Actor · Telugu cinema
Meena
Meena movies: 36 Telugu films on file, 1981–2022. Earliest on file: Babulugaadi Debba (1981). Latest release: Son of India (18 February 2022).
- Films on file
- 36 (36 as actor)
- Years on file
- 1981–2022
- Born
- 16 September 1974 · September birthdays (Wikidata)
- Record
- Q3276006 on Wikidata
Meena (Meena Sagar, née Durairaj) is an Indian actress who has worked in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam films, with a few Kannada and Hindi films. A child artist from the early 1980s, she became one of the leading heroines of 1990s Telugu cinema with films such as Chanti (1992), Allari Mogudu (1992) and Rajeswari Kalyanam (1993), which won her the Nandi Award for Best Actress.
Wikipedia gives her birth date as 16 September 1976, citing The Times of India, and says she was brought up in Madras (Chennai). Wikidata gives a different year, 16 September 1974, with Chennai as her birthplace, so the year is not settled across sources.
Career
She started as a child artist in the Tamil film Nenjangal (1982) with Sivaji Ganesan and appeared in more than 45 films as a child, including the Telugu film Illalu Priyuralu (1984). Her first lead role in Telugu was opposite Rajendra Prasad in Navayugam (1990), and her Tamil breakthrough came with En Rasavin Manasile (1991).
In Telugu she gained wide recognition with Chanti (1992), opposite Venkatesh, which brought her a Filmfare nomination. Films such as Allari Pilla, Allari Mogudu and Aswamedham (1992), Muta Mesthri and Allari Alludu (1993), and Abbaigaru, in which she played Sudha, followed. Kranthi Kumar’s Rajeswari Kalyanam won her the Nandi Award for Best Actress. Later Telugu films include Muddula Mogudu (1997), Suryavamsam (1998), Sneham Kosam (1999) and Maa Annayya (2000). In Tamil she starred with Rajinikanth in Veera (1994) and Muthu (1995), and in Malayalam opposite Mohanlal in Varnapakittu (1997).
After a break she returned with the Kannada film Hendtheer Darbar (2010). She played Mohanlal’s wife in the Malayalam Drishyam (2013) and reprised the role in its Telugu remake Drushyam (2014), and again in Drushyam 2 (2021). Her other recent Telugu work includes Jagadguru Adi Shankara (2013), Mama Manchu Alludu Kanchu (2015) and a cameo in Saakshyam (2018). In Tamil she reunited with Rajinikanth in Annaatthe (2021).
She has also sung on pop albums and worked as a voice artist and television judge.
Awards
- Nandi Award for Best Actress for Rajeswari Kalyanam (Wikipedia winners list; Andhra Pradesh government list of Nandi winners).
- Wikipedia also records two Filmfare Awards South, three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards and the Kalaimamani honour from the Government of Tamil Nadu in 1998.
Upcoming films
No upcoming Telugu film of hers is on our records. New films appear on upcoming Telugu movies as they are recorded.
Where to watch her films
- Drushyam 2: Prime Video, from 25 November 2021, per Wikipedia
- Saakshyam: ZEE5, from 27 December 2018, per Wikipedia (OTT details)
- Sneham Kosam: Aha, per the platform listing (OTT details)
- Suryavamsam: Aha, per the platform listing (OTT details)
Catalogues change; check the platform before you plan to watch.
Personal life
She married Vidyasagar, a Bangalore-based software engineer, on 12 July 2009, according to Wikipedia, citing The Times of India. Their daughter Nainika made her acting debut in the Tamil film Theri (2016).
Sources: Wikipedia and the references it cites (linked above), Wikidata, and Tollywood Desk’s film, release and OTT records.
Career on file
Meena appears in 36 Telugu films on file at Tollywood Desk, dated from 1981 to 2022. The earliest of them is Babulugaadi Debba (1981), and the most recent release is Son of India (2022). The most widely covered of these, counted by Wikipedia language editions, are Kartavyam (1990), Saakshyam (2018) and Drushyam (2014). Other recent releases on file are Drushyam 2 (2021), Mama Manchu Alludu Kanchu (2015) and Jagadguru Adi Shankara (2013).
Brahmanandam is the most frequent co-star, sharing 14 films with Meena, followed by Kota Srinivasa Rao (13) and Kaikala Satyanarayana (10). Among directors, A. Kodandarami Reddy cast Meena most often, in six films; next are K. Raghavendra Rao (4) and Kranthi Kumar (3). Music on eight of them is by M. M. Keeravani, with Ilaiyaraaja (3) and Koti (3) next. VMC Productions produced three of them, more than any other banner on file. Across these films the credits on file name 23 different directors, 21 music directors and 93 other credited actors.
Runtime is on file for 27 of them; they average 144 minutes, and the longest is Sirivennela at 181 minutes. Six of them have a streaming (OTT) release noted on the site. By decade the list splits into 1980s (4), 1990s (22), 2000s (4), 2010s (4) and 2020s (2). 1992 is the busiest single year, with six films.
Figures come from the films on file at Tollywood Desk and change as records are added.