Film and theatre actor H.G. Somashekar Rao, 86, passed away at a hospital here on Tuesday.
Son of a freedom fighter, he hailed from Chitradurga and was the elder brother of veteran actor H.G. Dattatreya (better known as Dattanna).
Gold medallist
A gold medallist in University of Mysore, Rao had a long career with Canara Bank and played a key role in building the bank’s staff training college.
While posted in Mysuru, he took to amateur Kannada theatre in the 1960s and 1970s. He later shifted to Bengaluru and worked in various troupes for over four decades.
His acting in plays like Ashadhabooti, Jokumaraswamy, and Kadadida Neeru are remembered even today. He acted in over 300 plays and worked as the principal of Abhinaya Taranga, a city-based theatre training school for nearly a decade.
Debut film
He debuted in 1975 as a character actor in Geejagana Goodu and went on to work in over 50 films. His role in the 1988 film Mithileya Seeteyaru won him both popularity and critical acclaim and a State award.
In recent years, he had taken to writing and penned two novels and an autobiography among other works.
