Fish Venkat

Some Lesser Known Facts About Fish Venkat

• Fish Venkat grew up in Hyderabad, Telangana.

• Venkat hailed from Telangana and belonged to the Ganga Putrudu community, traditionally linked to fishing. He also spoke in a distinct Telangana dialect that reflected his roots. This combination of heritage and speech led to him being called ‘Fish’ Venkat.

• His father hailed from Chintal Basti in Khairatabad, Telangana.

• Venkat knew actor Srihari and his family well, and their bond grew as they practised together at the Lal Bahadur Shastri Stadium in Hyderabad. Though Venkat was not even interested in films at the time, it was Srihari who convinced him to enter the industry.

• In his early days, Venkat worked at the Musheerabad Fish Market and helped with his brother’s fish business. While doing so, he secretly acted in films without his brother’s knowledge.

• Venkat was initially offered a role in the Telugu action film ‘Vijayaramaraju’ (2000), but he turned it down.

• His first on-screen appearance came with the film ‘Orey Thammudu’ (2001), where he played one of four supporting characters.

• After appearing in a few small-budget films, Venkat took a break as it began affecting his fish business. He later returned to acting and slowly gained recognition for his comic timing.

• Venkat’s work in the films ‘Kushi’ (2001) and ‘Aadi’ (2002) was highly appreciated by the audience.

  

• Fish Venkat began receiving specially written roles after his appearance in the film ‘Aadi,’ as writers and directors started noticing his potential.

• Fish Venkat primarily worked in Telugu films and is known for playing comedy and negative roles.

• Venkat played the role of Govind’s henchman in the 2014 film ‘Subramanyam For Sale,’ directed by Harish Shankar, which turned out to be a breakthrough. His fast-paced English dialogues and comic timing between the hero and villain made him widely popular.

  

• Venkat often credited director Harish Shankar for his career growth, as Harish gave him roles in most of his films, which greatly helped him grow in the industry.

• Fish Venkat worked in many other films, including ‘Bunny’ (2005), ‘Samanyudu’ (2006), ‘Seetharamula Kalyanam Lankalo’ (2010), ‘Jai Sriram’ (2013), ‘Speedunnodu’ (2016), and ‘Coffee with a Killer’ (2025).

  

• Venkat often took roles without focusing on money and had even done some films without charging anything.

• Venkat was conscious about fitness and was once even selected for the Mr. Telangana competition.

• In July 2025, Fish Venkat was admitted to the ICU and needed a kidney transplant, costing around Rs. 50 lakh, but his family could not find a matching donor and appealed for help.

• It was initially reported that actor Prabhas offered to cover the transplant expenses, but his daughter later clarified that no such support had been received.

• Later, Minister Vakiti Srihari visited Venkat at the hospital and offered Rs. 1 lakh as immediate aid. He also assured that the government would handle all medical expenses.