P. Adinarayana Rao

He also composed and produced music for several Tamil and Hindi films. According to the music critic V. Rangarao, • "Adinarayana Rao is credited for introducing Hindustani music in contemporary flavour and simplified orchestration, and thereby impressing both laymen audience as well cognoscenti. It is this music that survives him enthralling all the music lovers".: Memorable music compositions from Rao are: "Rajasekhara Neepai Moju Theera Leduraa" in the film Anarkali released in 1955, "Piluvakuraa Alugakuraa" in the film Suvarna Sundari released in 1957, "Telugu Veera Levaraa Deeksha Booni Sagara" and "Vastaadu Naraju" in the film Alluri Seetarama Raju released in 1974 and all songs including "Ghana Ghana Sundara" in Bhakta Tukaram, released in 1973. Some of his most popular compositions come from Suvarna Sundari and include Hayi hayiga Amani Saage (Telugu), Kuhu Kuhu bole Koyaliya (Hindi), and Thesulavuthe (Tamil). Music directors such as Satyam, T. Ranga Rao,"JosephKrishna" and Laxmikant–Pyarelal worked under him as assistant directors.

• Name — P. Adinarayana Rao • Birth Name — Penupatruni Adinarayana Rao • Born — 21 August 1914 • Birthplace — Kakinada, Andhra Pradesh • Died — 19 August 1991 • Occupation — Music director • Years Active — 1951–1991

Adinarayana Rao was born in 1914 in Kakinada of East Godavari district in Andhra Pradesh to Penupatruni Krishnayya Gowd and Penupatruni Anasuya. He completed his matriculation in Kakinada. He started his film career as a child artiste at the age of six, under Rajarajeswari Naatya Mandali's baton playing the roles of mythological characters such as "Narada" and "Savitri". Later, he studied classical music under Patrayani Sitaramsastry in Saluru. By age of 12, he played many musical instruments and had shown his talent in both music as a composer, and on stage as a playwright.

He was well known in Kakinada theatre circle, with plays like Black Market, Vasanta Sena and Veedhi Gaayakulu, with which he still continued after entering the film industry and was affectionately given a nickname "Abbayi Garu". The play Street Singers written by him was admired, and his wife Anjali Devi received a gold medal and a citation from Sir Arthur Hope, then governor of the Madras Presidency in 1943. He fine-tuned his skills to become a well known artiste while working under the 'Burmah Shell Amateurs Troupe', through the famous 'Young Mens Happy Club', which produced stalwarts from the Telugu film industry like Relangi, S. V. Ranga Rao, Gandikota Jagannatham and Anjali Devi. Here he met his future wife Anjali Devi.

Adinarayana Rao founded "Aswini Pictures", together with Akkineni Nageswara Rao and makeup artist K. Gopala Rao, to produce movies like "Maayalamaari" in 1951 in Telugu, "Mayakkaari" in Tamil, and "Annadhata" in 1954, for which he wrote lyrics and composed music.

He started a production house 'Anjali Pictures' in 1951, using the name of his wife after parting ways with Aswini Pictures. He produced some of the blockbusters in the film industry like Paradesi in 1952 in Telugu, which was directed by L. V. Prasad, Poongottai in Tamil, Anarkali in 1955, Suvarna Sundari in 1957 and Bhakta Tukaram in 1973. In all these movies, his wife Anjali Devi acted as the lead heroine. Most of the movies he produced had Akkineni Nageswara Rao as a lead actor. He also produced movies in Hindi such as Phoolon Ki Sej in 1964 and Suvarna Sundari, for which he wrote the script (1957).

• Year — Film title • 1951 — Maayalamaari • Mayakkaari • 1953 — Pardesi • Poongothai • 1954 — Annadata • 1955 — Anarkali • 1957 — Suvarna Sundari • 1962 — Swarnamanjari • 1964 — Phoolon Ki Sej • 1965 — Sati Sakkubai • 1970 — Ammakosam • 1973 — Bhakta Tukaram • 1976 — Mahakavi Kshetrayya • 1980 — Chandipriya

• Year — Film — Language — Director — Banner — Notes • 1947 — Gollabhama — Telugu — C. Pullayya — Sobhanachala Studios • 1950 — Palletoori Pilla — Telugu — B. A. Subba Rao — Poorna Films • 1951 — Maayakkari — Tamil — P. Sridhar — Aswini Pictures • 1951 — Mayalamari — Telugu — P. Sridhar — Aswini Pictures • 1951 — Mayamalai — Tamil — Raja Saheb of Mirzapur — Sobhanachala Studios • 1951 — Tilottama — Telugu — Raja Saheb of Mirzapur — Sobhanachala Studios • 1953 — Paradesi — Telugu — L. V. Prasad — Anjali Pictures • 1953 — Poongothai — Tamil — L. V. Prasad — Anjali Pictures • 1954 — Annadata — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Ashwaraj Films • 1955 — Anarkali — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1955 — Anarkali — Tamil — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1957 — Karpin Jothi — Tamil — Vedantam Raghavayya — Ashwaraj Films • 1957 — Manaalane Mangaiyin Baakkiyam — Tamil — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1957 — Suvarna Sundari — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1960 — Adutha Veettu Penn — Tamil — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1960 — Runanubandham — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1962 — Mangaiyar Ullam Mangatha Selvam — Tamil — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1962 — Swarna Manjari — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1964 — Phoolon Ki Sej — Hindi — Inder Raj Anand — Vijaya Vauhini Studios & Mehboob Studios • 1965 — Sati Sakkubai — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1967 — Sathi Sumathi — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1968 — Kumkuma Bharani — Telugu — Vedantam Raghavayya — Anjali Pictures • 1970 — Agni Pareeksha — Telugu — K. Varaprasad Rao — Padmalaya Studios • 1970 — Amma Kosam — Telugu — B. V. Prasad — Chinni Brothers • 1971 — Mosagallaku Mosagadu — Telugu — K. S. R. Das — Padmalaya Studios • 1971 — Kalyana Mandapam — Telugu — V. Madhusudhana Rao — Anjali Pictures • 1971 — Sati Ansuya — Telugu — B. A. Subba Rao — Srikanth & Srikanth Enterprises • 1973 — Bhakta Tukaram — Telugu — V. Madhusudhana Rao — Anjali Pictures • 1973 — Pedda Koduku — Telugu — K. S. Prakash Rao — Srikanth & Srikanth Enterprises • 1974 — Alluri Seetarama Raju — Telugu — V. Ramachandra Rao — Padmalaya Studios • 1976 — Mahakavi Kshetrayya — Telugu — Adurthi Subba Rao — Anjali Pictures • 1976 — Bhakta Kannappa — Telugu — Bapu — Gopi Krishna Movies — with Satyam • 1978 — Kannavari Illu — Telugu — K. Pratyagatma • 1980 — Chandipriya — Telugu — V. Madhusudhana Rao — Anjali Pictures • 1981 — Shirdi Saibaba — Telugu — Ashok Bhushan — with M. Ranga Rao

• He won Nandi Award for Second Best Feature Film - Silver - Mahakavi Kshetrayya (1976) • Bombay Journalist Association Nationwide Best Music Director Award for film Suvarna Sundari.

Anjali Devi launched the Adinarayana Rao Award (using her husband's name) beginning in 2011. Noted playback singer P. Susheela was the first recipient of the award.