Tollywood Kaburlu

Tollywood Kaburlu

By Teja RaoTV & Film
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Tollywood Kaburlu episodes

  • Revisiting Arjun (2004): Movie Review + Interesting Facts

    Youtube Link: https://youtu.be/w6zAEEhjyY8

    Credits

    Banner: Sri Krishna Productions Pvt Limited
    Cast: Mahesh Babu, Shriya, Keerthi Reddy, Prakash Raj, Raja, Smt. Sarita, Murali Mohan, Kalabhavan Mani, Rajan P Dev, Nassar, Kalabhavan Mani, Veerendra Chouhan, Smt. Kamala Krishna Murthy, Jyothy, Ganesh, 
    Music: Mani Sharma
    Dialogues: Paruchuri brothers
    Director of photography: Sekhar V Joseph
    Editing: Sreekar Prasad
    Lyrics: Veturi
    Art: 'Padmasri' Thota Tharani
    Stunts: Vijayan
    Choreography: Raju Sundaram & Lawrence
    Co-director: Jasti Hemambar
    Presenter: Krishna
    Producer: G Ramesh Babu
    Story - Screenplay - Director: Guna Sekhar
    Theatrical release date: 18th August 2004
    Interesting Facts: https://www.idlebrain.com/movie/showcase/arjun.html
    Writing/Direction: a doting brother has to save his town sister from her evil Madurai based in laws is the logline. Done is a racy and entertaining manner with Mahesh Babu carrying the movie. The overarching theme of the movie is bonding and sister sentiment. 
    The reason is due to the crucial scene of Murali Mohan’s sister dying. Mahesh Babu feels his dad made a huge mistake in her regard disregarding her because life was moving too fast. He graduates but doesnt get a job due to making sure his sister is always safe and he is always there for her. The villains are schemy but not enough to make things gripping. Like there is a difference in direction where the movie is so good like Okkadu, Athadu, Pokiri etc that you are like this film has something in it that it will make you go wow. Arjun lacks that wow factor 
    Additionally, this movie came after Okkadu and Nijam but putting that aside, it’s 2nd combo of Mahesh and Gunashekar after Okkadu. Okkadu was the highest grossing Sakranthi film of all time until it was passed by Krishna in 2008 and it’s a pathbreaking movie. SO naturally expectations would be at an all time high and Arjun can’t match the finesse and direction of Okkadu. Okkadu is gripping the entire film whereas Arjun is gripping in parts. That being said the pacing is superb and you never feel bored despite the 165 minute runtime which is exactly what you want in a film. The last 45 mins is excellent and gives unlimited goosebumps despite the over the top climax full of wires. 
    Mahesh Babu though is like super man. He is everywhere all the time. And the Madurai backdrop seems out of place but the set is so magical it just pulls you in so no matter how weird it seems, the set itself makes you stunned. More on that later. 
    Overall, the story is good and propped on a grand scale. Chemistry between Mahesh Babu and Keerhti Reddy is superb and carries the movie. At the end of the day, it’s an entertaining film. Just due to Okkadu, of course it will always seem inferior but as a stand alone film, Arjun holds up very well. 
    Technical Aspects: 
    Music and BGM by Mani Sharma is OUSTANDING. The BGM especially in last 45 mins is amazing and songs specifically 4 of them are really good. Lyrics by Veturi are a masterpiece. Will say a few now. 
    Speak about Okka Maata, Madhura Madhura, Dum Dumare. So good omg. 
    Cinematography by Shekar V Joseph is excellent. Framing and lighting especially during Dum Dumare songs is next level. 
    The real MVP of the movie is one of my all time favorite Art Directo Thota Tharani sir. 1st combo of Mahesh and Thota, Athadu and Brahmotsavam are the next ones. The set is a MASTERPIECE. It looks so real that they are actually there. Madurai street set is also amazing. The entire look, feel and vibe makes you actually think they are in Madurai and it’s quite tough to believe that it’s a set. Madura Madura is a visual feast during the day, and Dum Dumare is during the night both are just so good. Temple is almost like a character in the film it’s just so good. Wish I could have seen it in person but it will always be immortalized on screen.


