Jonnalagadda Venkata Somayajulu (30 July 1920 or – 24 April 2004) was an Indian actor known for his works 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, ...

and a few Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi films. In 1981, he received the

Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Telugu The Filmfare Best Actor Award is given by the ''Filmfare'' magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards South for Telugu films. The awards were extended to "Best Actor" in 1972. Film world, p 43 The year indicates the year of release of the ...

for his work in the classic '' Sankarabharanam''. On the centenary of Indian cinema, ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also r ...

'' included his performance in the film among the ''25 Greatest Acting Performances of Indian Cinema''. Some of the other films that earned Somayajulu a good reputation as an actor were ''Allari Pillalu'', ''Nelavanka'', '' Rowdy Alludu'', '' Swathi Muthyam'', ''Tyagayya'', ''Saptapadi'', ''Vijeta'', ''

Appula Appa Rao ''Appula Appa Rao'' is a 1992 Telugu-language comedy film, produced by B. Suresh under the Kamadhenu Creations banner, presented by Rama Prabha and directed by E. V. V. Satyanarayana. It stars Rajendra Prasad, Shobana and music composed by Raja ...

,'' ''

Vamsa Vruksham ''Vamsa Vruksham'' () is a 1980 Indian Telugu language, Telugu-language drama film directed by Bapu (director), Bapu. It is a remake of the 1972 Kannada film ''Vamsha Vriksha'' which was based on S. L. Bhyrappa's novel of same name. Mullapudi Ve ...

'' and the Hindi film '' Jaag Utha Insan''. He portrayed the guru character of

Sri Raghavendra ''Sri Raghavendrar'' is a 1985 Tamil-language Hindu mythological film directed by S. P. Muthuraman and was produced by Kavithalayaa Productions. The film stars Rajinikanth, portraying the title character, in his 100th film. Lakshmi, Vishnuvardh ...

in the Tamil film ''

Sri Raghavendrar ''Sri Raghavendrar'' is a 1985 Tamil-language Hindu mythological film directed by S. P. Muthuraman and was produced by Kavithalayaa Productions. The film stars Rajinikanth, portraying the title character, in his 100th film. Lakshmi, Vishnuvardh ...

''. He made a 13-episode television serial based on the play ''

Kanyasulkam ''Kanyasulkam'' is a Telugu play written by Gurajada Apparao in 1892.20th Century Telugu Luminaries, Potti Sriramulu Telugu University, Hyderabad, 2005 It is one of the earliest modern works in an Indian language, and it is the first Telugu play ...

''. He also portrayed A.C.

Bhaktivedanta Swami Abhay Charanaravinda Bhaktivedanta Swami (; 1 September 1896 – 14 November 1977) was an Indian Gaudiya Vaishnava guru who founded ISKCON, commonly known as the "Hare Krishna movement". Members of ISKCON view Bhaktivedanta Swami as a repr ...

Prabhupada, in the biographical series ''Abhay Charan''.

Personal life and career

Jonnalagadda Venkata Somayajulu was born in Lukalam Agraharam in Srikakulam district of present-day

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

. His father worked as an Inspector in the Prohibition and Excise department in

Gudivada Gudivada is a city in Krishna district of the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is a municipality and the headquarters of Gudivada mandal in Gudivada revenue division. It is one of the cities in the state to be a part of Andhra Pradesh Capital ...

and other towns. He spent his childhood in

Vizianagaram Vizianagaram is a city and the headquarters of Vizianagaram district in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is central Eastern Ghats, about west of the Bay of Bengal and north-northeast of Visakhapatnam. The city has a population of 228,02 ...

and also participated in stage dramas when he was in

. He was a government official and worked as a Deputy collector for

Mahabub Nagar district Mahabubnagar district is a district in the Indian state of Telangana. Mahabubnagar is the district headquarters which is popularly known as Palamoor. The district shares boundaries with Narayanapet, Vikarabad, Rangareddy, Nagarkurnool, Wanap ...

. His career spanned five decades in stage dramas, films and television. His passion for

Gurazada Apparao Gurajada Venkata Apparao (21 September 1862 – 30 November 1915) was an Indian playwright, dramatist, poet, and writer known for his works in Telugu theatre. Rao wrote the play '' Kanyasulkam'' in 1892, which is considered as the greatest play ...

's play, ''

'', was such that he, along with his actor brother J V Ramana Murthy, played it about 500 times in 45 years. His exposition of the delightfully notorious character, "Ramappanthulu" in the play, has become legendary. The woman behind the success of Somayajulu was his mother Saradamma. Somayajulu had two sons and a daughter.

Other works

For the development of Telugu theatre in the twin cities

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India ...

and Secunderabad, Somayajulu established 'Rasaranjani' along with his contemporaries, Chatla Sriramulu, Garimella Rama Murthy and Rallapalli. Somayajulu worked in the Directorate of Cultural Affairs before retiring from government service.

Death

Somayajulu died of heart attack in

in 2004 at a reported age of 76.

Filmography

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Somayajulu, J. V. Somayajulu, J.V Somayajulu, J.V Somayajulu, J.V Male actors from Andhra Pradesh Indian male stage actors 20th-century Indian male actors 21st-century Indian male actors People from Srikakulam district Male actors in Tamil cinema Male actors in Telugu cinema Indian male film actors Male actors in Malayalam cinema Male actors in Kannada cinema Male actors in Hindi cinema People from Uttarandhra