Mysore Venkatappa Subbaiah Naidu (1896 – 21 July 1962) was an Indian stage artiste in the silent movies era. He was an actor and director, well known for the movies '' Sati Sulochana'' (1934) in

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

, which was also the first

talkie A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

, '' Bhookailas'' in Telugu and '' Bhakta Prahlada'' (1958) in Kannada. He acted in the first Kannada movie and brought distinction to Kannada cinema. He was the father of Kannada actor

Lokesh Lokesh (; 19 May 1947 – 14 October 2004) was an Indian actor who appeared in Kannada plays and films. His wife Girija Lokesh is an actress and film director. His father was Subbaiah Naidu, who is credited to be first hero of Kannada silent m ...

and the grandfather of Kannada TV personality Srujan Lokesh. Recognizing his work in theatre, he was awarded the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1961.

Career

Naidu began his acting career appearing in bit roles in stage plays. He soon flourished as an actor and began to play lead roles and had gained a "sizable fan following" in the Kannada theatre circles. ''

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split be ...

'', on his obituary wrote, "Brawny roles played with vigour and a mellifluous voice through which flowed the typical elan of stage music were his forte." His film career was marked with frequent collaborations with R. Nagendra Rao, another famed stage and film personality. They made early Kannada films such as '' Vasantsena'' (1941), '' Satya Harishchandra'' (1943) and '' Mahatma Kabir'' (1947) among others. Naidu's final screen appearance came in the 1958 film '' Bhakta Prahlada'' on the sets of which he burnt his fingers, and following which he quit films while continuing to perform on stage.

Death

Naidu died on 21 July 1962 of a

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and poss ...

Mandya Mandya is a city in the state of Karnataka. It is the headquarter of Mandya district and is located from Mysore and from Bangalore. Sugar factories contribute to the major economic output. It is also called Sugar city (which in Kannada mean ...

. In the weeks leading to his death, he was actively involved in theatre with his troupe, Sahitya Samrajya Nataka Mandali. He was in Mandya with the troupe and was playing the role of

Ambarisha In Hindu mythology, Ambarisha ( sa, अम्बरीषः, ) is an Ikshvaku king, and the son of Mandhata.Pargiter, F.E. (1972) 922 ''Ancient Indian Historical Tradition'', Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, p.92. He is believed to have conquered t ...

in a play. His body was brought to

Bangalore Bangalore (), List of renamed places in India, officially Bengaluru (), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan area, metropolitan population of a ...

the same day and a public viewing was held at Subedar Chatram Road. Funeral services were held on 22 July. Hearing the news of his death, his wife Munivenkatamma died the same day.

Partial filmography

References

External links

* {{authority control 1896 births 1962 deaths Male actors in Kannada cinema Indian male film actors Male actors from Karnataka 20th-century Indian male actors 20th-century Indian film directors Indian male silent film actors Indian male stage actors Film directors from Karnataka People from Kodagu district