Filmmaker Singeetham Srinivasa Rao dies in Chennai

Filmmaker Singeetham Srinivasa Rao died in Chennai on Saturday while receiving treatment at Kauvery Hospital, according to multiple reports. He was 94 or 95; the accounts differ on his age, and the available information does not resolve the discrepancy. The reports did not establish a definitive cause of death. Rao’s career spanned more than six decades and included work across Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Hindi and other language cinemas. He was known for moving among genres and experimenting with storytelling, from comedy and drama to science fiction and fantasy. His films included Pushpaka Vimana, Aditya 369, Mayuri, Apoorva Sagodharargal and Michael Madana Kama Rajan. Pushpaka Vimana, a dialogue-free film starring Kamal Haasan, won a National Film Award. Accounts differ on whether the award-winning film was the Kannada or Tamil production, so its language cannot be stated with confidence from the available reports. Rao also directed Aditya 369, a Telugu science-fiction film built around time travel, and Mayuri, based on dancer Sudha Chandran’s life. Rao began his career assisting filmmaker K. V.