    1 hr 2 min
  • Revisiting Varsham (2004): Review + Interesting Facts

    Youtube Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nchk_PqQ2rk&t=1339s&ab_channel=TollywoodKaburlu

    Credits

    Banner: Sumanth Arts

    Cast: Prabhas, Trisha, Gopichand, Prakash Raj, Sudha, Chandra Mohan, Shafi, Sunil, Rajesh, Jaya Prakash Reddy, Venu Madhav, Paruchuri Venkateswara Rao, Gundu Hanumantha Rao, AVS, Vamshi Paidipally,

    Music: Devi Sri Prasad

    Dialogues: Paruchuri Brothers

    Cinematography: S Gopal Reddy

    Art: Ashok Kumar 

    Lyrics: Sirivennela Seetharama Sastry 

    Stunts: Peter Hynes

    DTS Mixing: Madhu Sudhan Reddy

    Editing: KV Krishna Reddy

    Story: Veeru Potla

    Direction: Sobhan

    Screenplay - Producer: MS Raju

    Release date: 14th January 2004 


    Context: watched it on VHS in some Mfers house in Cleveland Ohio of all places, just remember the trains sequence very well and songs specifically Langa Voni then rewatched it in middle school and it was good, then pandemic time rediscovered the songs and realized it’s value. Easily one of DSP’s top 5 albums pack, BGM is next level and overall it’s just an outright classic. Pacing, music, story, entertainment, everything is so just well done. One of the best movies of Prabhas. 


    Interesting Facts: 

    • Prabhas father Suryanarayana Raju called MS Raju after Okkadu and said please give my son a good film and story and MS Raju promised I’ll get him a hit movie and make him a star 
    • MS Raju asked Veeru Potla who used to work for his banner for a story. Veeru Potla narrated a scene similar to Ramayanam and asked what is a Ravana like villains captured a Seetha type character how will the hero fight back and save her is the concept 
    • MS Raju liked it and asked to develop it into a full story and director Sobhan who just directed Mahesh Babu bobby was also involved in script discussions. 
    • Seeing his talent, MS Raju asked Sobhan to direct the movie. Coming the villain who can give competition to Prabhas, it was Gopichand and he got selected 
    • Hindi movie Tezaab is Ione of the nspiration of Varsham story and Prakash raj played father character in Telugu from that film, based on that 
    • First they wanted to select Gangotri heroine Aditi Agarwal but at that time MS Raju was I Chennai and saw a poster of Trisha in Saamy and selected her 
    • Movie was set and launched on March 14th, 2003 same date when Okkadu was launched 
    • Filmed in Tirupathi, Araku valley, Old City, and Warangal 100 Pillar Temple and Warangal was chosen as the backdrop to give a fresh and never seen before feel on screen. By then too many faction movies and Godavari districts village stories were being explored but not Warangal 
    • 140 working days and budget was 5.5 crores 
    • VN Aditya already registered the title Varsham for a Nagarjuna film but MS Raju kindly asked for the title and VN Aditya gave it to him 
    • January 14th, 2004 it released for Sankranthi with 100 prints with Anti and Lakshmi Narasimha, everybody thought the movie would, flop but Varsham made more money than both of those movies and became a blockbuster at the box office 
    • Prabhas got a breakthrough and became a star after this movie 
    • 18 crores share at the box office and was in top 3 highest grossing movies that year and made 7.5 share in Nizam which only 4 movies had done before and gave Prabhas a solid market in Nizam 
    • 50 days in 125 centers, 100 days in 68 centers, and ran for 175 days withs silver jubilee celebrations with Chiranjeevi as chief guest 
    • Other interesting facts are Suma Kanakala plays Prabhas’s vadina, Ajay and Satyam Rajesh are part of Prabhas friend group, and if you remember the bus scene in 2nd half one of the passengers is Vamshi Paidipally he worked as an assistant director for this movie 
      • 1 hr
    • Revisiting Chirutha (2007): Review + Interesting Facts

      Credits

      Banner: Vyjayanthi Movies

      Cast: Ram Charan Teja, Neha Sharma, Asish Vidyardhi, Prakash Raj, Ali, Dharmavarapu, Brahmanandam, MS Narayana, Surya, Sayaji Shinde, Tanikella Bharani, Uttej, Pragathi, Daniel Balaji 

      Cinematography: Shyam K Naidu

      Music: Mani Sharma
      Art: Chinna
      Editing: MR Varma

      Fights: Vijayan

      Story - screenplay - dialogues - direction: Puri Jagan
      Producer: C Aswini Dutt
      Release date: 28 September 2007

      Context and thoughts: Saw it on VHS, remember hearing about it and seeing Charan’s headshot on idle brain and was like he looks like a dongodu. Remember seeing a poster for it in Edison I think I was in NJ when it released. When I saw it I loved it and became a fan of Charan after watching Yamaho Yama, it was very entertaining and typical Puri Jagan movie and listened the songs a lot before release. Childhood one of the greatest albums. Mani Sharma mass. Holds up well due to pacing and overall entertainment. 

