South superstar Jr NTR, who was recently seen in Ayan Mukerji’s action-thriller film War 2, is widely known as the “Man of the Masses” in Telugu cinema.

Throughout his acting career, he has starred in several critically acclaimed films and is admired not only for his versatile acting but also for his amazing dance skills, which are loved by audiences.

How ‘Naatu Naatu’ made Jr NTR a global dance icon

His dance sequence in the hit song ‘Naatu Naatu’ from SS Rajamouli’s RRR is one of the best examples. The song won the Oscar for Best Original Song at the 95th Academy Awards in 2023.

Jr NTR’s War 2 dance with Hrithik Roshan wins hearts

Recently, in the movie War 2, he can be seen dancing alongside Hrithik Roshan in the song ‘Janaab-e-Aali’ through which he has won millions of hearts.

The childhood connection: Learning Kuchipudi at an early age

But did you know that his dancing skills have a childhood connection? Yes, Jr NTR learnt the Kuchipudi dance form during his early childhood and even gave many stage performances in India and abroad.

There are several videos of Jr NTR present on YouTube, where he can be seen performing and giving a remarkable performance in the Kuchipudi dance form. 

His mother’s influence on his passion for dance

According to News18, RRR actor Junior NTR, in one of the interviews, shared that it was his mother who introduced him to the classical dance form, Kuchipudi. She urged him to follow his passion without allowing stereotypes to stop him. In an interview, Jr NTR shared, “My mother has been one of the most influential people in my life. She has always pushed me to learn new things, which in the long run has immensely helped me in my craft. My mom really wanted me to learn classical dance, and therefore I became a classical dancer. As a kid, it was she who inspired me to take up dancing and made me understand that art knows no gender. I performed around the world as a dancer. I was 17 back then when I plunged into acting. Even in the RRR song ‘Naatu Naatu’, there is extensive dancing, but I really enjoyed it. For me, it’s a way to express oneself.”

Iconic films that showcase Jr NTR’s acting and dance skills

NT Rama Rao Jr, aka Jr NTR is best known for his work in movies like ‘RRR’, ‘Nannaku Prematho’, ‘Janatha Garage’, ‘Aadi, Aravindha Sametha’, and others. According to IMDb, he is a part of Prashanth Neel’s project, tentatively titled NTRNeel.