Chiranjeevi is the eldest son born on 22 August 1955 in Narsapur, a Town on the Banks of River Godavari in the West Godavari District in Andhra Pradesh, to Sri Venkat Rao and Smt Anjana Devi. He spent his childhood in native village with his grand parents, while his family was else where because of his father’s occupation. He has two sisters and two brothers; his younger brother, Nagendra Babu is a film producer and a film actor, his youngest brother, Pawan Kalyan is also a Telugu film actor.

After his graduation at Y.N. College in Narsapuram, Chiranjeevi moved to Chennai to seek a career in acting. He joined an acting school in Madras. After struggling for some time, he began appearing in small roles in films like Pranam Kareedu and Punadhi Rallu.

Career

Chiranjeevi has appeared in primarily Telugu language films. Several of his films have been dubbed into Hindi and Tamil.

Early Career

His first film, Pranam Khareedu, was released in September 1978. After 10 years he filmed his 100th. film, Trinetrudu which did not do well, released in September 1988.

Rise to fame

Khaidi was the first film to catapult Chiranjeevi into the big league.

Personal life

Chiranjeevi married Surekha, the daughter of veteran actor Padma Sri Allu Ramalingaiah. The couple have three children - two daughters Sushmita and Srija and a son, Ram Charan Teja, who now is also an actor. In October 1998 he started a charity called Chiranjeevi Eye and Blood Bank and Charitable Trust . The charity has saved hundreds of lives and nearly 1,600 people have received donated eyes.[citation needed]

Awards & Honours

In January 2006, Chiranjeevi was honored with the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award in India for his contributions to the Telugu Film Industry and for his social work.
In November 2006, Chiranjeevi was awarded with an honorary doctorate by the Andhra University for his services to the Telugu film industry and for his social work.