His father-in-law, the late Mr. Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao, was one of the most accomplished film actors of Telugu cinema, who later founded the Telugu Desam Party and was also the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.

Political career
Mr. Naidu was elected to the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly in 1978 from the Chandragiri constituency in Chittoor district. He subsequently became a Minister and held the portfolios of Archives, Cinematography, Technical Education, Animal Husbandry, Dairy Development, Public Libraries and Minor Irrigation between 1980 and 1983. He also served as the Chairman of the State Karshak Parishad, constituted for the first time to look after the welfare of the farming community.He was elected again to the State Legislature from Kuppam constituency of Chittoor district in 1989. He served as Coordinator of the Telugu Desam Party, in which capacity he effectively handled the party's role of main opposition in the assembly which won him wide appreciation from both the party and the public. His role during this phase both inside the Legislative Assembly and outside was a critical factor for the subsequent success of the party at the hustings.In 1994, he was re-elected to the Assembly from Kuppam constituency with a large majority of 57,000 votes and held the important portfolios of Revenue and Finance. During this tenure Mr. Naidu systematically introduced transparency in Government, thus breaking the tradition of inordinate secrecy in the Finance department.

Chief Ministership
The mantle of leadership fell on the shoulders of Mr. Naidu at a most critical juncture in the State's politics.
Following a popular upsurge in the party, Mr. Naidu was unanimously elected as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh on 1 September 1995.Following the elections to the State assembly wherein the Telugu Desam Party led by Mr. Naidu emerged as a winner, he was sworn in on 11 October 1999 as the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh for the second term. He was elected with a majority of more than 65,000 votes.Naidu has a modern outlook to administration. His style of functioning is more akin to that of a CEO rather than a traditional politician. Naidu has a firm conviction that modern technology should be used in the service of the common man. Consequently, he lays great emphasis on the use of modern information technology in Government. He would like the State to be run professionally as an efficient organisation rather than as a bureaucracy saddled with red-tape.