Who Is Kalyan Padala? From Army Officer to Bigg Boss Telugu 9 Champion

Commoner Kalyan Padala became the winner of Bigg Boss Telugu 9 in a spectacular finale led by Nagarjuna Akkineni, and in this way, he made history as the first non-celebrity to take the crown in the much-loved reality show. The season was all about “Commoner vs Celebrities”, and Padala dazzled everyone to win the prize among the participants from both worlds.

At the finale, the winner received the trophy, Rs 35 lakh in cash, and a brand-new SUV. The original value of the season was Rs 50 lakh, but contestant Pavan preferred to take Rs 15 lakh before the finale, thus leaving Thanuja Puttaswamy as the first runner-up and Pavan as the second runner-up.

When the announcement was made, Padala could not control his emotions and tears flowed freely on the stage. Nagarjuna congratulated him and praised his journey and wished him all the best for future projects. Padala’s parents were with him on stage, they expressed their pride and said that this achievement would be a beautiful memory for the family.

Kalyan Padala was born in the Vizianagaram district of Andhra Pradesh, he comes from a middle-class family and as a child he was already very fond of fitness and sports. He graduated and he realized his dream of joining the Indian Army which later through the Bigg Boss house the traits of discipline, planning, and toughness turned out to be the most useful.

After he had done his stint in the army, Padala tried his luck in acting. His first public exposure was through a digital reality series Bigg Boss 19 Agnipariksha, which was hosted by Sreemukhi. Audience support from that show helped him gain direct entry into Bigg Boss Telugu 9, a historic moment that positioned him as the first commoner to join the house through public votes.

Throughout the entire season, Padala stuck to his plan of concentrating on his game and steering clear of fights. His self-control and composed behavior were to the viewers' liking, hence, they became his supporters on the way to the finale.

Padala's fame has been reached to quite a large extent, beyond just the television. He is quite an active member of Instagram where he goes by the name Soldier Pavan Kalyan, and his followers there have surpassed 4.6 hundred thousand. He also takes part in mingling with the fans of the Telugu movie star Pawan Kalyan and becomes part of community-supported social media events and discussions.

The finale had a performance by Payal Rajput and the presence of actor Ravi Teja as a special guest. Emmanuel and Sanjjana Galrani who were the contestants finished in the fourth and fifth places respectively.