D. V. S. Raju

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D. V. S. Raju, born Datla Venkata Suryanarayana Raju on 13 December 1928 in Allavaram, Andhra Pradesh, was a prominent Indian film producer in Telugu cinema. He helped move the Telugu film industry from Madras to Hyderabad and produced about 25 films, including Maa Babu (1960), Mangamma Sapadham (1965), Pidugu Ramudu (1966), Tikka Sankarayya (1968), Gandikota Rahasyam (1969), and Jeevana Jyothi (1975). He also produced the Hindi film Mujhe Insaaf Chaahiye (1983).

Raju held many leadership roles in the film industry. He was Honorary Secretary of the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce in 1966, a jury member at the 15th National Film Awards, and President of the Film Federation of India from 1979 to 1980. He served as Chairman of the National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) and helped co-fund the acclaimed Gandhi (1982). He was also Chairman of the Andhra Pradesh State Film Development Corporation and helped organize the International Film Festival of India in Hyderabad in 1986, which accompanied the building of the Telugu Lalitha Kala Thoranam. He founded D.V.S. Productions in 1964; its first film Mangamma Sapatham (1965) was a big hit.

Raju came from a film-loving family. His father, Datla Balarama Raju, was a Member of Parliament for Narasapuram from 1962 to 1971. He studied in Kakinada and worked in film poster printing, which helped him connect with the industry and with N. T. Rama Rao. He later financed several NAT Films productions and other projects, and also worked on dubbing and poster work early in his career.

D. V. S. Raju married Anasuya Devi in 1948 and had three daughters and two sons. He died on 13 November 2010 in Hyderabad at age 81 after a brief illness.