Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of

Indian cinema The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, ...

dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the

Telugu language Telugu (; , ) is a Dravidian languages, Dravidian language spoken by Telugu people predominantly living in the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, where it is also the official language. It is the most widely spoken ...

, widely spoken in the states of

Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (, abbr. AP) is a state in the south-eastern coastal region of India. It is the seventh-largest state by area covering an area of and tenth-most populous state with 49,386,799 inhabitants. It is bordered by Telangana to the ...

and

Telangana Telangana (; , ) is a state in India situated on the south-central stretch of the Indian peninsula on the high Deccan Plateau. It is the eleventh-largest state and the twelfth-most populated state in India with a geographical area of and 35 ...

. Telugu cinema is based in

Film Nagar Film Nagar, also known as Tinsel Town or Tollywood, is a neighborhood in the western part of Hyderabad, Telangana, India. It is notable for its place as the home of the entertainment industry, including several of Tollywood's historic studios ...

Hyderabad Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River, in the northern part of Southern Indi ...

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. The nickname ''Tollywood'' is a

portmanteau A portmanteau word, or portmanteau (, ) is a blend of wordsHollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywoo ...

. By 2021, it has emerged as the largest film industry in India in terms of box-office. Since 1909, filmmaker

Raghupathi Venkaiah Naidu Raghupathi Venkaiah Naidu (15 October 1869 – 15 March 1941), was an Indian filmmaker, screenwriter, director, graphic artist, lyricist, author, educationist and entrepreneur considered as the father of Telugu cinema. Regarded as one of the pio ...

was involved in producing short films and travelling to different regions in

Asia Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...

to promote film work. In 1921, he produced the silent film, '' Bhishma Pratigna'', generally considered to be the first Telugu

feature film A feature film or feature-length film is a narrative film (motion picture or "movie") with a running time long enough to be considered the principal or sole presentation in a commercial entertainment program. The term ''feature film'' originall ...

, and hence, regarded as the ''Father of Telugu cinema''. In 1933, '' Sati Savitri'' directed by Chittajallu Pullayya received an honorary diploma at the 2nd Venice. Known for its big-ticket, and popular film genre catering to wider audience, works such as ''

Pathala Bhairavi ''Pathala Bhairavi'' () is a 1951 Indian fantasy film directed by K. V. Reddy who co-wrote the film with Pingali and Kamalakara Kameswara Rao. Shot simultaneously in Telugu and Tamil languages, the film was produced by Nagi Reddi and Chakr ...

'' (1951) (only

South Indian South India, also known as Dakshina Bharata or Peninsular India, consists of the peninsular southern part of India. It encompasses the Indian states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, as well as the union territ ...

entry at the 1st IFFI), '' Malliswari'' (1951), '' Devadasu'' (1953), ''

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), ''

Nartanasala Nartanasala may refer to: * Nartanasala (1963 film) ''Nartanasala'' () is a 1963 Indian Telugu-language Hindu mythological film directed by Kamalakara Kameswara Rao and written by Samudrala Sr. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Savitri, S. V. Ranga ...

'' (1963), ''

Maro Charitra ''Maro Charitra'' () is a 1978 Indian Telugu-language romantic tragedy film written and directed by K. Balachander. It stars Kamal Haasan and Saritha in the lead with Madhavi appearing in prominent roles. The film deals with cross-cultural ...

'' (1978), ''

Maa Bhoomi ''Maa Bhoomi'' () is a 1979 Indian Telugu-language social problem film directed by Goutam Ghose in his debut. The film is produced by B. Narsing Rao, who also wrote the film with Goutam Ghose. The film is based on the novel ''Jab Khet Jage'' by ...

'' (1979), ''

Sankarabharanam Sankarabharanam may refer to: * ''Sankarabharanam'' (1980 film), an Indian Telugu-language musical drama film * ''Sankarabharanam'' (2015 film), an Indian Telugu-language crime comedy film * Sankarabharanam (raga) Dhīraśankarābharaṇaṃ, c ...

'' (1980), '' Sagara Sangamam'' (1983), and '' Siva'' (1989) are featured in ''

CNN-IBN CNN-News18 (originally CNN-IBN) is an Indian English-language news television channel founded by Raghav Bahl based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. It is currently co-owned by Network18 Group and Warner Bros. Discovery. CNN provides internat ...

'''s "100 Greatest Indian Films of All Time". Ethnographic works such as

Mrinal Sen Mrinal Sen (''Beng.'' মৃণাল সেন; 14 May 1923 – 30 December 2018) was an Indian film director, and screenwriter known for his work primarily in Bengali, and few Hindi and Telugu language films. Regarded as one of the finest Ind ...

's ''

Oka Oori Katha ''Oka Oori Katha'' (English title: The Marginal Ones; Telugu: ఒక ఊరి కథ) is a 1977 Indian Telugu-Language drama film directed by Mrinal Sen. The Pan-Indian film is based on the story ''Kafan'' by Munshi Premchand. The film was one ...

'' (1977) won the "

Special Jury Prize (Karlovy Vary IFF) The Special Jury Prize is one of the main awards of the Feature Film Competition at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary) is a film festival ...

B. Narsing Rao Bongu Narsing Rao (born 1946) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, littérateur, composer, poet, producer, actor and painter known for his works in Telugu cinema, and Telugu theatre. Rao has garnered five National Film Awards, three Nandi ...

's ''

Maa Ooru Maa Ooru () is a 1987 Indian Telugu-language anthropological film written and directed by B. Narsing Rao. The film won the Best Ethnographic Film at the 36th National Film Awards "For recalling with nostalgia the life of a village community of ...

'' (1992) won the " Media Wave Award" of Hungary;

K. N. T. Sastry Kanaala Nanjunda Tirumala Sastry (5 September 1945 – 13 September 2018) was an Indian film critic, screenwriter, director, littérateur, and producer, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He has garnered six National Film Awards ...

's ''

Thilaadanam ''Thiladaanam'' (The Rite... A Passion) is a 2000 Indian Telugu-language drama film, written, and directed by film-critic K. N. T. Sastry in his debut directorial, based on the story by Rentala Nageswara Rao. The film features H. G. Dattatreya ...

