Uday Kiran (26 June 1980 – 6 Jan 2014)

He burst on the Tollywood scene just when the Telugu Trinity of Chiranjeevi, Venkatesh and Nagarjuna were beyond their prime and before the new generation of Ram Charan, Allu Arjun and Naga Chaitanya came along. In the early 2000s, Uday Kiran discovered by director Teja came as a whiff of fresh air as a lover boy. His first three films – ‘Chitram’, ‘Nuvvu Nenu’ and ‘Manasantha Nuvve’, were successful hits, earning him the title hat-trick hero.

In 2001, he won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor - Telugu for the film ‘Nuvvu Nenu’, and became the youngest winner of the Filmfare best actor award after Kamal Haasan. In 2006, he made his Tamil debut with the film ‘Poi’, directed by veteran K Balachander. Later, he starred in romantic films including ‘Nee Sneham’ and ‘Kalusukovalani’. His other performances have been in the films ‘Sreeram’, ‘Avunanna Kaadanna’, ‘Nuvvekaddunte Nenakkadunta’ and ‘Jai Sriram’.

The actor born to a Telugu speaking Vaidika Brahmin couple - VVK Murthy and Nirmala – had no film connection yet managed to carve out a space for himself. He graduated in commerce from Wesley College, Secunderabad, and stayed grounded throughout his career comprising 19 movies.

Sources say that after Kiran’s downward spiral – both personally and professionally -began after he was engaged to Chiranjeevi's daughter Sushmitha in 2003 broke up within a few months. He married Vishitha on October 24, 2012.

The movie industry insiders said that Kiran’s death was nothing but a ‘movie mafia murder’. Producer Chadalavadi Srinivas Rao said that lack of ethics in the Telugu industry has driven Kiran to commit suicide. “Only the star sons thrive. Those who hail from outside the industry are mercilessly crushed by the big stars and producers. They are not given chances or even theatres to screen their movies. The pressure can be immense.” - Our film correspondent