A passionate film maker (1936-2015)
The passing away of a doyen of the Indian film industry, Daggubati Ramanaidu is indeed an irreparable loss to cinema, as he was one of the most prolific film makers who made over 130 films in several languages including inter alia Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam etc. His banner ‘Suresh Productions’ named after his elder son Suresh Babu, is one of the most respected film companies in the country.
The ‘Ramanaidu Studios’, a sprawling complex in Hyderabad, was among the first studios to be set up in Hyderabad. The studio which boasts of state-of-the-art facilities has been a boon for film makers ever since its inception. Basically a businessman who hailed from an agrarian background, Ramanaidu had little interest in cinema till he met thespian Akkineni Nageswara Rao, one of the pillars of the Telugu film industry who prevailed on him to enter tinseldom. The rest as they say is history and Ramanaidu who made his foray by co-producing the Telugu film Anuragam way back in 1963, rose to become one of the most celebrated figures in the annals of Indian cinema.
He began his career as an independent film maker with the blockbuster Ramudu Bheemudu, which featured another Telugu film stalwart N. T. Rama Rao in the lead role. Buoyed by the success of his maiden venture Ramanaidu soon set about consolidating his position in the industry and a number of hit films followed in quick succession. Among the films which gave a fillip to his production house were hits such as Prem Nagar Jeevana Tarangalu, Soggadu, Kaliyuga Pandavalu, Coolie No.1 etc. The film Prem Nagar was remade by Naidu in Tamil as Vasantha Maligai with the legendary Tamil actor Sivaji Ganesan in the lead and after the film’s breezy run, Ramanaidu remade it in Hindi as well as Prem Nagar with the Bollywood superstar Rajesh Khanna and ‘Dream Girl’ Hema Malini essaying the lead roles. Ramanaidu was not known to repeat his stars and made films with almost all the leading stars in Telugu right from Nageswara Rao and N. T. Rama Rao to Chiranjeevi, Nagarjuna and the latest crop of stars as well.
After having entrenched himself in Telugu cinema Ramanaidu yearned to spread his wings and this urge propelled him to make films in other languages notably in Hindi. Among the films that helped him to gain a foothold in Hindi cinema were Tohfa, Prem Qaidi, Insaaf Ki Awaaz, Anari, Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rahte Hain etc. Ramanaidu who had introduced his younger son Venkatesh as the hero in Kaliyuga Pandavalu in Telugu also launched him in Hindi with Anari, a remake of the Tamil superhit Chinnathambi.
Venkatesh who incidentally continues to be a major draw in Telugu films, however could not seize the opportunity and his career in Hindi cinema was shortlived. Ramanaidu introduced a shy sixteen year old, Karishma Kapoor, in Prem Quaidi and she went on to become one of the busiest stars in the industry. Ramanaidu also produced films in Kannada, Malayalam, Odiya, Punabi, Assamese, Marathi etc. A number of films made under his banner have won state awards and the film maker himself was a recipient of stellar honours like the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the highest national honour for contribution to cinema and the Padma Bhushan awarded by the Government of India.
He also won a mention in the Guinness Book of World Records for the maximum number of films made by an individual. Cashing on his popularity as a producer he also chanced his luck in politics and joined the Telugu Desam Party floated by matinee idol N.T. Rama Rao and successfully contested the Lok Sabha elections from Bapatla in Andhra Pradesh. However, with his increasing commitments in cinema, he had little time left for electoral politics and quietly disengaged himself from a full time career in politics. Ramanaidu’s two sons Suresh Babu, whose son Rana Dagubatti has also acted in Telugu and Hindi films and his actor son Venkatesh who have inherited his mantle, have now been saddled with the onerous task of carrying the legacy of the producer forward.