'' (2000) received "New Currents Award" at the 7th Busan; Rajnesh Domalpalli's '' Vanaja'' (2006) won "Best First Feature Award" at the 57th Berlinale. Mainstream works such as

K. Viswanath Kasinadhuni Viswanath (born 19 February 1930) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor, known for his works primarily in Telugu cinema. He is recipient of five National Film Awards, seven state Nandi Awards, ten Filmfare Awards South, ...

's ''Sankarabharanam'' (1980) won the "Prize of the Public" at the

Besançon Besançon (, , , ; archaic german: Bisanz; la, Vesontio) is the prefecture of the department of Doubs in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. The city is located in Eastern France, close to the Jura Mountains and the border with Switzer ...

Film Festival of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

S. S. Rajamouli Koduri Srisaila Sri Rajamouli ( ; born 10 October 1973) is an Indian film director and screenwriter who primarily works in Telugu cinema. He is the highest paid director in India, and is known for his action, fantasy, and epic genre films. T ...

's epic '' Baahubali 2: The Conclusion'' (2017), and alternate history '' RRR'' (2022) are the only Indian films to win the American " Saturn Award for Best International Film". The later is the only Indian film to be featured in the " U. S. National Board of Review top 10".

History

Early development

The

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 ...

film industry originated with silent films in 1921, with the production and release of '' Bhishma Pratigna'' in 1921. The film was directed by Raghupathi Venkayya and his son R. S. Prakash.

Y. V. Rao Yaragudipati Varada Rao ( Telugu: యెర్రగుడిపాటి వరదరావు; 30 May 1903 – 13 February 1979) was an Indian director, producer, actor, screenwriter, and editor known for his works primarily in Telugu, Kannad ...

and R. S. Prakash established a long-lasting precedence of focusing exclusively on religious themes; ''Nandanar'', ''Gajendra Moksham'', and ''Matsyavatar'', three of their most noted productions, centred on religious figures, parables, and morals. The first

film studio A film studio (also known as movie studio or simply studio) is a major entertainment company or motion picture company that has its own privately owned studio facility or facilities that are used to make films, which is handled by the productio ...

in South India, Durga Cinetone, was built in 1936 by Nidamarthi Surayya in

Rajahmundry Rajahmundry, officially known as Rajamahendravaram, is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and District headquarters of East Godavari district. It is the sixth most populated city in the state. During British rule, the District of Ra ...

, Andhra Pradesh. In 1935, ''Andhra Cine Tone'' was built in

Visakhapatnam , image_alt = , image_caption = From top, left to right: Visakhapatnam aerial view, Vizag seaport, Simhachalam Temple, Aerial view of Rushikonda Beach, Beach road, Novotel Visakhapatnam, INS Kursura submarine museu ...

by ''Gottumukkala Jagannadha Raju''. He introduced digital theater sound with the 1935 film ''Jagadamba''.

Rise of the "talkie"

The first Telugu film with audible dialogue, '' Bhakta Prahlada'', was produced by

H.M. Reddy Hanumappa Muniappa Reddy (12 June 1892 – 14 January 1960), known as H. M. Reddy, was an Indian film director and producer, known for his works in Telugu cinema. He directed the first Indian multilingual sound film ''Kalidas'' (1931), shot in T ...

, who directed the first bilingual (

and

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, na ...

) talkie

Kalidas Kālidāsa (''fl.'' 4th–5th century CE) was a Classical Sanskrit author who is often considered ancient India's greatest poet and playwright. His plays and poetry are primarily based on the Vedas, the Rāmāyaṇa, the Mahābhārata and th ...

(1931). Bhakta Prahlada was completed on 15 September 1931, which henceforth became known as "Telugu Film Day" to commemorate its completion. Popularly known as

talkies A sound film is a motion picture with synchronized sound, or sound technologically coupled to image, as opposed to a silent film. The first known public exhibition of projected sound films took place in Paris in 1900, but decades passed before ...

, films with sound quickly grew in number and popularity. In 1934, the industry saw its first major commercial success with '' Lavakusa''. Directed by

C. Pullaiah Chittajallu Pullayya ( Telugu: చిత్తజల్లు పుల్లయ్య; 1898 – 6 October 1967) was an Indian film director and screenwriter. He is one of the earliest film personalities in Telugu cinema being associated with ...

and starring Parupalli Subbarao and Sriranjani, the film attracted unprecedented numbers of viewers to theatres and thrust the young industry into mainstream culture. By 1936, the mass appeal of film allowed directors to move away from religious and mythological themes. That year, under the direction of Kruthiventi Nageswara Rao, ''Prema Vijayam'', a film focusing on social issues, was released. Its success prompted the production of dozens of other immensely successful 'social films', notably 1939's ''

Vandemataram ''Vande Mataram'' (Sanskrit: वन्दे मातरम् IAST: , also spelt ''Bande Mataram''; বন্দে মাতরম্, ''Bônde Mātôrôm''; ) is a poem written in sanskritised Bengali by Bankim Chandra Chatterjee in the ...

'', touching on societal problems like the practice of giving

dowry A dowry is a payment, such as property or money, paid by the bride's family to the groom or his family at the time of marriage. Dowry contrasts with the related concepts of bride price and dower. While bride price or bride service is a payment ...

, Telugu films increasingly focused on contemporary living: 29 of the 96 films released between 1937 and 1947 had social themes.

Cinema during the Crown Rule

In 1938,

Gudavalli Ramabrahmam Gudavalli Ramabrahmam was an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who worked in Telugu cinema. He is known for directing critically acclaimed social problem films like ''Mala Pilla'' (1938) and ''Raithu Bidda'' (1939). At a time w ...

, has co-produced and directed the

social problem film A social problem film is a narrative film that integrates a larger social conflict into the individual conflict between its characters. In the context of the United States and of Hollywood, the genre is defined by fictionalized depictions of soci ...

, ''

Mala Pilla ''Mala Pilla'' or ''Malapilla'' (''English: ''Girl from Mala caste) is a 1938 Indian Telugu-language social problem film directed by Gudavalli Ramabrahmam and written by Tapi Dharma Rao.S. V. Rama Rao (2006) ''Naati 101 Chitralu''. Kinnera Publ ...

'' starring,

Kanchanamala Kanchanamala (1917–1981) was an Indian actress known for her works in Telugu cinema. Personal life She was born in Tenali, Andhra Pradesh. During her childhood days, she went to live with her uncle who was a violin teacher. She was married to ...

