Veteran Telugu actor Uppalapati Krishnam Raju passed away at the age of 83 in the wee hours of Sunday, September 11, family sources told IANS. He is survived by his wife and three daughters.
Actor Prabhas is his nephew. Popularly known as the 'Rebel Star' of Tollywood, Krishnam Raju has acted in more than 180 movies in a career spanning over five decades.
Krishnam Raju acted in movies ranging from social, family, romantic, and thriller movies to historical and mythological movies. His successful movies include Amara Deepam, Sita Ramulu, Katakataala Rudraiah and many more. The actor's last on-screen outing was Prabhas starrer Radhe Shyam.
Born on January 20, 1940, in West Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, Krishnam Raju made his film debut in 1966 with Chilaka Gorinka. Briefly, he also portrayed the anti-hero in some movies.
Krishnam Raju became a household name in Telugu homes with movies like Bhakta Kannappa and Tandra Paparayudu. He also produced several movies under his production banner Gopi Krishna Movies.
In his later years, along with films, Krishnam Raju also pursued a career in politics. He contested as the Congress candidate from Narasapuram in 1991 but lost. He won from the same constituency as the BJP candidate in the 1999 polls and served as a junior minister in the Vajpayee cabinet till 2004.
Apart from being a two-time winner of the Andhra Pradesh government's Nandi Award, Krishnam Raju won the Filmfare Best Actor award for Tandra Paparayudu in 1986.
He was awarded the Filmfare South Lifetime Achievement award in 2006. Condolences poured in for the actor from many members of the Telugu film industry Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy too expressed grief over the demise of Krishnam Raju.
Jagan lauded the actor’s contribution to Telugu cinema, and conveyed his condolences to the bereaved family members.
Tributes Pour in
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