Anjali Devi

Anjali Devi
Anjali Devi
	Anjali Devi in 1949
Born	Anjanamma; 24 August 1927; Peddapuram, East Godavari, Madras Presidency (now in Andhra Pradesh), British India
Died	13 January 2014 (aged 86); Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Occupation	Actress; model; film producer;
Spouse(s)	P. Adinarayana Rao (m. 1948; his death 1991)

Anjali Devi (pronunciation (help·info); 24 August 1927 – 13 January 2014) was an Indian actress, model and producer in Telugu and Tamil films. She was well known for her role as the Devi Sita in Lava Kusa as well as for the titular roles in movies like Suvarna Sundari and Anarkali.

Early life

Anjali Devi was born in Peddapuram, East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh, India,^[1] as Anjamma. She changed her name to Anjani Kumari when acting in dramas. Later, director C. Pullaiah changed her name to Anjali Devi.^{[citation needed]}

Career

As actress

She was a theatre artiste before venturing into movies, her debut film role was as Lohitasva in "Raja Harishchandra" in 1936. Her first film as a heroine was Kashtajeevi by L. V. Prasad in 1940, but that film was abandoned after three reels shooting. Later, C.Pullayya discovered her and gave her the opportunity to star as Mohini in Gollabhama (1947). Based on her acting ability and looks, she became a star overnight in 1947. She eventually acted in more than 350 films, majority of them in Telugu films and a few in Hindi, Tamil and Kannada films as the heroine or in character roles.^[2]

She acted in Lava Kusa, a milestone film and the first color film in the Telugu film industry in 1963. She is well known for playing Sita in Lava Kusa and her performances in films like Suvarna Sundari and Anarkali were also appreciated. Brundavanam (1992), Anna Vadina (1993) and Police Alludu (1994) were the last few films of her career. In Balaiah's Police Alludu and Anna Vadina she appeared alongside Brahmanandam. She acted in various roles, such as a damsel, an angel, a dancer, a demon, a goddess, a traditional woman and later in mother roles.^[3]

As producer

In 1955 she produced the film Anarkali, in which she herself played the titular role, with Akkineni Nageswara Rao as Prince Salim. Then she produced V. Madhusudan Rao's Bhakta Tukaram and Chandipriya. Bollywood and Tollywood actress Jayapradha played the lead role in the latter alongside Sobhan Babu and Chiranjeevi. As a producer she has produced 27 films. An ardent devotee of Sri Sathya Sai Baba she produced and acted in Shirdi Sai Parthi Sai Divyakatha, a tele-serial on the life and avatar of Sri Sathya Sai Baba. This was also the first screen appearance of Vijay Devarakonda, then a student of class 3 at Sri Sathya Sai Primary School, Puttaparthi in 1997.^[4]

Personal life

She married P. Adinarayana Rao, a music director, in 1948.^[1] They settled in Chennai. They have two sons. Together, they produced many Telugu films under the banner, Anjali Pictures. Their granddaughter, Saila Rao, is also an actress.^{[citation needed]}

Death

Devi died at the age of 86 on 13 January 2014 at Vijaya Hospital, in Chennai, due to a cardiac arrest.^[5] Her organs were donated to Ramachandra Medical College.^[6] She is survived by her sons.^{[citation needed]}

Awards

Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu – Anarkali (1955)
Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu – Suvarna Sundari (1957)
Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu – Chenchu Lakshmi (1958)
Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu – Jayabheri (1959)
Honorary doctorate from Nagarjuna University, Guntur.
Raghupathi Venkaiah Award in 1994 for her lifetime service to the Telugu film industry.
Rashtrapati Award for Lava Kusa (1963).
Ramineni Award in 2006 in the fine arts category.
ANR National Award in 2008.
Tamil Nadu State Film Honorary Award – Arignar Anna Award in 2000
Padmabhushan Dr. B. Saroja Devi National Award in 2010 by Bharathiya Vidya Bhavan, Bangalore.^[7]

