Ramoji Rao; irreplaceable genius who made his mark in industry, cinema and media

Renowned filmmaker and media owner Ramoji Rao, who passed away yesterday, is an ever-inspiring example of where dedication and hard work can take a man. A single movement called Ramoji Film City is enough to remember him forever. Thousands of films in various Indian languages ​​including Malayalam have been shot at Ramoji Film City. Ramoji Film City also holds the Guinness World Record for being the world's largest film studio. Ramoji Rao's philosophy was his confidence that nothing is impossible.

Born into an ordinary farming family in a village called Pedaparupudi in the Krishna district of Andhra Pradesh, Ramoji Rao's triumphal journey is inimitable. Ramoji Rao was a tycoon who gilded everything he touched by making his mark in various fields like industry, cinema and media. At the same time, he launched and succeeded in various ventures like Eenad newspaper, ETV Network, Ramadevi Public School, Priya Pickles, Ushakiran Movies, Mayuri Film Distribution, Margadarshi Chit Funds and Dolphin Hotel chain. As a media owner, he once had a decisive influence on Andhra politics. Many political leaders sought Ramoji Rao's opinion during cabinet formation.

One of the most notable films produced by Usha Kiran Movies was 'Mayuri', featuring Malayalee dancer Sudachandran as the heroine, who danced with a prosthetic leg." Dubbed in various languages, including Malayalam, the film ran as a superhit across India. The concept of Ramoji Film City was modelled after Universal Studios in Hollywood. Ramoji Film City was started in 1996 on about two thousand acres of land with all the necessary facilities to complete the production of a film and many Malayalam films and big-budget films including Baahubali have been shot there.

The Film City, which is filled with awe of curiosities, is also a popular destination for tourists today. Lakhs visit Ramoji Film City every year. Ramoji Rao produced several super hits under the banner of Usha Kiran Movies. He produced around eighty films in Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Tamil, Marathi and Bengali languages. He also produced a Malayalam film 'Pakarathinu Pakaram'. Ramoji Rao won the National Award for Best Producer and was honoured with Padma Vibhushan by the country in 2016. He had a warm association with 'Kerala Kaumudi'. A program was done depicting the specialities of Ramoji Film City when Kaumudy TV was started. We pay obeisance to the memory of the great genius Ramoji Rao.