HYDERABAD: Senior actor Kota Srinivas Rao passes away
Hyderabad: Veteran actor Kota Srinivasa Rao died on Sunday after a prolonged illness. He was 83 years old. Kota Srinivasa Rao, a former BJP MLA, died at his residence in Filmnagar in the wee hours of Sunday. He is survived by his wife and two daughters. He was battling age-related health issues for the past few days. His picture shared on social media by producer Bandla Ganesh recently had stunned fans. In a career spanning over four decades, he acted in over 750 films in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada languages. Known for his unique voice and dialogue delivery, Kota Srinivasa Rao played a variety of roles, mainly villain and comedian. Born on July 10, 1942 in Kankipadu in Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, Kota Srinivasa Rao was a stage artiste before making his debut as an actor in 1978 with Chiranjeevi-starrer ‘Pranam Khareedu’. In the early part of his career, he played several character and comic roles and made his mark as a villain with ‘Pratighathan’ (1985).
He is seen as an actor who coined a new definition of villain on screen. He was popular for his proficiency in Telugu language in various dialects. Kota Srinivasa Rao acted alongside top Tollywood actors like Superstar Krishna, Chiranjeevi, Balakrishna, Nagarjuna, Venkatesh, Mahesh Babu and Pawan Kalyan. ‘Aaha! Naa Pellanta’, ‘Yamudiki Mogudu’, ‘Khaidi No. 786’, ‘Siva’, ‘Bobbili Raja’, ‘Yamaleela’, ‘Bommarillu’, ‘Santosham’, ‘Athadu’ and ‘Race Gurram’ were some of the films that brought him fame. Srinivasa Rao acted in about 60 films with popular comedian Babu Mohan. At one time, the pair was considered a guarantee of the film’s success. Srinivasa Rao received several awards including the Padma Shri and the Nandi Award. In 2015, he was honoured with the Padma Shri for his contribution to Indian cinema. The actor was also a BJP MLA from Vijayawada East Assembly constituency from 1999 to 2004. He lost his only son, Kota Venkata Anjaneya Prasad, in a road accident in Hyderabad in 2010. Prominent film personalities and political leaders from both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana states have condoled the demise of Srinivasa Rao.
