Superstar Krishna Passes Away

Veteran actor Krishna Ghattamaneni, who earned the sobriquet of ‘Superstar’, is no more. The actor who suffered breathlessness and multi-organ failure succumbed to it after battling in the intensive care unit. The versatile actor was 80-year-old. He acted in over 350 films in variety of roles including several leading roles. He was known for several experiments on the celluloid. He essayed myriad roles across different genres including spy, historical, mythological, western, action, cowboy films.

Debuted with Thene Manasulu in 1965, he went onto do many notable roles and films. Alluri Sitaramaraju, Pandanti Kapuram, Simhasanam, Gudachari 116, James Bond 777, Agent Gopi and others.

Krishna also directed 17 feature films and produced many films under his Padmalaya Studios production company along with his brothers Adiseshagiri Rao and Hanumantha Rao. Krishna was one of the highest-paid Telugu actors during his time. He was conferred with prestigious Padma Bhushan in 2009 which is the third-highest civilian award.

Personal Life

Krishna was born on 31 May, 1943 in Burripalem of Guntur district. Burripalem was adopted by his son Mahesh Babu for development. He married Indira Devi and later to actress and filmmaker Vijaya Nirmala. He had five children with Indira including late Ramesh Babu, Mahesh Babu, daughters Padmavathi, Manjula and Priyadarshini.

Experiments

Knowns for umpteen experiments, Krishna was credited with producing many technological firsts in the Telugu film industry such as the first Cinemascope film – Alluri Seetharama Raju (1974), the first Eastmancolor film – Eenadu (1982), the first 70mm film – Simhasanam (1986), the first DTS film – Telugu Veera Levara (1995) and introducing cowboy genre to the Telugu screen. He starred in the spy films Gudachari 116 (1966), James Bond 777 (1971), Agent Gopi (1978), Rahasya Gudachari (1981) and Gudachari 117 (1989). Krishna directed Sankharavam (1987), Mugguru Kodukulu (1988), Koduku Diddina Kapuram (1989), Bala Chandrudu (1990) and Anna Thammudu (1990), casting his son Mahesh Babu in pivotal roles.

Big Loss

It’s a huge loss to Tollywood and Indian cinema. In particular, it’s an irrevocable loss to Ghattamaneni family. Mahesh Babu lost his elder brother Ramesh Babu earlier in January 2022 and mother Indira Devi in September 2022. It’s a big void for Mahesh personally.