Icon of a tradition
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In Somayajulu's demise, the film industry and Telugu theatre have lost an artiste of caliber. A tribute.
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HE WAS born to play the role of Sankara Sastry in ``Sankarabharanam." Making his film debut rather late , Jonnalagadda Venkatasubrahmanya Somayajulu became a celebrity overnight after the release of the landmark film two decades ago.
The films that followed - `Vamsa Vruksham,' `Thyagayya' and `Saptapadi' have all given Somayajulu an image of a patriarch who's main interest was to uphold the cultural and traditional values of society. He was often compared with Chittoor Nagaiah who rose to superstardom with films like `Thyagayya', `Pothanna' and `Vemana'.
`Sankarabharanam' is textbook cinema and its soul was Carnatic music, not a subject a producer would gamble with. But the film was a big box office hit.
The two factors that contributed to the film's success were its story, screenplay, direction by Viswanath and excellent performance by Somayajulu who lived the role of the musician Sankara Sastry and instantly endeared himself to audiences all over the world wherever it was screened.
Somayajulu played all types of roles on stage. He had been a Revenue official and also served as director of Department of Culture. His mother was a source of inspiration to him and to his brothers.
His father Sivarama Murthy and his uncle were actors in mythologicals. His brothers, Ramanamurthy and Sriramamurthy, are also actors. Ramanamurthy joined the film industry quite early after he won the best actor award in a competition held by the Andhra Nataka Kala Parishat in 1955. It was he who sent film director Yogi to Somayajulu urging him to accept a role in `Raara Krishnayya'. Hailing from a small `Agraharam' (village) Lukulam in Srikakulam district, it was a long journey for Somayajulu who eventually made a mark with his dignified deeds on and off screen as well.
GUDIPOODI SRIHARI
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