Anushka Shetty is an Indian actress who appears inTelugu andTamil films. She is often considered an influential actress inTelugu cinema industry.^[1][2] With a cinematic career spanning over two decades, she has played pivotal roles in over 50 films. She is often hailed as the "Lady Superstar" of Telugu cinema.^[3][4] She made her acting debut inPuri Jagannadh's 2005 Telugu filmSuper,^[5] and appeared inMahanandi, released later the same year. The following year, she had four releases, the first beingS. S. Rajamouli'sVikramarkudu, which helped her gain recognition,^[6] followed byAstram (a remake of the 1999Hindi filmSarfarosh),^[7] theSundar C-directedRendu, (which marked her debut in Tamil cinema),^[8] and a special appearance inAR Murugadoss' Telugu filmStalin.^[9] She had two releases in 2007:Lakshyam andDon.^[10] In 2008, she appeared in six films, includingOkka Magaadu,Swagatam andSouryam. In 2009, Shetty played two roles in the fantasyArundhati. She went on to win theNandi Special Jury Award^[11] and theFilmfare Best Telugu Actress Award for this film.^[12] Her next release that year wasBilla, a Telugu remake of the1978 Hindi film of the same name.^[13] Her final release in 2009 was her second Tamil feature film, themasala filmVettaikaaran, where she appeared as a medical student.^[14][8]

Shetty had a string of releases in 2010. She portrayed a prostitute inKrish'sVedam, which won her the Filmfare Award for Best Telugu Actress.^[15] Despite critical acclaim, the film failed at the box office.^[16] None of her other releases in 2010 succeeded commercially, except for her sole Tamil release of the year, the masalaSingam.^[17] The following year, Anushka had two releases, both in Tamil. She reprised herVedam role in its remakeVaanam,^[18] then appeared as an advocate in theA. L. Vijay-directedDeiva Thirumagal, a loose adaptation of the American filmI Am Sam (2001).^[19] The following year, she also had two releases:Thaandavam in Tamil,^[20] andDamarukam in Telugu.^[21] Her first release in 2013 wasSuraj's Tamil masalaAlex Pandian, a critical and commercial failure.^[22][23] This was followed byMirchi in Telugu,Singam II (where she reprised her role fromSingam), andSelvaraghavan's Tamilromantic fantasyIrandaam Ulagam where she played three distinct roles.^[24] Her sole release of 2014 wasK. S. Ravikumar'sLingaa.^[25]

In 2015, Shetty appeared inGautham Vasudev Menon'sYennai Arindhaal,^[26] followed by Rajamouli's Telugu-Tamil bilingualBaahubali: The Beginning, where she played a queen namedDevasena.^[27][28] Her performance asRudrama Devi, a monarch of theKakatiya dynasty in theeponymous film won her the Filmfare Award for Best Telugu Actress.^[29] She then appeared in the Telugu romantic comedySize Zero (filmed simultaneously in Tamil asInji Iduppazhagi), in a role for which she gained 20 kilograms (44 lb) of weight.^[30] Her only roles in 2016 were cameos inSoggade Chinni Nayana^[31] andOopiri (filmed in Tamil asThozha).^[32][33] The following year, she appeared inSi3 (the third film in theSingam series),^[34] the semi-biographicalOm Namo Venkatesaya, where she played a character inspired byAndal,^[35] and Rajamouli's Telugu filmBaahubali 2: The Conclusion, where she reprised her role from its predecessor.^[36] Her only release in 2018 was the Telugu-Tamil bilingualBhaagamathie.^[37][38] She appeared in a cameo role ofJhansi Lakshmi Bhai inSye Raa Narasimha Reddy which is her only release in 2019 . Later she appeared inNishabdham which was an OTT Release. After a gap of few years she made her comeback withMiss Shetty Mr Polishetty in 2023, her portrayal as a master chef got her critical acclaim. She acted inKrish Jagarlamudi'sGhaati (2025). She is making her Malayalam debut withKathanar alongsideJayasurya inRojin Thomas' direction.

• List of awards and nominations received by Anushka Shetty

• Anushka Shetty filmography atIMDb

• Actress filmographies
• Indian filmographies

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