Filmography

Actress

Year	Film	Language	Character	Co-Star	Notes
1947	Gollabhama	Telugu	Mohini	Krishnaveni, Sriranjani
1947	Mahathma Udangar	Tamil	Rambai	Kothamangalam Seenu
1948	Balaraju	Telugu		A. Nageswara Rao, S. Varalakshmi
1948	Aadhithan Kanavu	Tamil		T. R. Mahalingam
1949	Kanniyin Kaadhali	Tamil	Princess Megala Devi	Madhuri Devi, S. A. Natarajan
1949	Keelu Gurram	Telugu	Mohini	A. Nageswara Rao
1949	Maya Kudhirai	Tamil	Mohini	A. Nageswara Rao
1949	Mayavathi	Tamil		T. R. Mahalingam
1949	Mangaiyarkarasi	Tamil		P. U. Chinnappa, P. Kannamba
1950	Palleturi Pilla	Telugu	Santha	N. T. Rama Rao, A. Nageswara Rao
1950	Swapna Sundari	Telugu	Swapna Sundari	A. Nageswara Rao, G. Varalakshmi, S. Varalakshmi
1950	Swapna Sundari	Tamil	Swapna Sundari	A. Nageswara Rao, G. Varalakshmi, S. Varalakshmi
1950	Maaya Rambha	Tamil		N. T. Rama Rao
1950	Maya Rambha	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao
1951	Nirdoshi	Telugu	Nirmala	Mukkamala Krishna Murthy, G. Varalakshmi
1951	Niraparadhi	Tamil		Mukkamala Krishna Murthy, G. Varalakshmi
1951	Sarvadhigari	Tamil		M. G. Ramachandran
1951	Sarvadhikari	Telugu		M. G. Ramachandran
1951	Marmayogi	Tamil		M. G. Ramachandran, Madhuri Devi
1951	Marmayogi	Telugu		M. G. Ramachandran, Madhuri Devi
1951	Mayalamari	Tamil		A. Nageswara Rao
1951	Mayalamaari	Telugu		A. Nageswara Rao
1951	Mayamalai	Tamil		A. Nageswara Rao
1951	Stree Sahasam	Telugu		A. Nageswara Rao
1951	Strisahasam	Tamil		A. Nageswara Rao
1952	Ezhai Uzhavan	Tamil
1953	Pakkinti Ammayi	Telugu	Leela Devi	Relangi Venkataramaiah, A. M. Rajah
1953	Inspector	Tamil		Veenai S. Balachander
1953	Poongodhai	Tamil		A. Nageswara Rao, Sivaji Ganesan, Pandari Bai
1953	Paradesi	Telugu		A. Nageswara Rao, Sivaji Ganesan, Pandari Bai
1953	Ladki	Hindi	Kamini	Kishore Kumar, Bharat Bhushan, Vyjayanthimala	Hindi Debut
1954	Rechukka	Telugu	Nana	N. T. Rama Rao, Devika
1954	Naattiya Thara	Tamil	Nana	N. T. Rama Rao, Devika
1954	Penn	Tamil	Kamini	Gemini Ganesan, Veenai S. Balachander, Vyjayanthimala
1954	Sangham	Telugu	Kamini	N. T. Rama Rao, Veenai S. Balachander, Vyjayanthimala
1954	Sorga Vasal	Tamil	Thilagawathi	S. S. Rajendran, K. R. Ramaswamy, Padmini
1954	Ponvayal	Tamil	Semba	T. R. Ramachandran
1954	Rattha Pasam	Tamil		T. K. Shanmugam, T. K. Baghavathy
1955	Anarkali	Telugu	Anarkali	A. Nageswara Rao
1955	Charana Daasi	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao, ANR, Anjali Devi, Savitri
1955	Kanavaney Kankanda Deivam	Tamil	Princess Nalini	Gemini Ganesan, Lalitha
1955	Kalam Maripochu	Tamil		Gemini Ganesan
1955	Jayasimha	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao, Waheeda Rehman
1955	Jayasimman	Tamil		N. T. Rama Rao, Waheeda Rehman
1955	Doctor Savithri	Tamil		B. R. Panthulu, Veenai S. Balachander
1955	Mudhal Thedhi	Tamil		Sivaji Ganesan
1955	Town Bus	Tamil	Amudha	M. N. Kannappa, M. N. Rajam, Thambaram Lalitha
1956	Devta	Hindi		Gemini Ganesan, Vyjayanthimala
1956	Mathar Kula Manickam	Tamil		Gemini Ganesan, A. Nageswara Rao, K. Savithri
1956	Kaalam Maari Pochu	Tamil		Gemini Ganesan, T. S. Balaiah
1957	Allauddin Adhbhuta Deepam	Telugu	Yasmin, the Princess	A. Nageswara Rao
1957	Alavudheenum Arputha Villakkum	Tamil	Yasmin, the Princess	A. Nageswara Rao
1957	Panduranga Mahatyam	Telugu	Rama	N. T. Rama Rao, Sowcar Janaki, B. Saroja Devi
1957	Suvarna Sundari	Telugu		A. Nageswara Rao, Rajasulochana, Girija
1957	Manaalane Mangaiyin Baakkiyam	Tamil	Sundari	Gemini Ganesan, Rajasulochana, Girija
