The 1980s witnessed the rise of two major south Indian film stars in politics. In Tamil Nadu, the legendary actor MGR (M.G. Ramachandran) already had a long involvement in politics and had been elected Chief Minister of the state (his colleague, the actress Jayalalitha is the Chief Minister today). The most dramatic rise of the 1980s though was that of NTR (N.T. Rama Rao), the reigning "god" of Telugu cinema.
NTR's film career began in the 1940s, and he is indelibly associated with the "golden age" of cinema, in the 1950s. Apart from numerous social roles, he became uniquely famous for his mythological roles; playing Krishna in a number of big productions in the 1950s and 1960s. In the 1970s, he starred in a number of action/revenge films, along the lines of Bollywood's "angry young man" thrillers, and embodied a powerful image as a man who would fight for the oppressed.
In 1983, NTR's party, the Telugu Desam, swept to power in the state, and marked the beginning of the end of the Congress party's singular dominance not only of the state, but in the country too (the Congress still rules, but only through alliances and coalitions). Later that decade, the Congress recruited a number of film stars to fight NTR in the elections (including my mother). NTR lost power, and finally passed away in 1996.
Here is a brief survey of his career, through some select clips:
1) A scene from the idyllic 1950s
2) Scenes from Dana Veera Sura Karna, an epic 1970s mythological in which NTR played multiple roles, here and here!
3) A risque hit song from the 1970s jungle-adventure film Adavi Ramudu, here
4) A sample of NTR's political speeches, here.
