Name	Superstar Krishna
Birthdate	May 31, 1943
Birth place	Guntur, India
Birthname	Ghattamaneni Sivarama Krishna
Othername	Super Star, Nata Sekhar
Homepage	http://superstarkrishna.net
Notable role	As Alluri Sita Rama Raju in Alluri Seetharama Raju
Spouse	Indira Devi, Vijaya Nirmala
Children	Ramesh Babu, Padmavathi, Manjula, Mahesh Babu, Priyadarshini

Ghattamaneni Siva Rama Krishna () (born on the 31 May 1943), commonly referred to as Super Star krishna, is one of Tollywood's most prolific actors. He is one of his kind of actor. A prolific risk taker, his derring-dos have played an instrumental role in enabling the Telugu film industry take a giant leap forward.

Having acted in more than 350 movies, He is credited with introducing many firsts in Telugu film Industry like first Colour movie (Tene Manasulu (1965)), first Cinemascope movie ( Alluri Seetharama Raju ), first 70mm movie (Simhasanam), first DTS Movie (Telugu Veera Levara). He is very experimental and the first ever hero to introduce cowboy and James bond style to Telugu screen. In addition to acting he also directed 17 feature films and produced many films under his Padmalaya Film Studio banner. He was also elected as a Member of Parliament from Eluru under Congress Party. In 2009, the Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan for his contributions towards Indian Cinema.

Early life

Krishna was born on May 31, 1943 to Ghattamaneni Veeraraghavayya Chowdhary and Ghattamaneni Nagaratnamma in a remote village called Burripallem, near Tenali in Guntur District, Andhra Pradesh, India. He was the eldest of the five children from a middle income agrarian family. He could not afford to have convent education, so he attended the school in his village to get his primary education before moving to Tenali and Narsapur to do his S.S.C and Intermediate. Impressed by his scholastic achievements, his father raised money to send his son to the prestigious C.R.R. college in Eluru to finish degree in BSc. There, he shared a room with another aspiring actor and famous real estate person Murali Mohan, who later became star in their own right. Krishna played an active role in various cultural events organized by his college. His performance in the play "Cheesina Paapam Kaasiki Velleena" brought him critical acclaim, thus encouraging him to pursue acting more seriously.

Film Career

1962-1977

After graduating in Science from C.R.Reddy College in Eluru. Offers did not come his way easily and he had to be content with playing insignificant roles in films like Padandi Mundhuku,Kulagothralu and Paruvu Prathishta. It was during these unsettling times that he bumped into an advertisement, which mentioned that Babu Movies was scouting profiles for their next film Tene Manasulu. Like several wannabe actors of his time, Krishna quickly responded to the advertisement and got selected to play one of the male leads amidst tight competition. Half way through the film Adurthi Subba Rao, the film director was subject to lot of pressure by its distributors (Navayuga) to drop Krishna from the film. But Adurthi persisted with his choice and released the film as planned. Its phenomenal success helped Krishna trespass the archetypal show-biz struggle as Adurthi repeated the cast for his next film Kannemanasulu. Krishna was also selected to play the lead role in Sunderlal Nehta and Doondee's Gudachaari 116 during this time. Though Kannemanasulu failed at the box-office, the unexpected success of this action flick established Krishna in the industry and he was often chosen to play the lead role in what came to be known as crime pictures in cinema patois. Krishna grabbed every opportunity that came his way and several hits followed in the next few years. Though action films were his forte, Krishna also delivered in soft films like Marapurani Katha, Atthagaaru Kotthakodalu, and Undamma Bottu Pedathaa. The upcoming actor also got a chance to work with more established actors like N.T.R. and A.N.R. in films like Sthree Janma, Niluvu Dopidi, Vichithra Kutumbam, Akka Chellellu and Manchi Kutumbam during this period. Success did not get into his head and Krishna consciously chose not to increase his remuneration even after becoming one of the minimum guaranteed stars in the industry. Most producers, who made films with Krishna, repeated him in their next projects regardless of how their earlier films fared. Some became so endeared with his consummate professionalism that they even tried pitting him against actors higher up in the echelon (Retired action hero Kantha Rao recently confessed this in his bio-graphy) . But Krishna had no time for these behind the scene endeavors as he was super busy acting in multiple shifts round the years.

Krishna also set up his flag-ship production house Padmalaya films and produced several high budget films like Mosagallaki Mosagaadu, Pandanti Kapuram, Devudu Cheesina Manushulu and Alluri Seetharama Raju after a low profile maiden home production Agnipariksha. Huge casting was a standard feature in all these films and the production standards of these movies were far ahead of their times. With in a very short period, Padmalaya was recognized as a leading production house and its films were the biggest hits of the calendar years 1972, 1973 and 1974. Krishna also set up another production house VijayaKrishna movies with his soul-mate Vijaya Nirmala and produced some critically acclaimed films like Meena, Devadasu on it.

In spite of producing such high profile movies, Krishna continued working for producers with moderate budgets. With these tight budgets, the film-makers sometimes could not provide the padding that is often required for a film's commercial success and hence some of Krishna's films released in 1971, 1972 and 1973 bit the dust. Though these failures reduced his success rate in early seventies, the years 1974 and 1975 can be considered as the real quiet period in his professional life. Except Cheekati Velugulu, none of his films released in these years made any impact at the box-office as people were reluctant to watch Krishna in softer roles after his riveting portrayal of Alluri Seethaa Rama Raju in the eponymous film. Krishna was also seriously taken aback with the box-office failure of his labor of love Devadasu, which was released in 1974. The year also saw Krishna straining his relationship with N.T.R. and A.N.R as they were against the idea of Krishna making Alluri Seetharama Raju and Devadasu respectively. Critics started questioning his box-office salability and most of them even predicted his career to end soon.