, the film dealt with the crusade against untouchability, prevailing in pre-independent India. In 1939, he directed ''

Raithu Bidda ''Raithu Bidda'' (''English:'' Farmer of Common Origins) ( ''Telugu'': రైతు బిడ్డ, lit. Farmer-Son of the Soil) is a 1939 Telugu social problem film directed by Gudavalli Ramabrahmam. It is a social reformist film during the ...

'', starring thespian

Bellary Raghava Bellary Raghava (Telugu: బళ్ళారి రాఘవ; born ''Tadipatri Raghavacharyulu''; 2 August 1880 – 16 April 1946) was an Indian playwright and actor, known for his works predominantly in Telugu theatre and cinema.M.L. Narasimhar ...

. The film was banned by the British administration in the region, for depicting the uprise of the peasantry among the

Zamindar A zamindar (Hindustani language, Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian language, Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous Raja, ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughal Em ...

's during the

British raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

. 1940 film, ''

Viswa Mohini ''Viswa Mohini'' () is a 1940 Telugu-language romantic thriller film in the backdrop of Indian motion picture world, directed by Y. V. Rao. The ensemble cast starring V. Nagayya was written by Balijepalli Lakshmikanta Kavi, and was screened at ...

'', is the first Indian film, depicting the Indian movie world. The film was directed by Y. V. Rao and scripted by

Balijepalli Lakshmikanta Kavi Balijepalli Lakshmikantha Kavi (23 December 1881 – 30 June 1953) was an Indian playwright, novelist, poet, screenwriter, actor and freedom fighter. He is remembered for the magnum opus ''Satya Harischandriyamu'', a play written in 1924, and f ...

, starring V. Nagayya. Rao subsequently made the sequel films ''Savithri'' and ''Sathyabhama'' (1941–42) casting thespian

Sthanam Narasimha Rao Sthanam Narasimha Rao, popularly known as Sthanam (23 September 1902 – 21 February 1971), was an Indian actor known for his works in Telugu theatre and Telugu cinema. He was known for playing female characters and was a recipient of a Padma S ...

. The outbreak of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

and the subsequent resource scarcity caused the

British Raj The British Raj (; from Hindi ''rāj'': kingdom, realm, state, or empire) was the rule of the British Crown on the Indian subcontinent; * * it is also called Crown rule in India, * * * * or Direct rule in India, * Quote: "Mill, who was him ...

to impose a limit on the use of filmstrip in 1943 to 11,000 feet, a sharp reduction from the 20,000 feet that had been common till then. As a result, the number of films produced during the war was substantially lower than in previous years. Nonetheless, before the ban, an important shift occurred in the industry: Independent studios formed, actors and actresses were signed to contracts limiting whom they could work for, and films moved from social themes to folklore legends. Ghantasala Balaramayya, has directed the mythological ''Seetarama Jananam'' under his home production, Prathiba Picture, marking veteran

Akkineni Nageswara Rao Akkineni Nageswara Rao (20 September 1923 – 22 January 2014), widely known as ANR, was an Indian actor and producer, known for his works majorly in Telugu cinema. He starred in many landmark films in his seventy five-year career, and became on ...

's Telugu screen debut in 1944.

Classical cinema and Golden Age

''Malliswari'' is the first Telugu film which had a public release with thirteen prints along with Chinese subtitles at Beijing on 14 March 1953, and a

16 mm film 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, edu ...

print was also screened in the United States.

Eenadu ''Eenadu'' () is the largest circulated Telugu-language daily newspaper of India sold mostly in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. The film was directed by B. N. Reddy, a recipient of the

Dada Saheb Phalke Award The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India's highest award in the field of cinema. It is presented annually at the National Film Awards ceremony by the Directorate of Film Festivals, an organisation set up by the Ministry of Information and Broadc ...

, and the

Doctor of Letters Doctor of Letters (D.Litt., Litt.D., Latin: ' or ') is a terminal degree in the humanities that, depending on the country, is a higher doctorate after the Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) degree or equivalent to a higher doctorate, such as the Docto ...

honour. The industry is one of the largest producers of

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, rangin ...

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

mythological Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrat ...

and

melodrama A modern melodrama is a dramatic work in which the plot, typically sensationalized and for a strong emotional appeal, takes precedence over detailed characterization. Melodramas typically concentrate on dialogue that is often bombastic or exce ...

films. Filmmakers like

K. V. Reddy Kadiri Venkata Reddy (1 July 1912 – 15 September 1972) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who primarily worked in Telugu cinema. He is considered as one of the greatest directors in the history of Telugu cinema. He d ...

B. Vittalacharya B. Vittalacharya (28 January 1920 – 28 May 1999) was an Indian film director and producer known for his works in Telugu and Kannada cinema. He was known as ''Janapada Brahma'' in the Telugu film industry. Vittalacharya formed his film pr ...

and

Kodi Ramakrishna Kodi Ramakrishna (23 July 1949 – 22 February 2019) was an Indian film director, screenwriter and actor known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. One of the most prolific film directors of Telugu film industry, Kodi Ramakrishna has d ...

have pioneered this genre. 1956 film

Tenali Ramakrishna Tenali Ramakrishna (born Garlapati Ramakrishna; also known as Tenali Rama) was an Indian poet, scholar, thinker and a special advisor in the court of the Vijayanagar king Krishnadevaraya, who ruled from C.E. 1509 to 1529. He was a Telugu poet ...

has garnered the All India Certificate of Merit for Best Feature Film. In 2013,

IBN Live Network18 Media & Investments Limited, (formerly SGA Finance and Management Service and Network18 Fincap Limited) commonly referred to as the Network18 Group and sometimes as the Network18–Eenadu Group, is an Indian media conglomerate owned b ...

's poll cited

as the Greatest

Indian film The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, ...

of all time. Relangi, and

Ramana Reddy Ramana Reddy (1 October 1921 – 11 November 1974) was an Indian character actor, comedian and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. In a career spanning 24 years, he acted in more than 200 movies. Ramana Reddy and Relangi ...

were a comedy

double act A double act (also known as a comedy duo) is a form of comedy originating in the British music hall tradition, and American vaudeville, in which two comedians perform together as a single act. Pairings are typically long-term, in some cases fo ...

during this era. ''

'' won three awards at the third

Afro-Asian Film Festival The Afro-Asian Film Festival (AAFF) was an International film festival which was held in Tashkent, Cairo, and Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the ...

