He was the recipient of Raghupathi Venkaiah Award for his contributions to Telugu cinema.
Pullayya married veteran actress Santha Kumari in 1937.
Jayabheri was a 1959 Telugu musical hit film directed by him and starring Akkineni Nageswara Rao and Anjali Devi in lead roles.
The songs in the movie are both classical Carnatic and Folklore with music composed by Pendyala Nageswara Rao.
Sri Venkateswara Mahatyam was a 1960 magnum opus Telugu film produced and directed by him and starring N. T. Rama Rao.