Dasari Yoganand (16 April 1922 – 23 November 2006) was a South Indian

film director A film director controls a film's artistic and dramatic aspects and visualizes the screenplay (or script) while guiding the film crew and actors in the fulfilment of that vision. The director has a key role in choosing the cast members, p ...

Early life

Yoganand was born in Madras under

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

. His parents were Venkata Das, estate manager under Nawaab Raza Ali Khan of

Machilipatnam Machilipatnam (), also known as Masulipatnam and Bandar, is a city in Krishna district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipal corporation and the administrative headquarters of Krishna district. It is also the Tehsil, mandal he ...

, and Lakshmi Bai. He became a photographer. He was interested in playing and directing dramas and came close to Tungala Chalapathi Rao and Yadavalli Nageswara Rao in Machilipatnam. He went to Bangalore, trained in Radiology, and he went to Madras in 1939 to help his father. Yoganand joined Jiten Benarjee of Newtone Studios after his father's death and later worked with famous cinematographer M. A. Rehman. He participated in the

Quit India Movement The Quit India Movement, also known as the August Kranti Movement, was a movement launched at the Bombay session of the All India Congress Committee by Mahatma Gandhi on 8th August 1942, during World War II, demanding an end to British rule in ...

of 1942. In the

Indian Freedom Movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged from Bengal. ...

, he came close to Congress leaders like

Rajagopalachari Chakravarti Rajagopalachari (10 December 1878 – 25 December 1972), popularly known as Rajaji or C.R., also known as Mootharignar Rajaji (Rajaji'', the Scholar Emeritus''), was an Indian statesman, writer, lawyer, and independence activis ...

Tanguturi Prakasam Tanguturi Prakasam Panthulu (23 August 1872 – 20 May 1957) was an Indian jurist, political leader, social reformer, and anti-colonial nationalist who served as the chief minister of the Madras Presidency. Tanguturi subsequently became the fi ...

and Bulusu Sambamurthi.

Film career

Yoganand worked as an associate to Gudavalli Ramabrahmam and

L. V. Prasad Akkineni Laxmi Vara Prasada Rao (17 January 1907 – 22 June 1994), known professionally as L. V. Prasad, was an Indian film director, producer, actor, and businessman. He was one of the pioneers of Indian cinema and is the recipient of the Dad ...

. He worked in '' Samsaram'' directed by L.V. Prasad. In 1943, he joined Manikyam as an editor for the film ''

Mayalokam ''Mayalokam'' () is a 1945 Telugu-language film produced and directed by Gudavalli Ramabrahmam under the Sarathi Films banner. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao and S. Varalakshmi, with music composed by Galipenchala Narasimha Rao. The film is th ...

'' and also worked as an assistant director to Gudavalli Ramabrahmam. He worked for ''Bhakta Tulasidas'' by Lanka Satyam in

Salem Salem may refer to: Places Canada Ontario * Bruce County ** Salem, Arran–Elderslie, Ontario, in the municipality of Arran–Elderslie ** Salem, South Bruce, Ontario, in the municipality of South Bruce * Salem, Dufferin County, Ontario, part ...

for three years. His debut film was ''Ammalakkalu'' (Telugu) and ''Marumagal'' (Tamil) by Leena Chettiar in 1953. He became the in-house filmmaker for his Krishna Pictures and made many box-office successes including the ''

Madurai Veeran Madurai Veeran, also known as Veeran, is a Tamil folk deity popular in southern Tamil Nadu, India. His name literally means, "warrior of Madurai". Legend According to the ''Maduraiveeraswamikathai'', Veeran was born to royal parents and w ...

'' (1956) which sowed the seeds for

M. G. Ramachandran Maruthur Gopalan Ramachandran (17 January 1917 24 December 1987), also popularly known as M.G.R., was an Indian politician, actor, philanthropist, and filmmaker who served as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu from 1977 until his death in 1987 ...

to be projected as more than a mere good-looking hero. After working with Yoganand, N. T. Rama Rao offered to let him direct '' Thodu Dongalu'' (1954). He also wrote the story for the film, which received many awards including a merit certificate from the President of India and an award in the China Film Festival. NTR gave him a second chance in his next film '' Jayasimha'' which became a blockbuster. He directed about 50 films in Telugu and Tamil languages; among them

N. T. Rama Rao Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (28 May 1923 – 18 January 1996), often referred to by his initials NTR, was an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who served as List of Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh fo ...

had the lead role in 17 films. His films include ''Thodu Dongalu'', ''Ilavelpu'', ''Kodalu Diddina Kapuram'', ''

Ummadi Kutumbam ''Ummadi Kutumbam'' () is a 1967 Indian Telugu-language comedy drama film, produced by N. Trivikrama Rao under the NAT & Ramakrishna Cine Studios banner and directed by D. Yoganand. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Savitri and Krishna Kumari, with m ...

