Telugu Film News October 13, 2007

Siddardha to do producer Bujji's film

Hero Siddardha has signed another film in Telugu. M S Raju's "Aata" was his last released movie. Siddardha who is very selective in his choice of films is doing his next for producer Nallamalupu Srinivas who is popularly known as Bujji. A new director Kishore is handling the direction. He has assisted top director V V Vinayak for many films. The film will begins its regular shooting from January.

Harish and Rajiv Kanakala together

"Premkhaidi" fame Harish is doing another film after "Pellaindhi Kani". He is going to act in a new movie that also stars Rajiv Kanakala as one of the hero. Sadguru Sai Creations is producing it in the direction of V R Prashant. The regular shooting begins from October 22 nd.

Sri Ramachandrulu Films in song recording

Hindi super hit film "Bhagam Bhag" is being remade in Telugu under Sri Ramachandrulu Films banner. Shivaji , Kamlinee Mukharjee, Ravi Krishna and Brahmanandam are the lead characters. Its re-recording began on Friday. Tammareddy Bharadwaja graced as the chief guest for re-recording ceremony and he wished the team big success. I Srikanth who is directing the movie said it is comedy film and remake of the Priyadarshan's "Bhagam Bhag". Apoorva is playing opposite Brahmanandam.

Comedian AVS turns Fun Master

Comedian AVS has successfully completed 15 years in the Telugu film industry. The versatile actor, writer, journalist and anchor is celebrating this happy moment. On this occasion, Sangam Academy is honoring him with a gold medal and awarding him. "Fun Master" title will be bestowed on him.

Male lead wanted for a film to be directed by Mohan Krishna Indraganti

Reel Buzz: YVS Choudary Crossed The Limits!

It’s about the film ‘Okkamagadu’. The budget of the film has gone beyond the limit with the over enthusiasm of YVS Choudary. YVS, the ardent devotee of NTR and big lover of Nandamuri family is planning to make ‘Okka Magadu’ as ‘Na bhootho na bhavishyathi’ (nothing in past and in future) in the career of Balakrishna. He is investing big sum in that and got drained much before the completion of the shooting of the film.

But a few good financiers who are also the devotees of Balakrishna and fans of YVS came forward to invest knowing the theme of the film. That’s the greatness of Balayya and YVS, we can say. The fate turned positive for the film and it is getting completed up to the dreams and expectations of YVS. The financiers are saying that the film would be a sensational hit and YVS is making it with utter perfection.

So we may see a very wonderful picture of Balakrishna in this film. He is portraying dual role in it as father and son. Simran, Aushka and Nisha Kothari are the heroines in the film.

Who says Rani and I are at loggerheads, asks Abhishek

Mumbai (IANS) Putting aside rumours about Rani Mukerji being ostracised by the Bachchan camp, Abhishek Bachchan says they are still good friends and that he would love to work with her again.

"Who says Rani and I are at loggerheads? Such talk hasn't affected our friendship at all," Abhishek told IANS on phone from Namibia where he's shooting for Goldie Behl's "Drona".

"Strangely we've played husband and wife in most of our films together, including 'Hum Tum', where I came in, got married to her and was ousted from the script. Rani is a superb actor and we've done some truly challenging work together. You have to see her in 'Laaga Chunari Mein Daag'. I hope to do many more films with her."

The presence of his mother in the film has made the movie extra special for him, says Abhishek.

"I got to work with mom (Jaya). I had done a cameo in a Bengali film as her son. Mom and Pa are two different actors and human beings; they're both unique actors. It's a sheer pleasure to share screen space with mom. I hope to do as many films with her as I've done with Pa."

Ask him what the main difference is in working with his two parents, and Abhishek ponders, "In-between shots Pa and I chill out, have fun. Ma is constantly mothering and fussing over me when the camera is switched off. Though I pretend not to like it, I secretly love it."

There was big-time bonding on the sets with co-star Kunal Kapoor.

"Kunal and I grew up together. He belongs to the same Juhu circle that I do. He's a terrific guy and an even better actor. His performance in our new film will surprise a lot of people. I also admire Konkona Sen Sharma with whom I worked for the first time in the film. She's great fun."

As for director Pradeep Sarkar, "I did a number of ads with him before I finally got to be in a feature film with him. His zest for his work is unparalleled. I saw no difference in his enthusiasm level on the sets of our feature film. I want to work with him again," Abhishek says.

