G. Varalakshmi
G. Varalakshmi ( Garikipati Varalakshmi ; Telugu : జి.వరలక్ష్మి ; born September 27, 1926 in Ongole ; † November 26, 2006 in Chennai , Tamil Nadu ) was an Indian actress , singer and film producer. She starred in Tamil and Telugu films .
Life
Varalakshmi was from the present Andhra Pradesh located village of Ongole . At the age of eleven she ran away from home to Vijayawada and joined theater troupes. She appeared with the troops of Tungala Chalapathi Rao and Dasari Kotiratnam and played the role of Radha in the plays Sakkubai and Prabhavati in Rangoon Rowdy, which were filmed in Tamil and Telugu in 1934/35 with Chalapathi and Kotiratnam .
Varalakshmi made her film debut in 1940 in HM Reddy's film Barrister Parvatisham , in which the later film producer and director LV Prasad also appeared. In 1943 she married the actor KS Prakash Rao . She went to Bombay and sang as a background singer for Naushad , but returned to the South Indian film industry in 1946 due to unsuccessfulness. Varalakshmi is working in Drohi (1948), directed by LV Prasads , the first film produced by her husband and her that also spurred her career. In the 1950s and 60s she took on leading and character roles in Telugu and Tamil films. She played both with her husband and with the Tamil stars MG Ramachandran , including in Gul-e-Bakavali (1955), and Sivaji Ganesan in Naan Petra Selvan (1956).
In the Telugu film Moogajeevulu (1968), which she wrote and produced , she acted and directed. G. Varalakshmi starred in at least 94 films. After 1980 she retired from film work.
Filmography (selection)
- 1941: Dakshayagnam
- 1948: Drohi
- 1950: Swapna Sundari
- 1951: Nirdoshi / Niraparadhi
- 1952: Pelli Chesi Choodu / Kalyanam Panni pair
- 1953: Kanna Talli / Petrathai
- 1957: Karpurakarasi
- 1962: Kulagothralu
- 1978: Gorantha Deepam
Footnotes
- ^ The Astrological Magazine . Raman Publications, 1971, limited preview in Google Book search
- ^ Number of films listed in their filmography in Ashish Rajadhyaksha, Paul Willemen: Encyclopaedia of Indian Cinema , p. 229
Web links
- G. Varalakshmi in the Internet Movie Database (English)
- Death report
- A maverick who made it (obituary in The Hindu, December 1, 2006)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Varalakshmi, G. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Varalakshmi, Garikipati; జి.వరలక్ష్మి (Telugu) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Indian actress, singer and film producer |
| DATE OF BIRTH | September 27, 1926 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Ongols |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 26, 2006 |
| Place of death | Chennai , Tamil Nadu |