      Interesting Facts: 

      • Talk in industry at the time was that Shankar was gonna direct Charan in his debut 
      • VV Vinayak, Sreenu Vaitla, VN Aditya, K Vijay Bhaskar, Jayant C Paranji, 
      • Called Rajamouli and despite his interest, he felt the expectations were too high and didn’t know what Charan’s strengths and weaknesses were 
      • That same time, Pokiri released and Puri Jagannadh became a superstar director. Chiru watched it and wanted Puri Jagan to make the movie. VV Vinayak was almost certain. 
      • Eenadu paper released a statement saying Charand but in Puri Jagan direction in production of Aswini Dutt 
      • August 22nd, 2006 Stalin audio function Chiru introduced Mega fans to Charan and confirmed his debut. 
      • Puri jagan narrated a line which Chiru liked and then developed it into full script in Bangkok. Harish Shankar worked as a script consultant for the movie and gave a lot of inputs. 
      • Movie launched in December 2006 with Pooja ceremony, Kangana Ranaut as heroine but didnt have dates so finally Neha Sharma was cast marking both her and Charan’s film debuts. And Mani Sharma was the music director coming off Pokiri 
      • Filming started in February 2007 in Bangkok where most of the movie was shot in addition to Annapurna, Padmalaya, and Ramanaidu studios for other portions. 
      • August 22nd, 2007 audio was launched. Audio rights were sold to Aditya Music for 1 crore which was an all time record at that time. And the audio became a super hit, one of the classic albums ever in TFI. 
      • All mega fans united to celebrate Charan’s debut. Raghava Lawrence composed Yamaho Yama and it’s next level. 
      • Released in 720 centers, and collected 4 crores share opening day all time record for a debut movie until Akhil the power of Jua, ran for 50 days in 178 centers, 100 days in 38 centers, and collected 25 crores share all time record for debut movie until it was beaten by Uppena in 2021 with a collection of 50 crores share. 

        • Writing/Direction: This is actually a love story masked as a revenge story. Only in the 2nd half do you get to know why Daniel Balaji is in the movie but first things first, hthe movie is so entertaining even after 16 years. Puri Jagan understands pacing like no other director does I feel. One;y Rajamouli, Trivikram, Vijay Bhaskar, and VV Vinayak come close to him. 

        It’s a basically a highlight reel for ram Charan to show that he can act, he can dance, he can fight, he can romance the heroine, everything. And Puri Jagan hysteria was running at the time due to Pokiri and Desamuduru becoming career defining movies for Mahesh Babu and Allu Arjun. 

        Music by Mani Sharma is MASTERPIECE. BGM for the intro is unlimited goosebumps and everybody remembers it today. The songs are my childhood and middle school on repeat. Each and every song is classic. Yamaho yama greatest debut hero intro song and then this is the greatest debutante album ever made in present gen and oprobably all time. Favorite songs are Yamaho Yama and Enduko Pichi Pichi and then of course Chamka Chamka, Geetha Madhuri first song. 

        55 min
      • Revisiting Magadheera (2009): Review + Interesting Facts

        Credits

        Banner: Geetha Arts

        Cast: Ram Charan Teja, Kajal Agarwal, Srihari, Sunil, Brahmanandam, Sarath Babu, Rao Ramesh, Surya, Mumaith Khan, Sameer, Sekhar, Kim Sharma, Saloni & Hema

        Music: MM Keeravani
        Sound supervision: Kalyani Malik
        Cinematography: KK Senthil Kumar
        Dialogues: M Ratnam
        Art: Ravinder
        Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao
        Fights: Peter Hynes & Ram Lakshman
        Styling: Rama Rajamouli
        Co-producer: Bhogavally Prasad
        Story: Vijayendra Prasad
        Screenplay, & Direction: SS Rajamouli
        Producer: Allu Arvind
        Release date: July 30th, 2009

        Interesting Facts: https://www.idlebrain.com/movie/postmortem/magadheera.html

        Context and opening thoughts: watched it in theater like everybody else, if you didn’t watch it in theaters then rip lmao, have no words to say, biggest telugu movie of all time. It was really hyped due to having the 100 soldier fight which was talk of industry then and also the most expensive movie ever at the time. Became industry hit and further cemented Rajamouli’s status as the top most director in Telugu, then Gunashekar, Meher Ramesh, Prakash Kovelamudi, and VV Vinayak tried to copy him and failed miserably. 