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital city, capital and list of Indonesian cities by population, largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coa ...

. '' Donga Ramudu'' directed by

was archived in the curriculum of the

Film and Television Institute of India The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) is a film institute under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of India and aided by the Central Government of India. It is situated on the premises of the erstwhile ...

Eenadu ''Eenadu'' () is the largest circulated Telugu-language daily newspaper of India sold mostly in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.Nammina Bantu'' received critical reception at the

San Sebastián International Film Festival The San Sebastián International Film Festival ( SSIFF; es, Festival Internacional de San Sebastián, eu, Donostia Zinemaldia) is an annual FIAPF A category film festival held in the Spanish city of Donostia-San Sebastián in September, in ...

. 1967 film ''

Ummadi Kutumbam ''Ummadi Kutumbam'' () is a 1967 Indian Telugu-language comedy drama film, produced by N. Trivikrama Rao under the NAT & Ramakrishna Cine Studios banner and directed by D. Yoganand. It stars N. T. Rama Rao, Savitri and Krishna Kumari, with ...

'' was selected by

Film Federation of India The Film Federation of India (FFI) is an apex body of the Indian film producers (around 18,000), distributors (around 20,000), exhibitors (around 12,000) and studio owners, headquartered in Mumbai.Shahid Alikhan, R. A. Mashelkar, "Intellectual pro ...

as one of its entries to the

Moscow Film Festival The Moscow International Film Festival (russian: Моско́вский междунаро́дный кинофестива́ль, translit. ''Moskóvskiy myezhdunaródniy kinofyestivál''; abbreviated as MIFF) is the film festival first h ...

. The 1968 cult classic

Sudigundalu ''Sudigundalu'' () is a 1968 Indian Telugu-language philosophical film, produced by Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Adurthi Subba Rao under the Chakravarthy Chitra banner and directed by Adurthi Subba Rao. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, and has mus ...

was screened at the Tashkent and Moscow Film Festivals. Bapu's directorial venture '' Sakshi'' was showcased at Tashkent International film festival in 1968. In 1976, he directed '' Sita Kalyanam'' got critical acclaim at the

BFI London Film Festival The BFI London Film Festival is an annual film festival founded in 1957 and held in the United Kingdom, running for two weeks in October with co-operation from the British Film Institute. It screens more than 300 films, documentaries and shor ...

and

Chicago International Film Festival The Chicago International Film Festival is an annual film festival held every fall. Founded in 1964 by Michael Kutza, it is the longest-running competitive film festival in North America. Its logo is a stark, black and white close up of the comp ...

, and is part of the curriculum at

British Film Institute The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...

. ''

'' (1977) won special awards at

Karlovy Vary International Film Festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary) is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has becom ...

and

Carthage Film Festival The Carthage Film Festival (CFF) is an annual film festival that takes place in Tunis and founded in 1966. It is also called by its abbreviation JCC, from its French name, , or by its Arabic title, (''Cinema Days of Carthage''). Initially bienn ...

. ''

'' won the Prize of the Public at the

Film Festival of France in the year 1981.

scripted and produced ''

'' which was showcased at

Karlovy Vary Film Festival The Karlovy Vary International Film Festival ( cs, Mezinárodní filmový festival Karlovy Vary) is a film festival held annually in July in Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic. The Karlovy Vary Festival is one of the oldest in the world and has become ...

, and

Cork Film Festival The Cork International Film Festival, also known as the Cork Film Festival (), is a film festival held annually in Cork City Cork ( , from , meaning 'marsh') is the second largest city in Ireland and third largest city by population on the ...

s. He directed, '' Daasi'' "(Bonded Woman)" and '' Matti Manushulu'' "(Mud People)" which won the Diploma of Merit awards at the 16th, and

17th Moscow International Film Festival The 17th Moscow International Film Festival was held from 8 to 19 July 1991. The Golden St. George was awarded to the Soviet-German film '' Spotted Dog Running at the Edge of the Sea'' directed by Karen Gevorkian. Jury * Oleg Yankovsky (Soviet ...

s in 1989 and 1991 respectively. M. V. Raghu's Neo-realistic film '' Kallu'' (1988), scripted by

Gollapudi Maruti Rao Gollapudi Maruti Rao (14 April 1939 – 12 December 2019) was an Indian actor, screenwriter, dramatist, playwright, columnist and dialogue writer known for his works in Telugu cinema, Telugu theatre and Telugu Literature. Rao acted in over 250 ...

has received thirty state awards and has garnered special mention from the CBFC Jury.

Rise of Tollywood

Moola Narayana Swamy Moola Narayana Swamy ( 20 August 1950) was an Indian businessman and film producer known for his works in Telugu cinema. He owned several businesses such as Rayalaseema Bank, Rayalaseema Textiles, Cuddapah Ceramics, Cuddapah Electric Company, o ...

and B. N. Reddy founded

Vijaya Vauhini Studios Vijaya Vauhini Studios was one of the premier motion picture movie studios in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. It is the combination of Vijaya Productions and Vauhini Studios. B. Nagi Reddy (Bommireddy Nagi Reddy) was the founder of Vijaya Produ ...

in 1948 in the city of

Chennai Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...

doyen

L. V. Prasad Akkineni Laxmi Vara Prasada Rao (17 January 1907 – 22 June 1994), known professionally as L. V. Prasad, was an Indian film director, producer, actor, and businessman. He was one of the pioneers of Indian cinema and is the recipient of the Dad ...

, who started his film career with '' Bhakta Prahlada'', founded

Prasad Studios Prasad Studios & Prasad Film Labs are motion picture post-production studios headquartered in Hyderabad, India, founded by Prasad Group in 1956. The production house has produced over 150 movies in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi. ...

in 1956 based in Chennai. However, through the efforts of

D. V. S. Raju Datla Venkata Suryanarayana Raju, better known as D. V. S. Raju (13 December 1928 – 13 November 2010) was an Indian film producer known for his works in Telugu Cinema and Bollywood. He was instrumental in shifting the Telugu film industry fro ...

, the Telugu film industry completely shifted its base from

in the early 1990s, during N. T. Rama Rao's political reign. Veteran actor

relocated to Hyderabad and has developed

Annapurna Studios Annapurna Studios is an Indian film production company, founded in 1976 by the actor Akkineni Nageswara Rao (ANR). Located in the heart of Hyderabad, India the studio mainly provides services for films including sound stages for set construc ...

