Kaikala Satyanarayana: A multi-faceted Telugu icon from Tollywood's golden era
What's the story
Veteran Telugu actor Kaikala Satyanarayana breathed his last at the age of 87 early on Friday morning at his residence in Hyderabad.
From his decades-long acting career to his strong political presence, he has several accomplishments to add to his credits.
As the Telugu film industry is grieving his loss, let us recall what a multi-faced personality he was.
Read on.
Inception
Satyanarayana started his career by playing body double for NTR
Satyanarayana's first movie was in 1959's Sipayi Koothuru.
Though the film did not perform well, his striking similarities to NT Rama Rao (NTR) became a topic of discussion back then.
Later, he started playing body double for NTR.
In 1960, NTR offered him a role in his film Apoorva Sahasra Sirachida Chinthamani, which went on to become a successful venture.
Movies
He has acted in over 750 movies
In his more than five-decade-long career, Satyanarayana has acted in over 750 films and has been associated with more than 200 directors.
Some of his unforgettable movies are Sri Krishnarjuna Yuddham, Narthanasala, Yamagola, Soggadu, Adavi Ramudu, etc.
Apart from Telugu, he has appeared in some Tamil movies as well.
His most memorable role in Kollywood was in the movie Pancha Thanthiram.
Production
Satyanarayana also set a strong foot in movie production
Though he is known for playing the lead roles in movies, he has also played other roles like antagonists, supporting characters, etc.
The veteran actor has bankrolled many movies under his production banner, Rama Film Productions, too.
Kodama Simham, Muddula Mogudu, and Bangaru Kutumbam are some Telugu movies bankrolled by him.
Moreover, he also presented the megahit KGF franchise led by Yash.
Politics
When Satyanarayana entered politics
In 2017, Filmfare honored him with an award for his lifetime achievement in the Telugu cinema industry.
He was also a recipient of the Andhra Pradesh government's Nandi film award.
Satyanarayana made a brief yet remarkable political stint in the 1990s.
He was a member of the Parliament in the 11th Lok Sabha from the Telugu Desam Party from the Machilipatnam constituency.