Actor · Telugu cinema
Indukuri Sunil Varma
Indukuri Sunil Varma movies: 209 Telugu films on file, 1996–2027. Earliest on file: Akkada Ammayi Ikkada Abbayi (1996). Latest release: Korean Kanakaraju (7 August 2026). Next: Kaaka (13 January 2027).
- Films on file
- 209 (209 as actor)
- Years on file
- 1996–2027
- Born
- 28 February 1974 · February birthdays (Wikidata)
- Selected films on file
- Magadheera, Pushpa: The Rise, Pushpa 2: The Rule
- Record
- Q3536811 on Wikidata
Sunil (born Indukuri Sunil Varma, 28 February 1974) is an Indian actor who works mainly in Telugu films, with occasional Tamil and Malayalam roles. He has appeared in over 180 films, mostly in comic parts, and has won three Nandi Awards and two Filmfare Awards South. In the 2000s he was regarded as one of Telugu cinema’s leading comedians, known for his distinctive laugh and timing. He later moved into lead roles and, more recently, antagonists, notably in Pushpa: The Rise (2021) and Pushpa 2: The Rule (2024).
Early life
Sunil comes from Bhimavaram in Andhra Pradesh, where he became friends with the future director Trivikram Srinivas; the two, along with director Gunasekhar, shared a room in Punjagutta during their struggling years; as of 2016 Trivikram still rented that room as a memento. He celebrated his 40th birthday by donating to a school for the blind.
Beginnings
He started in 1996 as an extra in Akkada Ammayi Ikkada Abbayi, though his scenes were cut. After early projects such as Prema Katha and Swayamvaram, Nuvve Kavali was the first film to bring him recognition.
Leading comedian
He won the Nandi Award for Best Male Comedian for Nuvvu Nenu (2001) and Andhrudu (2005), and the Filmfare Award for Best Comedian – Telugu for Peda Babu (2004). Much later his comic work in Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (2018) won a Santosham Best Comedian award.
Hero
Sunil moved into lead roles with Andala Ramudu (2006). S. S. Rajamouli‘s Maryada Ramanna (2010) was a commercial success, with Sify remarking that he no longer looked like a comedy hero and praising his dancing; it brought him a Nandi Special Jury Award. He followed it with Veerabhadram Chowdary‘s Poola Rangadu (2012), released in 450 theatres worldwide, and Tadakha (2013), which won him the Filmfare and SIIMA awards for Best Supporting Actor. In the late 2010s, however, his focus on leads led to several failures.
Villain and character roles
He revived his career with varied supporting parts and villains. His antagonist in Colour Photo (2020) won critical acclaim, and in Pushpa: The Rise he played the serious gangster Mangalam Seenu, far from his usual comedy; he returned in Pushpa 2: The Rule. The success of Pushpa brought many offers for negative roles, including the Tamil film Maaveeran (2023). His other Tamil films include Mark Antony (2023) and Good Bad Ugly (2025).
Career on file
Indukuri Sunil Varma appears in 209 Telugu films on file at Tollywood Desk, dated from 1996 to 2027. The earliest of them is Akkada Ammayi Ikkada Abbayi (1996), and the most recent release is Korean Kanakaraju (2026). One more film, Kaaka (2027), is dated for later. The most widely covered of these, counted by Wikipedia language editions, are Magadheera (2009), Pushpa: The Rise (2021) and Pushpa 2: The Rule (2024). Other recent releases on file are Lenin (2026), Dacoit: A Love Story (2026) and Nari Nari Naduma Murari (2026).
Brahmanandam is the most frequent co-star, sharing 80 films with Indukuri Sunil Varma, followed by Kota Srinivasa Rao (36) and Chandra Mohan (30). Among directors, K. Vijaya Bhaskar and Srinu Vaitla each cast Indukuri Sunil Varma in eight films, more than any other director; next are Trivikram Srinivas (7) and S. V. Krishna Reddy (6). Music on 28 of them is by Mani Sharma, with Devi Sri Prasad (22) and Chakri (15) next. Sri Venkateswara Creations produced ten of them, more than any other banner on file. Across these films the credits on file name 137 different directors, 71 music directors and 332 other credited actors.
Runtime is on file for 150 of them; they average 153 minutes, and the longest is Pushpa 2: The Rule at 200 minutes. 52 of them have a streaming (OTT) release noted on the site. By decade the list splits into 1990s (3), 2000s (138), 2010s (27) and 2020s (41). 2008 is the busiest single year, with 22 films.
Figures come from the films on file at Tollywood Desk and change as records are added.
Upcoming movies (1)
All upcoming Telugu movies · Dates are those on record and can change.