Ghantasala Balaramayya was an Indian film director, producer, and actor in

Telugu cinema Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Telugu cinema is based in Film Nagar, Hy ...

. His notable films include '' Sri Seetarama Jananam'' (1944), ''

Balaraju ''Balaraju'' is a 1948 Indian Telugu-language swashbuckler fantasy film produced and directed by Ghantasala Balaramayya under the Pratibha Productions banner. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, S. Varalakshmi, and Anjali Devi with music jointly co ...

'' (1948), '' Swapna Sundari'' (1950), and ''

Sri Lakshmamma Katha ''Sri Lakshmamma Katha'' () is a 1950 Telugu-language film, produced and directed by Ghantasala Balaramayya under the Pratibha Productions banner. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Anjali Devi, with music composed by C. R. Subburaman. Plot Th ...

'' (1950). Balaramayya is known for providing

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 ...

his first lead role in the 1944 mythological film '' Sri Seetarama Jananam''.

Biography

Ghantasala Balaramayya was born in 1906 in Pottepalem in Nellore District, Andhra Pradesh into a

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

family. He started his career as a stage singer and later started to produce and direct. He is the grandfather of the music director

S. Thaman Ghantasala Sai Srinivas Thaman (born 16 November 1983), known professionally as Thaman S, earlier as S S Thaman, is an Indian music composer, professional drummer, and playback singer who predominantly works in Telugu films and Tamil films. Th ...

. Balaramayya provided

his first lead role in the 1944 mythological film '' Sri Seetarama Jananam''.

"One day, I was at a railway station with my drama troupe and to my good luck, Ghantasala Balaramayya garu (producer-director) spotted me standing nearby. He walked up to me and asked me if I want to work in films. I didn't think twice and just went along with him. The rest as they say is history. To me, Balaramayya is more important than God. If he hadn't spotted me that day, I wouldn't have been where I am today." —
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 ...
on Ghantasala Balaramayya.

Filmography

Director

* ''Chinna Kodalu'' (1952) * ''

'' (1950) * '' Swapna Sundari'' (1950) * ''

'' (1948) * ''

Mugguru Maratilu ''Mugguru Maratilu'' is a 1946 Telugu-language historical drama film produced and directed by Ghantasala Balaramayya under the Pratibha Productions banner. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, C. H. Narayana Rao, Bezawada Rajaratnam and Kannamba , w ...

'' (1946) * ''Garuda Garvabhangam'' (1943) * ''

Sri Seeta Rama Jananam ''Sri Seeta Rama Jananam'' () is a 1944 Indian Telugu-language Hindu mythological film, produced and directed by Ghantasala Balaramayya under the Pratibha Productions banner. The film stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Tripurasundari, Vemuri Gaggaiah ...

'' (1942) * ''Parvati Kalyanam'' (1941)

Producer

* '' Swapna Sundari'' (1950) * ''Garuda Garvabhangam'' (1943) * ''Parvati Kalyanam'' (1941) * ''

Mahiravana In some versions of the Ramayana such as the Krittivasi Ramayan, Krittivasi Ramayana, Ahiravan, also called Mahiravana, is a rakshasa (demon) ruler of Patala. He is variously described as either an ally or a brother of the rakshasa king Ravana ...

'' (1940) * ''Bhakta Markandeya'' (1938)

Actor

* ''Sati Tulasi'' (1936) * ''Ramadasu'' (1933)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Balaramayya, Ghantasala Male actors in Telugu cinema Telugu film directors 1906 births People from Nellore district 2010 deaths 20th-century Indian male actors Male actors from Andhra Pradesh Film directors from Andhra Pradesh Indian male film actors Film producers from Andhra Pradesh Telugu film producers