1978-1989

Krishna showed great resolve during these testing times and with supreme self-belief, he released his lavishly made home production Paadi Pantalu for Sankranthi 1976. The film, which dealt with several agrarian issues of its time, was a run away hit at the box-office. Krishna was also equally appreciated for his performance in Raja Rajeswari Coffee Vilas Club, his second film in the famous Vijaya banner. Krishna also produced and released another movie called Rama Rajyamloo Raktha Paasam in 1976. This is another instance where Krishna showcased his ability to ably deal with exigencies when he changed the film's title and supplied new publicity material overnight to all regions when censor officials refused to certify the film unless they did so. The officials, apparently, opined that the original title Rama Rajyamloo Raktha Paatham; was too provocative and a dig on the prevailing socio-political unrest. Krishna did two roles in this average farer, which revolves around how two siblings unite their estranged parents. Kolleti Kapuram,Bhalee Dongalu and Devudee Gelichaadu are other films in which he acted in 1976. While K.B. Thilak's Kolleti Kapuram was critically acclaimed for its thought provoking dialogues and for capturing the serenity of Lake Kolleru in West Godavari District, Bhalee Dongalu, a re-make of the Hindi film Chor Machaayee Shoor, hit the bull's eye. But Devudee Gelichaadu left a sour pill in Krishna's mouth that year. Krishna became a top newsmaker again in the same year when he announced Kurukshethram as his next home production. This surprised N.T.R. the most as he also wanted to make a movie Daana Veera Soora Karna based on the epic. The relationship between the two strained further when Krishna expressed his inability to drop his project and both started producing their films at frenetic pace. While Daana Veera Soora Karna was made with a limited budget and featured N.T.R. in all the keyroles, Kurukshethram was made on a larger canvass with a huge casting ensemble. Though Daana Veera Soora Karna had an emphatic victory over its rival during Sankranthi season in 1977, Kurukshethram proved Krishna bravado once again. His good run at the box-office continued with Saavaasagallu and the actor further penetrated into the urban mass segment with the super-hit film Dongalaku Donga.

Krishna's career reached greater heights between the years 1978 and 1986. During this period, Krishna acted in several hit movies, increased his fan-following manifold, maintained an edge over his junior rivals and made his seniors run for their money. More importantly, Krishna's stature also increased a lot due his philanthropy. In 1978, Krishna acted in hit films like Anna Dammula Sawaal, Kumara Raja and Agent Gopi and other commercially successful films like Indradanassu and Allari Bulloodu. The craze for him was so great that some of his flop films like Mugguroo Mugguree created records before petering out at the box-office. Six of his films fared very well in 1979. While Viyyalavaari Kayyaalu, Mandeegundelu, Hema-Heemeelu and Kottha Alludu set the cash registers ringing, Burripalem Bulloodu was another commercially successful film in Krishna's repertoire. Krishna and Sridevi became a hit-pair in 1980 and the two acted together in Gharana Donga, Maama Allulla Sawaal, Chuttaalunnaaru Jagrattha, and Ram Robert Rahim. Krishna also scored big against all his competitors when his Ooriki Monagaadu became the biggest hit among all films released during Sankranthi in 1981. This film is a watershed event in his life as it increased his craze and fan following in several remote areas too. Krishna was also the most consistent hero in 1981 as almost all his films performed well at the box-office. 1982 was another eventful year in his life and he started it with the super-hit film Bangaaru Bhoomi, which was an improvisation of his Paadipantalu. Towards the end of the year, Krishna became the fastest to complete 200 films in a lead role. He also became a studio owner and produced Eeenaadu as it's maiden venture. This film was another feather in his cap and the satirical film acted as a catalyst in bringing a regime change in AP. A string of super successful films like Mundhadugu, Kiraayi Kotigaadu, Adavi Simhaalu,Sakthi and Prajaarajyam catapulted him to the top position in 1983. Krishna's reign at the box-office continued in 1984 with films like Iddharu Dongalu, Bangaaru Kaapuram, Mukyamanthri and the lavishly made Kanchukaagada. This high profile movie opened splendidly and illustrated Krishna's box-office prowess by collecting Eighty Two Lakh Rupees in its first week. The Superstar ended the year on a high note with his last film for the year Dongalu Baabooy Dongalu, running for 100 days run in a single theater in Vijayawada.

Krishna's career was at its pinnacle in 1985. The Superstar acted in swash buckling hits like Agniparvatham, Palnati Simham, Vajrayudham in this year. Krishna's fantastic portrayal of the larger than life characters created by the writer duo Paruchuri Brothers helped these films have spectacular runs at the box-office. In fact, his performances in these roles were so graceful and his histrionics so natural that fans across the state either started or re-named some of their associations/fan clubs on the characters names. He also acted in other hit films Suryachandra,Pacchani Kapuram and Mahasangramam with his peer Sobhan Babu. Krishna started 1986 on a low key as audience turned down both his early releases Krishnagaaradi and Brahmasthram. But he bounced bank with his maiden directorial venture Simhaasanam. Made with a budget of about four crore rupees in two languages and released on a grand-scale in more than 150 theaters in A.P. alone, Simhaasanam collected One and half crore rupees in its first week and completed its direct hundred days run in six major cities in the state.

Khaidhi Rudrayya was another smash musical hit in his career and the film created several records at the box-office. The Superstar continued his slugfest against his political beliefs by satirizing some of the policies of Telugu Desam Party in his home production Naa Pilupee Prabhanjanam. Disgruntled supporters and leaders of this regional Party protested against screening of this film in several places. But their ruckuses, ironically, generated more publicity for it and helped the film succeed. Though Krishna starred in the record breaking Muddayi, and in other hits like Dongodocchaadu and Thandri Kodukula Challenge, 1987 was, by and large, a disappointing year in his career as some of his highly expected movies like Sardar Krishnama Naidu, Viswanatha Nayakudu, Maa Voori Magaadu and Makutamleeni Mahaaraaju fared dismally. Despite these professional setbacks, Krishna would still cherish the year because his elder son Ramesh Babu debuted as a full fledged actor with Saamraat on October 2nd. 1988 was another mediocre year in his professional life because only four Kaliyuga Karnudu, Aswaddhama, Rowdy No 1 and & Mugguru Kodukulu of his ten releases had some kind of impact at the box-office. The next year, however, was a very gratifying one for the Superstar because he not only acted in successful films like Koduku Diddina Kapuram, Saahasamee Naa Oopiri, Gudachaari 117 and Goondaarajyam (collected~ 74 Lakh rupees in its first week) but also for getting elected to the lower house of the Parliament from Eluru (W.G.) in the general elections held in 1989.

