Telugu actress Anjali Devi dead

Chennai, Jan 13 (IANS) Renowned Telugu actress Anjali Devi died in a private hospital here Monday. The 86-year-old was suffering from heart-related problems.

"Anjali Devi was admitted to Vijaya Hospital four days back. She passed away this afternoon," a hospital source told IANS.

She is survived by two sons.

Born in 1928 as Anjani Kumar, she made her cinematic debut as a child artist in a 1936 film.

It was director C. Pullaiah who rechristened Anjani as Anjali Devi. In 1947, she made her debut as a lead heroine opposite Akkineni Nageswara Rao in Telugu family drama "Balaraju".

Before entering films, Anjali was a popular theatre artist.

Mostly known for starring in mythological and family dramas, Anjali became a household name with memorable performances in films such as "Lava Kusha", "Bhakta Prahlada", "Bhakta Tukaram" and "Badi Pantulu".

She had also starred in a few Tamil films such as "Niraparadhi" and "Sarvadhikari" and Hindi movies like "Devta" and "Sri Ram Vanvas".

Under her banner Anjali Pictures, she had also produced about 20 successful films such as "Anarkali", "Paradesi" and "Suvarna Sundari".

Anjali is credited with introducing Bollywood actress Rekha into Telugu industry as a child artist with "Rangula Ratnam".