Comedian Guggu

Comedian Guggu’s real name is Makam Ashwathnarayana Shetty. He was an Indian actor who worked in the Kannada film industry. He was born on March 18, 1918. Comedian Guggu’s place of birth is Gudemaranahalli, Magadi Taluk, in Bangalore District, British India. His father’s name was Makam Krishniah Shetty, a cloth merchant. His mother’s name is Kamalamma. His father wished comedian Guggu would continue the family business.

Comedian Guggu decided to pursue his career in theatre instead of following the family’s traditional business. Initially, he acted in the plays of legendary Kannada Thespian K. Hirannaiah. He made a name for himself as the character “Guggu” in the play “Panganama.”  He later adopted Guggu as his stage name. He added “Comedian” before “Guggu” in respect of his benefactor K. Hirannaiah, who went by the name of “Cultural Comedian” Hirannaiah.

Comedian Guggu’s first movie was the 1954 C.V. Raju’s Natashekhara. Incidentally, the film also launched the stardom of another stalwart of Kannada films i.e., Kalyan Kumar Kalyan Kumar is a prominent Kannada film actor who >> Read More... . During the same time, he bought a place in Madras. The place becomes the epicenter of the fledging Kannada film industry in Madras. Then, it was known as the Guggu Mahal. The Guggu Mahal served as a de facto refuge to hoards of junior artists pouring from Mysore to Madras to try their luck in the Kannada Film Industry. Many of the Kannada film industry legends, such as G.V. Iyer, Narsimharaju, Balakrishna, and Rajakumar, associate their early days with spending time at Guggu Mahal. The Guggu Mahal became the center point for exchanging ideas, brainstorming, and also finding work on the films.

Comedian Guggu himself went on to portray distinguished roles in films, such as Premada Putri, Bhakti Vijaya (1956), Miss Leelavathi (1965), Veera Kesari (1963), Hasiru Thorana (1970), Durada Betta (1973), Mayuura, Auto Raja Click to look into! >> Read More... , Thayiya Nudi (1983), and many more. Throughout his career in the film industry, he has played comic roles in more than two hundred Kannada films. Also, he wrote the script & screenplay for Kalasapurada Hudugaru film in 1982.

Comedian Guggu dreamt of opening a movie studio nearest to home in Karnataka instead of Madras during those early days of the Kannada Film Industry. In 1976, he established “Mysore Movietone” in Malleshwaram, Bangalore. Despite his film career and helping others, he suffered from personal finances. During the shooting of Goonda Guru, he felt ill and passed away in Penury. He died on June 12, 1984, at the age of sixty-six.