The Hindu : National : Actor Sobhan Babu passes away

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Actor Sobhan Babu passes away

Meera Srinivasan and Suresh Krishnamoorthy

Chennai: His entry into Tollywood was considered refreshing. And his exit from the industry, very dignified. Veteran Telugu actor Sobhan Babu passed away at a private hospital here on Thursday, following cardiac arrest. He was 71.

Considered Tollywood’s glamour boy from the 1960s till the 80s, he worked with almost every top heroine and had a special place among the female audience.

Playback singer S.P. Balasubramaniam, who sang for about 95 per cent of his films, remembers him as one of the most disciplined artistes in the industry. “I have never come across someone so disciplined in their professional as well as personal lives. He had an extraordinary sense of planning,” he says.

The actor would never act after 6 p.m., and avoided discussing cinema at home. “Though his profession was very important to him, his family was more important,” Mr. Balasubramaniam says.

While his fans were very eager to form associations, Sobhan would tell them not to waste their time and energy on such matters and instead pursue their dreams.

The actor, in one of his interviews, is reported to have said that while one’s entry into the film industry is very important, one should also know when to exit. He decided to stop acting in 1997.

Uppu Sobhana Chalapathi Rao belonged to Chinna Nandigama village in B. Konduru mandal of Krishna district in Andhra Pradesh. Though he debuted with ‘Bhakta Sabari’, it was his other film ‘Daivabalam’ that hit the screens first.

As an upcoming artiste, he would ask producers to have senior singers, who were lending their voices for top heroes such as NTR, sing for him.

He shot into limelight with ‘Manushulu Maarali’ in which actor Sarada played the female lead.

‘Veerabhimanyu’ (1965) was his first film as a solo hero and he soon earned the sobriquet ‘Andhra Andagadu’ (debonair). He won four Filmfare awards and five Nandi awards instituted by the Andhra Pradesh Government.

While film star Krishna was considered his closest contemporary as a hero, Sobhan Babu actually slogged it out in the tinsel town when the likes of N.T. Rama Rao, S.V. Ranga Rao and Akkineni Nageswara Rao were at the height of their popularity. Sarada, Vanisree, Jayasudha, Jayaprada and Sreedevi were among the prominent heroines with whom he co-starred. The actor shared a very good on-screen chemistry with actors Sarada and Vanisree. He had also acted in a few films with Jayalalithaa.

Sobhan Babu was the fore-runner of movies with the two-heroine formula, something which is still being followed in films. His dialogue delivery in general and the use of English in a short and clipped manner, with a slight nasal tinge usually evoked applause.

At a time when many actors were unable to hold on to their earnings from the films, Sobhan Babu invested in real estate and shopping complexes in Chennai. He is survived by wife, three daughters and a son.

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