        Ram Charan became star after and it capitulated Kajal to the A list and she was in every big movie since then and acted with all the top heroes. Despite industry hit status, the collections of the film are controversial to this day as folks add the figures as they please. It got so bad that at one point Allu Aravind and Rajamouli had a talk that it ran for this Many days in x number of centers which was fake and due to fans pressure Allu Aravind did it but it was fake publicity. 

        Writing/Direction: What can I say? It’s a Rajamouli mark movie with emotions but the grandeur is up 10x in this movie. The core point is about a soldier’s duty to his kingdom so he can’t sacrifice his love for the process that he loves. Overarching theme here is revenge like in many Rajamouli movies. Eventually both taken and they aren’t allowed to be together so they are reborn 400 years later. Opening itself is unlimited goosebumps with the credits rolling and the 100 soldier fight playing out in the background. They die and then immediately they are reborn. Harsha and Kajal the love track happens. It’s sweet but has it aged well idk. 

        The movie jai ani lesthadi from Panchadaram Bomma song and interval is unlimited goosebumps Rajamouli special. Flashback is the core of the movie and 100 soldier fight is unlimited goosebumps the best scene in the movie. Emotions, taking, BGM, action sequences, Srihari’s acting is perfect. 

        Basically the movie is over at the this point there’s not much story left other than taking revenge so the last 20 mins feel all over the place especially fort escape sequence and then cut to climax. 

        Rajamouli specialty in giving highs and goosebumps which no other director can ever match. 

        Technicalities: 

        Music and BGM by Keeravani masterclass. Songs are classic obviously everyone’s favorite is Panchadara Momma funny enough the guy who sang it was never seen again. 

        Cinematography by KK Senthil Kumar is amazing. Lighting, framing, and most of all grandeur in each and every frame is visible 

        Art Direction by Ravinder is masterpiece. Each and every set is flawless. 

        Editing by Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao is perfect. Never bored a single moment. 

        Dialogues by Rathnam are excellent. 

        Fights by Peter Heins and Ram Lakshman are amazing. Of course 100 person fight is the best among the lot. Goosebumps stuff. 

        Costume Design by Rama Rajamouli is perfect. Everybody looks so gorgeous on screen. 

        Production Values by Geetha arts are extraordinary. Highest budgeted movie ever at the time and it shows. 

        Overall: Classic movie, industry hit, and holds up very well. Everything in the movie is perfect except the meandering last 20 mins. A special film especially theater experience. Raised the standards of Telugu cinema and Rajamouli proved he’s number 1 once again with this film. That is all. 

        1 hr 8 min
      • Revisiting Oopiri (2016): Review + Interesting Facts

        Credits

        Banner: PVP Cinema

        Cast: Nagarjuna, Karthi, Tamanna, Shriya, Anushka, Jayasudha, Prakash Raj, Ali, Tanikella Bharani, Gabriella Demetriades, Late Kalpana, Nora Fatehi etc

        Cinematography: PS Vinod

        Editor: Madhu

        Music: Gopi Sundar

        Dialogues: Abburi Ravi

        Production Design: Sunil Babu

        Art: Vaishnavi Reddy

        Adapted Story: Vamshi Paidipally, Solomon, Hari 

        Choreography: Raju Sundaram & Brinda

        Lyrics: Sirivennela Sitarama Sastry & Ramajogayya Sastry

        Producers: Param V. Potluri & Kavin Anne

        Screenplay & direction: Vamsi Paidipally

        Release date: March 25th, 2016 


        Context and thoughts: Hattrick for all 3 people, red hot off Sankranthi 2016 and first big movie to release that summer. Teaser gave full positive vibes and then trailer was superb. Karthi and Vamshi came to MEK to promote the film. Movie came out and had blockbuster talk as a feel good movie. Watched it on OTT and it was amazing. Such a great film. Rewatch it was ok. Oopiri is a film that is a one time watch to feel those emotions and experience for the first time. I’m not sure you can feel it again. Karthi performance carries the movie and is the most entertaining part. 


