D. Yoganand

After working with Yoganand, N. T. Rama Rao offered to let him direct Thodu Dongalu (1954). He also wrote the story for the film, which received many awards including a merit certificate from the President of India and an award in the China Film Festival. NTR gave him a second chance in his next film Jayasimha which became a blockbuster.

His debut film was Ammalakkalu (Telugu) and Marumagal (Tamil) by Leena Chettiar in 1953. He became the in-house filmmaker for his Krishna Pictures and made many box-office successes including the Madurai Veeran (1956) which sowed the seeds for M. G. Ramachandran to be projected as more than a mere good-looking hero.

Yoganand worked as an associate to Gudavalli Ramabrahmam and L. V. Prasad. He worked in Samsaram directed by L.V. Prasad. In 1943, he joined Manikyam as an editor for the film Mayalokam and also worked as an assistant director to Gudavalli Ramabrahmam. He worked for Bhakta Tulasidas by Lanka Satyam in Salem for three years.

He participated in the Quit India Movement of 1942. In the Indian Freedom Movement, he came close to Congress leaders like Rajagopalachari, Tanguturi Prakasam and Bulusu Sambamurthi.

Yoganand was born in Madras under British India. His parents were Venkata Das, estate manager under Nawaab Raza Ali Khan of Machilipatnam, and Lakshmi Bai. He became a photographer. He was interested in playing and directing dramas and came close to Tungala Chalapathi Rao and Yadavalli Nageswara Rao in Machilipatnam. He went to Bangalore, trained in Radiology, and he went to Madras in 1939 to help his father. Yoganand joined Jiten Benarjee of Newtone Studios after his father's death and later worked with famous cinematographer M. A. Rehman.

Dasari Yoganand (16 April 1922 – 23 November 2006) was a South Indian film director.