With a degree in Film and VFX from the University of Central Florida, Chakri Toleti made his foray into the film industry by directing the bilingual movie titled Unnaipol Oruvan in Tamil and Eeenadu in Telugu, both of which are remakes of the Hindi movie A Wednesday!. The Kamal Haasan-starrer movies garnered critical acclaim and were also well-received at the box office.
Next, he directed the prequel to the 2007 gangster thriller Billa titled Billa II, which featured Ajith Kumar in the lead. Despite its premise, the movie opened to a lukewarm response at the box office with critics giving it an average rating.
Making his Bollywood debut, Chakri directed the comedy film Welcome To New York, which is India's first comedy movie to be made in the 3D format. The movie features a cracker star cast comprising Diljit Dosanjh, Sonakshi Sinha, Karan Johar, and Riteish Deshmukh alongside a number of cameo appearances by many prominent names in the industry. Among his other projects for 2019 are the Tamannaah Bhatia-starrer Khamoshi and the Nayanthara-starrer mystery-thriller Kolaiyuthir Kaalam.