Vice President Venkaiah Naidu Unveils Akkineni Nageswara Rao’s Statue at Hyderabad’s Annapurna Studios on His 100th Birth Anniversary
A golden statute of late legendary actor-filmmaker Akkineni Nageswara Rao was unveiled at the Annapurna Studios in Hyderabad on the occasion of his 100th birth anniversary on Wednesday. The statue was unveiled by India’s Vice President M Venkaiah Naidu in the presence of several film celebrities including Nagarjuna, Naga Chaitanya, Akhil Akkineni, Ram Charan Mahesh Babu and wife Namrata Shirodkar and others.
Nagarjuna and son Naga Chaitanya hosted guests
Nagarjuna and son Naga Chaitanya who have taken forward ANR’s legacy with successful careers in the Telugu film industry hosted the guests at the event. While Nagarjuna was in a printed yellow and grey shirt, Naga was in a white kurta pyjama. Ram Charan and Mahesh Babu met at the event and had a chat with the latter’s wife Namrata Shirodkar also being part of the conversation.
The official X handle of Annapurna Studios shared a video of Venkaiah Naidu unveiling the statue. Another post from the handle read: “A legend in his own right. A pillar of Telugu cinema. A pioneer of Indian Cinema. He has entertained us, made us laugh and cry. Sri #AkkineniNageswaraRao Garu is our Founder, Father and our guiding force. Celebrating his life on this centenary birthday. In his light, we shine and spread joy #CelebratingANR100 #ANRLivesOn @AnnapurnaStdios.”
Who is Akkineni Nageswara Rao?
Akkineni Nageswara Rao is recipient of the Padma Vishushan as well as the Padma Bhushan award. He also received the Dadasaheb Phalke award. He contributed immensely in his seventy five-year-long career. He featured in several biopics of all from Telugu poet Tenali Ramakrishna to Kalidas and Kabir and Marathi saint Tukaram as well. He is known for his films like Laila Majnu (1949), Devadasu (1953), Anarkali (1955), Batasari (1961), Mooga Manasulu (1964), Prema Nagar (1971),
Premabhishekam (1981), and Meghasandesam (1982), Balaraju (1948), Keelu Gurram (1949), Ardhangi (1955), Donga Ramudu (1955), Mangalya Balam (1958), Gundamma Katha (1962), Doctor Chakravarty (1964), Dharma Daata (1970), and Dasara Bullodu (1971).
ANR played a major role in setting up the Telugu film industry in Hyderabad instead of Chennai in the 1970s by establishing the Annapurna Studios, named after his wife.