Vijaya Bapineedu Passes Away, Funeral Tomorrow

Well-known director, scriptwriter and producer of the Telugu film industry Vijaya Bapineedu today passed away due to old age-related ailments.

Bapineedu, whose real name was Guttha Bapineedu Chowdhary, was 82. He had been suffering from Alzheimer's Disease for the last four years, and was getting treated at Apollo Hospitals. He finally took his last breath early today in the presence of his family members at his residence in New MLA Quarters, Banjara Hills.

Born in 1936 in Chaataparru village near Eluru in Andhra Pradesh, Bapineedu had fruitful stints as a writer in popular magazines like Bommarillu and Vijaya. He first worked in the Public Health Department after his graduation. Later he strayed into films, and produced several blockbusters like Khaidi No 786, Gang Leader, Big Boss and Magadheerudu in a career spanning nearly half a century.

Top film stars like Chiranjeevi and Sobhan Babu featured in his directorial ventures.

Bapineedu was also credited for Chiranjeevi's successful career in films. The two first collaborated in the 1982 film "Patnam Vachina Pativratalu". They went on to work together in several films including Maga Maharaju (1983), Magadheerudu (1986) and Khaidi No 786 (1988). Their most memorable collaboration was the 1991 film Gang Leader, which was a huge blockbuster.

According to family sources, Bapineedu's last rites will be performed on February 14 at Mahaprasthanam in Film Nagar. When asked why the delay of two days, a member of his family revealed that they were waiting for his elder daughter to arrive from the US, where she lives.

The film fraternity in both the Telugu states expressed grief and conveyed their condolences to his family. Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao too condoled the death of the director and producer.