Krishnam Raju Funeral: Last rites of veteran Tollywood actor and former Union minister U.V. Krishnam Raju will be performed with state honours in Hyderabad on Monday. Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao directed the officials to make arrangements for Raju's cremation with state honours. The chief minister asked Chief Secretary Somesh Kumar to make the necessary arrangements.
Raju, popular as Rebel Star, died early Sunday at AIG Hospital here. He was 83. The last rites will be performed Monday afternoon at Maha Prasthanam in Jubilee Hills. A tweet informing the details of last rites was shared on verified account of Telangana CMO in Telugu. It reads, "Chief Minister Mr. K. Chandrasekhar Rao has directed the Chief Secretary Mr. Somesh Kumar to conduct the last rites of his dearest friend and former Union Minister Mr. Krishnan Raju with official ceremonies. CS Somesh Kumar will make arrangements as per CM's orders."
His mortal remains were shifted to his residence, where it will be kept till Monday afternoon to enable his fans to pay their last respects. mega star Chiranjeevi, veteran actors Murali Mohan, Mohan Babu, Jr NTR, Mahesh Babu, directors Trivikram, Raghavendra Rao and others paid tributes to Raju. They consoled Raju's family members including his nephew actor Prabhas.
Meanwhile, leaders of various political parties and film personalities made a beeline to Raju's house to pay their last respects. Union minister for culture G. Kishan Reddy was also present there.
Uppalapati Krishnam Raju has passed away at the age of 83 in wee hours on Sunday. He is survived by his wife and three daughters. 'Bahubali' star Prabhas is his nephew.
Popularly known as 'Rebel Star' of Tollywood, Krishnam Raju has acted in more than 180 movies in a career spanning over five decades.
Krishnam Raju acted in movies ranging from social, family, romantic, thriller movies to historical and mythological movies. Born, January 20, 1940 in the West Godavari district, Krishnam Raju made his film debut in 1966 with 'Chilaka Gorinka'. His succesful movies include 'Amara Deepam', 'Sita Ramulu', 'Katakataala Rudraiah' and many more. The actor's last on-screen outing was Prabhas starrer 'Radhe Shyam'.
In his later years, along with film's, Krishnam Raju also pursued a career in politics. He contested as the Congress candidate from Narasapuram in 1991 but list. He won from the same seat as the BJP candidate in the 1999 polls and served as a junior minister in the Vajpayee cabinet till 2004.
-- with IANS inputs
Don't miss these:
RIP Krishnam Raju: Priceless photos of 'Rebel Star' with nephew Prabhas
Krishnam Raju dies: 'Rebel Star' of Tollywood, uncle of Telugu actor Prabhas acted in 180+ films
