30 South Film Actors on IMDb top 100 most viewed stars of decade

Deepika Padukone, who made her debut in the Hindi film industry opposite Shah Rukh Khan in Om Shanti Om in 2007, is the most viewed Indian star of the last 10 years on IMDb. In her almost two-decade-long career in the film industry, she has headlined several blockbusters, including Cocktail, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, and Padmaavat. She made her Hollywood debut in 2017 with xXx: Return of Xander Cage, starring alongside Vin Diesel.

“I’m deeply grateful to be included in a list that captures the sentiment of a global audience,” said Padukone. “IMDb stands as a beacon of credibility, reflecting the true pulse of people's passion, interests and preferences. This recognition is truly humbling and inspires me to continue connecting with and reciprocating the love I receive from audiences, both on and off screen with authenticity and purpose.” She will next be seen in Kalki 2898 AD (releasing June 27, 2024), and Singham Again will release in theaters later this year.

Notably, the list of 100 stars includes actors from the Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada film industries. This reflects the increasing popularity and reach of Indian actors across the world, enabled by the rise of streaming platforms that have allowed audiences to explore content beyond regional boundaries. Continuing this trend, three popular actresses from the South film fraternity have secured their positions in the top 20 ranks of the list.

Samantha Ruth Prabhu ranks 13th on the list and is a well-known star in Indian cinema, primarily working in Tamil and Telugu films. She made her debut in the Telugu film Ye Maaya Chesave (2010), winning the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South. Samantha has starred in acclaimed films such as Super Deluxe (2019) and Oh Baby (2019). In 2021, she appeared in the Amazon Prime Video series The Family Man season 2, which received widespread acclaim. Recently, she starred in Kushi (2023) opposite Vijay Deverakonda. Samantha is also part of the upcoming spy thriller series Citadel: Honey Bunny, where she will star opposite Varun Dhawan, who ranks 56th on the list.

Thanking her fans, Samantha said: “This is the sum total of the efforts of all the directors, writers and producers who have contributed to this and the incredible love and faith that the audience has shown me. Truly humbled and overwhelmed. Thank you IMDb for this honour.”

Ranked 16th is Tamannaah Bhatia. She made her acting debut in the 2005 Telugu film Sree. After working in Tamil and Telugu films, she made her Bollywood debut with the film Chand Sa Roshan Chehra in 2005. She was also part of blockbusters Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and Baahubali: The Conclusion (2017), portraying the character of Avanthika, which earned her critical acclaim.

Next is theJawan fame actress Nayanthara, who ranked 18th on the list. She is best known for her roles in Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam films and debuted with the Malayalam film Manassinakkare (2003). Her Bollywood debut in Jawan opposite Shah Rukh Khan also led her to rank high in the IMDb Popular Indian Celebrities list in 2023.

“For years, entertainment fans have relied on IMDb to stay updated on their favorite stars. This definitive list, powered by our authoritative data, offers insight into the evolution of India's entertainment landscape over the past decade,” said Yaminie Patodia, head of IMDb India. “As we celebrate the immense fandom of Indian actors across the globe, IMDb will continue to help fans connect more deeply with emerging and established talent.”

1. Deepika Padukone

2. Shah Rukh Khan

3. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

4. Alia Bhatt

5. Irrfan Khan

6. Aamir Khan

7. Sushant Singh Rajput

8. Salman Khan

9. Hrithik Roshan

10. Akshay Kumar

11. Katrina Kaif

12. Amitabh Bachchan

13. Samantha Ruth Prabhu

14. Kareena Kapoor

15. TriptiiDimri

16. Tamannaah Bhatia

17. Ranbir Kapoor

18. Nayanthara

19. Ranveer Singh

20. Ajay Devgn

Kamal Haasan, at No. 54, has the longest film career in the list with his debut as a child actor in 1960. At No. 15, TriptiiDimri, who made her debut in 2017, is the newest star on the list. Irrfan Khan (No. 5) and Sushant Singh Rajput (No. 7), both beloved actors, passed away in 2020 and have left behind a legacy of celebrated performances.

