R. Balasaraswathi Devi

Some Lesser Known Facts About R. Balasaraswathi Devi

• Raavu Balasaraswathi Devi belonged to the Nidudavolu family, a well-known Telugu cultural family. She began learning classical music at a young age under the guidance of Allathuru Subbayya.

• At the age of six, she recorded her first solo gramophone record for His Master’s Voice (HMV). Because of her fame as a child singer, she became popularly known as Bala, meaning child.

• In 1936, at the age of eight, she acted as child artist Ganga in the Telugu films Sati Anasuya and Bhakta Dhruva, both directed by C. Pullaiah.

• Her talent attracted Tamil filmmaker K. Subramaniam, who invited her to work in Tamil films.

• She acted in several Tamil and Telugu films during the 1930s and 1940s, including Bhaktha Kuchela (1936), Balayogini (1937), Tukaram (1938), Thiruneelakantar (1939), and Illalu (1940).

• During this period, she worked with major studios such as Madras United Artists Corporation, Star Combines, and Indira Devi Films.

• In 1943, she became the first playback singer in Telugu cinema by recording the song Tinne Meedha Sinnoda for the film Bhagya Lakshmi.

• The song was composed by Bhimavarapu Narasimha Rao and marked the beginning of playback singing in Telugu film history.

• She also became the first light music singer on All India Radio (AIR) and sang the opening songs for AIR Madras and AIR Vijayawada.

• From the 1940s to the 1960s, she worked as both a playback singer and actress in South Indian films.

• Some of her notable songs included Ohoho Maharaja from Swapna Sundari (1950), Deepavali Deepavali from Shavukaru (1950), and Andam Choodavaya Anandinchavaya from Devadasu (1953).

• Other well-known songs were Raavamma Nidura Raavamma from Nirupedalu (1954), Madiloni Madhura Bhavam from Jayasimha (1955), and Lali Lali Nanu Kannayya from Peddarikalu (1957).

• She sang in several languages, including Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, and Sinhala.

• Balasaraswathi Devi collaborated with leading composers such as K. V. Mahadevan, Viswanathan–Ramamoorthy, Naushad, Vedha, Master Venu, and M. B. Sreenivasan.

• She sang duets with top singers like Ghantasala, A. M. Rajah, T. M. Soundararajan, Pithapuram Nageswara Rao, and K. Rani.

• She was trained in both Carnatic and Hindustani classical music, which helped her maintain accurate raga and shruti in her songs.

• Her music career continued for nine decades, covering gramophone records, cassettes, CDs, and digital recordings.

• She also recorded several devotional songs and Meera Bhajans translated into Telugu by Dr. C. Narayana Reddy.

• Balasaraswathi Devi married Sri Raja Rao Pradyumna Krishna Mahipati Surya Rao, the Zamindar of Kolamk, Tamil Nadu. They met during one of her performances in Madras.

• After marriage, she lived in Mysore for some years and later settled in Hyderabad. After her husband’s death, she lived with her son and grandson in Secunderabad.

• She preferred wearing half-white silk sarees, used jasmine flowers for her hair, and liked sweets such as gulab jamun and jangri. Her great-granddaughter Neha continued the family’s musical tradition.

• In 1980, she sang in the Telugu film Sangham Chekkina Shilpalu. At the age of eighty, she released her devotional album Radha Madhavam, composing and directing the music herself.

• Her last live performance took place in 2018 during the Swarabhishekam program in Hyderabad.

• Raavu Balasaraswathi Devi passed away on 15 October 2025 at her residence in Hyderabad, Telangana, at the age of ninety-seven.

• She was the first playback singer in Telugu cinema and the first light music singer on All India Radio. She sang more than two thousand songs and worked with several leading artists of South Indian cinema.

• Her ninety-five-year-long association with music made her one of the earliest and longest-serving playback singers in Indian film history.