Every cinema superstar in India has one thing in common, and that is absolute screen presence. Yuva Rajkumar, grandson of matinee legend Dr Rajkumar and nephew of Shiva Rajkumar and the late Puneeth Rajkumar, believes it is the aura one personally carries that enhances an actor’s on-screen persona, creating brilliant cinematic moments through sheer presence.

In an exclusive chat with India Today Digital, the young actor, who is busy promoting his second film ‘Ekka’, shared his thoughts on the magic behind the screen presence of Indian superstars. He said, “It’s an aura they bring. It’s probably an aura that some people have as individuals itself. It’s not something that you see only in films.”

Talking about Shiva Rajkumar’s screen presence, the ‘Yuva’ actor added, “When you talk about my Doddappa (Uncle), Shivanna, I’m sure if you just meet him you will feel his aura. And that is not because he is an actor or a superstar – as an individual, he always has that aura. I don’t know if it is something you can work on or if it’s just natural.”

Taking Shiva Rajkumar’s viral tissue box scene from Rajinikanth’s ‘Jailer’ as an example, he said, “Shivanna’s one tissue box scene – it is just one scene, but you know the kind of impact that one scene made. It could have been shot and shown in multiple ways, but I think for that scene to do what it did in the film, it is because of his screen presence. I think it is something that people have or something that develops over time.”

Yuva Rajkumar made his feature film debut as a lead actor in ‘Yuva’ in March 2024. The film was backed by Vijay Kiragandur’s Hombale Films and directed by Santhosh Ananddram, who had previously delivered blockbusters like ‘Rajakumara’ and ‘Mr and Mrs Ramachari’. The film turned out to be a box office success, with many praising Yuva’s finesse in action and dance.

After ‘Yuva’, the actor took his time to pick his next project, ‘Ekka’. This intense commercial action film has been directed by Rohit Padaki of ‘Rathnan Prapancha’ fame and features Sanjana Anand, Sampada Hulivana, Aditya, Atul Kulkarni and Poornachandra Mysore alongside Yuva Rajkumar.

‘Ekka’ releases in theatres on July 18, 2025.

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