Regarding the representation of South Indian stars on the Top 100 Most Viewed Indian Stars of the Last Decade list, Yaminie Patodia, head of IMDb India, said, “The Top 100 Most Viewed Indian Stars of the Last Decade list on IMDb demonstrates a diverse representation, with over 30 stars from the South Indian film industries, including Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada cinema. This reflects the increasing popularity and reach of Indian actors across the world, enabled by the rise of streaming platforms that have allowed audiences to explore content beyond regional boundaries”

“The list is determined by the actual page views of over 250 million monthly visitors to IMDb worldwide. Our authoritative data reveals a significant trend - by working across different film industries, actors can reach new audiences with each project, enabling entertainment fans, who rely on IMDb to learn more about celebrities and filmmakers, to discover stars and titles beyond their native languages. It’s intriguing to see which actors maintain deep resonance with people over such an extended period when we analyze a decade’s worth of data from millions of customers”, she added while talking about the notable trends.

“Titles from various film industries are being released nationwide in multiple languages and are becoming accessible to a larger global audience, leading to increased fandom for domestic content and talent. Major releases not only fan the interest of newer audiences in that title but also lead to discovery of other titles in the language. For instance, when RRR was trending, fans dug into the filmographies of S.S. Rajamouli, Ram Charan, N.T. Rama Rao Jr., and others, and discovered many other Telugu titles they were interested in. IMDb lists like Trending Telugu Movies and Trending Tamil Movies also help fans in this journey”, said Yaminie while talking about the trends observed regarding the growing popularity of South Indian actors in recent years and the factors attributed to the surge in interest, both domestically and internationally, for South Indian cinema and talent.

She expressed how IMDb's localized features support the discovery and engagement with South Indian stars and content: “The Popular Indian Celebrities feature, available exclusively on the IMDb app for Android and iOS, highlights the top trending Indian entertainers and filmmakers each week. This is based on visits from more than 250 million monthly visitors to IMDb worldwide. Every week, entertainment fans can see who is trending, follow their favorite entertainers, and discover new breakout talent. Industry leaders rely on these weekly updates to track trends and gain insights into fan behavior. Additionally, the Popular Indian Movies and Popular Indian TV Shows widgets on the apps help fans discover what titles are trending globally every week.”

“As the appetite for diverse content from across the country continues to grow in India, several IMDb features help customers navigate through the infinite choices of the entertainment landscape. The Preferred Services feature allows registered users to set a list of the streaming platforms they subscribe to, so the app can prioritize the 'Where to Watch' information from those providers. Customers in India can download the app and see ‘Where to Watch’ information from a wide set of platforms, some of which include Hotstar, JioCinema, Netflix, Prime Video, SonyLIV, Sun NXT, and Zee5.

The IMDb Watchlist feature allows IMDb registered users to add all the titles they want to watch to their personal Watchlist and be notified when a movie or series on the list is released in theaters or on a streaming service. Users can sort their Watchlist by title, IMDb rating, popularity, or content that is available to stream on their preferred services.” she added while talking about the insights on how IMDb's Watchlist and Preferred Services features have influenced user behavior and preferences regarding South Indian movies and talent.

While talking about how IMDb aims to further support and showcase the talent and content from the South Indian film industry in the future, and the exciting initiatives or collaborations in the pipeline to promote South Indian cinema and talent on IMDb, she said, “IMDb is globally and locally relevant, providing unrivaled entertainment data and innovative features to engage and delight fans, professionals, and advertisers every day, all over the world. We are committed to continually increasing the breadth and depth of coverage pertaining to Indian movies, web series, and celebrities. One of the highest-performing videos on our social handles (@IMDb_in) recently is an 'On The Scene' interview with Chidambaram, the director of the Malayalam blockbuster survival thriller Manjummel Boys. He shared fascinating behind-the-scenes details, which resonated strongly with our audience.”

She explained how IMDb’s data and insights on user behavior and preferences inform the industry and creators about the evolving tastes and interests of audiences: “The ratings, reviews, trivia, and all other information on IMDb are contributed by passionate entertainment fans, serving as a reflection of fan sentiment. Filmmakers, studios, and industry insiders visit IMDb to check reviews and ratings, gauging customer reactions to their latest work. They analyze trending data through our ranked lists to compare how their titles are performing in the market. In this era of streaming, where traditional metrics like box office numbers or TRPs are absent, creators often rely on IMDb data to benchmark their titles' performance. Our 'Most Anticipated New Indian Movies and Shows' list is often used by marketing teams to gauge the audience interest in their title.”

While talking about ratings on IMDb, she said, “In India, entertainment fans turn to IMDb ratings as the most reliable source of deciding what to watch. IMDb encourages users to rate and review what they have watched, thereby helping other entertainment fans make wise viewing choices. They can explore the Top 250 Indian movies as rated by IMDb users to discover groundbreaking new films as well as classic favorites on IMDb.”