Vijaya Nirmala, One Of The Most Celebrated Female Directors In Indian Cinema, Dies At 75

A pall of gloom marred Tollywood after the news of the sudden demise of renowned director and actress G Vijaya Nirmala. She was 75. Vijaya Nirmala was suffering from age-related ailments and was admitted at the Continental Hospital in Gachibowli where she is reported to have suffered cardiac arrest. She breathed her last early on Thursday.

Born in Tamil Nadu, Vijaya Nirmala put her first foot forward in the world of cinema when she was a mere 7-year-old. She started as a child artist in 1950 Tamil film 'Machcha Rekhai'. It was no looking back for Vijaya after that. At the age of 11, Vijaya featured in Telugu film 'Panduranga Mahatmyam'. Her father had worked in film production.

Vijaya Nirmala rose to stardom for her iconic role in the Malayalam horror blockbuster 'Bhargavi Nilayam', released in 1964, in which she played the titular role. She starred opposite Prem Nazir in the movie. Again in 1967, Vijaya starred opposite Prem Nazir in P. Venu directorial 'Udhyogastha'. She made her debut in the Telugu industry through the film 'Rangula Ratnam'.

Though Vijaya Nirmala started her career as an actor and starred in over 200 films in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam, she later donned the cap of a producer and a director. Vijaya has directed 44 films in Telugu and in 2002, she was featured the Guinness Book of Records for being the only female to have directed most number of films. She made her directorial debut with a Malayalam film on a budget of Rs 3 lakh. The movie, 'Meena', was her directorial debut in Telugu.

Vijaya Nirmala is considered to be a trailblazer for being one of the few female filmmakers to make a mark as a director.

Vijaya received the Raghupathi Venkaiah Award in 2008 for her contributions to Telugu cinema. She and her fellow Telugu actor Savitri are credited as the only female directors to have directed legendary actor Sivaji Ganesan. Her last directed movie was 'Neramu Siksha' released in 2009. Some of her notable works include Poola Rangadu, Tata Manavadu, Marina Manishi Panduranga Mahatyam, Aatimiyulu, Buddhimantudu among others.

Apart from films, Vijaya Naresh has also ventured in the small screen. She made her television debut with Balaji Telefilms' 'Pelli Kanuka'.

Vijaya had a son Vijay Naresh from her marriage to Krishna Murthy whom she met on the sets of her second Telugu film 'Saakshi' released in 1967. Vijaya and Krishna have together starred in 47 films.

I regret to inform you that my Mother senior Artiste, prominent Producer & Director, Dr. G Vijayanirmala Garu passed away during early hours today, that is, 27.6.2019, at Continental Hospitals, Hyderabad, due to sickness. She was 75. pic.twitter.com/7D5b5VOXmH

— H.E Dr Naresh VK actor (@ItsActorNaresh) 27 June 2019

She later got married to actor Krishna, who was the father of five children from his earlier marriage. Mahesh Babu and Manjula Ghattamaneni are her step-children.