1990-Present

The years 1990-92 can be termed as the darkest period in his life because nothing went right for him both during this period. None of his films, barring Nagaasthram, fared well at the box-office and the actor took his longest break from work after Raktha Tharpanam, his last directorial venture in Telugu, tanked at the marquee. Ramesh's failure to capitalize on his blockbuster Bazaar Rowdy would have presumably upset him further during those unsettling times. Like other years ending with number 3 in the last two decades, 1993 also proved lucky to this Superstar and he came back strongly with the unexpected super success of Pacchani Samsaaram. But it was Vaaraasudu, his second release in the year, which made him the cynosure of the film fraternity again. The super-hit film, in which Krishna played a supporting role after a long time, however, incurred the wrath of his fans as it contained some scenes, which they thought, deprecated his image. In fact, the dissent was so great that the film-makers had to reach out to them through the print media requesting them to patronize the movie after chopping of those scenes and adding an action episode on him. But it was the film Number 1, which was another important turning point in his career as it helped him to cross-over to a new segment of audience. Released amidst tight competition during the festive season in January 1994, the film featured Krishna wearing flashy outfits and dancing with verve and energy. Audience, who were inundated with the lengthy dialogues in his movies, welcomed this image makeover and gave two-thumbs up for it. The film went on to become a phenomenal success and paradoxically, several producers requested him to appear in a song to help their film's cause. Amma Dongaa! (1995) was another thumping success in his career and the actor, instead of treading carefully to consolidate his re-gained stardom, went on a signing binge again while others were drastically reducing the number of films they acted to maximize revenues for each of their films. A string of flops followed Superstar Krishna and though Krishna became the fastest to reach the 300 films milestone (in a lead role), he was no longer a box-office phenomenon. This time, time was also not on his side to increase his personal stock as he was in his early fifties by then. The aged war-horse has since then been doing supporting roles in several insignificant films.

Personal life

After he graduated from college, he married Indira Devi on November 1, 1962, with whom he has five children: two sons, Ramesh Babu (film producer) & actor Mahesh Babu; and three daughters; Padmavati, Manjula (film producer) and Priyadarshani. She provided him emotional support during his salad days. In 1965, she gave birth to their first child Ramesh Babu. In 1968, Krishna's daughter Padmavathi was born and in 1969, Krishna married his frequent leading lady Vijaya Nirmala. and this created fodder for the gossip columns as they were still married to their respective spouses with children. Krishna continues to be married to his first wife Indira Devi and would have three more children with her: Manjula in 1970, Mahesh Babu in 1975, and Priyadarshini in 1979. He never had children with Vijayanirmala but he apparently raised her son Naresh from her first marriage as his own. He also supported Vijayanirmala's directorial aspirations by starring in the films she directed and was later proud when she made the Guiness Book of Records as the most prolific female director in 2002. Today he continues to act in small but significant roles in telugu films. His son Mahesh Babu has also become one of the top actors in the industry today. He has stated that Mahesh will not enter into any political business what-so-ever.

Awards

Received NTR National Award for the year 2003.

Conferred with Padma Bhushan Award in 2009 by Govt. of India

Filmography

References

Category:Living people Category:1943 births Category:Telugu actors Category:Telugu people Category:Telugu cinema Category:Indian film actors Category:People from Guntur Category:Kamma people

Vijaya Nirmala is a famous South Indian actress and director. In 2002, the Guinness Book of Records named her the most prolific female director for having directed 42 feature films.

Career

Vijaya Nirmala's entry into the film industry was as a child artiste in Panduranga Mahatmyam (1957) at the age of 7. She became a heroine through a Malayalam movie 'Bhargavi Nilayam'. She debuted as a heroine in Telugu industry through a Telugu film Rangula Ratnam. Her debut film in Tamil was Engaveettu Penn, which was followed by memorable movies like Panama Paasama, En Annan with MGR, Gnanaoli with Sivaji and Uyira Maanama with Jaisanker, among others. She met her second husband Superstar Krishna on Saakshi (1967), and they would star together in 47 films. She was instrumental in launching her niece the popular actress Jayasudha, and also Vijayashanti on the silver screen. To date, she has acted in over 250 films in the three South Indian languages. Her small screen debut came with Balaji Telefilms Pelli Kanuka. Soon after, she launched her own banner Vijaya Krishna Movies and produced 15 films. She made her directional debut with a malayalam movie with a budget of 3lakhs. She made her directorial debut in Telugu with Meena and directed more than 40 films in Telugu, Tamil, and Malayalam. Currently the actress-director is based in Hyderabad and is managing Padmalaya Studios and Padmalaya Telefilms Ltd, belonging to her actor-husband Superstar Krishna.

Personal life

Vijaya Nirmala from her first marriage has one son, actor Naresh. In 1969, she married Superstar Krishna, even though he was already married to his first wife Indira and with whom he has five children. She has indicated that she has an amiable relationship with her husband's first wife Indira and her children.

"Money makes wonders in life", best example for this quote is Krishna and Vijaya Nirmala's marriage.

Awards

Vijaya Nirmala received prestigious Raghupathi Venkaiah Award for 2008 regarding her contributions to Telugu film industry

References

Other links

Vijaya Nirmala's birthday celebration in 2006 with her husband Superstar Krishna, her son Naresh (who as a gift to his mother said that his name will now be "Vijaya Naresh") and her niece Jayasudha.

http://www.indiaglitz.com/channels/telugu/gallery/Events/9223.html and pictures at

http://www.idlebrain.com/news/functions/birthday2006-vijayanirmala.html and at http://www.superhit.co.in/events.asp?events=81

Category:Year of birth missing (living people) Category:Living people Category:Tamil people Category:Telugu film directors Category:Indian women film directors Category:Non Malayali actors acted in Malayalam-language films

Name	Suhasini Maniratnam
Birth date	August 15, 1961
Birth place	Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Years active	1980 - present
Spouse	Mani Ratnam
Occupation	Actress, Film director, Producer, Writer

Suhasini Maniratnam () (born Suhasini on August 15, 1961) is a Indian actress. She made her film debut in 1980 with the Tamil film Nenjathai Killathe.

