the Boopathy Pandian-directed Kaadhal Solla Vandhen, while she also signed up her first Malayalam project, the horror film Yakshiyum Njanum under Vinayan's direction, which was released in August 2010.[8] Although the film was just an average grosser, its glamorous and sensual songs on Meghana was a hit among the youth and made her an instant favorite among the youth. During that time she also acted in two more projects, Nanda Nanditha, which is a remake of the 2008 Kannada film Nanda Loves Nanditha and the Tamil film Kalla Siripazhaga.

2011–13: Beautiful and commercial success

After a series of flops for most of 2011 where she was seen repeatedly cast merely as a glamour actress, Meghana reverted to winning ways with the Malayalam film Beautiful which was released in the first week of December. The film was a success both commercially and critically and critics widely regarded it as one of the best Malayalam movies of 2011.[9] Meghana's portrayal of Anjali, a home nurse in the film won her very good reviews. Since getting noticed with Beautiful, Meghana got a lot of Malayalam films offers[10] and for a brief period of time was the most sought out actress in Malayalam.

It was during this time when Meghana started to undergo a total physique revamp by going through a strict diet and exercise regime.[11] She made this decision partly because she was getting constantly ignored in Kannada films (her mother tongue) and the reason told was she was fat.[12]

Her 2012 Malayalam film Namukku Parkkan did a decent business at the box office. Subsequent films Mullamottum Munthiricharum, Banking Hours 10 to 4, Maad Dad, Madirasi and Red Wine failed to perform. However, her next film Memories opposite Prithviraj Sukumaran opened to overwhelmingly positive reviews and was a box office success.

2013–15: Second wind in Sandalwood and continuing success

After a gap of almost four years, Meghana Raj returned to Kannada films in late 2013 with the successful film Raja Huli,[13] She followed it with another hit, Bahuparak; her performances in both films were well appreciated.[14] Meghana's next Kannada movie Aatagara was released in late August 2015 to both critical and commercial acclaim and thus achieving a hat-trick of hits in Sandalwood.[15] She is currently concentrating more on Kannada films as she has lot of offers from Sandalwood at the moment. Her next film Vamshodharaka got mixed to negative reviews and thus failed at the box office.

2016 onwards: Dull phase at the box office

Post 2016 Meghana Raj's releases such as Hallelooya, Lakshmana, Bhujanga and Allama all turned out to be non-performers at the box office. She has committed few more Kannada and Malayalam films as of now. Meghana was recently chosen to portray princess Bhanumati in the Kannada magnum opus Kurukshetra.[16]

Personal life

After a 10-year relationship with fellow Kannada actor Chiranjeevi Sarja, Meghana got engaged to him on 22 October, 2017.[17] She married him on 2 May, 2018.[18] Sarja died on 7 June 2020 from cardiac arrest when she was pregnant with their first child.[19][20][21][22]

Filmography
YearFilmRoleLanguageNotes
2009Bendu Apparao R.M.PGayatriTelugu
2010PundaMeghaKannada
Kaadhal Solla VandhenSandhya PanchacharamTamil
Yakshiyum NjanumAathiraMalayalam
2011August 15LakshmiMalayalam
Raghuvinte Swantham RasiyaRasiyaMalayalam
Uyarthiru 420IyalTamil
Pachuvum KovalanumSukanyaMalayalam
BeautifulAnjali/AnnieMalayalam
Ponnu Kondoru AalroopamMalayalam
2012Nanda NandithaNandhithaTamil
Telugu
Achante AanmakkalMeeraMalayalam
Namukku ParkkanRenukaMalayalam
Mullamottum MunthiricharumSuchitraMalayalam
Banking Hours 10 to 4RevathyMalayalam
LuckyJanakiTelugu
PoppinsMalayalam
MadirasiMayaMalayalam
2013Maad DadAnnammaMalayalam
Red WineAnn MaryMalayalam
Up & Down - Mukalil OralunduMysterious ladyMalayalam
MemoriesTeenaMalayalam
Good Bad & UglyKavyaMalayalam
Raja HuliKaveriKannada
2014BahuparakSneha / PreethiKannada
100 Degree CelsiusRevathyMalayalamAlso playback singer for song "Pacha Manja"
The DolphinsMridulaMalayalam
2015AatagaraSakshiKannada
VamshodharakaKannada
2016HallelooyaDr. Meera MenonMalayalam
LakshmanaAnjaliKannada[23]
BhujangaRachanaKannada
2017AllamaMayaKannada
Zebra VarakalHannaMalayalam
Noorondu NenapuShruthi ArasKannada
JindaaKannada
2018MMCHMeghaKannada
Iruvudellava BittuPoorviKannada
2019OntiPaaruKannada
KurukshetraBhanumatiKannada
2020 Selfie Mummy Google DaddyTBAKannadaPost-production
Buddhivanta 2 TBAKannadaFilming

