Not every actor can be called a legend. Particularly, among artists who mostly play villain and character roles and who weren’t that famous as heroes, it is not that easy to enter this great league. Kaikala Satyanarayana is one among such stalwarts who will be remembered as long as there is a film industry in our world. A genius who rose from humble beginnings, he was always known for his soft and humane nature.
He has played key roles in the films of all leading stars right from ANR, NTR, Shobhan Babu, Krishna, Krishnam Raju to Balakrishna, Chiranjeevi, Venkatesh and Nagarjuna etc. He is among those first-generation actors who have spent more than 50 years in the film industry. With this muscular build, he was the darling of masses in villain roles and his characters used to be as strong and crowd pulling in those days as much as top stars.
The mere presence of Kaikala and his strong onscreen presence was enough to give jitters to the audience. Even in the 1990s when old stars were retiring, Satyanarayana started his fresh innings as Ghatothkachudu, and this generation remembers him fondly that way. His dialogue delivery, body language, on screen domination and diction were unmatchable. His love for tasty food and acting, according to Megastar Chiru, was simply unstoppable.
He also served one term as MP from Telugu Desam party. His stature was almost equal to NTR and he worked with the likes of Savithri, SV Ranga Rao and other legends. His hold on Telugu language and dialogue delivery was simply amazing and he represented a unique school of acting. His roles are inspirational forever for aspiring villains in Tollywood. Satyanarayana had friends across the industry due to his non controversial nature.
He was equally good at the roles of sentimental father, repentant father and in most films of those era he was the favorite father figure of all heroines right from Sridevi to Vijayashanthi, Radha, Radhika etc. The way he used to smoke his cigar and hatch plots on screen was goosebumps moment for the audiences. It is commendable to see that his last rites will be conducted with full state honors from the Government of Telangana. Even PM Modi had sent his condolences to this one and only actor, who always makes our Telugus immensely proud.