        Interesting Facts: https://www.idlebrain.com/movie/postmortem/oopiri.html


        Acting: Karthi telugu debut and he delivered a knockout performance. The highlight of the movie. 


        Nagarjuna acting in a wheelchair is excellent. Entirely depends on expression. Same charm, charisma, and screen presence even in a wheelchair. 


        Tamannah has never looked prettier and does he role very well as the attractive secretary. Prakash Raj is dignified as Nag’s friend and the paint thread is the best. 


        Kalpana Garu is superb. Ali is hilarious and Jayasudha Garu is excellent as usual. The girl who plays Karthi’s sister is also MB’s sister in Srimanthudu. 


        Tanikella Bharani has a negative role which turns good later on. 


        Gabriella Demetriades, Anushkha and Adivi Sesh have cameos. 


        Writing/Direction: Official adaption of The Untouchables. Done perfectly and adapted to telugu sensibilities brilliantly. The thread of Karthi and Tamannah actually in original they don’t get together but to add masala and romance as commercial element its a great payoff. Paint thread is brilliant. And writing is fantastic throughout. Due to the nature of the content, it’s not mass masala, its more a drama but Karthi character is specifically created to entertain all sections of the audience. 


        Favorite scenes: Tammanah asks Karthi to do him a favor, Nagarjuna surprise birthday party, entire paint thread, Tanikella Bharani mass warning scene in most class way, Karthi reconciling with Jayasudha, Nagarjuna letting Karthi go, and Nag meeting anusha. All heart touching, hilarious, and beautiful moments. 


        One such movie where the title justifies the content lmao. It’s actually about life. Has ups and downs but at the end of the day, we are living it. 


        Technicalities: Music and BGM by Gopi Sundar is excellent. All of the songs are written by Sirivennela and Ramajaoggaya Sastry, one of the greatest combos in Telugu cinema. All of them are superb. My favorite songs are Baby Aagodu, Oka Life, Eppudu. Ayyo Ayyo is a stunner with Karthi and Tamannah chemistry. 


        Cinematography by PS Vinod is masterclass. One of my favorite DOP and he lit up Paris and Hyderabad in all their glory. The framing, visual brilliance, lighting, everything is perfect. Vinod mass. 


        Production Design by Sunil Babu is fantastic. The movie maintains the class difference perfectly. All of Nagarjuna’s scenes are shown as ultra rich, while all of Karthi’s scenes reflect his struggling nature. Whatever setting the scene demanded, it was there. 


        Overall: Oopiri is a beautiful and refreshing take on life. Karthi, Nagarjuna, and Tamannah are aptly supported by the excellently adapted script and emotions. But as said before it might one of those films you can only watch in it’s entirety once. But the comedy scenes and entertainment generated by Karthi is life long I felt.

        57 min
      • Movie Discussion: Revisting Namo Venkatesa (2010) ft. Pranav

        Andariki Namaskaram! Today we have Pranav joining us once again to discuss one of our favorite movies, Namo Venkatesa starring Victory Venkatesh and Brahmanandham directed by Sreenu Vytla! Enjoy!

        Credits

        Banner: 14 Reels Entertainment

        Cast: Venkatesh, Trisha, Brahmanandam, Akash, Jaya Prakash Reddy, Mukesh Rishi, Dharmavarapu Subramanyam, Kasi Viswanath, Subbba Raju, Master Bharat, Akash, Ali, Siva Reddy, Surya, Prithvi, Raghu Babu, Jenny, Srinivasa Reddy, Surekha Vani, Telangana Sakunthala etc

        Music: Devi Sri Prasad
        Cinematography: Prasad Murella
        Story: Gopi Mohan
        Dialogus: Chintapally Ramana
        Art: AS Prakash
        Lyrics: Ramajogaiah Sastri
        Fights: Vijay
        Editing: MR Varma
        Screenplay - direction: Seenu Vytla
        Presents: D Suresh Babu
        Producer: Ram Achanta, Gopichand Achanta & Anil Sunkara
        Release date: 14 January 2010

        Discussion Points

        1. First Impressions 
        2. How your liking towards it grew 
        3. Music and Technical Aspects
        4. What we liked - Favorite scenes and dialogues 
        5. What We didn't like
        6. Final thoughts
          7. 1 hr 23 min
        7. Revisiting Chatrapathi (2005): Review + Interesting Facts

          Credits

          Banner: Sri Venkateswara Cine Chitra

          Cast: Prabhas, Sriya Saran, Bhanu Priya, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Pradeep Rawat, Venu Madhav, Narendra Jha, Shafi, Jaya Prakash Reddy, Jeeva, Sekhar, Ajay, Arti Agarwal, Surya, Mumaith Khan.

