ANR hailed from a peasant family in a remote village named Venkataraghavapuram, Gudivadathaluka, Andhra Pradesh. It was just another typical Indian village with its own beauties and very own worries! But this was in the 1930s…not any more. Because it produced a gem called Akkineni Nageswara Rao.
In a country with a big gap between millionaires andbelow the poverty line segments, there is no hard and fast rule that every rich is helping or should contribute to the society. But, irrespective of the heights ANR achieved, he always gave back to the motherland he was born and the cine-motherland, he was born as an artist.
- Earlier, it was a strenuous task to travel from Gudivada to Eluru which was about a 60km journey by road or about 2 and half km boat ride over the mighty river Krishna. Keeping in mind his difficulties, ANR had a 2km long bridge constructed over the river enabling a safe and comfortable journey for the people of his village Venkataraghavapuram and the surrounding villages.
- This time in 1959, he arose as the knight in the shining armor for his people, establishing ANR College and donated Rs. 1 lakh in those days [equivalent to some crores today] and started awarding scholarships to merit students.
- He got roads, street lights, sanitation facilities and numerous water tanks for his village Venkataraghavapuram.
- He actually donated off his hard earned money amounting to around Rs. 1 lakh in a decade’s time (between the period from 1949-1953) for the welfare of his village. That was the time when income taxes were high and he was establishing as a key figure in Telugu cinema. Even in such circumstances, he cared for his hometown and looked after its needs.
ANR was never a publicity freak neither showed off about his philanthropic activities. But, today all these things deserve a mention in the remembrance of this legendary human being.