K. Raghavendra Rao

K. Raghavendra Rao

K. Raghavendra Rao (born Kovelamudi Raghavendra Rao on 23 May 1942) is an Indian film director, producer, screenwriter and choreographer, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema and a few Hindi and Kannada films. He has garnered eight state Nandi Awards, the IIFA Award, the SIIMA Award, five Filmfare Awards South and two CineMAA Awards. In a film career spanning more than five decades, Rao has directed more than a hundred feature films, of which around ninety were box office hits, across multiple genres such as romantic comedy, fantasy, melodrama, action thriller, biographical and romance films. Rao received the state Nandi Award for Best Director for his works such as Bobbili Brahmanna (1984), and Pelli Sandadi (1996). He garnered the Filmfare Award for Best Director – Telugu for the drama film Prema Lekhalu (1977), the super natural fantasy film, Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari (1990), and the romance film Allari Priyudu (1993). Rao is known for his works in hagiographical films such as Annamayya (1997), which won two National Film Awards, and was also showcased at the 1998 International Film Festival of India in the mainstream section. Rao also received the Nandi Award for Best Direction, the Filmfare Award for Best Direction for his work in the film. His other hagiographic works such as Sri Manjunatha (2001), Sri Ramadasu (2006), Shirdi Sai (2012) and Om Namo Venkatesaya (2017), received several state honors.

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