Anna Konidela, formerly known as Anna Lezhneva and wife of actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan, visited the Tirumala temple on Sunday, April 13 and offered her hair to the deity as part of a vow. This gesture came after her son, Mark Shankar, recovered from a fire accident that took place in Singapore.
The couple’s young son was injured in a fire during a summer camp on April 8. He suffered burns on his hands and legs and had to be treated for smoke inhalation. Anna had made a personal vow that if her son survived, she would offer her hair at the temple as a sign of gratitude.
Following her son’s recovery, Anna performed the head-tonsuring ritual at Padmavati Kalyana Katta and took part in traditional prayers. Though Anna is a Russian Orthodox Christian, she followed the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam (TTD) rules by signing a formal declaration of faith before participating in the rituals. This was done in the presence of temple officials at Gayatri Sadan.
Who Is Anna Lezhneva?
Anna Lezhneva, a Russian model and actor born in 1980, met Kalyan during the filming of Teen Maar in 2011, where she played a side character. The couple dated for two years before getting married on September 30, 2013. Anna is Kalyan’s third wife and they have a son and a daughter together. Additionally, Kalyan adopted Anna's daughter from her previous marriage, Polena Anjana Pawanova, raising her along with his three other children. In 2017, the couple welcomed their first child together, a baby boy named Mark Shankar Pawanovich.
Many people admire Lezhneva for her love of Indian culture and traditions. Recently, she received admiration on social media for accepting and respecting these customs. A notable instance was when she was seen picking up her husband’s slippers while he bent down to seek blessings from an elderly family member.
According to a report by NDTV, Lezhneva is rumoured to own hotel chains in Singapore and has assets worth around Rs 1800 crore in both Russia and Singapore.
Kalyan’s personal life has been marked by multiple marriages. He first married Nandini in 1997, when she was 19 years old. This marriage lasted over a decade before they separated in 2008. In 2009, he married actor Renu Desai, with whom he had two children, Akira Nandan and Aadhya. However, this marriage also ended in 2012.
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