Doyen of Telugu cinema Kalatapasvi K Viswanath passes away at 92

Prolific Indian film director, screenwriter, and actor breathed his last at a private hospital on Thursday, at 92. He was survived by his wife and three children.

Viswanath was born on February 19, 1930, in the Guntur district of Andhra Pradesh. He was popularly known as Kalatapasvi. In his distinguished career overall, he directed more than 50 films in three languages: Telugu, Hindi, and Tamil

Kalatapasvi K Viswanath, known as a film director, screenwriter, and actor, received a huge number of awards, such as five National Film Awards, ten Filmfare Awards South, and a Filmfare Award in Hindi. He bagged the Padma Shri in 1992 and was awarded the biggest award in Indian cinema, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, in 2017.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed shock over the death of veteran film director Kalatapasvi K Viswanath on Friday and stated that he was a well-known personality in the film industry. PM Modi went on to say that he will be remembered as a film director for his exceptional creativity.

He began his film career working as an audiographer for Vauhini Studios. Gradually, he showed his talent and started to become a film director. He made his debut as an assistant director in the 1951 Telugu film Pathala Bhairavi. He is best known for his 1985 Telugu film “Swathimuthyam,” which starred Kamal Hassan. Later, this film got the nod as the Best Foreign Language film at the 59th Academy Awards.

Viswanath kept his foot in Bollywood with the 1979 film Sargam. His other famous Hindi movies were Kaamchor, Shubh Kaamna, Jaag Utha Insan, and so on.

As an actor, Viswanath made his debut in the 1995 Telugu film Subha Sankalpam. He also did the acting in several television serials as well.