Actor, producer, director and writer · Telugu cinema
Krishna Ghattamaneni
Krishna Ghattamaneni movies: 96 Telugu films on file (95 as actor, 7 as producer, 6 as director, 1 as writer), 1962–2025. Earliest on file: Kula Gotralu (1962). Latest release: Prema Charithra Krishna Vijayam (3 January 2025).
- Films on file
- 96 (95 as actor, 7 as producer, 6 as director, 1 as writer)
- Years on file
- 1962–2025
- Born
- 31 May 1943 · May birthdays (Wikidata)
- Died
- 15 November 2022
- Selected films on file
- Rajakumarudu, Takkari Donga, Balachandrudu
- Record
- Q6437372 on Wikidata
Krishna (born Ghattamaneni Siva Rama Krishna Murthy; 31 May 1943 – 15 November 2022) was an Indian actor, director, screenwriter, producer and editor who worked in Telugu cinema. Known as “Superstar” and “Nata Sekhara”, he starred in over 350 films across more than five decades, and brought several firsts to Telugu cinema, including its first full-length CinemaScope film and first 70 mm film. He received the Padma Bhushan in 2009 and the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award – South in 1997, and was elected to Parliament in 1989. He was the father of the actor Mahesh Babu.
Early life and first films
Krishna was born in Burripalem, Guntur district, to Ghattamaneni Raghavayya Chowdary and Nagaratnamma. After minor roles in films such as Padandi Munduku (1962), Kula Gotralu and Paruvu-Prathishta (1963), he got his first lead in Adurthi Subba Rao’s Thene Manasulu (1965). Buyers pressed for him to be replaced, but the director held firm, and the film was a major success.
Spy films, westerns and family dramas
The spy thriller Gudachari 116 (1966) made him a household name and earned him the nickname “Andhra James Bond”; he went on to make many more spy films. Sakshi (1967) was acclaimed at the 1968 Tashkent Film Festival, and Mosagallaku Mosagadu (1971) is considered the first true Indian western. He also acted in family dramas and alongside N. T. Rama Rao and Akkineni Nageswara Rao. Pandanti Kapuram (1972), which ran for over 175 days, won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu.
Producer and Alluri Seetarama Raju
With his brothers he set up Padmalaya, which produced films including Mosagallaku Mosagadu, Pandanti Kapuram and Devudu Chesina Manushulu (1973). His 100th film, Alluri Seetarama Raju (1974), Telugu cinema’s first full-length CinemaScope film, won the Nandi Award for Best Feature Film and a National Award for its lyrics, brought him the Nandi Award for Best Actor, and was the highest-grossing Telugu film of the year.
Star years
He made about 47 films with Jaya Prada and about 31 with Sridevi, and hits such as Krishnavataram (1982) and Agni Parvatam (1985) with Vijayashanti. His mythological Kurukshetram (1977) set off a rivalry with N. T. Rama Rao. In 1982 he launched Padmalaya Studios and produced his 200th film, Eenadu, and in 1986 Simhasanam became Telugu cinema’s first 70 mm film. He directed 17 films, including Sankharavam (1987) and Anna Thammudu (1990), several featuring Mahesh Babu.
Later career
In the 1990s he moved to gangster, elder-brother and cameo roles, with successes including Pacchani Samsaaram and Varasudu (both 1993), Number 1 (1994) and Amma Donga (1995). In 2004 he produced and directed the Hindi film Ishq Hai Tumse and played Jesus in Shanti Sandesham. His last major film was Sri Sri (2016).
Politics and family
Krishna joined the Congress under Rajiv Gandhi and won the Eluru Lok Sabha seat in 1989, losing it in 1991. He was married to Indira Devi, with whom he had five children, including the producer Ramesh Babu and Mahesh Babu; he later married the actor-director Vijaya Nirmala, his co-star in 48 films. He died in Hyderabad on 15 November 2022, at the age of 79, and was cremated with full state honours.
Career on file
Krishna Ghattamaneni has 96 Telugu films on file at Tollywood Desk, dated from 1962 to 2025: 95 films as actor, seven films as producer, six films as director and one film as writer. The earliest of them is Kula Gotralu (1962), and the most recent release is Prema Charithra Krishna Vijayam (2025). The most widely covered of these, counted by Wikipedia language editions, are Rajakumarudu (1999), Takkari Donga (2002) and Balachandrudu (1990). Other recent releases on file are Sri Sri (2016), Sukumarudu (2013) and Gunde Jhallumandi (2008).
Kaikala Satyanarayana is the most frequent co-star, sharing 35 films with Krishna Ghattamaneni, followed by Allu Rama Lingaiah (25) and Gummadi Venkateswara Rao (21). Among directors, K. S. R. Das and K. Raghavendra Rao each cast Krishna Ghattamaneni in six films, more than any other director; next are Kovelamudi Bapayya (4) and Dasari Narayana Rao (4). In the films Krishna Ghattamaneni directed, Mahesh Babu appears most often (five films), ahead of Gummadi Venkateswara Rao (3) and Kaikala Satyanarayana (3). Music on 16 of them is by K. V. Mahadevan, with K. Chakravarthy (15) and Chellapilla Satyam (6) next. Padmalaya Studios produced ten of them, more than any other banner on file. Across these films the credits on file name 54 different directors, 35 music directors and 153 other credited actors.
Runtime is on file for 59 of them; they average 150 minutes, and the longest is Alluri Seetharama Raju at 187 minutes. By decade the list splits into 1960s (17), 1970s (19), 1980s (36), 1990s (10), 2000s (11), 2010s (2) and 2020s (1).
Figures come from the films on file at Tollywood Desk and change as records are added.