1957	Chakravarthi Thirumagal	Tamil	Kalamalini	M. G. Ramachandran, S. Varalakshmi
1957	Neelamalai Thirudan	Tamil	Maragatham	Ranjan
1958	Chenchu Lakshmi	Telugu	Goddess Lakshmi	A. Nageswara Rao
1958	Chenchu Lakshmi	Tamil	Goddess Lakshmi	A. Nageswara Rao
1958	Illarame Nallaram	Tamil		Gemini Ganesan, B. Saroja Devi
1958	Raja Nandini	Telugu	Ramani	N. T. Rama Rao
1958	Kanniyin Sabadham	Tamil		K. R. Ramaswamy, Rajasulochana
1959	Jayabheri	Telugu	Manjulavani	A. Nageswara Rao
1959	Bala Nagamma	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao
1959	Kalaivanan	Tamil		A. Nageswara Rao
1959	Naan Sollum Ragasiyam	Tamil		Sivaji Ganesan
1960	Bhatti Vikramarka	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao, Kanta Rao
1960	Mannadhi Mannan	Tamil	Princess Karpagavalli	M. G. Ramachandran, Padmini
1960	Aadavantha Deivam	Tamil	Kalyani	T. R. Mahalingam, E. V. Saroja
1960	Adutha Veettu Penn	Tamil		T. R. Ramachandran
1960	Engal Selvi	Tamil		A. Nageswara Rao
1961	Naganandhini	Tamil		K. Balaji
1961	Pangaaligal	Tamil		M. R. Radha
1962	Bhishma	Telugu	Amba	N. T. Rama Rao
1962	Swarna Manjari	Telugu
1962	Mangaiyar Ullam Mangatha Selvam	Tamil		Gemini Ganesan
1962	Naag Devta	Hindi	Mohini	Mahipal
1963	Lava Kusa	Telugu	Sita	N. T. Rama Rao, Kanta Rao
1963	Lava Kusa	Tamil	Sita	N. T. Rama Rao, Gemini Ganesan
1963	Paruvu Prathishta	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao
1965	Sati Sakkubai	Telugu
1966	Chilaka Gorinka	Telugu		Krishnam Raju, Krishna Kumari
1966	Palnati Yudham	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao, P. Bhanumathi, Jamuna
1966	Rangula Ratnam	Telugu		Ram Mohan, Chandra Mohan
1967	Bhakta Prahlada	Telugu	Leelavati	S. V. Ranga Rao
1967	Rahasyam	Telugu		A. Nageswara Rao, B. Saroja Devi, G. Varalakshmi
1968	Veeranjaneya	Telugu	Sita	Arja Janardhana Rao, Kanta Rao, S. V. Ranga Rao, Kongara Jaggaiah
1970	Amma Kosam	Telugu		Super star Krishna, Krishnam Raju, Vijaya Nirmala
1971	Dasara Bullodu	Telugu	Yashoda	A. Nageswara Rao, Vanisri, Chandrakala, S. V. Ranga Rao, Gummadi Venkateswara Rao
1971	Kalyana Mandapam	Telugu		Sobhan Babu, Kanchana
1971	Sabatham	Tamil	Rajeswari	Ravichandran, K. R. Vijaya
1972	Badi Panthulu	Telugu		N. T. Rama Rao
1972	Maa Inti Velugu	Telugu		Super star Krishna, Chandrakala
1972	Bala Bharatam	Telugu
1972	Tata Manavadu	Telugu		S. V. Ranga Rao
1973	Bhakta Tukaram	Telugu	Avali Bai	A. Nageswara Rao, Kanchana
1973	Jeevana Tarangalu	Telugu		Sobhan Babu, Krishnam Raju, Vanisree, Lakshmi
1974	Urimai Kural	Tamil		M. G. Ramachandran, Latha, S. V. Sahasranamam
1975	Soggadu	Telugu		Sobhan Babu, Jayasudha, Jayachitra
1976	Mahakavi Kshetrayya	Telugu		A. Nageswara Rao
1977	Shri Ram Vanvas	Hindi
1977	Kurukshetram	Telugu	Kunti	Krishna, Sobhan Babu
1979	Annai Oru Alayam	Tamil		Rajinikanth, Sripriya
1980	Ram Robert Rahim	Telugu		Krishna, Rajinikanth, Chandra Mohan, Sridevi
1980	Chandipriya	Telugu		Chiranjeevi
1980	Bhale Krishnudu	Telugu		Mohan Babu, Krishna, Jaya Prada
1984	Pozhudhu Vidinjachu	Tamil		Prabhu, Sulakshana, Koundamani
1986	Sri Shirdi Saibaba Mahathyam	Telugu		Vijayachander, J. V. Somayajulu, Kanta Rao
1986	Sri Seeradi Saibaba	Tamil		Vijayachander, J. V. Somayajulu, Kanta Rao
1987	Srutilayalu	Telugu		Kaikala Satyanarayana, Rajasekhar, Sumalata
1987	Punnami Chandrudu	Telugu		Shoban Babu, Suhasini Maniratnam, Sumalatha
1987	Kadhal Parisu	Tamil		Kamal Haasan, Ambika, Radha
1993	Brundavanam	Telugu	Lakshmi Devi	Rajendra Prasad, Ramya Krishna, Gummadi Venkateswara Rao

