Director of the superhit film Arundhati, Kodi Ramakrishna, passed away in Hyderabad on Friday, 22 February, due to ill health. The director reportedly complained of breathing trouble, following which he was rushed to a private hospital in Gachibowli on Thursday, 21 February, evening. He was put on ventilator, but passed away.
Kodi Ramakrishna directed several superhit films which include Ammoru, Devullu, Bharat Bandh, Pelli Sandhadi, Devi and Anji among others. Ammoru was made in Tamil as Amman, which was dubbed in several other languages later.
The director was known to make devotional films that required computer-generated graphics. In his career spanning the Tamil, Malayalam and Kannada film industries, he had directed more than 100 films.
The director made a comeback with the film Arundhati starring Anushka Shetty, which was made in 2009. The film created a trend for films with women actors in the lead.
Though Ramakrishna was supposed to make his debut with Tarangini in 1982, starring Bhanu Chander, Suman and Poornima, the film was kept on hold, as the producer said that it was a great risk to make a debut with newcomers.
Ramakrishna then directed Intlo Ramayya Veedhilo Krishnayya, with Chiranjeevi and Madhavi, which released in the same year. The film became a huge hit, even running in theatres for more than 550 days.
Kodi Ramakrishna was born in Palakollu, West Godavari district. Before directing films he worked as Associate Director in Korikale Gurralaithe. His last directorial was Avatharam in 2014, a devotional film.
Ramakrishna had earlier suffered a heart attack and a paralytic attack. However, he made a quick recovery and continued making films.
Several people expressed their condolences over his demise.
(This article has been produced in an association with The News Minute)
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)