'', ''Muga Nomu'', ''Jai Jawan'', ''Vemulavada Bheema Kavi'', ''Kathanayakuni Katha'', ''Dabbuku Lokam Dasoham'', ''Jayasimha'', ''Vade Veedu'', '' Thodu Dongalu'', ''Thikka Shankarayya'' and ''Pelli Sandadi''. He had the unique distinction of directing all the top stars, both in Telugu and Tamil film fields such as

Akkineni Nageswara Rao Akkineni Nageswara Rao (20 September 1923 – 22 January 2014), widely known as ANR, was an Indian actor and producer, known for his works majorly in Telugu cinema. He starred in many landmark films in his seventy five-year career, and became on ...

, Relangi,

Bhanumathi Ramakrishna P. Bhanumathi Ramakrishna (7 September 1925 – 24 December 2005) was an Indian actress, singer, film producer, director, music composer, and novelist. She is regarded as the first female super star of Telugu cinema. She is also considered the ...

, Savitri, Padmini,

Vyjayanthimala Vyjayanthimala (born 13 August 1936) is a former Indian actress, dancer and parliamentarian. She is the recipient of several accolades, including two BFJA Awards and five Filmfare Awards. She made her screen debut at the age of thirteen with ...

Jayalalitha Jayaram Jayalalithaa (24 February 1948 – 5 December 2016) was an Indian politician and actress who served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for more than fourteen years over six terms between 1991 and 2016. From 9 February 1989 to 5 December 2 ...

Pandari Bai Pandari Bai (1930 – 29 January 2003) was an Indian actress who worked in South Indian cinema, mostly in Kannada cinema during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. She is considered Kannada cinema's first successful heroine. She has acted as both heroi ...

B. Saroja Devi Bangalore Saroja Devi (born 7 January 1938) is an Indian actress who has acted in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi films. She acted in around 200 films in over six decades. She is known by the epithets "''Abhinaya Saraswathi''" (Saraswathi of ac ...

Devika Devika Devadoss (born Prameela Devi) (25 April 1943 – 2 May 2002) was an Indian actress who worked in Tamil, Telugu with few Malayalam, Kannada, Hindi film industry. She was a popular lead actress in the 1960s. Devika is the grand daughter ...

Sivaji Ganesan Villupuram Chinnaiya Manrayar Ganesamoorthy, better known by his stage name Sivaji Ganesan, (1 October 1928 – 21 July 2001) was an Indian actor and producer. He was active in Tamil cinema during the latter half of the 20th century. Sivaji Ga ...

Gemini Ganesan Ramasamy Ganesan (17 November 1920 – 22 March 2005), better known by his stage name Gemini Ganesan, was an Indian actor who worked mainly in Tamil cinema. He was referred to as the ''Kaadhal Mannan'' (King of Romance) for his romantic roles ...

S. S. Rajendran Sedapatti Suryanarayana Rajendran, also known by his initials SSR (January 1928 – 24 October 2014), was an Indian actor, director, producer and politician who worked in Tamil theatre and cinema. Film career Rajendran made his acting de ...

and

M. N. Nambiar Manjeri Narayanan Nambiar (7 March 1919 – 19 November 2008) was an Indian actor who worked predominantly in Tamil cinema, known mostly for his villain roles in an eight decade long career. He has also appeared in a few Malayalam films. ...

K. Balaji Krishnamachari Balaji (24 June 19342 May 2009) was an Indian film producer and actor. He was a prominent actor in the 1960s and 70s, playing lead, supporting and antagonist roles. He appeared in many Sivaji Ganesan films. Early life Balaji was ...

. He died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which may tr ...

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

Filmography

Awards

;

National Film Awards The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...

1954 Events January * January 1 – The Soviet Union ceases to demand war reparations from West Germany. * January 3 – The Italian broadcaster RAI officially begins transmitting. * January 7 – Georgetown-IBM experiment: The fir ...

: Certificate of Merit for Best Feature Film in Telugu - '' Thodu Dongalu'' *

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

: President's Silver Medal for Best Feature Film in Tamil - ''

Parthiban Kanavu '' Parthiban Kanavu '' ( ta, பார்த்திபன் கனவு, , lit. Parthiban's dream) is a Tamil novel written by Kalki Krishnamurthy. Details Adapted in 1960 into a film of the same name, starring Gemini Ganesan and Vyjayan ...

'' ;Other Awards * His ''

'' (1967) film was selected for screening at

Moscow Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (russian: Моско́вский междунаро́дный кинофестива́ль, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is the film festival first h ...

. *

Kalaimamani The Kalaimamani is the highest civilian award in the state of Tamil Nadu, India. These awards are given by the ''Tamil Nadu Iyal Isai Nataka Mandram'' (literature, music and theatre), a unit of the Directorate of Art and Culture, Government of ...

Award from Government of Tamil Nadu in 1981.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Yoganand, Dasari Telugu film directors Tamil film directors 1922 births 2006 deaths 20th-century Indian film directors Film directors from Chennai Hindi film cinematographers