. The Telugu film industry is one of the three largest film producers in India. About 245 Telugu films were produced in 2006, the highest in India for that year. Film studios in Hyderabad, developed 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 ...

and

Ramoji Rao Cherukuri Ramoji Rao (born 16 November 1936) is an Indian businessman, media entrepreneur, and film producer. He is head of the Ramoji Group which owns the world's largest film production facility Ramoji Film City, '' Eenadu'' newspaper, ETV ...

, are involved in prolific film production and employment. There is a fair amount of dispersion among the Indian film industries. Since 2005, many successful Telugu films have been largely remade by the Bengali cinema and Hindi film industries, while in the past, Telugu filmmakers drew inspiration from Bengali cinema and literature. Telugu film production accounts for one percent of the gross domestic product of the region. The digital cinema network company

UFO Moviez UFO Moviez India Limited is an Indian digital cinema Digital cinema refers to adoption of digital technology within the film industry to distribute or project motion pictures as opposed to the historical use of reels of motion picture fi ...

marketed by Southern Digital Screenz (SDS) has

digitized DigitizationTech Target. (2011, April). Definition: digitization. ''WhatIs.com''. Retrieved December 15, 2021, from https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/digitization is the process of converting information into a Digital data, digital (i ...

several cinemas in the region. The Film and Television Institute of Telangana, Film and Television Institute of Andhra Pradesh, Ramanaidu Film School and

Annapurna International School of Film and Media Annapurna College of Film and Media is a Film School based in Hyderabad, India. It's India's first private, non-profit media school. The institute was founded by the Akkineni family, including Nagarjuna and Akkineni Nageswara Rao. ACFM offers co ...

are some of the largest film schools in India. The Telugu states consist of approximately 2800 theaters, the largest number of cinema halls of any state in India. Being commercially consistent, Telugu cinema had its influence over commercial cinema in India. The industry holds the

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

for the largest film production facility in the world, Ramoji Film City. The ''Prasads IMAX'' located in Hyderabad is one of the largest 3D IMAX screens, and the most attended cinema screen in the world. As per the CBFC report of 2014, the industry is placed first in India, in terms of films produced yearly. The industry holds a memorandum of understanding with the

Motion Picture Association of America The Motion Picture Association (MPA) is an American trade association representing the five major film studios of the United States, as well as the video streaming service Netflix. Founded in 1922 as the Motion Picture Producers and Distrib ...

to combat video piracy. In the years 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2014 the industry has produced the largest number of films in India, exceeding the number of films produced in

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

. 1992 film ''

Gharana Mogudu ''Gharana Mogudu'' () is a 1992 Indian Telugu-language romantic drama film directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. The film stars Chiranjeevi, Nagma and Vani Viswanath with Rao Gopal Rao and Kaikala Satyanarayana in supporting roles. Music is composed ...

'' is the first Telugu film to gross over 10 crore at the box office. Produced on a shoe string budget of 1.2 crore 2000 film ''

Nuvve Kavali ''Nuvve Kavali'' () is a 2000 Indian Telugu-language romance film directed by K. Vijaya Bhaskar and produced by Ramoji Rao under Ushakiran Movies. A remake of the 1999 Malayalam film '' Niram'', the film stars Tarun, Richa Pallod, Sai Kiran, ...

'' became

sleeper hit In the entertainment industry, a sleeper hit is a film, television series, music release, video game, or some other entertainment product that was initially unsuccessful on release but became a success later on. A sleeper hit may have little promo ...

of the late 1990s. It received an estimated foot fall for 200 days in 20 screens grossing over 20

crore A crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes ten million (10,000,000 or 107 in scientific notation) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. It is written as 1,00,00,000 with the local 2,2,3 style of digit group separators (one lakh is e ...

Neo Tollywood

Dasari Narayana Rao Dasari Narayana Rao (4 May 1947 – 30 May 2017) was an Indian film director, producer, screenwriter, actor, lyricist, and politician known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema, in addition to Hindi cinema. He has directed more than 150 ...

directed the most number of films in the Telugu language, exploring themes such as aesthestics in ''

Meghasandesam ''Meghasandesam'' () is a 1982 Telugu-language drama film, produced and directed by Dasari Narayana Rao under his Taraka Prabhu Films banner. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Jaya Prada, Jayasudha and music composed by Ramesh Naidu. This film i ...

'' (1982),

Battle of Bobbili The Battle of Bobbili, and the attack on the fort of Bobbili on 24 January 1757, is a significant historical event in Princely state of Vizianagaram, the present day Vizianagaram district of Andhra Pradesh. Tandra Paparayudu was the Army Gene ...

in the biographical war film '' Tandra Paparayudu'' (1986), alternate history with ''

Sardar Papa Rayudu ''Sardar Papa Rayudu'' is a 1980 Indian Telugu-language historical fiction film written and directed by Dasari Narayana Rao about an Indian revolutionary "Sardar Papa Rayudu" and his fight against the British Raj. Produced by Kranthi Kumar, sta ...

'' (1980), and gender discrimination in ''

Kante Koothurne Kanu Kante Koothurne Kanu () is a 1998 Indian Telugu-language drama film written, directed and produced by Dasari Narayana Rao starring Ramya Krishna in the lead role. The film won the National Film Award Special Mention Feature Film, "for taking a s ...

'' (1998) for which he received the Special Jury Award (Feature Film - Director) at the 46th National Film Awards.

K. Raghavendra Rao Kovelamudi Raghavendra Rao (born 23 May 1942) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema besides having directed a few Hindi films. He has garnered four state Nandi Awards and fiv ...

explored devotional themes with ''

Agni Putrudu ''Agni Putrudu'' () is a 1987 Indian Telugu-language action film, produced by Venkat Akkineni under the Annapurna Studios banner and directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. It stars Akkineni Nageswara Rao, Nagarjuna, Sarada, Rajani and Sivaji Ganes ...

'' (1987), ''

Annamayya Tallapaka Annamacharya (Telugu : తాళ్ళపాక అన్నమాచార్య) (IAST: taḷḷapāka annamācārya; 22 May 1408 – 4 April 1503), also popularly known as Annamayya, was a 15th-century Hindu saint and the ear ...

