Nagarjuna defends son Akhil ahead of Lenin: ‘Almost none of his films have worked’

3 min readHyderabadJul 8, 2026 06:17 PM IST

Two days before Lenin reaches theatres, Nagarjuna Akkineni has made an unusual request: stop comparing his son, Akhil Akkineni, to the two generations that came before him.

Talking at the movie’s press meet on Wednesday, he said, “There is always pressure on Akhil because of our family legacy. When I began my career, I had the same kind of pressure as well. It has always been a problem. Let us not compare his career with mine, we are not supposed to do this to anyone.”

From almost any other film family, this would sound routine. From the Akkineni house, it lands differently. ANR was one of the founding legends of Telugu cinema, a man whose studio, Annapurna, is a pivotal part of the industry. Nagarjuna, while maintaining his father’s legacy, built his own career over four decades. Akhil, the third generation, has spent ten years being asked why he hasn’t done the same. Since 2015, he has tried various genres, restarted his career more than once, and never found the hit that establishes him as a star. His last film, Agent, sank in 2023, and the three-year silence since has only made the question louder.

Also Read: ‘No one will say it flopped’: Naga Vamsi’s massive Rs 200 crore prediction for Akhil’s Lenin

Putting his son’s record on the table, he made it as an argument for the film, “Akhil has done many films. Almost none of them worked, but he gave everything to them as an actor. There is a pain in him because of that. That pain is why he connected so deeply with a story like Lenin. And that is when I knew this film would work. That is why I came on board as co-producer,” he said.

Akhil himself said the hardest part was getting out of his own way. “My biggest challenge was letting go of myself. Initially, when I was making films, I used to run on a lot of energy because of the excitement, and it resulted in ways I never anticipated. Lenin is a very calm character, and I am not. I had to drop my energy completely to find him. But I believe in this character, and I believe in this film,” he said.

What is Lenin about?

Lenin, directed by Murali Kishor Abburu of Vinaro Bhagyamu Vishnu Katha fame, is a rural action drama set in Rayalaseema, with Akhil playing a son of the soil pulled into family rivalries and political friction. Through the promotions, Nagarjuna has argued that a Telugu actor never truly connects with the masses until he plays a rural hero, something the urban-tagged Akhil had never attempted.

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The road here to release was bumpy too. The release moved from May 1 to June 26 and finally to July 10, partly to clear the path around Ram Charan’s Peddi, and production lost months to a freak accident that left Akhil recovering. Bhagyashri Borse stars opposite Akhil, with Sivaji, Sunil and Brahmaji in key roles and Thaman’s music, produced by Nagarjuna and Naga Vamsi under Manam Enterprises and Sithara Entertainments and presented by Annapurna Studios.

Lenin releases worldwide on Friday, July 10.