FEBRUARY 2014
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TribuTe To Legendary TeLugu fiLm acTor
Nageswara rao
20th September, 1923 - 22nd January, 2014 thiS legendary actor haS acted in 256 filmS in a career Spanning over 75 yearS
In Devadas (1953)
President Pranab Mukherjee felicitating ANR at the 4th World Telugu Conference in Tirupati in 2012
Nageswara rao
The Thespian ended his career with ‘Manam’, a movie which saw three generations of the Akkineni family – ANR, his son and popular actor Nagarjuna and grandson Naga Chaitanya - sharing screen space. In this picture, Nagewara Rao is seen with his son Nagarjuna
“Portrait of realism iN actiNg”
Working Still of “Manam” Photoshoot
His production house, Annapurna Studios, named after his wife. It is considered as Asia’s most modern state-of-the-art shooting studio
By: Jesudason Atputharajah
ageswara rao (anr) who died recently in andhra State n of india at the age of 91 was an
artiste with great talent to display realism in the films he acted. He was primarily a Telugu film actor but starred in a number of Tamil films too. He was in the field for nearly seven decades and acted in nearly 255 films. He currently completed a film called ‘Manam’ in Telugu in which he co-starred his son and grandson. Such was his great passion for acting. He vowed to fight his disease cancer - and succumbed to it recently. He particularly shone as the love-lorn lad in films like Laila Majnu, Anarkali, Kaathal and Devadas. In Devadas , he outshone all the other actors who played this role in films produced in other Indian languages. Dilip Kumar said ‘there is only one Devadas’ and that is “ANR”. He co-starred with Savitri, who gave him excellent support to perform a widely acclaimed memorable film. He is remembered for his role as a drunken frustrated love lorn young man who wanted
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to die at the gates of the house where his beloved lived. Audience appreciated every minute of his acting so much so that they said that he would not have died if he had not got out of his carriage in the rain to give a push to the wheel that stuck in the mud. They expressed their agony in tears. The film was enriched by meaningful songs-all of which were well integrated to the story of the film. “Ellam Mayai Thana”, Ulage Maayam”, ‘Uravumillai Pakalum Illai”, “Santhosam tharum savaari povom salo salo”- are all excellent lyrics well written by udumalai Narayana Kavi and sung by Ghantasala and Sushila. In another film ‘Kathal’ ANR teamed up with banumathi to give a sweet expression of a love affair between a gypsy girl and a guy from the town. As usual the songs were well rendered, adding much weight to the story of the film. The songs were sung by ghantasala and banumathi - which were a treat to hear and watch. “inpak kaviyamahum vazhlve kathalinalle (life will be a saga of Joy if based
on love)”, “Jeevitham ellam sweetakach cheyum premai ding dong bell, piriya rani nightingale”were some of the sweet, scintillating songs which were well received by the audiences. anr shined very well as the romeo - type hero that he was called ‘tragic king’. Besides he is reputed for his cool and calm disposition and gentlemanly conduct. He co-starred with a large array of South indian heroines which included banumathi, anjali Devi, Savitri, Sridevi, Padmini, Vyjantimala, Lalitha, Vanisree, Girija and several others. His Telugu film ‘Premabisekam’ ran for more than six months continuously in the Andhra State. He won several awards which were ample recognition for his acting career. He was the first indian actor to be awarded the Pathma Vibushan award in 2011 for his immense contribution to Indian cinema. He also won the Dada Shaheb Phalke Award and several others. He enacted roles of literary and cultural icons
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belonging to different regions of india which made him an instrument of national integration. ANR played the roles of Poet Kalidas of Ujjain, Bhatta Jayadeva of Orissa, Amarsilji Jakkana of Karnataka, Vibranarayana and Vaalmeki of Tamil Nadu. His capacity for versatility enthused him to keep on acting for nearly seven decades which came to an end with his demise on the 22nd of January 2014. in addition to acting, he had gone on cultural tours to australia and Mauritius. Besides these, he founded the annapurna Studios on a 22 acre plot in the heart of Hyderabad. ANR was also instrumental in shifting the Telugu film industry from Chennai to Hyderabad. Furthermore, he gifted a university to andhra State. Though ANR had small beginnings, he rose to greater heights through his contributions to indian cinema and acts of philanthropy. He will be reverently and admiringly remembered by his fans in india as well as all parts of the globe.