Veteran Telugu actor Krishnam Raju passes away at 83; politicians, actors mourn his demise

Veteran Telugu actor and Former Union Minister Uppalapati Krishnam Raju passed away at the age of 83 in the wee hours of Sunday. He was undergoing treatment at AIG Hospital in Hyderabad. 

According to hospital sources, Krishnam Raju was suffering from post-COVID-19 ailments and was admitted to the hospital on August 5. He was diagnosed with severe pneumonia caused by multidrug-resistant bacteria and fungal organisms, and severe infective bronchitis.

Krishnam Raju had heart rhythm disturbances during the hospital stay and worsening of kidney function. He was managed on ventilator support since admission, hospital sources informed. "He succumbed to severe pneumonia and its complications on 11 September at 3.16 am due to cardiac arrest," hospital sources said. 

The Telugu actor is survived by his wife and three daughters. Notably, Uppalapati Krishnam Raju was a two-time Lok Sabha member and served as Union Minister of Telangana in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee regime. 

Raju started his film career with the Telugu movie 'Chilaka Gorinka' in 1966 and was known as 'Rebel Star'. Raju acted in over 180 films and remained a trendsetter with his rebellious characters. It is pertinent to mention that he was an uncle of ‘Baahubali’ star Prabhas. Raju won several awards and accolades for various roles he portrayed in films of every genre.

Political fraternity mourns former Union Minister's demise

Meanwhile, Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao in a statement condoled his death.

KCR said that the death of Krishnam Raju, who acted as a hero in many films during a fifty-year career and won the hearts of moviegoers as a 'Rebel Star' with his unique acting style, is a great loss for the Telugu silver screen.

He further said, “Krishnam Raju served the people of the country as a member of the Lok Sabha, as a Union Minister and through the field of political administration, is sad.”

On the other hand, condoling the former minister's death, Telangana BJP chief Bandi Sanjay Kumar in a statement said the death of Krishnam Raju is painful and a big loss to the BJP, Telugu film industry and people.

Film industry mourns Rebel star's death

Taking to Twitter, Telugu movie actor Nikhil Siddhartha condoled Krishnam Raju's death. He said, "A legend has left us. A man with a heart of gold. Rest in Peace sir will miss your presence and motivational words always."