Acting
Jul 13, 1954
Hyderabad, Telangana, India
Tanikella Bharani
Acting
Biography
Tanikella Bharani (born 14 July 1954) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, poet, playwright, and director who primarily works in Telugu cinema, with appearances in Tamil and Hindi films. He began his career as a stage actor and playwright in the mid-1970s before entering the film industry. Bharani made his film debut as a dialogue writer for *Kanchu Kavacham* (1984). He wrote dialogues for films including *Ladies Tailor* (1985), *Sri Kanaka Mahalakshmi Recording Dance Troupe* (1987), and Ram Gopal Varma's gangster drama *Shiva* (1989), in which he also played Nanaji. He later appeared in villainous, comedic, and supporting roles. He won the Nandi Award for Best Villain for *Samudram* (1999) and the Nandi Award for Best Character Actor for *Nuvvu Nenu* (2001). Bharani has acted in more than 750 films and has written books, plays, and devotional songs dedicated to Lord Shiva. He made his directorial debut with the Telugu drama *Mithunam* (2012), starring S. P. Balasubrahmanyam and Lakshmi, and received the CineMAA Special Jury Award for Best Direction. He played the priest Swamyji in S. S. Rajamouli's *Baahubali: The Beginning* (2015) and *Baahubali 2: The Conclusion* (2017). His Tamil film roles include appearances in *Ghilli* (2004) and *Vaathi* (2023). His 2024 releases include the political thriller *Prathinidhi 2*, the action film *Bhaje Vaayu Vegam*, Harish Shankar's *Mr. Bachchan*, the thriller *Kalinga*, and *Nindha*. His 2025 credits include Krish Jagarlamudi's period film *Hari Hara Veera Mallu*, Mohan Krishna Indraganti's comedy *Sarangapani Jathakam*, *Kishkindhapuri*, and Mani Ratnam's Tamil action-drama *Thug Life*. He has received three Nandi Awards and the Sahitya Puraskar for his literary work.
Feature Films (417)
Venu is an orphan and a contractor at Vizag port. Anu is a student in classical singing. Sruthi is Anu's friend. Anu makes an attempt to elope with her boyfriend Arun. Arun is the son of a Business tycoon JP. JP sends police across to nab Anu. As police nab Arun, Venu rescues Anu.
Nenunnanu
Vikram is a newly recruit N.I.A. Officer who is getting accustomed with the nuances of his new job, has to handle his first major case due to ironic circumstances, during the course of which his life takes a drastic turn in all aspects.
Raja Vikramarka
Is a young man's will power and a young woman's destiny enough for them to be together?
Pelli SandaD
Chandram (Srikanth) is a cab driver and a honest man. His wife is Kalyani (Meera Jasmine). They are a childless couple. When Kalyani gets tested positive for pregnancy, the doc tells him that she needs to be operated to avoid complications. The operation would cost around 8 lacs. Being a middle class man, Chandram doesn't have that much money. That is when he comes across an accident on railway track where the body of an unidentified woman is found. He also finds a bag with lots of money beside the corpse. his friend advise him to tell the cops that the dead woman is his wife. He gets the postmortem done and manages the cops and doctor. He finds out that the dead girl is Ramya (Sada). Parents of Ramya come to know about it and ask chandram to do the final rites as they thought that he is her husband (she elopes from house with her boyfriend). The story takes turn when Ramya returns at the time of last rites.
A Aa E Ee
Acharya, a middle-aged Naxalite-turned-social reformer, launches a fight against the Endowments Department over misappropriation and embezzlement of temple funds and donations.
Acharya
Television & Series (3)
Journalist Sagar's life turns thrilling as he unravels dark secrets behind newspaper clippings predicting tragedies. He becomes a murder suspect, racing against time to clear his name and solve the enigma and faces dangerous twists. Suspense builds in this roller-coaster ride.
Dhootha
Balu, Ravi and Meenakshi, three employees at an IT company, are desperate to be 'benched', each for their own personal reasons. However, when confronted by their flaws, can each of them learn to overcome their issues and grow? 'Bench Life' stars Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Vaibhav, Charan Peri, Ritika Singh, Aakanksha Singh, Nayan Sarika, Venkatesh Kakumanu and Tanikella Bharani.
Bench Life
Katha Sudha is a weekly Telugu short-story anthology, with a new story generally premiering on Sundays.
