''Aha Naa-Pellanta!'' () is a 1987 Indian
Telugu
Telugu may refer to:
* Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India
*Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India
* Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language
** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode
S ...
-language
comedy drama film written and directed by
Jandhyala
Jandhyala Subrahmanya Sastry (14 January 1951 – 19 June 2001), known mononymously by his surname Jandhyala, was an Indian film director, screenwriter, playwright, and actor known for his works in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He is popu ...
, and produced by
D. Ramanaidu
Daggubati Ramanaidu (6 June 1936 – 18 February 2015) was an Indian film producer known for his work in Telugu cinema. He founded Suresh Productions in 1964 which became of one of the largest film production companies in India. He was placed i ...
under his banner
Suresh Productions. The film stars
Rajendra Prasad
Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, Indian independence activist, journalist & scholar who served as the first president of Republic of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian Nationa ...
and
Rajani while
Kota Srinivasa Rao
Kota Srinivasa Rao (born 10 July 1942) is an Indian character actor known for his work primarily in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He has also starred in a few films in Tamil, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam. As a former politician, Rao has ...
,
Nutan Prasad
Tadinada Varaprasad popularly known as Nutan Prasad (12 December 1945 – 30 March 2011) was an Indian actor who predominantly worked in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He was a native of Kaikaluru, Andhra Pradesh, India. He started his film ...
, and
Brahmanandam
Kanneganti Brahmanandam (born 1 February 1956), known mononymously as Brahmanandam, is an Indian actor, comedian, impersonator, and voice actor known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He is particularly known for his comic perfor ...
play supporting roles. The film has music composed by
Ramesh Naidu
Pasupuleti Ramesh Naidu (1933–1988) was an Indian music composer, multi instrumentalist, and singer, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He garnered the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for the film Megha Sandesam ...
. An adaptation of Adivishnu's novel ''Satyam Gaari Illu'' (), the film's title is based on a song from the
epic fantasy
High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes, or plot.Brian Stableford, ''The A to Z of Fantasy Literature'', (p. 198), Scarecrow Press, ...
film ''
Mayabazar
''Mayabazar'' () is a 1957 Indian epic Hindu mythological film directed by K. V. Reddy. It was produced by Nagi Reddi and Chakrapani under their banner, Vijaya Productions. The film was shot simultaneously in Telugu and Tamil languages, w ...
'' (1957). The film released on 27 November 1987.
''Aha Naa Pellanta!'' is considered one of the best comedy films of all time in
Telugu cinema
Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Telugu cinema is based in Film Nagar, ...
.
Kota Srinivasa Rao's character as a miser and his mannerism "''Naakenti?''" became famous.
Brahmanandam's role as 'Ara Gundu' received wide appreciation from both critics and audience and it became his
breakthrough role.
Made on a budget of 16
lakh, the film grossed over 5
crore at the box office and became a blockbuster.
Producer D. Ramanaidu mentioned that the profits from the film helped him in the establishment of Ramanaidu Studios.
The film was remade in
Kannada
Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...
as ''
Challenge Gopalakrishna
''Challenge Gopalakrishna'' is a 1990 Indian Kannada comedy film directed and written by Om Sai Prakash. The film stars Anant Nag in the title role, along with Ashwini in the leading role. Actor Shashikumar made a brief appearance in a song s ...
'' (1990).
Plot
Krishnamurthy (Rajendra Prasad) is the son of industrialist Satyanarayana (Nutan Prasad). Satyanarayana is worried about Krishnamurthy's marriage, so much so that he imagines every young woman who happens to be seen by him as his daughter-in-law. Krishna Murthy meets Padma (Rajani) in his friend's marriage and Cupid strikes them. Krishna Murthy is afraid of revealing his love for Padma to his father directly as he fears his father may reject it outright. His initial attempts to reveal his love life to his father through letters are thwarted by his butler in fear for Satyanarayana's life. Desperate to reveal the love matter to Satyanarayana, Krishnamurthy then tries various gimmicks and at last, is successful. A panicked Satyanarayana inquires about the family background of Padma and finds out that she is the daughter of Lakshmipathy (Kota Srinivasa Rao), a noted miser in his village. Aware of his father's concerns, Krishnamurthy reassures Satyanarayana and lands in Lakshmipathy's house posing as a miser. Krishnamurthy's pretense and pranks beget the intended effect in Lakshmipathy and bring him closer to Padma. A marriage proposal from Sudhakar (Subhalekha Sudhakar), who is accompanied by his two glutton brothers much to the chagrin of Lakshmipathy, for Padma ends in Lakshmipathy favoring Krishnamurthy. Elated with the turn of events, Krishnamurthy prepares for marriage with Padma and invites Satyanarayana. However, his plans turn sour as Lakshmipathy, in his greed for money, abuses Krishnamurthy assuming that he is from a poor family before Satyanarayana confronts Lakshmipathy. A dejected Krishnamurthy requests Satyanarayana to give him one more chance to teach Lakshmipathy a lesson. Krishnamurthy, along with "Aragundu" Brahmanandam (Brahmanandam), a disgruntled butler of Lakshmipathy set about to transform Lakshmipathy. Krishnamurthy tacitly arranges for three different marriage proposals, starting with Sudhakar, with each proposer agreeing to offer more
bride price
Bride price, bride-dowry ( Mahr in Islam), bride-wealth, or bride token, is money, property, or other form of wealth paid by a groom or his family to the woman or the family of the woman he will be married to or is just about to marry. Bride dow ...
than the earlier proposed. Overcome with greed for money, Lakshmipathy agrees to get his daughter married to each one of them. At the time of marriage with the bridegroom who offered the highest bride price, the other two bridegrooms also appear at the same time and question Lakshmipathy. An embarrassed Lakshmipathy is admonished by Padma for his greed. Lakshmipathy realizes his mistake and redeems himself by getting Padma married to Krishnamurthy.
