2 minutes of readingChennaiFebruary 3, 2026 22:53 IST
Popular music director SP Venkatesh, who rose to fame with the Malayalam film Rajavinte Makan (1986), died at his residence in Chennai on Tuesday following cardiac arrest, a film industry source said. Hey, 70.
Over the years, the versatile South Indian music director captivated a multitude of fans with his soulful melodies and thunderous background scores.
Born on March 5, 1955, SP Venkatesh is the son of mandolinist Pazhani. He started playing guitar in films with music director Vijay Bhaskar in 1971. He then established himself as a music director in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam films.
Venkatesh entered the Malayalam film industry as a music director in 1985 through the film Janakeeya Kodathi. He gave several hits in films like Bhoomiyile Rajakkanmar, Vazhiyora Kazhchakal, Indrajalam, Nadodi, Manthrikam, Kilukkam, Minnaram, Shadikam and Johnny Walker. Venkatesh won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Music Director in 1993 for the films Paithrukam and Janam.
Although he worked mainly in Malayalam cinema, PS Venkatesh also performed several hit songs in Tamil films, including “Enn Uyir” from Enga Vettu Mappillai. His Tamil debut came with the 1988 film Poovukkul Bookambam, after which he went on to compose numerous popular songs. He also contributed soundtracks to Hindi films such as Kyon Ki, Hungama, Virasat, Gardish and Mera Dil Tere Liye.