Singeetham Srinivasa Rao Age, Death, Wife, Children, Family, Biography

Some Lesser Known Facts About Singeetham Srinivasa Rao

• Singeetham Srinivasa Rao took birth in a Telugu Brahmin family in Gudur of Nellore district, Madras Presidency, now in Andhra Pradesh.

• He showed talent in plays and music from his school days itself. An American missionary introduced him to Mark Twain when he was eight.

• Vemana, Mark Twain and P. G. Wodehouse became his favourite writers. He felt no one expressed the truths of everyday life better than Vemana.

• He called Robin Hood his favourite hero of fiction. He took a Physics degree from Presidency College, Chennai, and studied at the University of Madras.

• In college, he sharpened his skills in plays such as Windows under Harindranath Chattopadhyay. After graduation, he wanted to enter films.

• His attempts to meet director K. V. Reddy failed, so he took up a teaching job in Sullurupeta. He kept writing, and wrote two experimental plays, Bhrama and Anthyaghattam.

• He also wrote Chitrarjuna, a musical play adapted from Chitra by Tagore, titled Prince of the Dark Chamber. Scottish dramatist Tom Buchan translated it into English for an American television channel.

• During those years he also worked as a journalist and wrote for Telugu Swatantra. He edited many Telugu magazines as well, including Bharati.

• In 1954, he finally met K. V. Reddy. Reddy gave him a copy of The Monkey’s Paw and asked him to write a script based on it.

• Srinivasa Rao wrote the script along with the dialogues in three months. Reddy liked the work and took him on as an apprentice.

• He later became an associate director and worked with Reddy on all his films from Donga Ramudu in 1955 to Uma Chandi Gowri Sankarula Katha in 1968.

• These included Mayabazar in 1957, Jagadeka Veeruni Katha in 1961 and Sri Krishnarjuna Yuddham in 1963. In 1970, he served as executive director of the Kannada film Samskara, which Pattabhirama Reddy directed.

• He turned director in 1972 with the offbeat Telugu film Neethi Nijayithi. Critics praised the film, but it did not do well at the box office.

• He then made social problem films, starting with Dikkatra Parvathi in 1974. Zamindaru gari Ammayi followed in 1975 and America Ammayi in 1976.

• Tharam Marindi came in 1977, Panthulamma in 1978 and Sommokadidhi Sokokadidhi in 1979, his first film with Kamal Haasan.

• In 1981, he made Raja Paarvai, also released as Amavasya Chandrudu. It was the 100th film of Kamal Haasan.

• He made his Kannada directing debut with the 1982 blockbuster Haalu Jenu, starring Rajkumar.

• Chalisuva Modagalu followed the same year. Eradu Nakshatragalu came in 1983, and Puneeth Rajkumar worked as a child artiste in it, playing a dual role.

• Shravana Banthu came in 1984. He made Mayuri in 1984, a Telugu biographical dance film, and it premiered at the 1985 International Film Festival of India.

• Makers later remade it in Hindi as Naache Mayuri. Jwaalamukhi came in 1985. Bhagyada Lakshmi Baramma came in 1986, and he composed its music.

• Anand also came in 1986, and Shiva Rajkumar made his debut in it. Parvathamma Rajkumar produced most of his Kannada films, and all of them did well with critics and at the box office.

• He is the only director who worked with her on at least one film in each of the seven years from 1982 to 1988.

• He became the first person to direct Rajkumar and all three of his sons. Actor Shivaram acted in all seven of his films with Rajkumar.

• Two of the seven came from novels, and four were remade in Telugu. A disciple of composer S. Rajeswara Rao, he also composed music for the Kannada film Samyuktha.

• He was behind the making of Telugu film, America Abbayi in 1987 and Pushpaka Vimana with Kamal Haasan.

• He produced, scripted and directed Pushpaka Vimana in 1988, which was the first Indian film without dialogues.

• The film was produced by Shringar Nagaraj, a relative of Rajkumar and actor. The movie was honoured with a special mention during the Shanghai Film Festival.

• It went on to be named one of CNN-IBN’s 100 greatest Indian films of all time. B. C. Gowrishankar was the cinematographer for it.

• In the same year he also produced Chiranjeevi Sudhakar and Raghavendra Rajkumar debuts in the movie.

• He was cast as Amoghavarsha Nrupathunga’s director for an historical film that was supposed to be the 200th of Rajkumar’s life, but was eventually dropped by the makers.

• He then helmed the 200th film of Rajkumar, Devatha Manushya. Apoorva Sagodharargal joined in 1989.

• The movie is one of the few enduring popular media works on the subject of dwarfs and is a screening of the International Film Festival of India.

• In 1990, Michael Madana Kama Rajan followed. The movie about the quadruplets was an instant success. Aditya 369 came in 1991.

• It grossed Rs 9 crore and was one of the highest grossing Telugu films in 1991. Aditya 369 and Bhairava Dweepam are considered to be the landmark films in science fiction and fantasy cinema in Telugu.

• The other two were Tuvvi Tuvvi Tuvvi in 1999 and Makeup in 2002. In 2003, he started animating on Son of Aladdin, having 1100 shots and 125 characters.

• It was opened at the 37th International Film Festival of India. In 2008, he did an animation film called Ghatothkach.

• It later got a special mention at the Grand Finale of the Children’s Film Festival 2014 at the 44th International Film Festival of India.

• As of 2010 he has directed nearly 60 films in Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Hindi and English. The same year he presided over the Indian Panorama jury at 8th Chennai International Film Festival.

• He also graced the occasion of the Media and Entertainment Business Conclave 2012 organized by FICCI and FFI with Barrie Osbourne as Guest of Honour in 2012.

• That year he was also a member of the Sundance Institute screenwriters lab selection committee.

• He released his latest Telugu film “Welcome Obama” in 2013, just prior to the previous movie.

• The subject of the story is about commercial surrogacy in India and how foreigners take the Indian women to be their host mothers, and how one such woman becomes their child’s host mother.

• The sequel to Aditya 369, Aditya 999, was delayed indefinitely in July 2016.

• Later, he mentored the Telugu science fiction film Project K, which was being produced at an estimated cost of Rs 600 crore, and provided inputs into its script.

• During the writing and shooting of Kalki 2898 AD in 2024, Nag Ashvin asked him for some advice.

• He has announced his return to film direction with his first movie in ten years, SSR61 in 2026. Sing Geetham is a fantasy comedy movie.

• It will be released in July 2026 and has been well received. This was to become his last single.

• Singeetham Srinivasa Rao departed this life at Kauvery hospital, Chennai, Tamil Nadu on 3 October 2026. He was 95.