9-Year Gap, Unbreakable Bond: Rajeev On NTR!
Rewinding back to their first meeting during the shoot of Student No. 1, Rajeev shared a memory that still makes him chuckle.;
Not every friendship begins with a fist bump or a selfie. Some start with a simple “Sir” on a film set and quietly grow into a lifelong bond. That’s exactly how things unfolded between Jr. NTR and actor Rajeev Kanakala, two artists from different generations who found unexpected comfort in each other’s company. Though separated by nine years in age, their connection feels timeless.
Rewinding back to their first meeting during the shoot of Student No. 1, Rajeev shared a memory that still makes him chuckle. “He kept calling me ‘Sir’ repeatedly until I asked him to stop. Next day, he switched to ‘Rajiv’... and later ‘Rajiv garu’. But soon, it was just ‘Raja’. That moment when he called me that was when something shifted,” he recalled, hinting at the turning point from formality to friendship.
The most unexpected friendships are often the most real. During a break on set, NTR yelled “Oh Raja!” from atop a building, catching Rajeev completely off guard. “That was the day we spoke heart-to-heart, just the two of us. He opened up, I opened up… It wasn’t just about cinema anymore. It became something deeper,” Rajeev said, describing how they went from co-actors to confidants.
Today, schedules are tighter, and priorities have changed. NTR is wrapped up in back-to-back shoots and family life, but the bond they share doesn’t need daily texts or constant catch-ups. Some friendships just settle into the heart quietly, deeply, and permanently. Rajeev didn’t expect it, but looking back, he’s glad it happened the way it did.