Personal life

Suhasini was born on August 15, 1961 in Chennai to actor Charuhasan, the older brother of Kamal Hassan. and has a sibling Anu Haasan

Film career

Suhasini has acted in Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu films. In Kannada, she acted in several movies like Bandhana and Muttina Haara (1990) directed by Rajendra Singh Babu, Benkiyalli Aralida Hoovu (1983) directed by K. Balchander, Suprabhatha, directed by Dinesh Babu. In Kannada films, she is a popular artist, especially in Vishnuvardhan movies which were hits at box office. She was introduced to Malayalam cinema through Padmarajan's Koodevide (1983), which also featured Mammootty. Her role in the AFI Fest-nominated feature Vaanaprastham (1999), which starred Mohanlal was particularly well received, a milestone in the history of Indian cinema.

She won the coveted National Film Award for Best Actress in 1986 for her role in the 1985 Tamil film Sindhu Bhairavi, directed by K. Balachander. In 1996, Suhasini stepped into direction with Indira. She also wrote the screenplay for the film. The project was produced by G.V. Films.

Suhasini and husband Mani Ratnam are involved in the running of their production company Madras Talkies, with G. Srinivasan. At the beginning of her movies she could not speak in Tamil and it gave directors a tough job to teach her Tamil and then later she learned the language and dubbed her self.

Suhasini has helped her co-stars who were equally popular like Radhika, Radha, Vijayashanthi, Sumalatha and Ambika on their makeup and hair. She even volunteered to do Radhika's hair for the movie, Keladi Kanmani, a sort of come-back for her. She was very instrumental in getting Radhika back to cinema after the later succumbed to some personal problems. Her penchant for hairdressing and unegoistic helping approach to her co-stars has made her one of the very favorite co-actress as she is always seen personally helping her co-stars.she had a good pair with mamooty.they both were super actors and actresses.they have only 7-8 movies but their pair is very famous

Her latest appearance in the Telugu movie Leader is a stand out performance, which lifts the supporting artists value in movies to a whole new level.

Filmography

As actress

2010 - Dedly soma-2 (Kannada)

2010 - Varudu (Telugu film)

2010 - Leader (2010 film) (Telugu)

2010 - Sanju Weds Geetha ( Kannada )

2010 - School Master ( Kannada )

2010 - Kanmani ( Kannada )

2010 - Eradane Maduve ( Kannada )

2010 - Thillalangadi ( Tamil )

2010 - Seedan ( Tamil )

2010 - Raavanan ( Tamil )

2009 - Makante Achan ( Malayalam )

2009 - Nammal Thammil ( Malayalam )

2009 - Vilaapangalkkappauram ( Malayalam )

2009 - Rakhi ( Telugu )

2009 - Mallika I Love You ( Telugu )

2009 - Balam ( Tamil )

2008 - Pandurangadu ( Telugu )

2008 - Aegan ( Tamil )

2008 - Amma Cheppindi ( Telugu )

2007 - Mathad Matadhu Mallige ( Kannada )

2007 - Satham Podathey ( Tamil )

2007 - Sri Mahalakshmi ( Telugu )

2006 - Rakhi ( Telugu )

2006 - Seetakokachiluka ( Telugu )

2005 - Vacation ( Malayalam )

2004 - Dostha ( Telugu )

2004 - Shock ( Tamil )

2004 - Pedhababu ( Telugu )

2003 - Abhimanyu ( Telugu )

2003 - Vaseegara ( Tamil )

2002 - Nammal ( Malayalam )

2001 - Nuvvu Naaku Nachchav ( Telugu )

2001 - Theerthadanam ( Malayalam )

2000 - Yaarge Saalathe Sambala ( Kannada )

1999 - Vanaprastham ( Malayalam )

1997 - Yegire Pavurama ( Telugu )

1997 - Amruthavarshini ( Kannada )

1997 - Pelli Pandheri ( Telugu )

1996 - Ramudochhadu ( Telugu )

1995 - Himapatha ( Kannada )

1993 - Samooham ( Malayalam )

1993 - Chinna Kannamma ( Tamil )

1992 - Akka Mogudu ( Telugu )

1991 - Usha (Kannada) (Co-Actors:Jayanthi Sathish, Kalyan Kumar, Ramakrishna; Directed By Raaghava; Music By Raajan - Nagendra)

1990 - Muttinahara ( Kannada )

1989 - Amma ( Telugu )

1989 - En Purushanthaan Enakku Mattumthaan ( Tamil )

1989 - Mamatala Kovela ( Telugu )

1989 - Oru Sayahnathinte Swapnam ( Malayalam )

1988 - Akhari Poratam (Telugu )

1988 - En Bommukutty Ammavukku ( Tamil )

1988 - Marana Mrudangam ( Telugu )

1988 - Suprabhatha ( Kannada )

1988 - Dharmathin Thalaivan ( Tamil )

1988 - Manchi Donga ( Telugu )

1988 - Varasudochadu ( Telugu )

1987 - Dhoorathu Pacchai ( Tamil )

1987 - Manathil Uruthi Vendum ( Tamil )

1987 - Manivatharile Aayiram Sivarathrikal ( Malayalam )

1987 - Ezhuthapurangal ( Malayalam )

1987 - Aradhana ( Telugu )

1987 - Punnami chandrudu ( Telugu )

1987 - Punya Dampathulu ( Telugu )

1986 - Kirathakudu ( Telugu )

1986 - Rakshasudu ( Telugu )

1986 - Shravana Sandhya ( Telugu )

1986 - Rakkuyilin Ragasadassil ( Malayalam )

1986 - Pranamam ( Malayalam )

1986 - Chantabbai ( Telugu )

1985 - Jackie ( Telugu )

1985 - Tene manasulu (Telugu)

1985 - Mahaaraju ( Telugu )

1985 - Sindhu Bhairavi ( Tamil )

1985 - Katha Ithuvare ( Malayalam )

1984 - Ente Upasana ( Malayalam )

1984 - Illaalu Priyuraalu ( Telugu )

1984 - Mangamma Gari Manavadu ( Telugu )

1984 - Bandhana ( Kannada )

1984 - Intiguttu ( Telugu )

1984 - Challenge ( Telugu )

1983 - Thai Veedu ( Tamil )

1983 - Koodevide? ( Malayalam )

1983 - Benkiyalli Aralidha Hoovu ( Kannada )

1983 - Uruvangal Maralam ( Tamil )

