Ace director Rajamouli is lovingly called as Jakkanna in the film circles. Many wonder how Rajamouli got that name. Some feel that it was Young Tiger NTR who started calling him as Jakkanna.
But Rajeev Kanakala speaking to scribes, revealed the secret behind Jakkanna name. He said, "By the time Rajamouli started Shanti Nivasam serial, I already starred in four to five serials. I got craze as a small screen actor. When I went to the shooting spot for the first day of Shanti Nivasam and asked 'what is the scene', I was told that it is lengthy and comes to three pages. I thought it's child's play for me as I did scenes as lengthy as 15 pages with ease in just half an hour.
However on that day, Rajamouli shot my scenes till midnight 12 and 1 AM. At that time I thought what this is, as he is taking scenes like sculpture Jakkanna. From then on, those close to Rajamouli started calling him as Jakkanna. The way he created my role in Shanti Nivasam got me good name and fame."
Rajeev Kanakala has been winning accolades for his performance in Super Star Mahesh Babu’s Maharshi where he played a short role with negative shades.