'' (1997), '' Sri Manjunatha'' (2001), '' Sri Ramadasu'' (2006), ''

Shirdi Sai ''Shirdi Sai'' is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language biographical film, produced by A.Mahesh Reddy on AMR Sai Krupa Entertainments banner, directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. Starring Nagarjuna as the 19th-20th century spiritual guru Sai Baba of Shir ...

'' (2012) and ''

Om Namo Venkatesaya ''Om Namo Venkatesaya'' is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language Hindu devotional biographical film directed by K. Raghavendra Rao and produced by A. Mahesh Reddy on AMR Sai Krupa Entertainments banner. The film stars Nagarjuna as Hathiram Bhavaji, al ...

'' (2017) receiving various state honors.

Singeetam Srinivasa Rao Singeetam Srinivasa Rao (born 21 September 1931), commonly known as Singeetam, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer, composer, and actor. He is widely regarded as one of the most versatile directors of India. He is credited with hav ...

introduced

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

to the Telugu screen with ''

Aditya 369 ''Aditya 369'' is a 1991 Indian Telugu-language science fiction film written and directed by Singeetam Srinivasa Rao. The film stars Nandamuri Balakrishna and Mohini while Amrish Puri, Tinnu Anand, and Suthivelu play supporting roles. The music ...

'' (1991), the film dealt with exploratory dystopian and apocalyptic themes. The edge of the seat thriller had characters which stayed human, inconsistent and insecure. The film's narrative takes the audience into the

post apocalyptic Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which the Earth's (or another planet's) civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; astro ...

experience through time travel, as well as

generation of 1500 A.D, which including a romantic backstory, the "Time Machine" made it a brilliant work of fiction.

Ram Gopal Varma Penmetsa Ram Gopal Varma (born 7 April 1962), often referred to by his initials RGV, is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer, known for his works in Telugu cinema in addition to Bollywood, Hindi, Kannada cinema, Kannada language ...

's '' Siva'', which attained

cult status A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

in Telugu cinema, is one of the first Telugu films produced after the migration of Telugu film industry from Madras to Hyderabad to feature characters speaking the

dialect. Varma was credited with the introduction of

steadicam Steadicam is a brand of camera stabilizer mounts for Movie camera, motion picture cameras invented by Garrett Brown and introduced in 1975 by Cinema Products Corporation. It was designed to isolate the camera from the camera operator's movement ...

s and new sound recording techniques in Telugu films. Within a year of the film's release, more than ten steadicams were imported into India. ''Siva'' attracted the young audience during its theatrical run, and its success encouraged filmmakers to explore a variety of themes and make experimental Telugu films. Subsequently, Varma introduced

road movie A road movie is a film genre in which the main characters leave home on a road trip, typically altering the perspective from their everyday lives. Road movies often depict travel in the hinterlands, with the films exploring the theme of alienatio ...

and

film-noir Film noir (; ) is a cinematic term used primarily to describe stylish Cinema of the United States, Hollywood Crime film, crime dramas, particularly those that emphasize cynical attitudes and motivations. The 1940s and 1950s are generally regarde ...

to Indian screen with ''

Kshana Kshanam ''Kshana Kshanam'' () is a 1991 Indian Telugu-language road thriller and heist film written and directed by Ram Gopal Varma. The film stars Venkatesh, Sridevi, Paresh Rawal, and Rami Reddy. The plot follows Satya (Sridevi), a young woman who is ...

''. Varma experimented with close-to-life performances by the lead actors, which bought a rather fictional storyline a sense of authenticity at a time when the industry was being filled with unnecessary commercial fillers. It went on to gather a

cult following A cult following refers to a group of fans who are highly dedicated to some person, idea, object, movement, or work, often an artist, in particular a performing artist, or an artwork in some medium. The lattermost is often called a cult classic. ...

in south India, with a dubbed

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...

version titled ''Hairaan'' released to positive reports from

bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

critics, the

Ann Arbor Film Festival The Ann Arbor Film Festival is an annual film festival held in Ann Arbor in the U.S. state of Michigan. Established in 1963, it is the fourth-oldest film festival in North America (after the Yorkton Film Festival, 1947; Columbus International Film ...

, and the Fribourg Festival.

Chiranjeevi Chiranjeevi (born Konidela Sivasankara Varaprasad; 22 August 1955) is an Indian actor, film producer and former politician, who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. Chiranjeevi starred in over 150 feature films in Telugu language, Telugu, as ...

's works such as the

comedy thriller Comedy thrillers are a hybrid genre that draw subject matter generally from comedy and thrillers. Criteria They often include a darker tone, relative to other genres, of humor. List of comedy thriller films * '' The Big Fix'' (1978) * ''Charad ...

, ''

Chantabbai ''Chantabbai'' () is a 1986 Indian Telugu-language comedy drama film written and directed by Jandhyala. It is based on the novel of same name by Malladi Venkata Krishna Murthy. Produced by Jyothi Art Pictures, the film stars Chiranjeevi and Suh ...

'', the vigilante thriller, ''

Kondaveeti Donga ''Kondaveeti Donga'' () is a 1990 Indian Telugu-language vigilante film directed by A. Kodandarami Reddy starring Chiranjeevi, Vijayashanti and Radha in main lead roles. Upon release on 9 April 1990, the film received positive reviews, and emerg ...

'' the first Telugu film to be released on a 70 mm 6-Track

Stereophonic sound Stereophonic sound, or more commonly stereo, is a method of sound reproduction that recreates a multi-directional, 3-dimensional audible perspective. This is usually achieved by using two independent audio channels through a configuration ...

, the western thriller ''

Kodama Simham ''Kodama Simham'' () is a 1990 Indian Telugu-language revisionist western action film directed by K. Murali Mohana Rao, starring Chiranjeevi, Mohan Babu, Sonam, Radha, and Pran in pivotal roles. The film was simultaneously dubbed into Englis ...

'', and the

action thriller Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include lif ...

, ''

Gang Leader ''Gang Leader'' is a 1991 Indian Telugu-language action crime film written and directed by Vijaya Bapineedu, and produced by Maganti Ravindranath Chowdary. The film stars Chiranjeevi and Vijayashanti, while Rao Gopal Rao, Anandaraj, Murali Mo ...

