Sowcar Janaki (1931-2026) Biography, Family

Quick Info

Profession	Actress
Nationality	Indian
Date of Birth	12/12/1931
Age	94 years (died on 21, Aug, 2026)
Birthplace	Rajahmundry, District East Godavari, Andhra Pradesh, India
Date of Death	21/08/2026

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Birth Name	T. Janaki
Real Name	Sankaramanchi Janaki
Famous For	Her seven-decade career spanning over 400 films in Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Hindi cinema

Eye Colour	Light Brown
Hair Colour	Salt and Pepper

College/University	Gauhati University, Gauhati

Religion	Hinduism

Marital Status	Widow
Marriage Date	Year, 1947

Husband/Spouse

Sankaramanchi Srinivasa Rao (deceased)

Children

Parents

Father	Tekumalla Venkoji Rao (deceased)
Mother	Sachi Devi (deceased)

Siblings

Other Relative

Grand-daughter - Vaishnavi (actress)

Debut Film

Telugu	Shavukaru (1950) as Subbulu
Tamil	Valayapathi (1952) as Sathyavathi
Kannada	Devakannika (1954)
Malayalam	School Master (1961) as Johny's wife
Hindi	Prem Geet (1981) as Mrs. Laxmi Bhardwaj

Tamil	Oorarinda Rahasyam (1991)
Telugu	Needa (1995)

Last Film

Anni Manchi Sakunamule (2023) as Janaki

Awards, Honours, Achievements

Kalaimamani by the Tamil Nadu government (1969)
Tamil Nadu State Film Award (1970) for Best Actress for the film Iru Kodugal (1969)
Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award - South for Outstanding contributions to South Indian Cinema (1984)
Mahanati Savithri Award (1985)
Honorary Doctorate from World University, Arizona for excellence in her chosen field (1985)
Nandi Award (1987) in the category Best Supporting Actress for the film Samsaram Oka Chadarangam (1987)
Indian Express Dyonara Golden Award (1989)
Tamil Nadu State Film Honorary Award (1990)
Dr. Akkineni Nageswara Rao Lifetime Achievement Award (2000)
Sri Krishna Devaraya Award in Karnataka (2001)
Nadigar Thilagam Sivaji Lifetime Achievement Award (2004)
Nandi Award for Best Supporting Actress for Amoolyam (2007)
South Indian International Movie Awards (SIIMA) Lifetime Achievement Award (2013)
Rajyotsava Award by Government of Karnataka (2015)
Streeratna Awards (2019)
Wonder Women Awards (2019) as Evergreen Entertainer of Indian Cinema
Puratchi Thalaivi Dr. J. Jayalalithaa Special Kalaimamani Award (2020) by the Government of Tamil Nadu
Padma Shri by the Government of India (2022)

1. Sowcar Janaki was born and raised in Rajahmundry, East Godavari district, Madras Presidency, British India.
2. She was the elder sister of her parents.
3. Her younger sister, Krishna Kumari was also a well-known actress of South India cinema.
4. Janaki was married at the age of 16, much before she entered the film industry.
5. After her marriage, she continued her studies and appeared for matriculation examination while pregnant with her first child.
6. Before entering the film industry, she worked as a radio artist at All India Radio in Madras.
7. Janaki made her film debut at the age of 18 with the Telugu film, Shavukaru.
8. She became known as 'Sowcar' due to the success of her debut film.
9. In 1954, she entered Kannada cinema.
10. She participated in more than 3,000 stage plays during her career.