Legendary Telugu film actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao, who stole the hearts of millions of fans across the world, is no more. He breathed his last in the early hours of Wednesday at a private hospital where, for the past few months, he was undergoing treatment for intestinal cancer.
The 91-year-old doyen of the Telugu film industry is survived by three daughters and two sons, including actor Nagarjuna, and grand-children. His body will be taken out in a procession on Thursday and later cremated with police honours.
Born in Venkata Raghavapuram of Krishna district on September 20, 1924, the first-generation actor’s 75 year-old career comprised 256 films across social, romantic and mythological genres. He started his acting career with theatre but soon switched over to silver screen and made his film debut in 1941 with Dharmapatni , interestingly playing female role.
ANR, as he was popularly called by his fans, wrapped up his work with Manam that featured three generations of the Akkineni family, including him, Nagarjuna and grandson Naga Chaitanya.
He has been honoured with Padma Vibhushan, Dada Saheb Phalke Award, the Raghupathi Venkaiah Award and the NTR National Award.
