Potti Veerayya ( – 25 April 2021) was an Indian actor and comedian who predominantly acted in

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 ...

films. A

dwarf Dwarf, dwarfs or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a supernatural being from Germanic folklore * Dwarf, a human or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a sh ...

by birth, he acted in more than 500 films, mostly in

along with

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

Tamil Tamil may refer to: People, culture and language * Tamils, an ethno-linguistic group native to India, Sri Lanka, and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka ** Myanmar or Burmese Tamils, Tamil people of Ind ...

, and

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of ...

films. He acted in notable films like ''

Aggi Veerudu ''Aggi Veerudu'' ( Fire Martial) is a 1969 Telugu-language swashbuckler film, produced by B. Vittalacharya under the Sri Vital Combines banner and directed by B. V. Srinivas. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Rajasree with music composed by Vijaya Krish ...

'' (1969), '' Tata-Manavadu'' (1972), ''Radhamma Pelli'' (1974), '' Jaganmohini'' (1978), ''

Yugandhar ''Yugandhar'' is a 1979 Indian Telugu-language action film directed by K. S. R. Das. The film stars N. T. Rama Rao and Jayasudha, with music composed by Ilaiyaraaja. It is a remake of the Hindi film '' Don'' (1978). The film was commercially ...

'' (1979), ''Gaja Donga'' (1981), ''Tarzan Sundari'' (1983).

Early life

Hailing from Phanigiri village of Suryapeta district,

Telangana Telangana is a States and union territories of India, state in India situated in the Southern India, south-central part of the Indian subcontinent on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, ele ...

, he was born as Gattu Veerayya. He was a

by birth and stood just two feet. He was attracted to stage plays, drama and films since his childhood. Before commencing his career as a film actor, he was a

theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a Stage (theatre), stage. The performe ...

artiste.

Film career

His passion for acting landed him in

Madras Chennai, also known as Madras ( its official name until 1996), is the capital and largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost state of India. It is located on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal. According to the 2011 Indian ce ...

where he met actor

Sobhan Babu Uppu Sobhan Babu (born Uppu Sobhana Chalapathi Rao; 14 January 1937 – 20 March 2008) was an Indian actor known for his work in Telugu cinema.Bangaru Panjaram in Venditera Paatalu, Krishnasastri Sahityam, third volume, Vishalandhra Publishing H ...

while working in a shop selling flowers for film sets. As Veerayya was a dwarf, Sobhan Babu advised him to meet directors like

B. Vittalacharya B. Vittalacharya (28 January 1920 – 28 May 1999) was an Indian film director and producer known for his works in Telugu and Kannada cinema. He was known as ''Janapada Brahma'' in the Telugu film industry. Vittalacharya formed his film pro ...

for suitable roles in their films. On his advice, Veerayya met Vittalacharya who cast him in the film ''Aggidora'' (1967) featuring

Kanta Rao Tadepalli Lakshmi Kantha Rao (16 November 1923 – 22 March 2009) was an Indian actor and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. Regarded as one of the finest method actors, Rao appeared in more than 400 feature films, ...

and

N. T. Rama Rao Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (28 May 1923 – 18 January 1996), often referred to by his initials NTR, was an Indian actor, film director, film producer, screenwriter, film editor, philanthropist, and politician who served as the Chief Minister o ...

. Later, he acted in films like ''

'' (1969), '' Tata-Manavadu'' (1972), ''Radhamma Pelli'' (1974), '' Jaganmohini'' (1978), ''

'' (1979), ''Gaja Donga'' (1981), ''Attagaari Pettanam'' (1981), ''Tarzan Sundari'' (1988). His characters mostly used to be that of a clown or a small demon in folklore films. He has acted in more than 500 films in

, and

languages. During an interview, he mentioned that Raja Babu and

Dasari Narayana Rao Dasari Narayana Rao (4 May 1942 – 30 May 2017) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, actor, producer, lyricist, and politician, primarily known for his work in Telugu cinema. Over his four decade career, he directed more than 150 feature ...

had encouraged him in the initial phase of his career. In 2007,

OneIndia Oneindia.com is an Indian news website established in January 2006 by BG Mahesh. The website provides news updates, information on sports, events, travel, entertainment, business, lifestyle, videos, and classifieds in seven different Indian lang ...

reported that he was living in poverty. Knowing his plight,

Chiranjeevi Konidela Chiranjeevi (born Konidela Sivasankara Varaprasad; 22 August 1955) is an Indian actor, philanthropist and former politician known for his work in Telugu cinema. Known as the "Mega Star", he is widely regarded as one of the most succe ...

had extended monetary help of 2

lakh A lakh (; abbreviated L; sometimes written lac) is a unit in the Indian numbering system equal to one hundred thousand (100,000; scientific notation: 105). In the Indian 2, 2, 3 convention of digit grouping, it is written as 1,00,000. F ...

Personal life

He had three daughters. His youngest daughter Vijayadurga is an actor in the Telugu film industry. His wife Mallika passed away in 2008.

Death

He died on 25 April 2021, aged 74 or 75, at a private hospital in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

due to heart-related ailments.

Filmography

* ''Aggidora'' (1967) * ''

'' (1969) * ''

Tata Manavadu ''Thatha-Manavadu'' () is a 1973 Indian Telugu-language film written and directed by Dasari Narayana Rao in his debut. The film stars S. V. Ranga Rao and Raja Babu in the titular roles. ''Thatha-Manavadu'' featured Raja Babu, who had mostly ...

'' (1972) * ''Radhamma Pelli'' (1974) * '' Jaganmohini'' (1978) * ''

'' (1979) * '' Sri Rama Bantu'' (1979) * ''Gaja Donga'' (1981) * ''Gola Nagamma'' (1981) * ''Attagaari Pettanam'' (1981) * ''Chandirani'' (1983) *'' Tarzan Sundari'' (1983) as Tribal Chief *''Rowdy Police'' (1987) *''Rowdy Babai'' (1987) * '' Samsaram Oka Chadarangam'' (1987) as Washerman * ''Ukku Sankellu'' (1988) * '' Brahma Puthrudu'' (1988) * ''Mayadari Kutumbam'' (1995) * '' 786 Khaidi Premakatha'' (2005)

References

External links

* 2021 deaths 20th-century Indian male actors Telugu male actors Indian male comedians Telugu comedians Male actors in Telugu cinema Indian male film actors Male actors in Kannada cinema Male actors in Malayalam cinema Male actors in Tamil cinema People from Suryapet district Kannada comedians Tamil comedians Malayalam comedians 1947 births {{India-film-actor-1940s-stub