Music director SP Venkatesh passes away at 70; All about the composer, who scored over 500 songs

Legendary composer SP Venkatesh has breathed his last today in Chennai. The South possibly shuts a chapter or two. SP Venkatesh, who created many fast beat numbers and some of the best and most popular songs that are still enjoyed by many, is a global favourite on the music charts.

As reported by The Indian Express, 70-year-old had a heart attack at his residence. Fans as well as the film industry are shocked. He was a busy Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali, and Hindi music director.

Who was SP Venkatesh?

SP Venkatesh, who was born on March 5, 1955, in the Tamil Nadu state, started singing in 1981 with ‘Prema Yuddham’, a Telugu movie, and also music composing in Malayalam, and scored music for Mohanlal starrer ‘Rajavinte Makan’ directed by Thampi Kannanthanam. He became famous by scoring hit songs and background scores that were superhits in the Malayalam music field. His songs had a nostalgic and catchy quality and contributed massively to the music of the region. He was also an accomplished music composer in Tamil and Telugu alike.

Musical contributions and evergreen hits

SP Venkatesh has composed over 150 Malayalam movies and 500 songs in various languages during his career. Some of his popular works include movies such as 'Indrajalam', 'Thudarkatha', 'Vatsalyam', 'Johnny Walker', 'Kilukkam', 'Hitler', 'Sopanam', 'Kabhuliwala', 'Minnaram', and 'Spadikam'. The legendary singer, KS Chithra, has sung a lot of songs composed by him, and the lyricist, Girish Puthenchery, was a regular in his movies. The songs composed from him that include the hit songs like 'Kunjikkiliye Koodevide', 'Kilukil Pambaram', and 'Meenavenal' are considered to be evergreen among music lovers.

SP Venkatesh's early life and musical journey

SP Venkatesh was born to a musical background, his father, Palani, was a mandolin player. He learned Mandoline at the age of 3 with his father’s support, and after that he learned guitar, and other instruments. In his early stage, he worked as an assistant to great music composers like Raveendran and A.T. Ummer; after that, he became a music director. The journey of a boy from playing music to becoming a great music composer and artist shows how he is passionate about music, and his contribution to Indian cinema is superb.Get the latest entertainment updates from the Times of India, along with the latest Hindi movies, upcoming Hindi movies in 2026 , and Telugu movies.”