She had been facing health issues related to aging for some time and died while receiving treatment at Manipal Hospital in Yeshwantpur in Bengaluru.

metro india news  I hyderabad

Indian cinema legend B Saroja Devi, who ruled the screen as ‘Abhinaya Saraswati’ passed away on Monday at the age of 87. She had been facing health issues related to aging for some time and died while receiving treatment at Manipal Hospital in Yeshwantpur in Bengaluru. Born on January 7, 1938, Saroja Devi acted in approximately 200 films over a span of seven decades across Tamil, Kannada, Telugu, and Hindi cinema. She was one of the most celebrated actresses in the history of Indian cinema.

Recognized as the first female superstar of Kannada cinema, Saroja Devi made her significant debut at the age of 17 in the Kannada film Mahakavı Kalidasa (1955). She entered Telugu cinema with Panduranga Mahatyam (1957) and had a series of hit films until the late 1970s. Her role in the Tamil movie Nadodı Mannan (1958) established her as a leading actress in Tamil cinema.

Following her marriage in 1967, she remained the second most sought-after actress in Tamil cinema until 1974. However, she was consistently among the leading actresses in Telugu and Kannada films from 1958 through the 1980s. Saroja Devi was also active in Hindi films until around the mid-1960s, beginning with Paigham (1959).

In Telugu cinema, she found great success, appearing alongside N T Rama Rao in notable films such as Seetarama Kalyanam (1961), Jagadeka Veeruni Katha (1961), and Daagudu Moothalu (1964), in addition to Amara Shilpi Jakkanna (1964), which was a remake of a Kannada film. Her collaboration with Akkineni Nageswara Rao in Pelli Kaanuka (1960) was also well-received.

The first Telugu film to utilize dubbing was Panduranga Mahatyam (1957), where Krishna Kumari provided her voice. However, in the years that followed, Saroja Devi learned to speak Telugu herself. Remarkably, she holds the record as the only Indian actress to star as the lead heroine in 161 consecutive films over a span of 29 years, from 1955 to 1984.

The actress was honored with the Padma Sri, which is the fourth highest civilian award, in 1969, and later received the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian distinction, in 1992 from the Union government. Saroja Devi made her final appearance on the silver screen in 2019 in the Kannada movie Nata Sarvabhouma, featuring Puneeth Rajkumar.