Born into the world of cinema, Aadhi Pinisetty could have taken the easier path. His father, Ravi Raja Pinisetty, is a celebrated director in TFI with over 40 hits to his name, having worked with legends like Chiranjeevi, Balakrishna, Mohan Babu, and Venkatesh.
But Aadhi’s story was never about inheriting fame—it was about earning it.
Aadhi’s first steps into acting came with Oka V Chitram (2006) in Telugu. Recognition arrived in Tamil with Eeram(2009). His highly acclaimed performances in Sarrainodu, Ninnu Kori, Rangasthalam, Mirugam, and Maragadha Naanayam established him as a remarkably versatile talent who could play hero, villain, or supporting character with equal ease.I first noticed Aadhi in Ninnu Kori and was blown away by his diction and the dignity with which he portrayed the character.
The moment Mayasabha switched to an OTT format, he was the first person who came to mind for one of the leads—without a shred of doubt. I sent him the script and narrated the entire story over an eight-hour Zoom call, keeping him open to either of the two lead characters, depending on what kind of talent we would discover for the other lead. Once we found Chaitanya Rao, I requested Aadhi to play KKN, as Chaitanya felt more at home with MSR.
From there, working with Aadhi has been a bliss. KKN comes with lot more complex layers like the stammer, financial limitations against his unlimited dreams, approaching any problem with intelligence than emotion-a core trait of an ascending leadership arc. He approached the role like a marathon—absorbing the era’s political rhythms, refining his body language, and finding the silences between the lines.
Aadhi’s participation in script readings like a school child, his real life friendship with Chaitanya Rao, his cautious and conscious approach to the stammer to make sure it feels rather cute to the audience since they would end up relating KKN to a real life legend, a godly image for millions. That smile, that innocence in his eyes is an immense asset to the show. The tiny nuances Aadhi brought to the performance created many spontaneous high moments in the show.
A couple of examples out of may:
1. The glance he throws at his bloody hand before shaking MSR’s hand on the bus in the third episode—a moment that gave us a great trailer shot.
2. Giving it back to CBR while receiving nomination papers he added an extension to the line mocking back in CBR’s own style. Elevated that heroic moment.
The series’ critical acclaim and nationwide reach have reframed his trajectory. He is now the face of Telugu land’s most ambitious political drama. For him, it’s proof that the long road—the years of building, waiting, and refusing to take part in half-baked scripts—was worth every step.