'', popularized genre films with the highest estimated footfall. Reddiff.com cited

Sekhar Kammula Sekhar Kammula (born 4 February 1972) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer who works in Telugu cinema. He has garnered two Filmfare Awards South, and six state Nandi Awards for his directional works. Sekhar Kammula was among the ...

's, National Award-winning ''

Dollar Dreams ''Dollar Dreams'' is a 2000 Indian drama film written, directed and produced by Sekhar Kammula. Primarily shot in Telugu and English, the film starred Santosh Kumar, Anish Kuruvilla, Ravi Raju, Anil Prashant, Dashveer Singh, Priyanka Veer, an ...

'' (2000) as a take off from where

Nagesh Kukunoor Nagesh Kukunoor (born 30 March 1967) is an Indian film director, producer, screenwriter and actor known for his works predominantly in Hindi cinema, and few Telugu language films. He is known for his works in parallel cinema, such as ''Hyderab ...

's ''

Hyderabad Blues ''Hyderabad Blues'' is a 1998 Indian drama film written, directed, and produced by Nagesh Kukunoor. Primarily shot in the English language, the film explores culture clash from an Indian American's perspective, vacationing back home in Hydera ...

'' (1998) ends. Dollar Dreams explored the conflict between American dreams and human feelings. The film re-introduced

Social realism Social realism is the term used for work produced by painters, printmakers, photographers, writers and filmmakers that aims to draw attention to the real socio-political conditions of the working class as a means to critique the power structure ...

to Telugu screen, and brought back its lost glory which until then was stuck in its run of the mill commercial pot-boilers. '' Vanaja'' (2006) won several international awards including the first prize in the live-action feature film category at the

Chicago International Children's Film Festival In 1983, Facets Multi-Media founded the Chicago International Children's Film Festival (CICFF), the first competitive festival of films for children in the U.S. The impetus for the Festival came from a need to introduce new, culturally diverse fil ...

. ''

Dream A dream is a succession of images, ideas, emotions, and sensations that usually occur involuntarily in the mind during certain stages of sleep. Humans spend about two hours dreaming per night, and each dream lasts around 5 to 20 minutes, althou ...

'' (2012), has garnered the Royal Reel Award at the

Canada International Film Festival The Edgewater Casino is a former casino that was located at 760 Pacific Blvd South Vancouver, British Columbia. It was in operation from 2005 to 2017. History The Edgwater Casino opened in February 2005. In 2006, the casino was acquired by Par ...

. 2013

Social problem film A social problem film is a narrative film that integrates a larger social conflict into the individual conflict between its characters. In the context of the United States and of Hollywood, the genre is defined by fictionalized depictions of soc ...

, '' Naa Bangaaru Talli'' won Best Film award at the Trinity International Film Festival in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

, and four Awards at the Indonesian International Film Festival. 2014 film '' Minugurulu'' was selected as ''Best Indian Film'' at the 9th ''India International Children's Film Festival'', held at

Bangalore Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...

. 2013 Cultural film, '' O Friend, This Waiting!'' has received special mention at the ''Erasing Borders'' Festival of Classical Dance,

Indo-American Arts Council The Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC) is an American non-profit cultural organization that promotes Indian theatre, art, film, fashion, music, dance, and literature in the United States. The Council was established in 1998 in New York City and is ...

, New York, 2013. 2014 film ''Parampara'' has garnered the ''Platinum Award for Best Feature'' at the International Indonesian Movie Awards. 2018 biographical film ''

Mahanati ''Mahanati'' () is a 2018 Indian Telugu-language biographical drama film based on the life of actress Savitri. It is written and directed by Nag Ashwin, and produced by Priyanka Dutt under Vyjayanthi Movies and Swapna Cinema. The film feature ...

'' based on the life of veteran actress Savitri has garnered the "Equality in Cinema Award" at the 2018

Indian Film Festival of Melbourne The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) is a Victoria State Government-funded annual festival based in Melbourne founded in 2012. It is presented by Film Victoria, and the provider is chosen through a tender process. The current tender prov ...

. During the 1990s, the Rayalaseema dialect was portrayed in films about the factional conflicts in the area, while the Telangana dialect, already having been pegged to villanous and comedic roles, saw an increase in this usage in reaction to the shift of the Telugu film production from Madras to Hyderabad. After the formation of the state of

in 2014, Telangana culture gained more prominence, and more films were produced portraying Telangana culture, and dialect.

Sub-Genres and off beat films

Screenwriters such as

Chandra Sekhar Yeleti Chandra Sekhar Yeleti (born 4 March 1973) is an Indian film director known for his works in Telugu cinema. He made his directorial debut with the Neo-noir crime film, ''Aithe'', which received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Te ...

experimented with the off beat film ''

Aithe ''Aithe...'' () is a 2003 Indian Telugu-language thriller film written and directed by Chandra Sekhar Yeleti, and produced by Gangaraju Gunnam under his studio Just Yellow. It stars debutants Mohit Chadda, Shashank, , Janardhan, and Sindhu Tola ...

'' (2003) with a caption "all movies are not the same". Aithe was made on a shoestring budget of about 1.5 crores and went on to collect more than 6 crores. After almost two years he delivered another thriller ''

Anukokunda Oka Roju ''Anukokunda Oka Roju'' () is a 2005 Indian Telugu-language neo-noir mystery-thriller film written and directed by Chandra Sekhar Yeleti and produced by Gangaraju Gunnam and Venkat Dega. The film stars Jagapathi Babu, Charmy and Shashank wi ...

'' (2005) both films were a refreshing change of pace to the audiences, produced by

Gangaraju Gunnam Gunnam Gangaraju is an Indian producer, screenwriter, and director known for his works in Telugu cinema and Telugu television. He is best known as the creator and co-producer of the TV sitcom ''Amrutham'' (2001–2007), widely considered to be ...

. Aithe was remade in Tamil as '' Naam'' (2003) and in Malayalam as ''Wanted'' (2004).

Mohana Krishna Indraganti Mohana Krishna Indraganti is an Indian director known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. His debut directorial venture ''Grahanam'' (2005) fetched him eleven awards including the National Film Award for Best First Film of a Director ...

explored the themes of chastity, and adultery in his literary adaption ''

Grahanam Grahanam () is a 2004 Indian Telugu-language film directed by Indraganti Mohan Krishna. Based on ''Dosha Gunam'' a story written by Chalam, The film won critical acclaim upon release and received National Film Award, for the Best Debut Film of a ...

