Ramba, Salman and Rajinikanth’s heroine, ruled silver screen in the ’90s
Yes Mollywood’s
Rambha was a very prominent actress in the late 90s and early 2000s. She achieved pan-India success across multiple film industries. Malayalam film “Sargam” was her debut and launched her career, leading to numerous blockbuster movies with top stars.
After she tied the knot to a Canadian entrepreneur Indrakumar Pathmanathan in 2010, she took a break from acting and relocated to Canada, focusing on family and business ventures.
She was one of the busiest leading ladies in the late 90s and early 2000s. Yeedi Vijayalakshmi, aka Rambha, tasted incredible success across the Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, and Hindi film industries, forming formidable on-screen jodis with A-listers such as Salman Khan, Mammootty, and Rajinikanth, much before the era of ‘pan-Indian’ stars.
Her musical Malayalam film Sargam hit the theatres in 1992. Theb Hariharan’s directorial, film saw the debutante step into the shoes of Thankamani, a rustic, musically inclined belle, in love with a fellow aspiring musician. As per media reports, regardless not knowing a single word of Malayalam, audiences were impressed with her nuanced performance as Thankamani in the film which turned out to be a critical and commercial success. It emerged as the third-highest-grossing film of Mollywood that year and even bagged a National Award.
‘Sargam’ shot her to overnight stardom. Soon she bagged her first Telugu movie Aa Okkati Adakku opposite Rajendra Prasad. The movie also emerged as a hit and also gave her screen name Rambha.
Post this success, she she shared screen space with blockbuster movies opposite superstars such as Rajinikanth, Mammootty, Thalapathy Vijay, Ajith Kumar, Chiranjeevi, Krishna Ghattamaneni, Daggubati Venkatesh, Nandamuri Balakrishna, Vijayakanth, Prabhu, Karthik, and Jagapati Babu. In 1996, she became a national craze after the song ‘Azhagiya Laila’ (from the Tamil movie Ullathai Allitha) became a chartbuster.
Some of Rambha’s notable works include Arunachalam, Hitler, Chronic Bachelor, Ninaithen Vandhai, Kaathala Kaathala, Maatho Pettukoku, Dharma Chakkaram, Raasi, Endrendrum Kadhal, Champakulam Thachan, Sidhartha, Muddula Priyudu, Allari Premikudu and Rowdy Annayya.
She made her Bollywood debut opposite Mithun in the 1995 political action thriller ‘Jallad.’ while she worked opposite leading stars such as Anil Kapoor, Govinda, and Suniel Shetty, it was her pairing with Salman Khan that hit a chord with the audience. The two featured in two successful films the David Dhawan’s comic caper ‘Judwaa’ and the romantic drama ‘Bandhan’.
As per multiple media reports, actress Rambha stepped away from the film industry after tying the knot with Canadian entrepreneur Indrakumar Pathmanathan in 2010.
After their marriage, she relocated to Toronto, Canada, where she chose to focus on her personal life while taking a break from cinema. The couple has since built a family together, raising three children named Lavanya, Sasha, and Shivin.
As noted by film archives, Rambha’s last screen appearance was in the 2011 Malayalam movie The Filmstaar, which starred actors Dileep and Kalabhavan Mani in pivotal roles. Although she has not returned to acting in films, she has remained connected to the entertainment industry. Over the years, she has been invited to serve as a judge on several popular television reality programs, with her most recent appearance being on Jodi Are U Ready – Season 2.
Apart from her television presence, Rambha has also taken on business responsibilities. She is reportedly involved as a partner in her husband’s ventures. Indrakumar Pathmanathan is the director of a Canada-based company named Magic Woods, which specializes in interiors and furniture solutions according to the Indian Express.
As per a News 18 report, Indrakumar oversees a portfolio of five businesses, one of which carries Rambha’s name. Several of these enterprises are based in Chennai.
As per media reports veteran producer Kalaipuli S Thanu once suggested at a film festival that the couple’s combined net worth is estimated at around Rs 2,000 crore.
Rambha was often noted for her striking resemblance to late star Divya Bharti. After Divya passed away at the age pf 19, some of her scenes in the Telugu romantic drama Tholi Muddu were completed by Rambha. However only Divya was credited in the film. The movie was Divya’s last Telugu film and was released posthumously.
News Edit KV Raman
