Sitara Ghattamaneni on dad Mahesh Babu’s Mufasa role: ‘I keep making fun of him that I worked with Disney first’

Mahesh Babu has lent his voice for the role of Mufasa in Telugu version of Mufasa: The Lion King, which is slated to release on December 20.

Actor Mahesh Babu’s daughter Sitara Ghattamaneni is beyond thrilled to see her father venture into the world of Lion King with Disney's upcoming film, Mufasa: The Lion King. Sitara shares that she sees striking parallels between her father's personality and that of Mufasa.

Mahesh Babu's daughter Sitara Ghattamaneni worked on Frozen.

Sitara Ghattamaneni talks about her dad

Mahesh Babu has lent his voice to the role of Mufasa in the Telugu version. The production house has released a new promotional video that shows Sitara talking about her father working on the film.

“I feel proud that my dad did the film because Mufasa is such an iconic character in The Lion King. He (Mahesh Babu) is a lot like Mufasa in real life as well. He's loving, and protective. When I heard the news, I was really proud and thrilled that he was playing Mufasa. I keep making fun of him that I worked with Disney first through Frozen,” Sitara said.

In the clip, Sitara also shared how Mahesh Babu prepared for the role, and an anecdote from their personal life involving their pet dog, Snoopy.

She shared, “He practiced a lot. He is a perfect fit for this character and it's also his first time. Every time I watch the trailer, I feel happy when he comes on screen. I can't wait to see the full movie. He's going to be great. In the first part I really love where Rafiki holds up Simba. My dad used to hold Snoopy like that when he was little baby... It's quite funny that now he's actually playing Mufasa”.

Sitara concludes the video with a manifestation, expressing his desire to play the role of Mufasa’s daughter Kiara when she is grown up.

All about the film

Mufasa: The Lion King is a prequel directed by Barry Jenkins. It delves into the backstory of Simba's father. Drawing inspiration from the beloved 1994 animated classic, which was reimagined by Jon Favreau in 2019, the film chronicles Mufasa's transformative journey from a vulnerable, orphaned lion cub to a fearless and revered leader. Mahesh Babu has lent his voice for the role of Mufasa in the Telugu version, ⁠Brahmanandam as Pumbaa, ⁠Ali as Timon, ⁠Satyadev as Taka and ⁠Ayyappa P Sharma as Kiros. It has just been announced that Tamil actor Arjun Das is the voice of Mufasa in Tamil.

When it comes to the Hindi version, Shah Rukh Khan has voiced the Mufasa with his son Aryan Khan lending his voice as Simba. Shah Rukh’s youngest son AbRam Khan has voiced Mufasa (cub). Sanjay Mishra has dubbed for Pumbaa, Shreyas Talpade for Timon, Makarand Deshpande for Rafiki and Meiyang Chang for Taka.

Disney’s Mufasa: The Lion King will be released in India on December 20 in English, Hindi, Tamil and Telugu.