Tollywood Director Vijaya Bapineedu Dies At 83

Producer-director Vijaya Bapineedu, who made his presence with blockbusters in the 80s in Telugu cinema, passed away here on Tuesday due to age related illness. He was 82.

His cremation is likely to be held on Thursday as the family is waiting for his daughter to arrive from the USA. Hailing from Chataparru village in West Godavari district, he edited two magazines — ‘Vijaya’ and ‘Bommarillu’ — before handling the megaphone. He also penned a few novels.

Mr. Bapineedu was the one who gave Chiranjeevi the title ‘Megastar’ with massive hits like ‘Maga Maharaju’ ‘Mahanagram Lo Mayagaadu’, ‘Khaidi Number 786’ and ‘Gang Leader’ with the last one pushing Chiranjeevi into a new league and creating a cult status for him. The film was also remade in Hindi as ‘Aaj Ka Gundaraj’. Their combination was the most awaited one in the late 80s and early 90s.