What is "bapu"

Bapu is a Hindi word for "father" and may refer to:

• Mahatma Gandhi (1869–1948), officially honored as Bapu (Father) of the Nation of India
• Bapu (film director) (1933–2014), painter, cartoonist, movie director from Andhra Pradesh, India
• Arimbra Bapu (1936–2014), Indian politician from the state of Kerala
• Asaram (born 1941), also known as Asaram Bapu, spiritual teacher from India
• Bapu Hari Chaure (born 1949), Indian politician
• Bapu Gokhale, General during the Third Anglo-Maratha War
• Bapu Joshi (1912–1994), Indian cricket umpire
• Morari Bapu (born 1946), Hindu religious figure
• Bapu Nadkarni (born 1933), Indian cricketer
• Ngawang Tashi Bapu (born 1968), Singing Monk who was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2006

Sattiraju Lakshmi Narayana (15 December 1933 – 31 August 2014), known professionally as Bapu, was an Indian film director, and screenwriter known for his works in Telugu cinema. He was also a music artist, painter, illustrator, cartoonist, and designer. In 2013, he was awarded the Padma Shri, for his contribution to Indian art and cinema.

Bapu's directorial venture Saakshi was showcased at Tashkent International film festival in 1968. Seeta Kalyanam was screened at the BFI London Film Festival, Chicago International Film Festival, San Reno and Denver International Film Festivals in 1978, and is part of the course at the British Film Institute. Tyagayya (1981) and Pelli Pustakam (1991) were premiered at the Indian Panorama of the International Film Festival of India. Bapu's 2011 film Sri Rama Rajyam had a special screening at International Film Festival of India on 28 November 2011.

He has garnered two National Film Awards, seven state Nandi Awards, two Filmfare Awards South best Telugu director, and a Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award – South for the year 2012. In 1996, He has appeared in the Doordarshan Documentary Eminent Cartoonists of India, and was awarded Life Time Achievement from Indian Institute of Cartoonists in 2001. He gained international recognition through his art works viz., Bapu Bomma, The Navarasas, and the Indian Dances etc., which were held at the National Film Theatre, London, in 1978 and at the innumerable Telugu Conferences in the United States. He has worked as a graphic artist for J Walter Thomson, Efficient Publicities and F. D. Stewarts, Chennai.

In 1964, He was a delegate at the UNESCO sponsored seminar in Bangalore on Children's Books. The same year, he gave demonstrations for the training course programme on book illustrations and cover designs sponsored by UNESCO in Chennai. In 1960's he has served as art Consultant for Ford Foundation sponsored The Southern Language Book Trust. He has designed and illustrated several books for leading publishers in South India out of which, five received Government Awards. He has also done the same for innumerable works drawn from the puranas and folklore.

Known for introducing Anil Kapoor to Telugu cinema and Hindi also, Bapu has directed Bollywood films like Hum Paanch, Prem Pratigyaa,Seeta Swayamvar, Anokhi Bhakt, Bezubaan, Woh Saat Din, Pyari Behna, Mohobbat, Mera Dharam, and Diljala. He has also directed a Tamil film Neeti Devan Mayagugiran.