ANR @ 100: Bronze statue unveiled to mark Akkineni Nageswara Rao’s centenary year celebrations

A bronze statue of Akkineni Nageswara Rao was unveiled at Annapurna Studios, Hyderabad, on September 20, to mark the birth centenary of the legendary actor-producer. Designed meticulously by Chennai-based sculptor Vineesh Vijayan, the statue is a throwback to memories of ANR in his heydays. The statue was unveiled by Venkaiah Naidu, former vice president of India, in the presence of the doyen’s family members including Nagarjuna, Naga Susheela, Amala, Naga Chaitanya, Akhil, Sumanth, Supriya, Sushanth and several dignitaries.

Statue of Akkineni Nageswara Rao, sculpted by Vineesh Vijayan, at Annapurna Studios, Hyderabad, to mark the legendary actor’s birth centenary (Source: Special Arrangement)

It took Vineesh and his team five months to design the statue, after poring over photographic and video references shared by Naga Susheela, Sumanth and family members. Naga Susheela stated that the sculptor watched Nageswara Rao’s 1961 film Velugu Needalu to observe the minute expressions. The statue underwent several stages of design — 3D model making, 3D printing, clay modelling and the final bronze casting.