          Music: MM Keeravani

          Story: Vijayendra Prasad

          Dialogues: M Rathnam

          Lyrics: Veturi, Chandra Bose, Shivashakti Dutta

          Art: R Ravinder

          Editing: Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao

          Cinematography: K K Senthil Kumar

          Action: Peter Hynes

          Screenplay - direction: SS Rajamouli

          Producer: B V S N Prasad

          Theatrical release date: 29th September 2005


          Context and thoughts: First watched it on VHS, remember it being very violent but remembered interval scene when I was a kid. First mass movie of Prabhas and came after two flops Chakram and Adavi Ramudu. On rewatch, movie is still good but it has it’s own issues which I’ll discuss later. But most of all putting aside the issues, its still entertaining with a good pace. One of Prabhas best performances and emotions wise Rajamouli mark movie. 


          Interesting Facts: https://www.idlebrain.com/movie/postmortem/chatrapati.html


          Writing/Direction: Logline is a guy who lost his mother wants to reunite with her. Difference is he becomes a big don and she doesn;t know what he looks like in present day. How they find each other forms the rest of the story. Out and Out Rajamouli movie because he’s the master of action plus emotions. The writing is excellent for the most part throughout but it’s almost like watching two films on one ticket. Beginning it starts off with Ras Bihari exploiting the slaves for his business and the theme and cinematic take of oppressor vs oppressed comes into play. Prabhas is like a volcano waiting to erupt and finally does when Katraj hurts the little boy Seenu I think. 


          That entire 20 mins sequence is among the greatest sequences un Telugu cinema history and I feel that the interval bang is the best ever in Telugu cinema history because it was the first interval to give that level of high and the first to be that memorable. Rajamouli speciality is interval bangs and some folks say Baahubali 1 and 2 or RRR but Chatrapathi was the first do it. 


          Even now if you watch it, the taking, dialogues, and BGM give unlimited goosebumps. The first half is so good and literally perfect that if the movie ends, you’re more than satisfied. But Sivaju reuntiting with his mother is still left to cover. 


          And the entire 2nd half feels like a Drag because of the ultimate high that the interval bang gave, what ever comes after isn’t able to match the standards set by that. It’s overly melodramatic and more than anything you kind of wait for it to end. Love track is also odd. At first Shirya thinks Prabhas is asking her for money to sleep with her and she’s a prostitute which is not in good taste and then Venu Madhav comedy is there where he says he want to rape Shirya. Also the shark fight in the beginning is terribly done with the graphics. These are all the minus points of the movie. 


          But the moment in the climax when Prabhas meets him mom after she shoots him and says the dialogue brings water to your eyes. 


          Overall, Chatrapathi is a perfect movie for one half and the other one doesnt live unto the same level but at the end of the day it;s still entertaining at the end of the day and a Rajamouli mark film. 


          Technicalities: 

          Music is decent and BGM by Keeravani is excellent. Gives goosebumps throughout and evokes the right emotions. Chatrapathi is one of the weaker albums in Rajamouli’s career but A Vachi B Pai Vale and Gundu Soodi are the best songs. Pretty sure Aarthi Agarwal has an item song. 2nd combo of Prabhas and Aarti after Adavi Ramudu. 


          Cinematography by KK Senthil Kumar is amazing. He spoke about the lighting and everything and in the interval scene, the taking and visuals are peaks omg. Wouldn’t say its a visual feast but the movie is definitely grand and set the precedent for his cinematographic style and vision. 


          Editing by Kotagiri Venkateswara Rao is fine.




