Remembering Captain Raju, a menacing yet much-loved antagonist

Noted film actor and former army man Captain Raju, whose antagonist portrayals enjoyed wide appeal in the 90s with audiences across the country, passed away at his Kochi residence in the wee hours of Monday morning. It was actor Sobhan Babu who gave him a break in Telugu films with S A Chandrasekhar’s Balidaanam in 1982, impressed by his villainous act in the Malayalam hit

Raktham

. The actor's brief stint at the army earned him the label ‘Captain’ among film circles.

An assertive, tall personality with a strong baritone, he was an obvious choice for films as an investigating offer, or a goon in the late 80s and early 90s. Captain Raju went onto act alongside notable stars of his generation including Mohanlal, Mammooty, Chiranjeevi, Balakrishna, Venkatesh and Vijaya Shanti. Some of his major hit films in Telugu include Sathruvu, Mondi Mogudu Penki Pellam, Rowdy Alludu,

Kondapalli Raja

and Ardha Ratri Hatyalu. He broke away from the commercial stream with the Dasari film Pichodi Chethilo Rayi in a role that was modelled on filmmaker, journalist Ramoji Rao. Owing to his popularity, many of his Malayalam releases were also dubbed into Telugu.

An avid reader, Raju was known to share a cordial relationship with his counterparts. An accident in the late 2000s marked his departure from the film industry for a while. Raju is credited to have launched Laila as a heroine in the South with his directorial Itha Oru Snehagatha, the latter went onto do successful Telugu films including Egire Pavurama, Ugadi and Nuvve Kavali. Raju had reportedly suffered a heart attack during his journey to US via UAE earlier this year, where he was to attend his son's wedding. "I am an extremely peace-loving person. Not everyone are privileged to live a life like the heroes. There were a lot of ups and downs in my career and I handled them with a smile," he shared in one of his last media interactions.