Prominent South Indian actress who is known for her impressive filmography and a journey surpassing several hurdles, highs, lows, controversies is actress Nayanthara. An outsider whose advent into the film industry was a lucky draw, from which her career propelled into fame, not just in her native tongue but also went on to set a milieu for herself in Tamil and Telugu Cinema space.
Nayanthara born as Diana Mariam Kurian hailing from a small town Thiruvalla, Kerala had carved not just a path for herself but also a place for her to shine in the film industry. Her charming and promising stint as a heroine, performance artist and a bankable lead recently makes her deserving of all her accolades and awards.
Nayanthara’s Career
A very filmy encounter where Malayalam director Sathyan Anthikkad was impressed by her modelling projects had pitched the idea for a role in his upcoming movie. Although she was hesitant and didn’t want to pursue any career in acting took a chance and acted in ‘Manasinakkare’. The movie introduced her to the industry while in her second film she got the opportunity to work with Mohanlal, which came as her breakthrough.
Her longer run happened in Tamil Industry with the 2005 movie ‘Ayya’, from where her career revved up as she worked with some of the major stars of the film fraternity, getting a grip of the extravagant lifestyle. She soon started bouncing from Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam movies, making her way into fame and stardom. Nayanthara as an actor had gotten several impressive projects were adequate enough to make her a household name, after which she had the advantage of choosing scripts that gave importance to her and made an impact.
Notable Roles and Stardom
An actress who from her early days had the fortune of collaborating with outstanding and distinguishing filmmakers and actors, has several notable roles throughout her career that either made her a familiar face for the audience or cemented her as a ‘star’. Roles like a young girl’s ghost in ‘Vismayathumbathu’, her second film directed by Fazil and starred Mohanlal, Mukesh. The movie received great response getting rave reviews from critics and fans.
‘Ayya’, her debut in Tamil also had a seasoned cast and saw her as an infatuated school girl named Selvi. The movie became a huge hit. Nayanthara’s fresh input in songs gave her the first big push into the Tamil film industry.
2005 also gave her one of the biggest breakthroughs in her career, Nayanthara played the character of Durga alongside Rajinikanth, Prabhu, Nasser, Jyotika, Vadivelu, ‘Chandramukhi’ directed by P. Vasu was a massive industry hit, brimming response and a splendid theatrical run of 800+ days.
In 2006, she played the love interest of Silambarasan in ‘Vallavan’, a coming of age version of a love story that blossoms after the transformation of an ‘ugly duckling’ lead into a ‘handsome young man’. The movie also has its fair share of controversies yet got appreciation and a decent applause for Nayanthara who played Swapna.
Nayanthara as Sasha in Vishnuvardhan’s 2007 directorial ‘Billa’ starring Ajith, an adaptation of Rajinikanth’s ‘Billa’ and the original ‘Don’ starring Amitabh Bachchan. The movie with a high end fanbase in the past, had a swift plot, unpredicted screenplay and massive appreciation. Nayanthara went bold and had her first role of glamour and was actually praised for the decision.
‘Yaradi Nee Mohini’ in 2008 focused her on a different light, a more humble, common girl who is confident, knows what she wants and also tied to the emotions of her family. ‘Keerthi’ is still a fan favourite as Nayanthara’s performance with subtlety was appreciated and convincing.
‘Sri Rama Rajyam’ in 2011 where Nayanthara played the role of Sita, the character from the Epic Ramayana. Her role as the highly celebrated story that is told a million times took a refreshing turn with great accolades and reception from fans. The role was under duress as her personal relationship choices were contradicting to the role of ‘Sita’ and met with humiliation and public retribution before the release.
‘Naanum Rowdy Thaan’ in 2015 was a milestone for her, not just professionally but also personally as she later fell in love and got married to the movie’s director Vignesh Sivan. Nayanthara who played ‘Kadambari’ a hearing deficient woman, who wants to get revenge for her father’s death with the help of a local, funky thug. The role was an especially challenging and unique one in her career.
Nayanthara took a stand at this point in her career and chose to star in movies with female leads and in 2017, her movies ‘Dora’ and ‘Aramm’ were released, of which Dora met with lack of positive reviews, Nayanthra as Mathivadhini in ‘Aramm’ worked fine in terms of story, screenplay and her performance. This role got her to the comfortable spot where her fans gave her the now popular moniker ‘Lady Superstar’.
Nayanthara’s collaboration with RJ Balaji as a director in a religious and humorous social commentary, where she plays the character of ‘Mookuthi Amman’. Although fans were pulled in by the serious screenplay that is filled with funny dialogues and jaunts, Nayanthara was seen in a never seen role in her journey.
‘Jawan’ directed by Atlee and stars the King of Bollywood, Shah Rukh Khan, marked her debut in Bollywood. The movie which was a blockbuster introduced her to a wider audience and gave her the cutting edge to venture into other walks of her life.
Controversies and Career Lows
Nayanthara just like any other heroine or actress was subjected to public commentary and linked with her co- stars a few times over the years. Her relationship with actor Silambarasan during the filming of ‘Vallavan’ was publicised and even discussed for daring posters of the duo being intimate. The actress even reported that the relationship fizzled out and that they separated later in 2006.
Her relationship with actor, director and choreographer Prabhu Deva was also subjected for media coverage and discussion as the actress was spotted with the tattoo of Prabhu Deva’s initials. The duo was the talk of the town with the popular dancer already married and had kids of his own. The duo eventually mutually separated.
Recently, Nayanthara posted an open message directed to her former co – star and fellow actor Dhanush K. Raja stated that he didn’t allow the usage of certain clips from ‘Naanum Rowdy Thaan’ movie for her Netflix Documentary that cover the actress’ journey, career highlights, her lovelife with Vignesh Sivan and her eventual dreamy wedding. The actress went on to blast the ideology and ethics of her ‘Yaradi Nee Mohini’ co – star.
Lady Superstar unleash her audacious battle as a Lionhearted “Rakkayie” Nayanthara’s Net Worth
Nayanthara is the top earning actress of the industry with reportedly 10 crores fee per film. Her latest releases include Annapoorna, Jawan and upcoming projects such as The Test, An untitled film. With a combined net worth of 223 crores that includes brand endorsement, deals and acting fees.
Happy Birthday @NayantharaU 🎂
— StockGro (@stockgro) November 18, 2024
From the Superstar of Indian cinema to a powerhouse entrepreneur, Nayanthara is a true icon! With a career spanning 75+ films, a net worth of ₹223 Cr, and her name shining in the Forbes India Celebrity 100, she’s unstoppable.🤩
In 2021,… pic.twitter.com/c8UFxjH24m
| Brands/ Ventures/ Career | Salary / Worth |
| Acting | 10 crores |
| Real Estate Investments | Around 200 Crores |
| Car Collection | Around 8 crores (known vehicles) |
| Brands Endorsements | 5 to 7 crores |
| Entrepreneurship | 9 Skin, Femi, Rowdy Pictures |
| Brand Investments | Tanishq, GRT, Kay, Pothys, Santoor |
*Stats are according to StockPro
Nayanthara is now happily married for over two years and has made a beautiful life for herself. With two cute little sons named Uyir and Ulag through surrogacy which was again was disputed publicly with people questioning the couple’s personal life choices. The couple are always so in love even in public and Vignesh Sivan even penned most of his movie songs dedicated to his wife and sons.
