According to Khanna, she was an academic topper who was extremely studious, geek during her schooling and college days. When Khanna was young, she wanted to become a singer but as she grew up, she was more interested into studying and aspired to become anIAS officer. Khanna claims that she neither had interest in modelling nor thought of becoming an actress and it was her destiny that made her an actress. During her college days, she tried a hand at copywriting for advertisements,[7] before she made her venture into acting in various advertisements prior to films.[8][9]
Career
Debut and rise in Telugu cinema (2013–2015)
Khanna made her on-screen debut with a supporting role in the 2013 Hindipoliticalspy thriller filmMadras Cafe directed byShoojit Sircar, where she played the role ofRuby Singh, the wife of an Indian intelligence officer portrayed byJohn Abraham, who was also the producer.[10] She had to undergo acting workshops before taking up the role.[11] The film—particularly the story and direction—impressed most Indian critics.[12] Reviewing the film,Saibal Chatterjee ofNDTV stated that Khanna "makes an impact in a brief but significant appearance".[13]Madras Cafe was a box-office hit grossing₹67crore.[citation needed]
Impressed with her performance inMadras Cafe, actorSrinivas Avasarala approached her for the female lead role in his directorial debutOohalu Gusagusalade, which also featured himself andNaga Shaurya in the lead roles,[14] which she signed in late October 2013 after considering many other south films, adding that the scope of performing made her sign the film.[15] Khanna initially felt that it would be more of a dancing role with little scope for acting when approached for narration, but found her character practically in every scene in the film.[14] She called her characterPrabhavati as a grey, stubborn, arrogant girl but in a lovable way, which she claimed to be very different from what she was in real life except for the fact that she hails from Delhi.[16] Khanna confirmed in early April 2014 that she appeared in a small role in the Telugu filmManam,[17] which had its theatrical release beforeOohalu Gusagusalade.[a]Oohalu Gusagusalade opened to positive reviews from critics and Khanna received praise for her work. Sangeetha Devi Dundoo ofThe Hindu called her an "actor with potential",[19] whileHemanth Kumar ofThe Times of India stated that she gave a "commendable" performance which helped the movie to some extent.[20] The film was a commercial success at the box office.[21]
Her next Telugu film wasJoru, directed by Kumar Nagendra oppositeSundeep Kishan, which she signed afterMadras Cafe and while shooting forOohalu Gusagusalade. She played the role ofAnnapurna, whom Khanna described as a "modern yet traditional" girl who "is highly emotional and cries at the drop of a hat", which she called the exact opposite of the character of Prabhavati she played in her previous film.[22] Sangeetha Devi Dundoo ofThe Hindu stated that she provides solace along with Kishan,Brahmanandam andSaptagiri in a film which was "let down by incoherent writing and amateurish execution".[23]Joru was a commercial failure at the box office.[24]
Khanna's next wasJil, directed by Radha Krishna Kumar oppositeGopichand,[25] which she signed in early July 2014 after the makers approached her considering her performance inOohalu Gusagusalade.[26] The film received mixed reviews from the critics.[27] In early May 2015, she was signed for the filmShivam alongsideRam Pothineni. The film received negative reviews from the critics and performed poorly at the box office.[28]
Commercial success and fluctuations (2015–2021)
Her next release wasBengal Tiger oppositeRavi Teja directed bySampath Nandi.[29] The film opened to mixed reviews but was commercially successful at the box office. It grossed₹405 million (US$4.6 million) globally and became the 8th highest grossing Telugu film of 2015.[30] In 2016, her first release wasSupreme, in which she starred alongsideSai Dharam Tej, and was a commercial success,[31] with critics praising her comic-timing in her performance asBellam Sridevi, a cop who gets into hilarious situations.[32] Her next release wasHyper, oppositeRam Pothineni for the second time which opened to mixed reviews and was an average grosser at the box office.[33]
In 2017, her first release wasJai Lava Kusa, oppositeN. T. Rama Rao Jr. which opened to positive reviews and became a box office hit by grossing more than₹100 crore.[34] Later she made herMalayalam debut withVillain, starringMohanlal andVishal, directed byB. Unnikrishnan where she essayed a cop in the movie. The movie opened to positive reviews with critics praising her performance as a tough, investigating cop and the movie had a good run at box-office.[35] Her last release of 2017 wasOxygen, marking her second collaboration withGopichand, opening to mixed reviews and the movie went on to be an average grosser at the box office.[36]
Khanna in 2018
In 2018, her first release wasTouch Chesi Chudu, marking her second collaboration withRavi Teja. Though the movie went on a huge hype pre-release, it later opened from mixed to negative reviews and was unsuccessful at the box office. Within a span of a week, her next release wasTholi Prema oppositeVarun Tej, which opened to widespread acclaim from critics and audience alike, with critics praising her performance asVarsha as her best ever performance, and also applauded the chemistry between the lead pair.[37] Her next release wasSrinivasa Kalyanam, oppositeNithiin, directed by National Award winnerSatish Vegesna which opened to mixed reviews but the chemistry between the lead pair was appreciated. Her next release was a multi-starrerImaikkaa Nodigal, marking her debut inTamil cinema opening to highly positive reviews with critics praising her performance as a girl-next-door character and was commercially successful at box office.[38] Her next release in Tamil wasAdanga Maru, oppositeJayam Ravi which received positive reviews from the critics[39] and became a commercial success at the box office.[40]
