Telugu Superstar Krishna, 79, passed away in the early hours of Monday, due to a cardiac arrest. The veteran actor was revived after 20 minutes of CRP, but his condition remained critical.
One of the first superstars of Indian cinema, Ghattamaneni Shivarama Krishna was born in Burripalem, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. He redefined the Telugu film industry through his contribution as an actor, director, and producer. The actor has worked in over 350 films.
Telugu actor Krishna passed away at the age of 79
Krishna was more than an actor, he carved the Telugu film industry. He was one of the first film brains in India to explore elements of technology and visual effects on celluloid. Although he made his feature debut as a lead actor with ‘Tene Manasulu’, he played less significant roles in a few movies.
Krishna’s Journey
The world witnessed the brilliance of this cinematic mind with his first major break, ‘Gudachaari 116’, which was released in 1966. The movie was touted to be Telugu cinema’s first James Bond-like espionage movie. The film was mounted on an unprecedented budget for its time. This coming-of-age movie was released when mythological movies accounted for the maximum number of movies. It was Krishna’s 3rd movie.
Superstar Krishna and NTR
It did not take long for Krishna to establish his influence over the Telugu audience. With films like ‘Mosagallaku Mosagady (1971), ‘Pandanti Kapuram’ (1972), and ‘Alluri Seetharama Raju’ (1974) he gained the status of a star. ‘Alluri Seetharama Raju’ is considered to be the first Indian movie to be made on cinemascope, after which 14 of his films flopped at the box office.
First Comeback
It did not take long for Krishna to bounce back, and when he did, he rose in stature. Krishna’s return to the big screen with Paadi Pantalu, a social drama, was a successful venture. After regaining his feet, Krishna turned towards an ambitious project in the form of ‘Kurukshethram’. Although this movie caused his relationship to get strained with another legend of Telugu cinema, N.T. Rama Rao was also making a movie on the same subject. Both movies were successful. With each movie’s commercial success Krishna started gaining critical appreciation.
As a Producer and Director
A still of Krishna from his last movie ‘Sri Sri.
While at the top of his superstardom, Krishna turned towards direction. In 1986, he directed his first movie with Ramesh babu, his elder son. However, his acting career saw a drop in the late 1980s. The fear of another string of flops affected Krishna differently than before. The actor made a strong comeback in the 1990s with several hits in the form of ‘Varasudu’, ‘Number 1’, and ‘Amma Donga’. Krishan directed 16 movies in total, and produced several others under his own production house, Padmalaya Studios.
In the latter part of his career, Krishna shifted towards directing movies. He made several projects in Hindi and Telugu. ‘Sri Sri’ which was released in 2016, was his last movie.
