| Alias | Mahadevan, Mama |
|---|---|
| Age | 100 years |
| Height | 5'6" |
| Weight | 60.00 Kgs |
| Occupation | Music Director |
| Language Worked in | Hindi, Telugu, Tamil |
| Eye Color | Black |
| Hair Color | Black |
| Religion | Hinduism |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Favourite Cuisine | South Indian |
| Favourite Color | White |
| City | Chennai |
K. V. Mahadevan was born in in 1918 at Krishnancoil, Kanyakumari district. A contemporary of M. S. Viswanathan and T. K. Ramamoorthy, Mahadevan scored music for over 600 films, spanning four decades, after starting his career in the 1950s with Avan Amaran. Poor health hastened the end of his career in the mid-1990s, and his last film was Swathi Kiranam in 1992. During this period[clarification needed] he scored music for about 250 Tamil and Telugu films.
The style of his compositions gave giving primary importance to lyrics, with music that is perfectly suited to them. He based his output on Carnatic music systems and gave freedom for singers and other assistants to contribute ideas for improvements.[citation needed] His lyricists included all-time greats such as Acharya Atreya, Arudra, C._Narayanareddy, Sirivennela, Veturi, Kosaraju, Dasaradhi, Srirangam Srinivasa Rao, Devulapalli and Mysore Vasudevachar. He regularly directed maestro singers Ghantasala, P. Suseela and Leela.
Among the Tamil movies for which he composed are Thiruvarutselvar, Adimai Penn, Thiruvilayadal, Vaanampadi, Thillaana Moganambal, Kandhan Karunai, and Muthalali.
One of his best compositions is Mannavan vanthaanadi song from Thiruvarutselvar.[citation needed] His most famous compositions in Telugu were in the movies directed by K. Viswanath, such as Sankarabharanam, Saptapadi, Sirivennela, Chelleli Kapuram, Jeevana Jyothi, and Swathi Kiranam.
He was very reserved with the usage of singers thus giving numerous opportunities in grooming greats such as S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Yesudas, Janaki, Chithra & Vani Jayaram, some winning the national award for best playback singing multiple times with his songs.