T. Krishna Kumari (6 March 1933 – 24 January 2018) was an Indian actress. She worked predominantly in Telugu films, in addition to Tamil and Kannada films in the 1950s and 1960s.[2] She was the sister of noted actress Sowkar Janaki.
T. Krishna Kumari started her career at the age of 17 with a small role in the Telugu film Pathala Bhairavi (1951). She later played the role of a heroine for the first time in Navvithe Navaratnalu (1951). She featured as leading actress in several Tamil movies, notably Thirumbi Paar (1953), Manithan (1953), Azhagi (1953), Pudhu Yugam (1954), Viduthalai (1954) and Thuli Visham (1954).
Krishna Kumari then began to focus on Telugu cinema, which propelled her to stardom. Her movies Pelli Meeda Pelli (1959), Bharya Bhartalu (1961), Vagdanam (1961), Kulagothralu (1962), Gudi Gantalu (1964) remain some of Telugu cinema's classics.
In the early 1960s, Krishna Kumari entered the Kannada film industry briefly, choosing to return to her preferred Telugu cinema within years. But in the short span of 5–6 years, she gave memorable performances, most of them co-starring Dr. Rajkumar. In fact, her first ever award was for the Rajkumar starrer, Bhaktha Kanakadasa (1960).
In 1969, Krishna Kumari married Ajay Mohan Khaitan, a businessman and journalist who had previously served as Editor of the Indian Express and was the founder of two magazines, Screen and Businessman. Ajay Mohan Khaitan had previously been married to another lady also named Krishna, who was the daughter of Ramnath Goenka, founder and owner of The Indian Express. By his previous marriage, Ajay Mohan Khaitan was the father of two sons, including Vivek, who was adopted by Ramnath Goenka and given the name Viveck Goenka; he is presently running The Indian Express.[13]
After marriage, Krishna Kumari chose to step away from the arclights and moved to her husband's farmhouse near Bangalore, where she devoted herself to her family and developed her interests in cooking and gardening.[5] Krishna Kumari and Khaitan had a daughter, Dipika; according to some reports, Dipika was adopted by the couple.[14] Dipika married Vikram Maiya, the son of the Maiya family which owns the famous MTR restaurant in Bangalore and the MTR brand of ready-to-eat foods.[15]
Ajay Mohan Khaitan died in 2012 aged 85. Krishna Kumari continued to live at her farmhouse in Bengaluru with her daughter, son-in-law and grandson.
Death
Krishna Kumari died on 24 January 2018, in Bangalore from bone marrow cancer.[16]
^ abKavirayani, Suresh (25 January 2018). "Krishna Kumari is no more". Deccan Chronicle. Retrieved 13 October 2022. Born on March 6, 1933, in Naihati, West Bengal, Krishna Kumari belonged to a Telugu Brahmin family from Rajahmundry.
^"Yesteryear Kannada actor Krishna Kumari passes away in Bangalore". The News Minute. 24 January 2018. Retrieved 16 March 2022. Born on March 6, 1933, in Naihati, West Bengal, Krishna Kumari, Apart from films in her mother tongue Kannada, she acted in lots of Telugu and Tamil movies as well.