M. S. Ramarao (3 July 1921 – 20 April 1992) was an Indian singer and composer. He was popular for his devotional songs.He was the very first play back singer in the Telugu filmdom.
Singing career
Rama Rao debuted at
World Telugu Conference held in Hyderabad in 1975.
He became popular for his
Telugu
Telugu may refer to:
* Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India
*Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India
* Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language
** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode
S ...
Version of
Hanuman Chalisa. He also narrated
Bala kanda,Ayodhya kanda and Sundara Kanda (some parts of the epic ''Ramayana'') in form of Songs in Telugu. He gained fame for singing the devotional songs and was awarded the name of 'Sundara Dasu' in 1977.
He wrote Hanuman Chalisa and Sundarakandamu of
Valmiki Ramayana
The ''Rāmāyana'' (; sa, रामायणम्, ) is a Sanskrit epic composed over a period of nearly a millennium, with scholars' estimates for the earliest stage of the text ranging from the 8th to 4th centuries BCE, and later stages ...
in Telugu during 1972–74. He sang Sundarakanda in the form of Telugu songs.
Tollywood
His movie career as singer spanned 1944–64 in
Madras
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 ...
.
He also sang " Ee vishala prashantha ekanta soudhamlo" for O. P. Nayyar's Telugu movie, ''Neerajanam''.
Personal life
M.S.Rama Rao married Lakshmi Samrajyam in 1946 and had three children P.V.Sarojini Devi M.Babu Rao and M.Nageshwar Rao.
He was inspired to write Hanuman chalisa because of his elder son Babu Rao who was a pilot in the Indian Air force whose whereabouts were not known for a long time during the Indo-Pak war in 1971, so he dedicated himself to lord Hanuman for his safe return and composed and sang the Hanuman chalisa in Telugu.
His only lineage to carry his surname is capt Moparti Anil Rao (grandson) and then his son Moparti Aman Rao (great-grandson). All of them being three generations of pilots. M.S.Rama Rao's second grandson is taking forward his legacy by continuing to perform his songs.
Awards
Rama Rao gained fame for his singing the above two works and was awarded the name of 'Sundara Dasu' in 1977.
Rao's inspirational songs still provide incentives to follow the path of singing, even a decade after his unfortunate death.
Songs
* Sundarakandamu
* Hanuman Chalisa
* Bala Kandamu
Filmography
References
External links
Official site*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ramarao, M.S
1921 births
1992 deaths
People from Tenali
Telugu playback singers
20th-century Indian singers
Singers from Andhra Pradesh
Film musicians from Andhra Pradesh
Male actors from Andhra Pradesh
Male actors in Kannada cinema
Indian male film actors