Pasupuleti Kannamba (''Pasupulēţi Kannāṃba'') (5 October 1911 – 7 May 1968) was an Indian actress, playback singer and film producer of

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

cinema, of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...

, India. She acted in more than 170 films and produced about 25 films in Telugu and

Tamil language Tamil (, , , also written as ''Tamizhil'' according to linguistic pronunciation) is a Dravidian language natively spoken by the Tamil people of South Asia. It is one of the longest-surviving classical languages in the world,. "Tamil is one of ...

s during the 1930s to the 1960s.

Career

Kannamba was born on 5 October 1911. Her birthplace is Owku in Nandyal district. Her parents were Lokamba and M. Venkanarasaiah, a government contractor. She was their only child and grew up with her maternal grandparents in Eluru. She started acting in dramas at the age of 13. She performed many characters such as Sati Savitri,

Anasuya Anasuya () is an ascetic, and the wife of Sage Atri in Hinduism. She is the daughter of Devahuti and the Prajapati Kardama in Hindu texts. In the ''Ramayana'', she lives with her husband in a small hermitage on the southern border of the Chi ...

and Chandramati. Her film career began with the Chandramati character in ''Harishchandra'' (1935) of Star Combines. She acted in about 150 films and won accolades for her roles in ''Draupadi Vastrapaharanam'', ''Kanakataara'', ''Saranagadhara'', ''Gruhalakshmi'' and ''Chandika''. She acted in the title role of ''

Kannagi Kannagi (), sometimes spelled Kannaki, is a legendary Tamil woman who forms the central character of the Tamil epic '' Cilappatikāram''. Kannagi is described as a chaste woman who stays with her husband despite his adultery, their attempt to re ...

'' in Tamil and in ''

Palnati Yudham ''Palnati Yuddham'' is a 1947 Indian Telugu-language historical war film jointly directed by L. V. Prasad and Gudavalli Ramabrahmam. Based on the Battle of Palnadu, the film stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Govindarajula Subba Rao and Kannamba, ...

'' as

Nayakuralu Nagamma Nayakuralu Nagamma was a 12th-century renowned statesperson and minister to King Nalagama, who held the power of kingdom in her hands, under the ruler of Palanadu in Guntur District. She is one of the key characters, along with Bramha Naidu, in t ...

, opposite

Govindarajula Subba Rao Dr. Govindarajula Venkata Subba Rao (1895 – 29 October 1959) was a famous Telugu drama and film actor.Nata Ratnalu, Dr. Mikkilineni Radhakrishna Murthy, Second edition, Seetharatnam Grandhamala, Vijayawada, 2002, pp:56-59 Life sketch He play ...

. She acted in ''

Ashok Kumar Ashok Kumar (born Kumudlal Ganguly; 13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema. He is regarded as one of the greatest actors of Indian cinema. He is considered to be the first Super-st ...

'' (1941) as Queen, opposite another great actor,

V. Nagayya Vuppaladadiyam Nagayya Sarma (28 March 1904 – 30 December 1973), popularly known as Chittoor Nagayya, was an Indian actor, singer, music composer, and director known for his works in Telugu cinema, Tamil cinema, and Telugu theatre. Nagayya wa ...

. She acted together with P. U. Chinnappa in many movies, such as ''Kannagi'', ''Mahamaya'', ''Harischandra'' and ''Tulasi Jalandhar''. She married

Kadaru Nagabhushanam Kadaru Nagabhushanam or K. B. Nagabhushanam (1902 – 18 October 1976) was an Indian film director and producer in the 1940s to 1960s, working in Telugu and Tamil cinema. He was the husband of P. Kannamba. They established Rajarajeshwari F ...

in 1941. They established "Raja Rajeswari Films" and produced about 30 films, including ''Sumati'', ''Padhuka Pattabhishekam'', ''Saudamani'', ''Peda Raitu'', ''Lakshmi'', ''Sri Krishna Tulabharam'', ''Sati Sakkubhai'' and ''Sati Anasuya''. Their movie ''Navajeevanam'' (1949) was awarded as the best film by Combined Madras state. She died on 7 May 1964.

Filmography

Actress

This is the complete list of her films compiled by H. Ramesh Babu.Dhruvatara Kannamba (telugu), Compilation by H. Ramesh Babu, Chinni Publications, Nagar Kurnool, 2008

Playback singer

These are some of the Telugu songs voiced by her for the films.

Producer

She has produced about 25–30 films along with her husband

under the banners of Sri Rajarajeswari films, Rajasri pictures and Sri Varalakshmi films.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kannamba, Pasupuleti 1911 births 1964 deaths Indian women playback singers Indian film actresses Telugu playback singers 20th-century Indian actresses 20th-century Indian singers Actresses from Andhra Pradesh Singers from Andhra Pradesh Indian women film producers Film producers from Andhra Pradesh 20th-century Indian businesspeople Telugu film producers Tamil film producers Actresses in Tamil cinema Actresses in Telugu cinema Indian stage actresses Actresses in Telugu theatre Indian child actresses Child actresses in Telugu cinema 20th-century Indian women singers Film musicians from Andhra Pradesh Businesspeople from Andhra Pradesh 20th-century Indian businesswomen Women musicians from Andhra Pradesh