Rashmika Mandanna and Anupama Parameswaran belong to almost the same generation. Both arrived in South cinema as young actresses, became popular quickly and had a strong connection with Telugu audiences.
But look at where they are today, and the difference is hard to miss.
Anupama made her debut with Premam in 2015, while Rashmika started with Kirik Party in 2016. Rashmika’s Telugu entry came with Chalo, and Geetha Govindam soon changed her career. From there, she became part of bigger commercial films before Pushpa took her nationwide. Animal added another big boost to her popularity.
Her lineup today also shows how far she has come. She has Ranabaali with Vijay Deverakonda, Mysaa and other projects targeting wider audiences.
Anupama Parameswaran has had her own successful phase. Karthikeya 2 worked across markets and Tillu Square gave her another popular film. But her career has largely stayed within the South. She currently has films like Bhogi and Crazy Kalyanam.
That is probably the biggest difference between the two.
Anupama remains a familiar and liked actress, but Rashmika has gone beyond that space. In less than a decade, she has moved from being a young South heroine to one of the names producers are looking at for pan-India films.
Same generation, similar starting point but Rashmika has clearly taken the bigger leap.
