The following Post was composed by Spandana . You can follow her on Twitter.
Her name is well known to many Telugu people. Our Telugu Anthem “Ma Telugu Talliki”
was first recorded in her golden Voice. The song which is essence of Telugu soul
written by great poet Sankarambadi Sundarachari Garu, reached eternal state through
her voice. Many would have guessed, she is niece of Andhra Kesari Prakasam Pantulu
Garu.Other than that she was a talented actress and proved her abilities in many movies
around 1945-1955 in Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi. Her songs were quite popular among
masses. HMV gramophone record Company released numerous songs with her voice.
She is the first Telugu Lady to win Miss Madras beauty pageant, and she is the first runner up of Miss India in the Year 1952. She is one of the few actors who visited USA in 1954 as member of the delegation from Indian film industry. She is the first Telugu artist to prove her mettle on the American stage and won the “Off Broadway Critics Award” for her portrayal of Queen Sudarshana in Rabindranath Tagore’s ‘King of The Dark Chamber’ in the Year 1961. She researched Indian stories under Alfred Hitchcock. A full size colour photo of Suryakumari was featured in the prestigious Life Magazine in 1961 June 9. She was the first Telugu artist (probably the last as well) to receive this acclaim.
In 1965 Suryakumari moved to England and founded “India Performing Arts” at
Kensington, England. Her efforts to spread our Arts in Faraway land are impressive
and she continued them the rest of her life. She being a great artist herself married another one, Harold Elvin, poet, painter, and potter. She was a prominent figure and played a key role in many cultural activities in Europe. Her achievements are numerous, and it’s impossible to discuss them all.
Surya Kumari garu took her last breath on April 25, 2005. She was a woman, who chose her fate, and was never afraid of taking risks. She was a woman who followed her heart and lived her life fully. She is an Enigma, and her life gives hope to fly; her journey gives strength to take challenges.
Some interesting points
- Famous director Singeetham Srinivasa Rao worked with her for preparation of
script to dance drama - Suryakumari was approached by world famous Rock Band Beatles for
collaboration, but Suryakumari refused the offer(source–a talk show by
Kiran Prabha in Youtube) - Some of her famous movies are ‘Krishna Prema’, ‘RaithuBidda’ (1939),
‘Bhagyalakshmi'(1943), ‘Krishnaprema'(1943), ‘Maradalu Pelli'(1952) and Hindi
films ‘Watan'(1954), ‘Udan Khatola'(1955). - In ‘Leader’ Movie Shekar Kammula used Original “MaTeluguTalliki“ song in
Suryakumari’s voice.
Disclaimer: This article represents the opinions of the Author, and should not be considered a reflection of the views of the Andhra Cultural Portal. The Author is responsible for ensuring the factual veracity of the content, herein.