          56 min
        8. Revisiting Murari (2001): Review + Interesting Facts

          Credits

          Banner: Ram Prasad Arts 

          Cast: Mahesh Babu, Sonali Bendre, Lakshmi, Kaikala Satyanarayana, Sukumari, Gollapudi Maruthi Rao, Ravi Babu, Raghu Babu, Lakshmipati, Annapurna, Sudha, Sivaji Raja, Hema, MS Narayana, Prakash Raj (cameo), Naga Babu (cameo), Achyuth (cameo), Divi Srinivasa Deekshitulu

          Music: Mani Sharma

          Dialogues: Sobhan 

          Cinematography: C Ram Prasad

          Art Director: SL Prabhakar Naag 

          Editing, Story, Screenplay & Direction: krishna Vamsi

          Producer: Nandigam Gopi, Ramalingeswara Rao, N Devi Prasad

          Theatrical Release Date: 17th February 2001

          Interesting Facts: 

          • Esha Deol was the first choice for the heroine but asked for too much money, then casting director went to Sonali Bendre who agreed upon narration marking her Telugu debut 
          • Started filming in May 2000 with a budget of 5 crores. Working title was Krishna Mukunda Murari 
          • Shot in Hyderabad, Ramanaidu Studios, Rajamundry, Ramachandrapuram, 
          • Brought an elephant from Kerala and it took a week to get there
          • While filming Dum Dum Dum song, Mahesh Babu got a fever and then completed the song working 10 hours a day 
          • Budget went past 5 crores and it took 150 working days to complete the film 
          • Wanted to come for Sankranthi but already 3 big movies 
          • Released February 16th, 2001 in limited theaters and had flop talk for first week and then it started to pick up 
          • 100 days in 34 centers, 175 days in 2 centers, collected more than 10 crores share at the box office and became a blockbuster resulting in double profit 
          • Gave a breakthrough for Mahesh Babu, Sonali Bendre, Ravi Babu, Raghu Babu, and first movie of Peter Heins in Tollywood. 
          • Second Digitally edited film in TFI, first was Mrugaraju 


            • Acting: Except Mahesh Babu, everybody in the movie overacts to the core. Sonali Bendre peaks of irritation.


            Writing/Direction: Story is very unique and interesting. Can look at it two different ways. At the time of it’s release, it was fantastic and very interesting. Even know the redeeming factor is the story. 


            Writing is good only for Murari character and the curse. With age everything else has aged terribly. Slow pace, cringe worthy love track, patience testing family sentiment scenes and overreaction by everybody. It’s a family film which is my favorite genre but idk Murari doesnt hit it for me. 


            Also all Krishna Vamsi movies have huge joint families and understanding the relations is more confusing than Brahmotsavam, Ponniyin Selvan, and Tuck Jagadish for real. Basically its a film for 2001 that seemed amazing then. But if you watch it know, you probably wont like. 

            People call Murari a classic. It might be for fans or if you’re biased, but its not like other classic family movies like Kalisundam Raa, Brindavanam, Ready, Nuvvu Naaku Nachav, Malliswari, Manmadhudu. Lacks the repeat value, pacing, and emotions of said films. 


            Technicalities: 

            Literally the saving grace on the rewatch was one and only king of Telugu music Mani Sharma. BGM is outstanding especially the flute BGM and cant’; say enough about the songs. Freaking classic album man. Such a nostalgic treat and masterpiece. One of Mani Sharma’s top 5 best albums for Mahesh Babu easily. Songs gave goosebumps due to how popular they have become over the years and lasted the test of time. 


            Cinematography by Ram Prasad is a visual delight. Loaded in beautiful colors and unfortunately due to age, HD remaster of the movie doesnt exist. 


            Art Direction by SL Prabhakar Naag is amazing. The sets and village atmosphere recreated for the entire film are outstanding. Art director worked overtime and its a treat to see on screen. Actually believe they’re in an actual village. 


            Overall: some films when you watch it during that time, it seems good. If you watch the same thing now, you won’t get the same feeling. Murari is one such movie. Songs, story, Mahesh Babu, visuals and production design are super but it lacks the repeat value of other Mahesh Babu movies due to slow pace, cringe worthy romantic track, and overaction family scenes