Awards and nominations

Public image

Meghana's official Facebook page has received more than 2.5 million likes.[26] She was ranked No.19 in the Kochi Times 'Most desirable Woman 2015' poll.[27] Meghana Raj was also ranked No.10 in the Bangalore Times 'Most desirable Women 2015' poll.[28]

gollark: There are MINOR awful race conditions.
gollark: 🐝 you.
gollark: Thanks for your complimentary compliment. I feel complimented with complementarity.
gollark: And don't really contribute much.
gollark: Those are however all vaguely pointless and stupid.

References
  1. "Prescription for laughter". The Hindu. 3 July 2009.
  2. ""Meghana Raj excited about Punda"". Oneindia.in. 10 September 2009. Archived from the original on 17 February 2013.
  3. "The New Indian Express". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  4. "Pramila Joshai Filmography". Chiloka.com. 2017.
  5. "Meghana Raj arrives – Kannada Movie News". IndiaGlitz. 11 June 2009. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  6. Super Admin (19 June 2009). "Sundar Raj's daughter debuting in Kannada". Entertainment.oneindia.in. Archived from the original on 11 July 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  7. "Bendu Appa Rao RMP is a hit – Teluguc inema trade report". Idlebrain.com. 21 October 2009. Archived from the original on 18 July 2012. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  8. "The New Indian Express". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 5 August 2012.
  9. "'Beautiful' is a milestone in Malayalam cinema". rediff.com. Retrieved 5 December 2011.
  10. "Meghana Raj blasts her way to the top of Mollywood". Oneindia. Retrieved 11 July 2012.
  11. "I am obsessed with workouts". Indiatimes.com. TOI.
  12. "I am Slim give me opportunity". Supergoodmovies.com. Archived from the original on 24 June 2016.
  13. Yash’s ‘Raja Huli’ Takes Box Office by Storm. Ibtimes.co.in (2013-11-30). Retrieved on 2016-03-30.
  14. Meghana Raj gets into the skin of a dancer for a period film. Sify.com. Retrieved on 2016-03-30.
  15. Updated, Veena N. (2015-08-28) 'Aatagara' Movie Review: A Promising And Striking Thriller!. Filmibeat. Retrieved on 2016-03-30.
  16. Meghana Raj roped in for Kurukshetra. www.newindianexpress.com (2017-11-25). Retrieved on 2017-11-27.
  17. "Chiranjeevi and Meghana Raj got engaged". Deccan Herald. 22 October 2017. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  18. "Kannada Actors Meghana Raj And Chiranjeevi Sarja Get Married". NDTV. 3 May 2018. Retrieved 7 June 2020.
  19. "Chiranjeevi Sarja passes away at 39".
  20. https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/kannada-actor-chiranjeevi-sarja-passes-away-at-39/article31772154.ece
  21. https://english.manoramaonline.com/entertainment/entertainment-news/2020/06/07/chiranjeevi-sarja-and-meghana-raj-were-eagerly-awaiting-an-addit.html
  22. "Happy Memories: Chiranjeevi Sarja's Love Story With Wife Meghna Raj In Pictures". thehansindia.
  23. "Ravichandran and Anoop's Lakshmana first look poster – Photos". International Business Times, India Edition. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
  24. "The Kochi Times Film Awards 2011". 23 June 2012.
  25. https://bangaloremirror.indiatimes.com/entertainment/south-masala/karnataka-state-film-awards-2018-raghavendra-rajkumar-and-meghana-raj-bag-top-honours-check-out-all-winners/articleshow/73186197.cms
  26. "Meghana Raj Official Facebook".
  27. "Kochi Times most desirable woman 2015". Times of India.
  28. "Bangalore Times Most Desirable Women 2015".
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