Prabhu Deva

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Lore & Background

Prabhu Deva was born on 3 April 1973 in Mysore, Mysore State (present-day Karnataka) in a Kannadiga family to Mugur Sundar and Mahadevamma Sundar. Inspired by his father, a choreographer for South Indian movies, he took up dancing, learning Indian classical dance forms such as Bharatanatyam from Dharmaraj and Udupi Lakshminarayanan, as well as Western styles. His brothers Raju Sundaram and Nagendra Prasad also work in the film industry. He first appeared as a boy playing a flute in the song 'Panivizhum Iravu' from the Tamil film Mouna Ragam (1986) and later as a background dancer in Agni Natchathiram (1988). His first venture as a choreographer was the Kamal Haasan starrer Vetri Vizha (1989), and he has since choreographed for over 100 movies. In 1999, Deva, Shobhana and A. R. Rahman performed with a Tamil cinema dancing troupe at the 'MJ & Friends' Michael Jackson tribute concert in Munich, Germany. As of 2010, he serves as chairman and director of the Prabhu Deva's Dance Academy in Singapore. Beginning with a series of acting roles in the 1990s and early 2000s, Deva featured in several commercially successful films including Kaadhalan (1994), Love Birds (1996), Minsara Kanavu (1997) and VIP (1997). After further critically acclaimed performances in Kaathala Kaathala (1998), Vanathai Pola (2000), Pennin Manathai Thottu (2000), Alli Thandha Vaanam (2001) and Engal Anna (2004), his box office value began to decline. He subsequently made appearances in supporting roles in Tamil. He then successfully ventured into direction with the 2005 Telugu film Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana, and the success prompted further offers as a director. He went on to make highly profitable films in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi languages such as Pokkiri (2007), Shankar Dada Zindabad (2007), Wanted (2009), Rowdy Rathore (2012), R... Rajkumar (2013) and Singh is Bliing (2015).

Reader's Guide

Prabhu Deva's significance lies in his dual impact as a choreographer and filmmaker across multiple Indian film industries. With two National Film Awards for Best Choreography and a Padma Shri in 2019, he is recognized for shaping dance styles in Tamil, Hindi, and Telugu cinema. His acting career peaked in the 1990s with hits like Kaadhalan (1994), which became the highest grossing Tamil film of that year, and Minsara Kanavu (1997), for which he won the National Film Award for Best Choreography for the song 'Vennilave'. He later transitioned to directing, achieving major commercial success with films such as Wanted (2009) and Rowdy Rathore (2012). His legacy includes founding the Prabhu Deva's Dance Academy in Singapore and performing at a Michael Jackson tribute concert in 1999. Despite a decline in his acting box office value, his directorial ventures revitalized his career and influenced popular Indian cinema.

Did You Know?

• Prabhu Deva first appeared on screen as a boy playing a flute in the song 'Panivizhum Iravu' from the Tamil film Mouna Ragam (1986).
• He performed at the 'MJ & Friends' Michael Jackson tribute concert in Munich, Germany in 1999 alongside Shobhana and A. R. Rahman.
• As of 2010, he serves as chairman and director of the Prabhu Deva's Dance Academy in Singapore.
• His first venture as a choreographer was the Kamal Haasan starrer Vetri Vizha (1989).
• He has choreographed for over 100 movies.