            48 min
          • Revisiting Pelli Choopulu (2016): Review + Interesting Facts
            Credits
            Banner: Dharmapatha Creations & Big Ben Cinemas
            Cast: Vijay Devarakonda , Ritu Varma, Nandu, Priya Darsi, Abhay, Anish Kuruvilla. Guru raj, Kedar Sankar, Padmaja. etc
            Cinematography: Nagesh Banell
            Editor: Raviteja Girijala
            Music: Vivek Sagar & Tapeloop
            Lyrics: Shri, Rahul Ramakrishna, Shreshta, Ranjani Sivakumar & Nikhil Bharadwaj
            Production Design: Latha Tharun Dhaassyam
            Producers: Raj Kandukuri & Yash Rangineni
            Story, Screenplay, Dialogue & Direction: Tharun Bhascker
            Release date: 29 July, 2016
            Interesting Facts:
            How about two contrasting personalities meet for Pelli Choopulu. What happens if things go horribly wrong? That was the basic idea. I wanted to include food in the film. I wanted to name this film as ‘Anukokunda’, but somebody else had registered it. Hence we found Pelli Choopulu to be the apt title.
            It’s a conflict between heart and mind we go through every day in our lives. Chitra can never emote and you can’t think what’s going through her mind. Prasanth is all heart. He feels something, he says it loud.
            This is a good script and directed extremely well by Tharun. This is a drastically different characterization from what I done earlier. Once I joined Tharuns team, I don’t know how time passed off.
            After approaching Suresh Babu garu, Raj Kandukuri garu and Yash Rangineni garu, the project took off because we had everything on paper including managing the artists call sheets and budget control measures. They just believed in our younger lot. Later, the production was wrapped in meager 35 days.
            We used sync sound to reduce the cost. Vivek Sagar later mixed many themes and sound tracks to enhance the realistic treatment. One month back we were ready with the first copy and confident that people will love our work.
            Our team has done Pelli Choopulu with heart and soul. Everyone in our group was between 25 to 27 years at age. We believed in script and kept trust on each other. Producers gave us complete creative freedom. Our belief has today proved to be right because patrons are entertaining thoroughly in theaters.
            I wrote story in 45 days. I was working with Lakshmi Manchu at first. She loved the script. We worked on it together. She had a lot of personal commitments. She asked me to go and spread my wings first. I approached Vijay Devarakonda and then I met Raj Kandukuri. Things started falling in place once I met Raj Kandukuri. 15 minutes into narration and he said that he would do the film. He followed it up regular. We started pre-production after 15 days.
            Music director Vivek Sagar is from Chikkadpally. He is a part of our band. He has also worked with AR Rahman in the past. He calls himself as musician, not as music director. He is a chilled out chap. Raj Kandukuri was skeptical about music as Vivek Sagar was not using many instruments. Vivek Sagar told us that silence is also music and let's experiment. Vivek used minimalism and instrumentation as per the requirement of scene. He scored songs and background music as per the requirement of script, but not to boast his portfolio.
            I have been traveling with the cinematographer Nagesh Banell for the past seven years. Latha has done art direction and costumes design. A lot of thought process has gone into while selecting locations and props.
            It won’t be right to say that I wrote all the dialogues. We had workshops. I wanted the dialogues to be colloquial. I want them to understand the diction and be honest about it. A dialogue like ‘naa chaavu nenu chasta. Neekunduku’ has no effect if you tell the dialogue to anybody outside. But that dialogue is the best dialogue of the film because of the scene. It also represents the frustration of just graduated youth. That question irritates the unemployed youth. That’s the constant pressure youth face. I have a good bunch of friends who keep my life interesting. Most of the conversations written to Priyadarsi are from my personal experience with friends. I draw inspiration for these characters from my friends.
            51 min
          • Dasara Movie Review + Interesting Facts

            Credits

            Banner: SLV Cinemas Banner
            Cast: Nani, Dheekshith Shetty, Keerthy Suresh, Shine Tom Chacko, Samuthirakani, Sai Kumar, Jhansi, Shamna Kasim, Zarina Wahab


            Dialogues: Thota Srinivas
            Music: Santhosh Narayanan
            Cinematography: Sathyan Sooryan ISC
            Stunts: Real Satish
            Prodiction Design: Avinash Kolla
            Editor: Naveen Nooli
            Choreographer: Prem Rakshith
            Story - Screenplay - direction: Srikanth Odela
            Producer: Sudhakar Cherukuri

            Interesting Facts: https://www.ragalahari.com/celebrity-interview/2068/interview-of-art-director-avinash-kolla-about-dasara

            https://www.idlebrain.com/celeb/interview/srikanthodela.html

            https://www.telugu360.com/nanis-dasara-sets-get-authentic-touch-from-directors-own-life/



            1 hr

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