It has not even been a week since The Family Man Season 2 hit our laptop screens and it has created an enormous buzz. Social media is full of praises for the show,  from audiences and critics alike. The story, direction, performances,  are trending and rightly so. Amongst all the appreciation for the show, Samantha Akkineni who plays the role of Raji in the series has risen as the star of the moment. Samantha’s Raji is a Sri-Lankan Tamil, a rebel fighter who is out on a suicide mission and is the primary antagonist of the show.

Samantha Akkineni is an Indian Actress who primarily works in the Tamil and Telegu film industries. She is a product of mixed regional background but identifies as a Tamilian owing to the place she was brought up. Samantha started to do modelling projects in order to support herself financially but soon after she began to get acting offers. She debuted in Gautham Menon's Telugu film, Ye Maaya Chesave in 2010. Simultaneously, the film’s Tamil version also saw Samantha play a cameo. The success of both films garnered recognition for Samantha and propelled her to sign bigger projects.

In 2012, Samantha worked with director Gautham Menon again on a trilingual romantic drama film in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi languages. She was simultaneously shooting for the same film in three different languages with three different co-actors. Eventually, the Tamil and the Telugu versions got fully made and the Hindi version got shelved.  Neethane En Ponvasantham (Tamil) and Yeto Vellipoyindhi Manasu (Telugu) released in 2012 and received mixed reviews. However, Samantha’s performance was highly appreciated. The two films got her the Filmfare Best Actress Awards for both languages and she became the second actress to achieve the feat of winning two Filmfare Awards for different language films in the same year. Samantha Akkineni also secured further recognition for Best Actress at the Vijay Awards, Santosham Film Awards and the CineMAA Awards.

Thereafter, Samantha Akkineni went on to feature in big-budget films like the Telugu multi-starrer film, Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu in 2013, gangster masala film Anjaan in 2014, and a bunch of other films. She proclaimed commercial success as the lead female role in director Atlee's Theri in 2016 which became one of the most profitable Tamil films of all time. 

In 2018, U Turn, a critically acclaimed mystery-thriller film gave her scope to flex her acting acumen. She next starred in Oh! Baby in 2019 as the leading lady. The film got widespread applause and her performance was cited as her career best.

Apart from her extensive career in films, Samantha made her television debut as a special host for the TV show Big Boss in 2020. Then she starred in Season 2 of the Hindi web series, The Family Man. 

As mentioned earlier, Samantha Akkineni is receiving immense love for her portrayal of Raji, the character in The Family Man Season 2. Her co-actors are also heaping praise for her performance. Manoj Bajpayee, the protagonist of the show was quoted as saying “I would say Samantha is better than me on the show. I was mesmerised by the amount of hard work Samantha put into the show.” Sharib Hashmi, who plays JK Talpade in The Family Man, took to his social media to praise Samantha Akkineni‘s performance. He wrote, “It was lovely working with you @samantharuthprabhuoffl. And as a viewer, I was completely awestruck by your splendid performance.”

In an Instagram post, Samantha herself revealed that it was indeed a difficult part for her to play. She mentioned that she locked herself in a dark room to discover the world of Raji as genuinely as she could. This was Samantha’s first negative role in her career. Kudos to her for doing a fantastic job!

To witness Samantha Akkineni’s acting prowess in The Family Man season 2, check it out on Amazon Prime Video.