1982 - Manchu Pallaki ( Telugu )

1982 - Aagaaya Gangai ( Tamil )

1981 - Palaivana Cholai (1981) ( Tamil )

1980 - Kotha Jeevithalu ( Telugu )

1980 - Nenjathai Killadhey ( Tamil )

As director

Indira (1996)

Penn (television show) (1991)

As producer

Iruvar (1997)

Notes

External links

Category:Tamil actors Category:Kannada film actors Category:Tamil film directors Category:Tamil-language film directors Category:Indian women film directors Category:Tamil screenwriters Category:Kerala State Film Award winners Category:Living people Category:1961 births Category:Non Malayali actors acted in Malayalam-language films

Name	Rajinikanth
Caption	Rajinikanth in 2010
Birth name	Shivaji Rao Gaekwad
Birth date	December 12, 1949
Birth place	Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Residence	Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Occupation	Film actor, producer, screenwriter
Years active	1975–present
Other name	Rajinikanth, Rajnikant, Rajni
Spouse	Latha Rangachari(1981–present)
Children	Aishwarya RajinikanthSoundarya Rajinikanth

Rajinikanth (; born Shivaji Rao Gaekwad on December 12, 1949) While acting in many Indian languages, he has also appeared in the cinemas of other nations, including in that of the United States. After being paid 26 crores (US$5.9 million) for his role in Sivaji (2007), he became the highest paid actor in Asia after Jackie Chan,

Early life

Rajinikanth was born Shivaji Rao Gaikwad in a Maharashtrian family, to mother Jijabai and father Ramoji Rao Gaikwad, on December 12, 1949 in Bangalore, Karnataka, India. he struggled with an impoverished lifestyle during his childhood. During that time, he often did odd jobs as a coolie in his community. He attended the Acharya Patasala for elementary education and had his higher education at the Ramakrishna Mission in Bangalore.

Between 1968 and 1973 he worked in many places in Chennai, moving continuously from Bangalore to Chennai. He performed various jobs before joining the then Bangalore Transport Service (BTS) as a bus conductor. In 1973, his friend and co-worker Raj Bahadur motivated him to join the Madras Film Institute and also financially supported him for 2 years during his studies. During this time he was noticed in a Kannada play at the Film Institute in Chennai by K. Balachander. The director advised him to learn to speak Tamil, a recommendation that Rajinikanth quickly followed and which proved to be extremely useful in his career.

Career

As of 2010, Rajinikanth has acted in over 170 films, including Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, Hindi, English, and Bengali films. After the release of his first Bollywood film, Andha Kanoon, Rajinikanth did not make as much of an impact in the Mumbai-based industry as he did in the south. He still appeared in several Hindi films, such as Chaalbaaz, Uttar Dakshin, Giraftaar and Hum. He appeared in a supporting role in the American film Bloodstone, co-produced by Ashok Amritraj in 1988, with much fanfare in India at the time of its release. He also made brief stints in the German and Japanese film industries. His film Muthu was dubbed into Japanese and became a major hit in Japan. In 2005, his film Chandramukhi was dubbed in German and released in all German-speaking nations. Despite his first language being Marathi, Rajinikanth has not yet acted in any Marathi films.

Negative roles: 1975-1977

Rajinikanth debuted in Tamil cinema as a cancer patient in Apoorva Raagangal in 1975. The following year he acted in his first Kannada film, Katha Sangama which was directed by Puttanna Kanagal. He entered Telugu cinema through Anthuleni Katha, which was directed by K. Balachander, whom Rajinikanth has called his "guru" or mentor. Though Rajinikanth refers to director K. Balachander as his mentor, it was director S. P. Muthuraman who revamped Rajinikanth’s image entirely. Muthuraman first experimented with him in a positive role in Bhuvana Oru Kelvikkuri (1977), as a failed lover in the first half of the film and a protagonist in the second. Muthuraman has since directed Rajinikanth in 25 films. His film roles were sketchy either as a villain or as a supporting actor during the late 1970s, co-starring frequently with Kamal Haasan as the protagonist, in movies like 16 Vayadhinilae, Moondru Mudichu and Avargal, et al.

Breakthrough and success: 1978-1990

(1979)]] In 1978, Rajinikanth acted in the film Bairavi. This was the first Tamil film to cast him as a solo hero. Later Mullum Malarum won him critical acclaim. The success of Bhuvana Oru Kelvikkuri prompted Muthuraman to make a mushy melodrama with Rajinikanth as a hero sacrificing everything for his siblings in Aarilirunthu Arubathu Varai (1979). These films were the turning points in Rajinikanth’s career; he changed from an actor who merely enthralled the audiences to one who could also evoke emotions. The acceptance of Rajinikanth sans his stylized mannerisms proved he had at last become a "star" from a "common actor."

During this phase of his career, when he was reaching dazzling heights, Rajinikanth abruptly chose to quit acting, but was coaxed back. He continued acting with the blockbuster Tamil film Billa, which was a remake of the blockbuster Bollywood movie Don. Billa was followed by a row of hits, namely Murattu Kaalai, Pokkiri Raja, Thanikattu Raja, Naan Mahaan Alla and Moondru Mugam. K. Balachander’s first home production, Netrikan proved to be yet another milestone in Rajni’s career. He acted in his first cameo role alongside Meena Durairaj, who was a child actor then, in the movie Anbulla Rajinikanth (1984).

Though the decade was dominated by Kamal Haasan, Rajinikanth still managed to give a steady stream of box-office hits throughout the 80s: Padikkathavan, Thee, Velaikaran, Dharmathin Thalaivan and Mr. Bharath. In his 100th movie, Sri Raghavendra, he played the Hindu saint Raghavendra Swami.

Domination: 1991-present

The majority of his movies released during the nineties were extremely successful, notably Thalapathy, Mannan, Annamalai, Veera, Badsha, Muthu, and Padayappa. Rajinikanth wrote his first screenplay and made a special appearance in the film Valli (1993), which failed to make an impact at the box office. His film Badsha emerged as an industrial record. His film Muthu was the first Tamil film to be dubbed into Japanese (as Mutu: Odoru Maharaja) and grossed a record $1.6 million in Japan in 1998. In fact, its success in Japan led the American news magazine Newsweek to comment in a 1999 article that Rajinikanth had "supplanted Leonardo DiCaprio as Japan's trendiest heartthrob".

