Veteran Telugu writer, film personality Gollapudi Maruti Rao passes away

Veteran Telugu writer, columnist and film personality, Gollapudi Maruti Rao (80), passed away in a Chennai hospital on Thursday and the cremation will be performed there, according to family sources. During the last phase of his life, he resided in Visakhapatnam.

Maruti Rao, born in Vizianagaram in 1939, began his career as a Telugu writer, before joining the Andhra Prabha as a sub-editor in the late fifties, from where he moved to the film field, where he first made a mark as a dialogue writer. Later, from the eighties, he acted in several Telugu films as a supporting actor, distinguishing himself with his "punchy" dialogues. His aquiline nose was a standout feature. In one of the films, he was even referred to as "gedda mukku pantulu" (a Brahmin with an aquiline nose).

His death was condoled by Chief Minister Y.S Jaganmohan Reddy, former Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, Telangana Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhara Rao and several others in the political, film and literary fields.