Rebel Star and Politician Krishnam Raju dies at 83, PM Modi Also tweeted. A well-known Telugu actor of the sixties and seventies and former Union Minister of State for Defence and External Affairs U. Krishnam Raju died undergoing treatment following a brief illness at AIG Hospital at Gachibowli here around 3.30 a.m. Raju was 83 and survived by his wife and three daughters.