MP, Veteran Telugu Filmmaker Dasari Narayana Rao Dies At 75

May 31, 2017

Hyderabad, May 31: Veteran Telugu filmmaker and former Union minister Dasari Narayana Rao, who directed super-hit movies with legendary actors like NT Rama Rao and Akkineni Nageswara Rao, died at a private hospital in Hyderabad today. He was 75.

dasari

He was an active politician in the Congress party and served as a minister during the UPA-1 regime.

"We are extremely sorry to announce the sad demise of Dasari Narayana Rao. His heart stopped functioning at 7 pm this evening. It did not revive though lot of effort was made to revive (the heart)," a senior doctor of KIMS hospital told reporters.

A major surgery related to his food pipe was performed and he also developed problems related to kidney, he said.

During his last minutes, his family members were by his side.

His cremation will be held tomorrow at his farmhouse in Chevalli, on the outskirts of Hyderabad with state honours, Telangana cinematography minister T Srinivas Yadav said.

Mr Rao, a versatile personality who directed about 150 films and worked for hundreds of others as a dialogue writer, lyricist and actor, was admitted to hospital couple of months ago, but was soon discharged.

He began his career as a theatre artiste and went on to work in films. Mr Rao directed his first film in the early 1970s.

He won many prestigious awards, including the National Award, the Filmfare and received honours from the Andhra Pradesh government.

Mr Rao's works "Bobbilipuli" and "Sardar Paparayudu" played a major role in NTR's entry into films. His movie "Meghasandesam", with another legendary Telugu film actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao, won critical acclaim and fetched him several awards.

Mr Rao's "Osey Ramulamma", with popular yesteryear actress Vijayashanti in the main lead, highlighted the darker side of landlords in the Telangana region.

His "Premabhishekam" in the 1980s with Nageswara Rao was a runaway hit. His other major films include "Swargam Narakam", "Thatha Manavadu", "Mama Garu" and "Chillara Kottu Chitteemma".

There were reports that the filmmaker, who celebrated his 75th birthday on May 4, was planning to direct a biopic on former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu J Jayalalithaa.

Mr Rao was also a journalist and ran a vernacular daily. In 2014, he was questioned by the CBI in connection with alleged irregularities in allocation coal block.

Leading producer C Kalyan said as a mark of respect, theatres in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh will remain closed tomorrow and there will be no shooting of films.

Condoling Mr Rao's death, Union I&B Minister Venkaiah Naidu said, "I am saddened by the untimely demise of Sri Dasari Narayana Rao. With his demise the Telgu Industry lost its big brother."

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, his Telangana counterpart K Chandrasekhar Rao and Dada Saheb Phalke award recipient K Viswanath also condoled the death of Mr Rao.

Recalling that he knew Mr Rao even before his marriage to NTR's daughter, Mr Naidu hailed the stellar contribution of the departed personality in films.

Expressing grief, Mr Viswanath said Mr Rao introduced a number of young actors into the film industry.

Actor Rajinikanth tweeted, "Shri Dasari Narayana Raoji, my dearest and closest well-wisher and friend...One of the greatest directors of India...His demise is a loss to the whole Indian film industry. My heartfelt condolences to his family. May his soul RIP."

Kamal Hassan also condoled the death of Mr Rao. "My sympathy and condolences to the family of Daasari Naryana Rao. His loss is truly a big loss for Telugu cinema. Late K B sir admired him. (sic)," he said in a tweet.

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News Network
April 4,2020

New Delhi, April 4: Extending a helping hand to curb the spread of coronavirus, superstar Shah Rukh Khan and wife Gauri Khan have offered their personal office space in Mumbai for quarantine purpose for children, elderly and women.

The information was tweeted by the official Twitter handle of BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) on Saturday that thanked the couple for the gesture.

"Stronger together. We thank Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan for offering their 4-storey personal office space to help expand our quarantine capacity equipped with essentials for quarantined children, women and elderly, Indeed a thoughtful and timely gesture!" the tweet read.

Earlier the 54-year-old superstar and his group companies had pledged to donate to a number of relief funds, including the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) fund and the Maharashtra Chief Minister's Relief Fund to combat the coronavirus.

The 'Devdas' actor had taken to Twitter on Thursday and shared that his companies -- Kolkata Knight Riders, Red Chillies Entertainment, Meer Foundation, and Red Chillies VFX -- are taking several initiatives to support the relief efforts.

The Padma Shri awardee also announced that his initial efforts will be focused on three cities -- Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi, "with the realisation that this is a start and we stand ready to contribute in whichever way possible going forward".

Meanwhile, India's tally of coronavirus positive cases rose to 2,902, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday.

Out of 2,902 cases, 2,650 are active cases and 184 have been cured or discharged or have migrated. The total number of deaths reported due to the disease rose to 68 on Saturday.

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Agencies
June 15,2020

Mumbai, Jun 15: Actor Sushant Singh Rajput's death has reignited the discussions around the struggle of survival in Bollywood, with many insiders highlighting "cruel and unforgiving" nature of the industry, particularly tough on outsiders.

Rajput was found hanging in his Bandra apartment on Sunday.

According to a police official, Mumbai Police found out during the probe that the 34-year-old actor was under medication for depression.

