- Pawan Kalyan wanted to join Naxalites in his late teens due to social injustice
- His brother Chiranjeevi stopped him from taking that path and guided him
- Pawan participated in Mumbai film festivals making documentaries but felt stuck
Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan wanted to join the Naxalites in his teens because he was enraged by social injustice. But before he could make a big move, his brother Chiranjeevi stepped in and stopped him from taking the plunge.
"I even entertained getting into the Naxalites. At one point in time, when I was in my late teens... I wanted to pick up the gun. That's when my brother pushed me into something more constructive. He said, 'Where is that mad rage coming from?' I said, 'I'm talking about injustice, we should go do this and that.' He was very worried. It lasted from 17 to 21. That's the age you can jump in," Pawan Kalyan told ANI.
The actor-politician said he participated in short film festivals in Mumbai to make documentaries. He said he was experimenting but was not achieving what he wanted. He felt stuck.
"My mind was exploding with many things. I was going crazy. That's when my brother entered the picture. He said only one thing: 'If your brother were not Chiranjeevi, if you had responsibilities toward your family, if someone were dependent on you because of your salary and hard work, would you do the same thing?' I could not answer. I didn't have an answer; I kept quiet," he said.
Growing up in the 1980s, South African apartheid, the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) movement in Sri Lanka, Cold War tensions, unrest in a unified Germany, and Khalistani militancy impacted him greatly.
Pawan Kalyan on Chiranjeevi
At his film Ustaad Bhagat Singh's pre-release event in March, the actor had called his brother Chiranjeevi his "only hero." "I am very happy that my brother Chiranjeevi watched the Ustaad Bhagat Singh trailer and tweeted about it. For me, there is only one hero, Megastar Chiranjeevi. When I stand beside him, I forget that I am a hero myself," he said.
Pawan Kalyan's film career
In 1996, Pawan debuted in films as Kalyan Babu with Akkada Ammayi Ikkada Abbayi. He delivered his first major hit with the 1998 film Tholi Prema.
He was last seen in Hari Hara Veera Mallu and They Call Him OG in 2025, and Ustaad Bhagat Singh this year.