In 2019, Her first release wasAyogya oppositeVishal, which was an official remake of the 2015 Telugu hit,Temper which received generally positive reviews from audience and critics. The film did considerably well at the box-office.[41] Her next release wasSangathamizhan oppositeVijay Sethupathi which opened to mixed reviews, but Khanna received praise for her performance. In December 2019, She had two releases,Venky Mama oppositeNaga Chaitanya andVenkatesh which received mixed reviews andPrati Roju Pandage marking her second collaboration withSai Dharam Tej, which received generally positive reviews with critics praising her comic-timing in her performance as"Angel" Aarna, a highly self-obsessed girl from the village town, Rajahmundry.[42] Both the films were commercially successful at the box office.[43][44] Her only release in 2020 wasWorld Famous Lover oppositeVijay Deverakonda which opened to negative reviews and did not perform well at the box office.[45][46]
In 2021, Her first release wasTughlaq Durbar marking her second collaboration withVijay Sethupathi. The film did not opt for a theatrical release and had its direct television premiere prior to an OTT release.[47] The film received mixed reviews from the critics.[48][49] In October 2021, Khanna had two of her movies released. The first release wasBhramam oppositePrithviraj Sukumaran which had a direct OTT release only in India and an overseas theatrical release.[50] The film was a Malayalam remake of the 2018 Hindi filmAndhadhun.[51] The film received generally positive reviews from the critics.[52][53] Her next release in the same month wasAranmanai 3 oppositeArya. Despite receiving mixed to negative reviews from critics,[54] The film was a commercial success at the box office.[55]
Career expansion (2022–present)
In 2022, Khanna's first release wasRudra: The Edge of Darkness alongsideAjay Devgn, which also marks herdigital streaming debut.[56] It is an adaptation of the British TV showLuther.[57] The web series opened to highly positive reviews from the critics.[58][59] In July 2022, Khanna had two releases. The first release wasPakka Commercial, marking her third collaboration withGopichand.[60] The film received mixed reviews from the critics upon its release.[61][62] The next release in the same month wasThank You, marking her second collaboration withNaga Chaitanya.[63] The movie received mixed to negative reviews upon release, but Khanna's performance as a "mature and stifled woman" was appreciated.[64][65] Both the films had poor runs at the box-office.[66][67] Her next release in August 2022 wasThiruchitrambalam starringDhanush.[68] The film received rave reviews upon its release,[69][70] with critics appreciating the performances of the cast of the film.[71]Thiruchitrambalam became a box-office hit by grossing more than₹100 crore worldwide.[72] Her next release in October wasSardar oppositeKarthi.[73] The film opened to rave reviews from the audience and critics alike upon its release.[74][75]Sardar went on to become the second₹100 crore worldwide grosser for Khanna within the same calendar year.[76]
In 2024, her first release wasYodha oppositeSidharth Malhotra. The film marks Khanna's return toHindi cinema after a decade, following her debut in the film industry withMadras cafe (2013).Yodha opened to mixed reviews from the critics,[79][80] and ended up as a commercial failure at the box-office.[81] Her next release wasAranmanai 4 alongsideSundar C andTamannaah. It was her second collaboration with Tamannaah afterBengal Tiger. The film received mixed reviews from both critics and audiences.[82][83][84] Janani K. fromIndia Today found her performance to be "adequate".[83]Aranmanai 4 was a commercial success at the box-office, collecting over ₹100 crores worldwide, thus making it as third consecutive 100 crore grosser movie for Khanna in Tamil cinema.[85][86] Her next release in November wasThe Sabarmati Report oppositeVikrant Massey which opened up from mixed to negative reviews from the critics.[87][88] Khanna also reprised her role from the film in soap operasKumkum Bhagya andKundali Bhagya as a cameo appearance.[89]
In 2025, her first release wasAghathiyaa co-starringJiiva andArjun Sarja which received mixed reviews from both critics and audiences,[90][91] and underperformed at the box-office.[92]
Khanna is considered as one of the most popular actors inTelugu cinema.[97] She stood at the 16th place onForbes India's most influential stars on Instagram in South cinema for the year 2021.[98] In February 2023, she toppedIMDb's popular Indian celebrities weekly list.[99] Khanna has frequently featured inHyderabad Times' 30 Most Desirable Woman list. She was placed 28th in 2018, 15th in 2019 and 10th in 2020.[100][101][102] She ranked 22nd in 2018 and 23rd in 2019 inChennai Times' 30 Most Desirable Woman list.[103] Khanna has started an initiative called#BeTheMiracle to distribute free meals to the needy in Hyderabad. She also launched an NGO called "Roti Bank" foundation, where she tied up with several NGOs that cater to the different needs and issues facing people during theCOVID-19 pandemic in India.[104][105]
Filmography
Films
Key
†
Denotes film or TV productions that have not yet been released
.jpg)
.jpg)
