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Veteran Telugu actor and producer Akkineni nageswara Rao passed away at age 91 on 22nd January, 2014 in Hyderabad after battling cancer. Photo: G. Ramakrishna
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Born on September 20, 1923, this legendary actor has acted in 256 films in a career spanning over 75 years. Photo: Special Arrangement
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Known as one of the pillars of Telugu cinema, Nageswara Rao has been honoured with the Padma Vibhushan, Dada Saheb Phalke award and lifetime achievement award, apart from Filmfare Best Actor Award thrice. Here he is being felicitated with 'Ghantasala Puraskara Satkaram'. Photo: C. V. Subrahmanyam
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ANR, who immortalised the character of Devdas in the film based on Bengali author Sarat Chandra Chatterjee's novel, has acted in different genres of films including mythological, social and romantic themes and given numerous hits. Photo: Special Arrangement
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Having entered the film industry with 'Dharmapatni' at the age of 17, ANR became one of the earliest stars of the Black& White era, with moving performances in films like Devadas, Prema Nagar, Maya Bazaar, Laila Majnu and Anarkali. A still from Maya Bazaar starring Nageswara Rao and Savithri. Photo: The Hindu Archives
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His film Premabhishekam was the biggest hits of Telugu cinema and it ran for 533 days. Photo: Special Arrangement
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Akkineni Nageswara Rao is seen with late Dev Anand. Dev Anand was the first recipient of the ANR National Award in 2005. Photo: P. V. Sivakumar
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He also owns a production house, Annapurna Studios, named after his wife. It is considered as Asia's most modern state-of-the-art shooting studio. Photo: Mohammed Yousuf
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Veteran actors Anjali Devi, Saroja Devi, Manjula and Vyjayanthimala Bali pose with Nageswara Rao who was honoured at a function organised by T.Subbarami Reddy Lalitha Kala Parishat and Committee of Hosts of Telugu film industry in Hyderabad in 2012. Photo: Mohammed Yousuf
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He was diagnosed with cancer in October 2013, and made a public appearance to boldly announce his health condition to his fans. Photo: G. Ramakrishna
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President Pranab Mukherjee felicitating ANR at the 4th World Telugu Conference in Tirupati in 2012. Photo: Nagara Gopal
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The Thespian ended his career with 'Manam', a movie which saw three generations of the Akkineni family – ANR, his son and popular actor Nagarjuna and grandson Naga Chaitanya - sharing screen space. In this picture, Nagewara Rao is seen with his son Nagarjuna. Photo: G. Ramakrishna