The new millennium began very well for Rajinikanth; Padayappa had reset the record of Badsha firmly entrenching his position in Tamil film history. Finally, after more than a three year sabbatical from cinema, at 52 years of age, he starred in his home production, Baba, which released on August 15, 2002 amid much fanfare and hype. The film did poorly at the box office due to a very weak screenplay, which Rajinikanth himself had written, in his second stint at screenplay-writing after Valli. The thin screenplay revolved around the story about a gangster who later engages in spirituality; it was a colossal disappointment and was viewed as a tremendous loss when compared to his previous box office successes throughout his career. It fell short of market expectations and the high bids reportedly translated to heavy losses for the distributors. Rajinikanth himself repaid the losses incurred by the distributors.

After the Baba debacle, Rajinikanth mulled over numerous scripts with many directors, including K. S. Ravikumar, and finally chose to act in director P. Vasu's film Chandramukhi. Many people within the industry had written Rajinikanth off after the Baba fiasco, essentially saying "the bloom was off the rose" and that "the gold does not glitter anymore". In essence, many viewed Chandramukhi as Rajinikanth's comeback film, his make or break movie and in the end, when it was released on April 14, 2005, it went on to create new box office records and smashed his own previous records and once and for all removed any doubt within the industry with regards to Rajinikanth's box office clout and incomparable appeal to the masses. Chandramukhi broke the record of being the longest running Tamil film, as of 2007.

(2007).]] Just after Chandramukhi's release, it was reported that AVM Productions were to produce a film directed by S. Shankar starring Rajinikanth, the largest collaboration yet for a Tamil film. The film was titled Sivaji and released on June 15, 2007 after two years of filming and meticulous production. With massive international anticipation, it subsequently went on to become a major blockbuster, being ranked among other major Bollywood and Hollywood releases of the year. Sivaji became the first Tamil movie to be charted as one of the top-ten best films of United Kingdom and South Africa box-offices upon release. Rajinikanth received a salary of 26 crores, approximately US $5.3 million at the time, for his role the film, which made him become the second highest paid actor in all of Asia.

Following Sivaji, Rajinikanth worked with P. Vasu again for Kuselan, a remake of the Malayalam film Kadha Parayumbol, in which Rajinikanth played an extended cameo role as himself, a star in the Indian film industry, and as a best friend to the main character. According to Rajinikanth, the film somewhat narrates his early life. The film performed poorly at box offices; many distributors incurred major losses due to the film, which Rajinikanth voluntarily settled with his own budget after pressure from different sections of the film world.

During the course of the production for Sivaji, Ocher Studios, the animation company of Rajinikanth's daughter Soundarya Rajinikanth, in association with Adlabs announced their intention of producing a CGI animation film starring an animated version of Rajinikanth. In 2010, Rajinikanth appeared in Enthiran, a science fiction film directed by S. Shankar. Enthiran is reported to be the costliest Indian film ever made, with a budget of 162 crores (US $36 million). The film released on October 1, 2010, and is said to have grossed 250 crore worldwide. Rajinikanth will soon be lending his voice to the lead character in the animation film Sultan the Warrior, which is being directed by his daughter Soundarya Rajinikanth.

A. R. Murugadoss had previously shown interest in directing Rajinikanth in his next feature film after Ghajini. Rajinikanth has stated that he is interested in starring in Pyramid Saimira's next production, in order to compensate for Kuselan.

Popularity

Rajinikanth is consistently touted as the most popular South Indian film actor of his time. Rajinikanth's popularity mostly originates from his uniquely styled dialogues and mannerisms in films, as well as his political statements and philanthropy. It is also suggested by the media that some popular actors who worked with Rajinikanth earlier in their careers, such as Gouthami Tadimalla and Nayanthara, were recognized because of their association with Rajinikanth, giving other aspiring actors the urge to work with him. Some fellow actors, such as Cho Ramaswamy, have commentated that Rajinikanth has the potential to be successful in Indian politics due to his popularity and fan base alone.

After the release of Muthu (1995), Rajinikanth became the only other Indian actor, after Shah Rukh Khan, to earn a Japanese fan base, opening a new market for Tamil films in the nation. Other films of Rajinikanth also released in Japan and garnered immense success, notably Chandramukhi (2005), and Sivaji (2007). During a visit to Japan in 2006, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh acknowledged the success of Muthu in the country during a speech, justifying the positive relationship between the two nations. Chandramukhi is notable for being the longest-running Tamil film in India, playing for a total of over 800 days. Sivaji was instrumental in making one of the largest releases for an Indian film in the world; the film entered the list of top ten films of the United Kingdom upon release. Chandramukhi and Sivaji were also released in South Africa, where they eventually became high box-office grossers. A clip from his 1990 Tamil film Adhisaya Piravi became a hugely popular viral video Little Superstar, an internet phenomenon in 2006.

In October 2010, Grady Hendrix, a writer from the New York Asian Film Festival produced an article about Rajinikanth, describing his mass appeal in India to American audiences. The article and its writer were featured on WNYC, a local American radio station based in New York City in an 11-minute commentary on Rajinikanth. While highlighting most of his successes, the radio show however incorrectly describes Rajinikanth as "a director and producer of his own movies".

A survey conducted in 2008 by Loyola College in Chennai suggested that Rajinikanth's popularity was decreasing in Tamil Nadu. The survey saw late actors M. G. Ramachandran and Sivaji Ganesan, as well as Joseph Vijay, topping the list with Rajinikanth closely following them, though he was still ahead of other actor-turned-politicians, such as Vijayakanth. However, the low result was attributed to Kuselan, which released at the time of the survey with an unsuccessful outcome at box offices.

Awards and honours

Rajinikanth received his first Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor in 1984 for Nallavanuku Nallavan. He later received Filmfare Award nominations for his performances in Muthu (1995) and Sivaji (2007). Rajinikanth also received Tamil Nadu State Film Awards in the Best Actor category for his roles in Moondru Mugam (1982), Muthu (1995), Padayappa (1999), Chandramukhi (2005), and Sivaji (2007). He also received awards from Cinema Express and Filmfans Association for his on-screen performances and off-screen contributions in writing and producing.

