AKKINENI NAGESWARA RAO on Clubhouse

Description

Akkineni Nageswara Rao (20 September 1923 – 22 January 2014), widely known as ANR, was an Indian actor and producer, known for his work predominantly in Telugu cinema. He starred in many landmark films in his seventy five-year career, becoming one of the most prominent figures in the history of Indian cinema. He is considered as one of the two pillars of Telugu Cinema along with N. T. Rama Rao. Nageswara Rao received seven state Nandi Awards, and five Filmfare Awards South. He is a recipient of the Dada Saheb Phalke Award, the highest Indian award in the field of cinema. He was also honoured with the Padma Vibhushan, India's second highest civilian award, for his contribution to the film industry.

Akkineni Nageswara Rao was born into a lower-middle-class family on 20 September 1923 in Ramapuram, Krishna District, Andhra Pradesh. He was the youngest of five brothers. His parents Akkineni Venkatratnam and Akkineni Punnamma, were from the farming community. His formal education was limited to primary schooling due to his parents' poor economic condition.

From the paddy fields, he strode into the field of fine arts through theatre at the age of 10. He became a famous stage actor, specialising in playing female characters, since women at that time were mostly prohibited from acting. His most noted roles were in some of the famous dramas of the day: Harishchandra, Kanakatara, Vipranarayana, Telugu Talli, Aasajyoti and Satyanveshanam. The turning point of his career came when Ghantasala Balaramaiah, a prominent film producer at that time, discovered him by chance at the Vijayawada railway station. He was cast in the lead role of Rama in Seeta Rama Jananam. This was after his debut in a supporting role in the film Dharmapatni