Reel Talk: Mohan Babu Acts In Telugu ‘Sarkar’

Sorry! We are not saying that RGV’s ‘Sarkar’ is going to be made in Telugu. It is a separate film on a whole. The film is going to be made with Mohan Babu in lead role. The Rayalaseema faction theme and Mohan Babu’s ersatz rule in one of the places falls the main theme of the film. The details of the film are yet to be known and Mallidi Satyanarayana Reddy, the producer of ‘Dhee’ is going to make this film.

Already Mohan Babu acted in ‘Rayalaseema Ramanna Choudary’. Although the word Rayalaseema is there in that, it was a film based on family issues and land settlements and there was no faction in that. Now we have to see what faction Mohan Babu is going to show.

Grapevine says that producer is trying to pull Sobhana for the female role in it on the interest of Mohan Babu. So, are we going to see ‘Rowdy gari Pellam’ pair once again?

Reel Talk: Two Old Titles Creating Interest!

'State Rowdy’- The title itself flashes Chiranjeevi on our mind’s screen. ‘Premabhishekam’- The title reminds Akkineni Nageshwara Rao. One is a hardcore action flick of 80s and the other is a love-failure subject created by Dasari Narayana Rao. It is known that the same titles are being used now for two films along with tag lines that spill laughs.

‘State Rowdy’-Veediki Antha Scene Ledhu is the one being done by Sivaji in lead role. It is the remake of Tamil film ‘Ediri’. It shows how a guy manages the artificially tagged ‘Rowdy’ image to win his love. We can imagine what will be the content in the film.

‘Premabhishekam-Veediki Cancer Ledhu’ is the film with Venu Madhav in lead role. Interestingly it’s Dasari who is penning script for this film. We have to see if Venu Madhav imitates ANR in this film. How Dasari himself making a comedy satire on his own classic hit? That we have to see!

Comparison Between 'Chirutha' and 'Happy Days'

There appears to be only one formula to get big openings for small films. It is sure that big films need not have very big pre-release publicity. If they do, that adds a little extent for the openings. But small films definitely need publicity. Many small directors and producers assume that the audiences would gush into theaters if they arrange for 4 press meets and 40 posters before the release. Today, even distributors are not coming forward for such hype. The only thing that pumps in life for the collections of any film is 'good mouth publicity'. That is possible only when the film comes out well. Small directors and producers have no other way other than making films in very interesting way. Right story, right screenplay and right interesting element are the core points for success. All this makes a film get good collections.

Just comparing between 'Chirutha' and 'Happy Days', the former has one and only interest point-that is the introduction of Chiranjeevi's son. That brought very big openings but eventually due to the lack of proper story line it is turning off. On the other hand, in 'Happy Days' there are no stars and there are no sons of big stars. All are new faces and new names except Sekhar Kammula. But still the film is ruling the roost. The only interest element for its success is the talk that says, 'a very good movie'.

One thing is straight- Sekhar Kammula brought interest on his film from the beginning by announcing 'Talent Search', then tied up with corporate sponsorships. He got right casting, able to extract melodious music from Mickey, and then released the film in overseas first. 'Chirutha' pulled interest of people by not showing the face of Ram Charan in any trailer before the release of the film.

Both films opened well. Chirutha bagged huge collections because of the hype and number of prints then fell flat, but at the end Happy Days sustained!!

Talk: Radhika Says Girls Should ‘Change’

Actress Radhika says that Telugu girls should change their mind set. In a short interview given freshly Radhika said that Telugu directors and producers are going behind Mumbai actresses as they are not finding local girls those are in tune with their expectations and interests.

“Things were different during our time. Now if Telugu girls change themselves and come forward with real zeal and enthusiasm, why don’t our directors give opportunities? The only thing our girls should do is to be in tune with the interests and expectations of directors”, she says.

But what is the meaning of ‘to be in tune with the expectations’? There is no clarity in that. Must be Radhika implies that they should be good actresses with talent. But are our Mumbai girls talented? Then what Radhika is saying!!!!

Added 11 Exclusive Spicy Nayantara Gallery

Rumors: Confusions, Ins and Outs With ‘Don’!

The film ‘Don’ has been undergoing shooting from many months. Till now the publicity winds are not blowing from this film. It is still in making. Do you know the reason for its delay? When inquired, the inside sources informed that Lawrence started the film abruptly narrating the story line to Nagarjuna. But he hasn’t prepared the script for second half.

