Samantha Ruth Akkineni (née Prabhu, born 28 April 1987) is an Indian actress and model. She has established a career in the Telugu and Tamil film industries, and is a recipient of several awards including four Filmfare Awards. She has emerged as a leading actress in both Telugu and Tamil film industries. Alongside her acting career, Samantha is a prominent celebrity endorser for brands and products, while she also started her own NGO, Pratyusha Support, to provide medical support for women and children in 2012. She donates her earnings from endorsements, product launches and inauguration events to support the foundation.Currently, she is the ambassador for Telangana Handlooms, having been appointed by the government of Telangana. 　　Samantha became the second actress ever to win both the Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actress and the Filmfare Award for Best Telugu Actress in the same year, for her performances in the films Neethaane En Ponvasantham (2012) and Eega (2012). Since then, she has primarily opted to appear in the leading female role in hero-centric films, earning box office success with Dookudu (2011), Yeto Vellipoyindhi Manasu (2012), the family dramas Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu (2012) and Attarintiki Daredi (2013) as well as with the Tamil films, Kaththi (2014), Theri (2016) , 24 (2016) and Mersal (2017). Her work in the film A Aa (2016) also won positive reviews and won Samantha her fourth Filmfare Award.