ANR's b'day to be celebrated with fanfare

Acting legend Akkineni Nageswara Rao (ANR) turns 90 Friday. His birthday will be celebrated as a grand affair here by Lalitha Kala Parishath, under the supervision of politician and film enthusiast T. Subbarami Reddy.

The film industry's bigwigs are expected to grace the event, which will take place at Ravindra Bharathi.

"We have decided to celebrate his birthday on a grand scale. It's a proud moment for our industry to honour an actor of this stature. Besides the Akkineni family, the event will also presided over by governor ESL Narsimhan, actor-politician Chiranjeevi and filmmaker D. Rama Naidu among many more," a member of Lalitha Kala Parishath, told IANS.

"He (Nageswara Rao) will be felicitated on this occasion by our governor and Chiranjeevi. Several other Telugu academies such as Yuva Kala Vahani and Delhi Telugu academy will also felicitate him for his contribution to Telugu industry," he added.

Meanwhile, popular southern composer M.M. Keeravani will receive the ANR lifetime achievement award, which was instituted by Rasamayi Foundation, a Telugu cultural forum.

"He will receive the award in a separate ceremony on Saturday (Sep 21) in Ravindra Bharati. He will be felicitated by Nageswara Rao on the occasion," said Ramamurthy, convener of Rasamayi Foundation.