An engineering student, Rajput left his course at the Delhi Technological University in the early 2000s and rose from a background dancer to a TV star with soap opera Pavitra Rishta, which gave the "outsider" his breakout show in 2009.

In 2013, he made his Bollywood debut with Kai Po Che! and went on to star in films such as Shuddh Desi Romance, Raabta, Kedarnath, Sonchiriya and Chhichhore.

But his most prominent role came as cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni's in the 2007 biopic, MS Dhoni: The Untold Story.

In a telling tweet, veteran actor Dharmendra wrote despite not knowing Rajput personally, his death served as a reminder that the industry could be "cruel".

"Pyaare Sushant, naa film dekhi na kabhi mila tum se... par tere achaanak chale jaane se bada sadma laga. This beautiful beloved 'show business" is very cruel. I can imagine your unbearable pain. I share the pain of your loving family and friends," Dharmendra wrote.

Actor Meera Chopra penned a powerful, poignant note about the loneliness one feels working in an industry, which is "cold and ruthless".

"We all knew well that Sushant was going through depression since long, but what did we do? Where was his close circle, the directors and producers he's worked with, his close friends? Why nobody came out and helped, gave him the kind of love, the work that he wanted - because nobody cares," she wrote on Twitter.

The Section 375 actor, who has been vocal about feeling suffocated by the constant judgement from the industry colleagues, said nobody in Bollywood cares about what one's going through and artistes are just a flop away from being alienated.

Chopra said the industry has "failed" Rajput and Bollywood will now never be the same.

"True, Bollywood is a small family, but a kind of family which is never there when you need them. He had to take his life for that family to realise the kind of pain and need he was in. An outsider will always feel like an outsider here.

"I just want to say to my industry that help people when they need it, and you know when they need it. There is no point tweeting when they are no more. Don't pretend to be sad when you guys didn't do anything when he was sad. Stop being such a hypocritical society," she added.

Gulshan Devaiah said, as an actor, one could understand why Rajput would've taken the step to end his life.

"As actors, somewhere deep down inside, we think we know why he did it and that’s why it so disturbing even if you didn’t know him at all. It’s a hard game to play and he played it very well but the game won in the end," Devaiah wrote.

Quoting Chopra's tweet, the Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota star dismissed the idea of Bollywood being a family.

"If one thinks it’s a family, there is the problem. Bollywood is an imaginary name for a place of work, that’s it. I am really not trying to put anybody down here and sorry if it seems," he wrote.

On Sunday, actor-producer Nikhil Dwivedi posted a strongly-worded tweet calling out the "hypocrisy" of the industry after people from the film fraternity wrote they regretted not staying in touch with the "Chhichhore" star.

"High and mighty announcing they should have kept in touch with Sushant. Come on, you didn't! And that's because his career dipped. So STFU! Are you in touch with Imran Khan, Abhay Deol and others? No! But you were, when they were doing well," Dwivedi said.

Similar sentiment was echoed by filmmaker Anubhav Sinha, who, without taking names, said the "Bollywood Privilege Club" must sit down and think hard.

"Now don't ask me to elaborate any further," he tweeted.

Addressing outsiders, filmmaker Hansal Mehta wrote a long thread about the two ends of an artiste's time in the industry - the glorious successes and the crushing lows.

"There are many young 'outsiders' in this industry. Remember this - there is an establishment that will make you feel like the next big thing until they need you. They will drop you and mock you as soon as you falter. Do not fall for the trap. The ones that celebrate you will celebrate your downfall some time later," he tweeted.

Mehta said it's important for those who don't come from a film family to not force themselves to fit in.

"Just be authentic, follow your heart and stop seeking acceptance from anybody. Your connection should be with your art, your craft and with your audience. Nothing else matters. Over the years you will succeed, you will stumble.

"But remember that nothing is more important than you. Look after yourself. And know that you matter. The world is much bigger and wiser than what you perceive. So are opportunities. If you stay they will be yours. Lots of love. Never lose heart," the filmmaker wrote.

Celebrity hairstylist-turned-director Sapna Bhavnani claimed that Rajput's battle with mental health was out in the open and yet the industry chose to look the other way.

"It’s no secret Sushant was going through very tough times for the last few years. No one in the industry stood up for him nor did they lend a helping hand. To tweet today is the biggest display of how shallow the industry really is. No one here is your friend," she wrote on Twitter.

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News Network
May 25,2020

New Delhi, May 25: Sending out good wishes on the auspicious of Eid, actor Sara Ali Khan on Sunday shared a priceless childhood throwback picture, along with her picture from the current days.

The 'Simmba' star put out the cute picture on Instagram where she is seen clad in a pink hijab, while on the other hand, the second picture features the younger Sara as she is seen sporting a black dupatta while she tries to imitate the younger self.

Along with the picture, she wrote," Eid Mubarak," and urged people to stay safe by staying at home and urged them to stay positive amid the COVID-19 outbreak with "#staysafe #stayhome #staypositive."

The post on the photo-sharing platform garnered more than one lakh likes within an hour of being posted.

Lately, the 'Kedarnath' star has been keeping her fans updated on her quarantine activities by sharing pictures and videos of her quarantine activities.

Earlier, Sara took a trip down the memory lane and reminisced her graduation day by sharing throwback pictures from the ceremony.

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