Cast
*
Rajendra Prasad
Rajendra Prasad (3 December 1884 – 28 February 1963) was an Indian politician, lawyer, Indian independence activist, journalist & scholar who served as the first president of Republic of India from 1950 to 1962. He joined the Indian Nationa ...
as Krishnamurthy
*
Rajani as Padma
*
Kota Srinivasa Rao
Kota Srinivasa Rao (born 10 July 1942) is an Indian character actor known for his work primarily in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He has also starred in a few films in Tamil, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam. As a former politician, Rao has ...
as Lakshmipathy
*
Nutan Prasad
Tadinada Varaprasad popularly known as Nutan Prasad (12 December 1945 – 30 March 2011) was an Indian actor who predominantly worked in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He was a native of Kaikaluru, Andhra Pradesh, India. He started his film ...
as Satyanarayana
*
Rallapalli as Appanna
*
Bramhanandam
Kanneganti Brahmanandam (born 1 February 1956), known mononymously as Brahmanandam, is an Indian actor, comedian, impersonator, and voice actor known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He is particularly known for his comic perform ...
as Govindu (Ara Gundu)
*
Suthi Veerabhadra Rao
*
Suthi Velu
*
Subhalekha Sudhakar as Kukkuteswara Rao
*
Babu Mohan
Pally Babu Mohan known as Babu Mohanis an Indian actor and politician from Bharatiya Janata Party. He prominently works in Telugu films as a comedian and is a former Minister for Labour in Andhra Pradesh. He won Nandi Award for Best Male Come ...
as a member of RTC bus union
* Vidyasagar
*
Gundu Hanumantha Rao
Gundu Hanumantha Rao (10 October 1956–19 February 2018) was an Indian actor and comedian who worked in Telugu films, theatre, and television. He first appeared in Jandhyala's film '' Aha Naa Pellanta'' in 1987 and gained popularity in comedia ...
*
Ashok Kumar
Kumudlal Ganguly (13 October 1911 – 10 December 2001), better known by his stage name Ashok Kumar and also by Dadamoni, was an Indian actor who attained iconic status in Indian cinema and who was a member of the cinematic Ganguly family.
He ...
as Kaviraju, Hotel manager
*
Chitti Babu
*
Jenny
Jenny may refer to:
* Jenny (given name), a popular feminine name and list of real and fictional people
* Jenny (surname), a family name
Animals
* Jenny (donkey), a female donkey
* Jenny (gorilla), the oldest gorilla in captivity at the time of ...
as Hotel server
*
Telangana Shakuntala
Telangana Shakuntala (27 March 1951 – 14 June 2014) was an Indian actress who worked in the Telugu cinema. She was known chiefly for playing comedy and villainous characters in Tollywood. Her performances in movies like ''Osey Ramulamma'', ' ...
as Hostel warden
*
Sumithra as Rajyam
*
Dubbing Janaki
Dasari Janaki, known professionally as Dubbing Janaki, is an Indian actress and voice artist. She has appeared in several films and television shows in various South Indian languages.
Early life
Janaki was born in Peddapuram, East Godavari D ...
as Lakshmipati's wife
* Sandhya
* Jhansi
* Kuali
*
Savitri as a special appearance as Sasirekha from
Mayabazar
''Mayabazar'' () is a 1957 Indian epic Hindu mythological film directed by K. V. Reddy. It was produced by Nagi Reddi and Chakrapani under their banner, Vijaya Productions. The film was shot simultaneously in Telugu and Tamil languages, w ...
in the song ''Aha Na Pellanta'' as the title song
*
S. V. Ranga Rao as a special appearance as Ghatotkacha from
Mayabazar
''Mayabazar'' () is a 1957 Indian epic Hindu mythological film directed by K. V. Reddy. It was produced by Nagi Reddi and Chakrapani under their banner, Vijaya Productions. The film was shot simultaneously in Telugu and Tamil languages, w ...
in the song ''Aha Na Pellanta'' as the title song
Soundtrack
Music composed by
Ramesh Naidu
Pasupuleti Ramesh Naidu (1933–1988) was an Indian music composer, multi instrumentalist, and singer, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He garnered the National Film Award for Best Music Direction for the film Megha Sandesam ...
. Music released on AVM Audio Company.
Reception
Griddaluru Gopalrao of ''
Zamin Ryot
''Zamin Ryot'' ( te, జమీన్ రైతు, Jamīn Raitu) is an Indian Telugu-language weekly newspaper published from Nellore. It was started by N. Venkatrama Naidu in . It has been called the longest continuously running Telugu newspa ...
'', writing his review on 4 December 1987, appreciated the way Jandhyala imbibed humour in the film's dialogues, "Though the comedy scenes are far from reality at times, they are very close in making the audinece laugh
''sic">nowiki/>''sic''.html" ;"title="sic.html" ;"title="nowiki/>''sic">nowiki/>''sic''">sic.html" ;"title="nowiki/>''sic">nowiki/>''sic''" Gopalrao added.
Legacy
Jahnavi Reddy of ''The News Minute'', wrote that the film is noted for its dialogues and unique insults, which came to be used commonly in conversations. "While more recent films and their dialogues are frequently woven into conversations, there has been a big change in the kind of Telugu used in these popular dialogue," she added.
References
External links
*
{{Jandhyala Subramanya Sastry, state=collapsed
1980s feminist films
1980s Telugu-language films
1987 comedy films
1987 films
Films about Indian weddings
Films directed by Jandhyala
Films scored by Ramesh Naidu
Films shot in Hyderabad, India
Indian comedy-drama films
Indian feminist films
Social realism in film
Suresh Productions films
Telugu films remade in other languages