Renowned producer and Raghupathi Venkaiah Award winner Kotipalli Raghava, widely known as K Raghava died of cardiac arrest in the wee hours of Tuesday at Apollo Hospital, Jubilee Hills. He was 105 and is survived by his son, Pratap and daughter, Prashanti.
Born in Kotipalli in East Godavari district in 1913, Raghava was a multi-tasker and was hailed as the ‘Cine Bhishma’, the patriarch of Telugu film industry. He started his career as a trolley puller on the sets of silent films at East Indian Film Company studio in Kolkata. Later, he moved to Vijayawada where he worked in Maruthi Talkies, the first theatre established in the Telugu States.
“As silent films were ruling the roost in those years, Raghava assisted yesteryear popular narrator and comedian Kasturi Siva Rao in his works. He also worked as a stunt master in films like Pathala Bhairavi (1951), Raju Peda (1954) and as a production executive for several films including a Hollywood movie, Tarzan Goes To India (1962) before he got a stable job at the Maharaja of Mirzapur, who was also a producer of films like Bheeshma and Palanati Yuddham (1947),” shares SV Rama Rao, a popular film aficionado.
Raghava had meticulous planning and had the discipline to nurture talent. “He was really particular and uncompromising about what he wanted. After director Gudavalli Ramabrahmam died during the climax shoot of Palnati Yuddham, it was Raghava who had suggested veteran filmmaker LV Prasad’s name to Maharaja to complete the remaining portions of the film,” recalls Rama Rao.
He shared a great rapport with late SV Ranga Rao, Tamil actor Sivaji Ganeshan, filmmaker K Balachander and Bollywood actors Prithviraj Kapoor, Ashok Kumar, Raj Kumar and others. “It was Raghava, who suggested Sivaji Ganesan make films based on some of his popular plays. He collaborated with producer Ekambareswara Rao for Sukha Dukhalu (1968), an adaptation of K Balachander’s play Major Chandrakanth,” adds Rama Rao.
In a career spanning over 90 years, Raghava had produced 27 films under Falguna Pictures and Pratap Arts of which 25 were declared blockbusters, including a Hindi (Itni Si Baat) and a Tamil film (Minor Mappillai). He was known for launching several stalwarts and giving breaks to upcoming actors and technicians in his films. He was also credited for roping in Megastar Chiranjeevi’s father, Venkata Rao, for an Inspector’s role in Jagath Kiladeelu. “He was an institution and introduced the likes of Telugu cinema legend NT Rama Rao (Mana Desam), directors Dasari Narayana Rao (Tata Manavadu), Kodi Ramakrishna (Intlo Ramayya Veedhilo Krishnayya), Rajashri (Chaduvu Samskaram), Mohan Das (Anthuleni Vintha Katha), K Aditya (Ee Prasnaku Baduledi), Guhanadhan (Surya Chandrulu) and Bandhela Eswara Rao (Ankitham) among others to the industry,” reveals Rama Rao.
Raghava also played a major role in establishing the Telugu film industry in Hyderabad after it shifted from Madras (now Chennai) along with NT Rama Rao, Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Rama Naidu. “Raghava had set up Pratap Dubbing Theatre near Apollo Hospital during that time and he played a crucial role in developing Film Nagar as a major hub for the industry,” shares Rama Rao.He has received several accolades including Raghupathi Venkaiah Award (2012), ANR Lifetime Achievement award and Nandi awards for films Tata Manavadu (1972) and Samsaram Sagaram (1973) besides many film awards.Veteran actor Kaikala Satyanarayana, Mohan Babu, Suman and others from the film fraternity offered their condolences to the bereaved family members. His last rites were performed at Mahaprasthanam on Tuesday.
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