N. T. Rama Rao Age, Death, Wife, Children, Family, Biography & More

Some Lesser Known Facts About N. T. Rama Rao

• Did N. T. Rama Rao smoke?: Yes
  

  NTR Smoking

• Did N. T. Rama Rao drink alcohol?: Not Known

• Rao was born into a poor farming family.

• As there was no school in his village, he recieved his early education in a village shed from his teacher, Valluru Subba Rao.

• He was adopted by his paternal uncle, Nandamuri Ramaiah.

• In 1933, his family shifted to Vijayawada, where he completed his schooling from a municipal school.

• He wasn’t good at studies and cleared his 12th standard exam in the 3rd attempt.

• When he was 20, he got married to ‘Basava Tarakam’ and had 8 sons and 4 daughters with her.

• He was among the 7 candidates who cleared the Madras Service Commission Exam. The total number of candidates who appeared for the exam was 1100.

• In 1947, he started working as a sub-registrar at Madras Service Commission with a salary of ₹190/month (an esteemed job). However, he left just after 3 weeks of joining so that he could concentrate on his acting.

• He was a fine painter and had won a prize at state level competition for it in 1941-42.

• He met Subhash Chandra Bose in Vijayawada and presented him his portrayal.

• He played the role of a policeman in his debut film ‘Mana Desam’ (1949) and since then, there was no looking back for him. For the film, his remuneration was ₹1000

• He had played the role of Krishna in 17 films in movies including the Tamil film ‘Karnan’, ‘Sri Krishnarjuna Yudham’, and ‘Daana Veera Soora Karna’. His first mythological movie was the blockbuster film ‘Maya Bazaar’ (1957), where he essayed Lord Krishna for the first time.

• He portrayed Lord Rama in films ‘Lava Kusha’ and ‘Shri Ramanjaneya Yuddham’, as Ravana in the films ‘Bhookailas’ and ‘Seetharama Kalyanam’, and Lord Shiva and Lord Vishnu in films ‘Dakshayagnam’ and ‘Sri Venkateswara Mahatyam,’ respectively.

• He stopped playing princely roles and took up the poor yet heroic roles fighting against the exploitations and discriminations existing in our society. His such movies connected well with the mass and these include ‘Devudu Chesina Manushulu’, ‘Justice Chowdhary’, ‘Driver Ramudu’, ‘Bobbili Puli’, ‘Kondaveeti Simham’, ‘Sardar Papa Rayudu’, ‘Adavi Ramudu’, and ‘Vetagadu.’

• In 1962, his eldest son Nandamuri Ramakrishna Sr died. In his memory, he founded the film studio Ramakrishna Studios.

• Under his production houses, “National Art Theater Private Limited, Madras and Ramakrishna Studios, Hyderabad”, he produced many of his movies and a few of other actors’.

• He has been credited for directing a dozen movies and having appeared in more than 300 movies.

• He always had been a keen learner. He was 40 when he learned dancing from a Kuchipudi dancer Vempati Chinna Satyam for his role in the movie ‘Nartanasala’ (1963).

• He was the first Indian politician to use Rath Yatra for campaigning during elections. He, along with his son Nandamuri Harikrishna (an actor and politician), travelled around 75,000 kilometres across Andhra Pradesh on his Chevrolet van. He gave the slogan, “Telugu Vari Atma Gauravam” (Telugu people’s self-respect) while campaigning to restore the dignity of the Telugu people.
  

  NTR’s Rath Yatra During Campaigning

• He was the first non-congress Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh and served the state between 1983 and 1994.

• In 1984, his fellow actor and friend M. G. Ramachandran (MGR), who then was the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, was unable to campaign in the state elections because of being unwell, NTR campaigned and handled all the party affairs for All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).
  

  NTR With His Friend M. G. Ramachandran

• In 1984, he underwent coronary bypass surgery in the U.S.

• In 1984, when he was recovering from his surgery, Governor Ram Lal dismissed his Ministry and Nadendla Bhaskara Rao was made the Chief Minister.

• In 1985, his first wife ‘Basava Tarakam’ died of cancer. Soon after her death, he founded the Basavatarakam Indo-American Cancer Hospital in Hyderabad.
  

  NTR Founded the Hospital (Basavatarakam Indo-American Cancer Hospital) In Memory Of Her Deceased Wife

• In 1993, he married Lakshmi Parvathi, who was around 30 years younger to him.

• He always backed the laws related to women’s rights in inheritance, a law that provides equal rights for women in ancestral property.

• In 1996, he passed away due to a heart attack.

• His wife Lakshmi Parvathi did not immerse his ashes until ‘Chandrababu Naidu‘ lost State Assembly elections in 2004 (8 years later).

• In 2019, Vidya Balan played the role of his first wife ‘Basava Tarakam’ in his biopic whereas his son, Balakrishna enacted the role of NTR.
  

  Vidya Balan To Play The Role Of NTR’s Wife In His Biopic

• A commemorative coin of Rs. 100 was unveiled by the President of India Droupadi Murmu on 29 August 2023; the event was held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan Cultural Center in New Delhi on the occasion of N. T. Rama Rao’s hundredth birth anniversary.
  

  Droupadi Murmu (third from the left) at the launch of N. T. Rama Rao’s commemorative coin