Rajinikanth received the Kalaimamani award in 1985 and the M. G. R. Award in 1989, both from the Government of Tamil Nadu. In 1995, the South Indian Film Artistes' Association presented him with the Kalaichelvam Award. He was named and honoured with the Padma Bhushan award, India's third highest civilian honour, in 2000 from the Government of India. He was selected as the Indian Entertainer of the Year for 2007 by NDTV, competing against the likes of Shahrukh Khan. The Government of Maharashtra honoured him with the Raj Kapoor Award the same year. He received the Chevalier Sivaji Ganesan Award for Excellence in Indian Cinema at the 2010 ceremony of the Vijay Awards.

Personal life

Family

He married Latha Rangachari, an Iyengar, whom he met during an exclusive interview, on February 26, 1981, at the age of 31 in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. They have two daughters named Aishwarya Rajinikanth and Soundarya Rajinikanth. His wife, Latha Rajinikanth, currently runs a school named The Ashram. His elder daughter, Aishwarya Rajinikanth, married actor Dhanush on November 18, 2004 and they have two sons named Yathra and Linga. His younger daughter, Soundarya Rajinikanth, works in the film industry as a director, producer and graphic designer. She married industrialist Ashwin Ramkumar on September 3, 2010.

Religion

Rajinikanth is a follower of Hinduism, spiritualism, and a strong believer of spirituality. As a reader, he also enjoys books on such topics. He is also a practitoner of yoga and meditation. He also occasionally leaves for pilgrimage to the Himalayas.

Some of the films Rajinikanth has appeared in lightly allude to his spiritual and religious activities in real life. His films Sri Raghavendra (1985) and Baba (2002) are based on Raghavendra Swami and Mahavatar Babaji, respectively. He also promotes spiritualism in his speeches during film related events.

Politics

Several local fan associations of Rajinikanth in Tamil Nadu have continuously wanted him to take active participation in politics. In this regard, a few fans in Coimbatore started their own political party in 2008 for Rajinikanth, in an attempt to pressure his entry in politics. The party was named the Desiya Dravadar Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (DDMMK), introducing its own flag and symbol for the party. After learning about this, Rajinikanth wrote an open letter to the media and declared that he had no connection with these events and warned fans not to indulge in such activities and that he would take legal action if they failed to adhere. He also mentioned that he was not interested in politics and thus, was only committed to working in films. He added that nobody can force him to enter politics, just as no one can stop him from entering it.

Rajinikanth joined in support of Tamil actor Ajith Kumar, who spoke against the forceful inclusion of Tamil cinema personae in political affairs. He attended an event organised in support of the Sri Lankan Tamil cause with the Tamil film fraternity in late 2008, taking part in a one-day fast demanding the government of Sri Lanka to stop the war, the murder of innocent civilians and to give Tamils their rights and their traditional land, stating this was in the best interests for the people of the island.

Alliances

In 1995, Rajinikanth announced that he is willing to support the Indian National Congress after meeting Prime Minister Narasimha Rao. An opinion poll conducted by the magazine Kumudam predicted that Congress with Rajinikanth's support might win up to 130 seats in Tamil Nadu Assembly. In 1996, when the Congress Party decided to align with All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), Rajinikanth supported Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC) alliance. The TMC used a bicycle as their election symbol and used an image of Rajinikanth riding a bicycle from the film Annamalai in their posters. Rajinikanth said, "Even God cannot save Tamil Nadu if AIADMK returns to power." Rajinikanth wholeheartedly supported the DMK and TMC alliance and asked the people of Tamil Nadu and his fans to vote for that alliance. This alliance had a complete victory in 1996.

Social work

In 2002, Rajinikanth undertook a daylong fast to protest the Government of Karnataka's decision to not release Kaveri River water into Tamil Nadu and announced that he would contribute 10,000,000 toward a plan to interlink the Indian rivers. He met with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and many experts to canvass support for the project. However, most other members of the Tamil film industry, including members of the South Indian Film Artistes' Association (SIFAA), organized their own solidarity protest. Film director Bharathi Raja stated that Rajinikanth was on the verge of dividing the film industry and called him "traitor who had a tacit understanding with the Karnataka government".

During the 2008 hunger strike organized by SIFAA during the Hogenakkal water dispute, he reprimanded Karnataka politicians. Further, he appealed to leaders not to inflame the water project issue for political gains and requested that the issue should be resolved soon. He urged the Karnataka politicians "to speak the truth." "People are equal to God. They cannot be fooled and will not remain silent if you continue to act in such manner," he stated. Leader of the Pro-Kannada group Karnataka Rakshana Vedike Vatal Nagaraj demanded an apology from Rajinikanth and threatened that he would not be allowed in the state of Karnataka and all his films would be boycotted for Rajinikanth's speech against Kannada politicians.

Controversies

In 2002, during Rajinikanth's own hunger strike for agitating the state of Karnataka to release Kaveri River water into Tamil Nadu, another hunger strike was organized by the Tamil film directors' association. Rajinikanth had yet continued with his own strike, leading to several criticism of Rajinikanth. Director Bharathi Raja, who also condemned other actors and politicians of Tamil Nadu, had stated that Rajinikanth was on the verge of dividing the film industry. Famous film producers like M. Saravanan accused Ramadoss saying that cigarette smoking and drinking are shown in all movies and that Baba was just being "picked on" by the PMK leader because of his popularity in Vanniar areas which is considered PMK bastion. To stop controversies, Rajinikanth reported that he was not going to act in any roles that require him to drink or smoke. In keeping his words, the roles he appeared in thereafter did not show the actor drinking or smoking.

Following the release of Kuselan in Karnataka on August 1, 2008, Rajinikanth thanked the Kannada film industry for allowing the release of his latest film and lifting the ban. He gave an open statement clarifying his stand to the people of Karnataka and regretted for not being clear in his speech during the South Indian Film Artistes' Association's hunger strike for the Hogenakkal Integrated Drinking Water Project, which many Kannada activists and politicians found offending. Actors Sathyaraj, Radha Ravi, and R. Sarathkumar condemned the apology as a "disgrace to Tamils."