It is said that knowing that, Nagarjuna reprimanded Lawrence and asked him to sit on the script work first. He gave enough time to him although gave shunting all the while. It took 3 months for Lawrence to bring second half to a shape with line order and dialogues. Then the shooting started again. So, 3 months of time is a mere hibernation in the shooting of ‘Don’.

We all know that Lawrence is not only directing the film but also doing dance direction and scoring music for it. We have to see what dish he prepares at last.

A Gen-Next hero in Tollywood

Even as Bollywood watchers are keenly await Saawariya, which will launch Raj Kapoor’s grandson, as the hero, a new Gen-Next hero has just been born south of Vindhyas.After a small skill show in Daddy where he proved his dancing skills, superstar Chiranjeevi’s son Ram Charan Teja has made his debut with Chirutha, three weeks ago.

The movie had a wide release with around 350 prints including Andhra Pradesh as well as scores of overseas markets. His name alone of course does is not familiar, yet, millions of hearts welcomed him to Tollywood. Yet, being Telugu mega star Chiranjeevi’s son is enough. Expectations were sky high as there is no more truism in South cinema than “In filmdom, it pays which family you are born into”.Produced by Aswini Dutt’s Vyjayanthi Movies, Chirutha comes from one of the most established banners in the Telugu film industry. Dutt’s past record includes big films with both Chiranjeevi and his younger brother, Pawan Kalyan.

The young scion also had the advantage of having his debut film directed by Puri Jagannath, an established commercial director, whose films kept Tollywood’s box office ringing. For Ram Charan Teja there could not have asked for a better launch pad. Money too was not a constraint as Dutt is said to have pumped anywhere between Rs 15-18 crore for the movie’s production, with a sizable portion of its being spent extensively in overseas locales, especially in and around Bangkok. The hype surrounding the launch of a new star duly helped the film and it was sold for an estimated Rs 25 crore. Crazy fans of Chiranjeevi as well as others rushed to the theatres in droves across the state. As a result, it collected almost Rs 12 crore in the first week itself.

Yet, the film has not proved to have staying power. From the second week on, the film’s collections started sliding. Director Jagannath seems to have got carried away by the hype of launching a new star, and has not focused on the key areas of a film — the story and screenplay.

Fortunately for Ram Charan Teja, its the film which has got all the criticisms while he has landed up with accolades for performance, action scenes and even his dancing skills! All in line with his father’s image. So, yet another Gen -Next star, in the lines of Mahesh Babu (son of Krishna) is born.

Reel Talk: Radio Mirchi ties up with ‘Tulasi’

Radio Mirchi, Hyderabad, has tied-up exclusively with the movie ‘Tulasi’ released in AP (and across the world) on Friday.

After listening to the super hit music of Tulasi exclusively, listeners of Radio Mirchi can now listen to the interviews of Venkatesh and other stars starting October 12 and catch the excitement all through the week exclusively on Mirchi.

Moreover, there are tickets of the movie to be won and also a chance to meet and greet the stars. There are different contests on air from October 12 to October 18 and one can participate in the contests to meet the stars of Tulasi, win accessories of character Tulasi (played by Venkatesh) and be the face on the special poster of Tulasi placed at Prasad’s IMAX.

All one has to do is listen to Mirchi 98.3 FM and do some simple stuff like guessing the character of the hero, coming up with a byline for the movie etc and win loads of goodies.

Photo Feature: 16 Year Old Amitabh Bachchan

Yes it's the photograph taken in 1958 when Amitabh was 16 year old. The boy in the circle is Amitabh. He has some features of Abhishek, right! No, No, Abhishek has some Amitabh's features! That's right, probably.

Gossip: Lesbianism Waves In Tollywood

Lesbianism is not a taboo in Hollywood. Many actresses have announced they are lesbians. The waves are recently hitting Bollywood. Some are considering it to be a progressive thought while many are still holding the belief that it is wrong.

The lesbianism is not new in Tollywood and it is there from a few years. It was revealed that two young actresses have gone scapegoats to lesbianism of a 35 year old lady (approx age). Out of the two actresses one is a Telugu girl and the other is a North Indian. Both have got debut on same banner. Now another young actress is also acting on that banner.

It is also said that the lesbian lady is so cruel that she warns her close circles to behave as if they know nothing. Sorry, we can't give clues here.