G. K. Venkatesh | |
---|---|
Born | 21 September 1927 |
Origin | Hyderabad, British India |
Died | 13 November 1993 Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India |
(aged 66)
Occupation(s) | Film score, Music Director, playback singer, actor, Film Producer |
Instruments | Veena |
Years active | 1946 to 1993 |
Members | 50 |
Notable instruments | |
veena |
Gurajada Krishnadas Venkatesh (GKV) (Kannada: ಗುರಜಾಡ ಕೃಷ್ಣದಾಸ್ ವೆಂಕಟೇಶ್) (21 September 1927 – 13 November 1993) was a prominent composer of film music in Kannada cinema during the 1960s, 1970s and until the late-1980s. He also composed music for Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu movies. He produced numerous master pieces of Kannada film music. He also brought in Western background score into Kannada films and scored music for all Bond movies of Dr.Raj in the 1960s to 1970s.
He learned music since young and was very talented. Even as a child, he was appreciated by the Raja of Bobbili. He learned veena from his elder brother G. K. S. Pathi. As a teenager, he played Veena for the great music directors such as S. V. Venkatraman, S. M. Subbaiah Naidu and C. R. Subburaman.
GKV was also a talented singer. Before entering to cinema, he was singing in the Bangalore All India Radio. He had done chorus under S. V. Venkatraman for Meera.
He became a close friend to M. S. Viswanathan (MSV) while working under S. M. Subbaiah Naidu during the late-1940s. They shared the same room in Jupiter Lodge, Madras when MSV was offered to compose some songs for Genova. When N. S. Krishnan offered an opportunity to M. S. Viswanathan and T. K. Ramamoorthy to compose music for Panam (1952) for Madras Pictures, GKV became a part of their troupe. He had a chance to sing Ezhayin Kovilai Naadinaen in Panam which was also Sivaji Ganesan's second film. He was named as their assistant by Viswanathan Ramamoorthy.