Producer

Paradesi
Suvarna Sundari
Swarnamanjari
Chandi Priya
Sati Sakkubai
Shirdi Sai Sathya Sai Divya Katha (television series)

References

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 "Anjali Devi". IMDB. Archived from the original on 28 December 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2012.
↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 22 May 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 14 September 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 12 October 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
↑ "Veteran actor Anjali Devi dead". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 14 January 2014. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 16 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
↑ "Anjali Devi passes away". Filmcircle.com. Archived from the original on 13 January 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2014.
↑ http://www.uniindia.com/multi-lingual-actress-jayanti-wins-b-saroja-devi-national-award/states/news/834469.html

External links

Anjali Devi on IMDb

[IMDB_dec_8-1] 1.0 ^1.1 "Anjali Devi". IMDB. Archived from the original on 28 December 2018. Retrieved 8 December 2012.

[2] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 22 May 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[3] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 14 September 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[4] "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 12 October 2020. Retrieved 16 May 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)

[5] "Veteran actor Anjali Devi dead". The Hindu. Special Correspondent. 14 January 2014. ISSN 0971-751X. Archived from the original on 16 May 2018. Retrieved 16 May 2018.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: others (link)

[6] "Anjali Devi passes away". Filmcircle.com. Archived from the original on 13 January 2014. Retrieved 13 January 2014.

[7] ttp://www.uniindia.com/multi-lingual-actress-jayanti-wins-b-saroja-devi-national-award/states/news/834469.html

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v t e Raghupathi Venkaiah Award
1980–1990	1980: L. V. Prasad (director and producer) 1981: P. Pullaiah and Santha Kumari (director and producer) 1982: B. A. Subba Rao (director, producer and writer) 1983: M. A. Rahman 1984: Kosaraju Raghavaiah Choudary (lyricist, poet and actor) 1985: Bhanumati (actor, producer, singer, music director, and writer) 1986: Bapu and Mullapudi Venkata Ramana 1987: B. Nagi Reddy (producer) 1988: D. V. S. Raju (producer) 1989: Akkineni Nageswara Rao (actor) 1990: Dasari Narayana Rao (actor, director, and producer)
1991–2000	1991: K. Viswanath (Film director) 1992: S. Rajeswara Rao (composer) 1993: D. Madhusudhana Rao (producer) 1994: Anjali Devi (actress) 1995: K. S. Prakash Rao (actor, cinematographer, director, producer) 1996: Inturi Venkateswara Rao 1997: V. Madhusudhan Rao 1998: Gummadi Venkateswara Rao (actor) 1999: Santha Kumari (actress and producer) 2000: Kanta Rao (actor, producer)
2001–present	2001: Allu Rama Lingaiah (actor) 2002: P. Susheela (playback singer) 2003: V. B. Rajendra Prasad (producer) 2004: Krishnaveni (actress and producer) 2005: M. S. Reddy (producer, writer, and director) 2006: Daggubati Rama Naidu (producer, actor) 2007: Tammareddy Krishna Murthy (producer) 2008: Vijaya Nirmala (actress, producer and director) 2009: K. Ragava (producer) 2010: M. Balaiah (actor, producer and director) 2011: Kaikala Satyanarayana (actor, producer and director) 2012: Kodi Ramakrishna (director) 2013: Vanisri (actress) 2014: Krishnam Raju (actor) 2015: Eswar (publicity designer, writer) 2016: Chiranjeevi (actor, producer)