Notable filmography

Further reading

References

External links

Category:Indian film actors Category:Living people Category:Marathi people Category:People from Bangalore Category:Recipients of the Padma Bhushan Category:Tamil film actors Category:Hindi film actors Category:Kannada film actors Category:1949 births Category:Telugu actors

Name	Jaya Prada
Birth date	3 April 1958| birth_place = Rajahmundry
Constituency	Rampur
Office	MP
Term start	2004
Predecessor	Noor Bano
Party	Samajwadi Party [SP]
Religion	Hindu
Date	September 17
Year	2006
Source	http://164.100.24.208/ls/lsmember/biodata.asp?mpsno=4165

Jaya Prada () is an Indian film actress and politician.

Early life

Jaya Pradha was born Lalita Rani on 3rd April 1958in a middle-class family in Rajahmundry, Andhra Pradesh, India. Her father Krishna Rao was a Telugu film financier. Her mother Neelavani enrolled her in dance and music classes at an early age.

Film career

Tamil and Telugu

When she was fourteen years old, she performed a dance at her school's annual function. A film director was in the audience, and he offered her a three-minute dance number in the Telugu film Bhoomikosam. She was hesitant, but her family encouraged her to accept it. She was paid only 10 rupees for her work in the film, but she also received much greater opportunities, as the rushes of those three minutes of film was shown to the major figures of the Telugu film industry, and the floodgates opened. Director K. Balachander first cast her in a small role in the 1976 Tamil film Manmadha Leelai opposite Kamal Haasan. After that, major filmmakers offered her starring roles in quality films, and she accepted them. She became a major star in 1976 with a trio of hits: K. Balachander's Anthuleni Katha showcased her dramatic skills; K. Viswanath's Siri Siri Muvva showed her playing a mute with excellent dancing skills; and her title role as Sita in the big-budget mythological film Seetha Kalyanam confirmed her versatility. In 1977, she starred in Adavi Ramudu, which broke box office records and which permanently cemented her star status. The song "Aaresukoboyi Paresukunnanu" picturized on her and co-star N.T. Rama Rao became a mass hit. She branched out to star in Tamil, Malayalam, and Kannada films, and had hit films in all of them.

Bollywood career

K. Viswanath remade Siri Siri Muvva (1976) in Hindi as Sargam introducing Jayapradha to Bollywood in 1979. The film became a huge hit and she became an overnight star there as well. She earned her first Filmfare nomination as Best Actress but couldn't capitalize on her success since she couldn't speak Hindi. It took three more years before director K. Vishwanath relaunched her again in Hindi films, with the hit film Kaamchor(1982) where she spoke Hindi fluently for the first time. She was now able to consistently work in Hindi films and earn two more Filmfare nominations as Best Actress for playing Amitabh Bachchan's endearing girlfriend in Prakash Mehra's Sharaabi (1984) and for her challenging double role in K. Vishwanath's Sanjog.

Along with her Bollywood film career, she continued to star in acclaimed films in the South, such as K. Vishwanath's Telugu hit film Sagara Sangamam with Kamal Haasan (1983). She earned fans, not just with the masses, but also with the great Indian director Satyajit Ray, who has said she was one of the prettiest women in the world. Although, she has acted in Bengali films, she has never worked for Ray. (She claimed that Ray had her in mind for a film, but his illness and subsequent death prevented their collaboration)

Jaya made a successful team, not just with Amitabh Bachchan and Jeetendra, but also with her immediate screen rival Sridevi, with whom she has acted in about a dozen films. Their hit Telugu film Devata (film) (1982) where they played sisters who made big sacrifices for each other, was remade into the hit Hindi film Tohfaa (1984). These films endeared Jayapradha to the traditional conservative section of filmgoers. It was an image that would serve her well when she started a new career as a politician.

In 2002, she stepped into the Marathi film industry by being a guest in the movie Aadhaar. Thus far, she acted in seven languages and has completed 300 films during a 30-year film career. She started playing mature roles in 2004.

She also owns the Jaya Prada Theater in Chennai.

Personal life

In 1986, she married producer Srikanth Nahata, who was already married to Chandra and had 3 children. Needless to say, this marriage stirred a lot of controversy, especially since Nahata did not divorce his current wife and had children with his first wife after marrying Jayaprada. Jayaprada and Srikanth have no children together, but she expressed desire to have children. Both Jaya Prada and her husband's first wife have cordially agreed to share a husband.

Political career

Jayaprada was initiated into the Telugu Desam Party by her former co-star N.T.Rama Rao in 1994. She later broke away from him and joined the Chandrababu Naidu faction of the party. She was nominated to the Rajya Sabha representing Andhra Pradesh in 1996.

Following differences with party Supremo N. Chandrababu Naidu, she left TDP to join Samajwadi Party and contested from Rampur parliamentary Constituency in UP during the last General election in 2004 and got elected. During her campaign for the Lok Sabha elections, she was issued a notice by the Election Commission for violating the code of conduct by distributing bindis to women in Rampur's Swar locality. On 11 May 2009, Jaya Prada alleged that senior Samajwadi Party leader Azam Khan was distributing nude pictures of her. She was re-elected with a margin of more than 30,000 votes.

Filmfare Awards & Nominations

Lifetime Achievement Award (South) (2007)

Best Actress - Sargam (1979) Nominated

Best Actress - Sharaabi (1985) Nominated

Best Actress - Sanjog (1986) Nominated

Other awards

Nandi Special Award for Anthuleni Katha (1976)

Kala Saraswati Award

Kinnera Savitri Award

Rajiv Gandhi Award

Nargis Dutt Gold Medal

Shakuntala Kala Rathnam Award

Uttam Kumar Award ANR Achievement Award (2008)

References

External links

#Jayaprada's biographical data

Other links

#Jaya pradha's IMDB profile http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0419685/ #Dasavatharam (Ten Reincarnations): Jaya Prada, the evergreen Indian Actress charms once again

Category:1958 births Category:Living people Jaya Prada Category:Indian Hindus Category:Hindi film actors Category:Indian politicians Category:Telugu people Category:Telugu cinema Category:Tamil actors Category:Telugu actors Category:Telugu politicians Category:14th Lok Sabha members Category:Samajwadi Party politicians Category:Indian actor-politicians Category:15th Lok Sabha members Category:Non Malayali actors acted in Malayalam-language films