Resurgence and recent work (2015–present)
Mahesh collaborated with Koratala Siva for the family drama film Srimanthudu co-starring Shruti Haasan. He co-produced the film under his newly formed banner G. Mahesh Babu Entertainment Pvt. Ltd, marking his first film production venture.[63] He opted to do so in order to control the film's budget, accepting a share in profits in lieu of remuneration.[64] Released on 7 August 2015, Srimanthudu opened to positive reviews from the critics,[65] was commercially successful, and gained the best Telugu actor award at the 63rd Filmfare Awards South for Mahesh,[66] marking his resurgence.[67] Sethumadhavan N. of Bangalore Mirror stated, "Srimanthudu wouldn't have been as effective if it did not have Mahesh Babu who is at his charming best", adding that he "underplays the emotional scenes, making them a treat to watch".[68]
Mahesh is currently filming Srikanth Addala's Telugu–Tamil bilingual film Brahmotsavam, co-starring Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kajal Aggarwal, and Pranitha Subhash, which marks Mahesh's first straight Tamil film.[69]
In the media
Mahesh Babu is considered one of the most popular actors in Telugu cinema.[70] His popularity has been documented in several Telugu films such as Ashta Chamma (2008),[71]Kiraak (2014),[72] and Superstar Kidnap (2015).[73] He joined Twitter in April 2010 and has 1.05 million followers as of 1 January 2015.[74] He was ranked twelfth on the Times' 50 Most Desirable Men in India for the year 2010.[75] He climbed to the first position of the same list for the year 2013, beating the likes of Hrithik Roshan, Salman Khan andShahrukh Khan.[76] He stood at sixth place on the same list for the year 2014.[77] Mahesh has been criticised for his limited and predictable wardrobe while attending any kind of event.[78]
Mahesh is one of the best South Indian brand ambassadors, being the celebrity model for close to a dozen brands.[79][80] In 2007, he signed a five-year endorsement deal with the cola company Thums Up to replace Chiranjeevi as its brand ambassador in Andhra Pradesh.[81] He endorsed brands such as UniverCell Mobile Store,[82] Navratna Oil,[83]Amrutanjan,[84] Provogue,[85] ITC Vivel,[86] Jos Alukkas,[87] Idea Cellular,[88] Santoor Soap,[89] South India Shopping Mall,[90] Royal Stag,[91] Rainbow Hospitals,[92] TVS Motor Company,[93] Mahindra Tractors,[94] Paragon footwear, and[95] Tata Sky in South India.[96] He was signed as the brand ambassador of Intex Mobiles in August 2015 for one year.[97] In 2012, he replaced Akshay Kumar as the National brand ambassador for Thums Up across India.[98] Mahesh commands a figure of ₹25—30 million per endorsement per annum, thus earning around ₹300 million per annum as a brand ambassador.[99]
Mahesh stood in the 31st place on the Forbes India 'Celebrity 100' List for the year 2012, with an annual earnings figure of ₹422.5 million. He stood in the 15th place in terms of Money and 79th place in terms of Fame.[100] He slipped to the 54th position on the same list for the year 2013 with his annual earning figures, Money ranking and Fame ranking descending to ₹289.6 million, 24 and 84, respectively.[101] However, he climbed to the 30th position the following year with an annual earning figure of ₹510 million. His Money and Fame rankings stood at 14 and 84, respectively.
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