Career Trajectory of Telugu Comedian Sunil - one of Tollywood's best 

The Sunil we all wanted to see has finally made a comeback on screen, albeit in a limited capacity, as the main antagonist in the recently released Telugu film Colour Photo (Aha). In the film, he does not play a comedic villain or a henchman for someone else. Even though he only appears for about 30 minutes, he makes the decisions.

Sunil has spent nearly two decades working his way up from sidekick to hero-kick. It's another thing that he failed at when he tried to make action-comedies his main focus. Sunil is a genuine star who has yet to be recognized in Telugu cinema, based on his body of work.

Sunil has appeared in approximately 200 films. And, on the surface, you could argue that he's tried a lot of different things with his characters. Brahmanandam and MS Narayana were already regulars in Telugu films in the early 2000s when he was a newcomer. Sunil's age at the time – he was in his twenties – allowed him to play the hero's best friend. He was frequently cast as the guy who would lend a helping hand to the male lead during difficult times, or as the target of hilarious pranks.

When it came to older stars like Chiranjeevi, Venkatesh, and Nagarjuna's films, he found another platform to shine — he dropped his college-boy persona to play a housekeeper or a family member. His early successes were treasure troves. He was also a regular with Nuvvu Nenu, Nuvvu Naaku Nachav, Sontham, Nuvve Nuvve, Manasantha Nuvve, and Manmadhudu. He had to work within the constraints of commercial Telugu cinema, however.

•Developing into a hero

Sunil's popularity grew, and he was offered larger roles, which helped Andala Ramudu (2006), in which he starred as the lead, become a box office success. However, because it was a remake of the Tamil Sundara Purushan (1996) and a one-time event, he continued to wear the cape of a comedian.

SS Rajamouli, on the other hand, gave the actor a complete makeover in Maryada Ramanna, which played to packed houses for several weeks in 2010. Rajamouli had just delivered the industry's biggest blockbuster, Magadheera, the previous year, and was willing to take a chance on his image and a lead actor willing to sing, dance, fight, cry, and be goofy.

Perhaps the general interest in this new director-actor collaboration piqued the public's interest and drove them to the theatres. Sunil was left hanging on the bridge even though the magic had worked. He couldn't just go back to his old haunts and get beaten up by other celebrities in the name of comedy, nor could he re-use his bag of tricks.

Ram Gopal Varma, who had always admired Rajamouli, believed he could rely on Sunil's talent for a low-budget comedy-drama and promptly churned out the terrible Katha Screenplay Darsakatvam Appalaraju (2011). Then he took it a step further by directing Dongala Mutha (2011), in which Sunil co-starred with Ravi Teja, Charmme, Lakshmi Manchu, Bramhanandam, Subbaraju, Brahmaji, and Prakash Raj.

Sunil lost his footing around the turn of the decade when he was asked to fill larger shoes. He then appeared in a slew of comedies with elements of romance, action, and so on, but the majority of them fizzled. Even though the main character was the same, the directors were not. They lacked Rajamouli's talent and were unable to capitalize on Sunil's advantages. Sunil's work has dwindled from 10 to 20 releases per year to just a couple of films. Even his six-pack abs weren't enough to entice new fans. A celebrity who was once adored by a generation of fans was in danger of becoming forgotten.

 •Switching gears

Sunil might not have changed tracks by flipping a coin, as Rajinikanth did in Sivaji (2007). His decision to return to his area of expertise, however, must be commended. Change is unavoidable, and stars who recognize it leave larger footprints in the sands of time. Consider Amitabh Bachchan as an example.

Sunil was transformed into a supporting actor in Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (2018). And now, in Colour Photo, he channels his inner demon to play the mean, beastly Rama Raju, a character who complements Shammi (Fahadh Faasil) from Kumbalangi Nights (2019). Shammi and Rama Raju appear to be best friends. They are both egotistical, overly concerned with their appearances, and make snap judgments about others based on their appearances.

Sunil matched steps with Allu Arjun

 earlier this year in Ala Vaikunta Puram, and now he's warning young women in Colour Photo not to fall in love with the men they like.

Nonetheless, there's a sense that he's underutilized in-stream cinema. There are no doubt other aspects of him that filmmakers have yet to discover. Let us wait and see what the coming years reveal.

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