'' (2004) (based on "Gunadosham" by social critic G. V. Chalam). Grahanam was shot in 19 days with a digital camera. B. Anuradha of Rediff.com cited "In this offbeat film, Indraganti upholds the tirade against chauvinists who accuse a noble lady of infidelity, ignoring her denials with contempt". The film was featured at the Independent South Asian Film Festival in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. Speaking about the centenary of Indian cinema at the CII Media and Entertainment Summit 2012, filmmaker

Shekhar Kapur Shekhar Kulbhushan Kapur (born 6 December 1945) is an Indian filmmaker and actor. Born into the Anand-Sahni family, Kapur is the recipient of several accolades, including a BAFTA Award, a National Film Award, a National Board of Review Award a ...

said regional cinema is surpassing Hindi cinema in content and story, and cited ''

Eega ''Eega'' () is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language fantasy action film written and directed by S. S. Rajamouli. The film was produced by Sai Korrapati Vaaraahi Chalana Chitram with an estimated budget of 30–40 crore ( US$6–7 million). It was ...

'' (2012) as an example. Kapur said he was impressed with its story and use of technology, and called it "no less than a Hollywood superhero film".

Shah Rukh Khan Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. Referred to in the media as the " Baadshah of Bollywood", "King of Bollywood" ...

called ''Eega'' an "awesomely original" film and a "must watch" with children. ''Eega'' won the Most Original Film honor at the 8th Toronto After Dark Film Festival. Sub Genre war drama ''

Kanche ''Kanche'' () is a 2015 Indian Telugu-language romantic war film written and directed by Krish. It stars Varun Tej, Pragya Jaiswal, and Nikitin Dheer. Produced by First Frame Entertainment, ''Kanche'' revolves around the enmity between two f ...

'' (2015) by Krish Jagarlamudi explored the 1944 Nazi attack on the Indian army in the Italian campaign, during

in an engrossing background tale of caste-ism while giving it a technically brilliant cinematic rendition.

Sankalp Reddy Sankalp Reddy (born October 20, 1984) is an Indian film director, and screenwriter who primarily works in Telugu films. He made his directorial debut with the war film ''Ghazi'' (2017) which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in ...

explored

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

warfare in his directorial debut '' Ghazi'' (2017), based on the mysterious altercation between

PNS Ghazi PNS/M ''Ghazi (S–130)'' (previously USS ''Diablo'' (SS-479); reporting name: ''Ghazi''), , was a diesel-electric submarine, the first fast-attack submarine in the Pakistan Navy. She was leased from the United States Navy in 1963. She s ...

and INS Karanj during the

Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 The Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 was a military confrontation between India and Pakistan that occurred during the Bangladesh Liberation War in East Pakistan from 3 December 1971 until the Pakistani capitulation in Dhaka on 16 Decem ...

Indo-Asian News Service Indo-Asian News Service or IANS is a private Indian news agency. It was founded in 1986 by Indian American publisher Gopal Raju as the "India Abroad News Service" and later renamed. Their main offices are located in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The se ...

called new-generation film maker

Sandeep Vanga Sandeep Reddy Vanga is an Indian director and screenwriter who is known for making Telugu and Hindi films. Vanga debuted with Vijay Deverakonda starrer 2017 big Telugu hit '' Arjun Reddy'' and rose to further success with its remake, the Shahid ...

's Arjun Reddy the "most original, experimental work to come out of Telugu cinema in a long time", and said the protagonist's (played by

Vijay Deverakonda Deverakonda Vijay Sai (born 9 May 1989), better known as Vijay Deverakonda, is an Indian actor and film producer who works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He is the recipient of a Filmfare Award, a Nandi Award, and a SIIMA Award. Since 2018, h ...

) "rise, fall and rise ... is nothing short of poetic and heart wrenching". Actor-dancer

Allu Arjun Allu Arjun (born 8 April 1982) is an Indian actor who works in Telugu films. One of the highest paid actors in India, Arjun is also known for his extraordinary dancing skills. He is a recipient of several awards, including six Filmfare Award ...

produced and acted in the short film, '' I Am That Change'' (2014), to spread awareness on individual social responsibility. The movie was directed by

Sukumar Bandreddi Sukumar (born 23 January 1970) is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who works in Telugu cinema. He is known for his complex, multi-layered screenplays and for infusing grey shades in the character sketches of his pro ...

, which was screened in theatres across

and

on Indian Independence day, 2014. Adivi Sesh scripted the Neo-noir ''

Kshanam ''Kshanam'' () is a 2016 Indian Telugu-language mystery thriller film directed by Ravikanth Perepu. The film features Adivi Sesh (who also served as a co-writer of the film) and Adah Sharma in lead roles while Anasuya Bharadwaj, Vennela Kis ...

'' (2016), based on a real life incident of a missing three-year-old girl. Sesh followed it up writing R.A.W. thriller ''

Goodachari ''Goodachari'' () is a 2018 Indian Telugu-language action spy thriller film directed by Sashi Kiran Tikka. The film stars Adivi Sesh, Sobhita Dhulipala, and Jagapathi Babu with Prakash Raj, Supriya Yarlagadda, Vennela Kishore, Anish Kuruvi ...

'' (2018), and the war

docudrama Docudrama (or documentary drama) is a genre of television and film, which features dramatized re-enactments of actual events. It is described as a hybrid of documentary and drama and "a fact-based representation of real event". Docudramas typic ...

Major Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...

'' (2022). ''

Cinema Bandi ''Cinema Bandi'' () is a 2021 Indian Telugu-language Neo-noir dramedy film directed by debutant Praveen Kandregula. Produced by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D.K., the film features several debutant actors. Set in a village near the Andhra–Karnat ...

'' (2022) scripted and directed by Praveen Kandregula, and produced by film making duo Raj & D. K.; explored the theme of how a lost camera fuels dreams in a Telugu hamlet, winning the Jury Special Mention at the 53rd IFFI.

Spread to World markets

Athadu ''Athadu'' ( or ) is a 2005 Indian Telugu-language action thriller film written and directed by Trivikram Srinivas. The film stars Mahesh Babu, Trisha, and Sonu Sood while Sayaji Shinde, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Prakash Raj, Nassar, and Brahmananda ...

'' was released with 6 prints in

and was distributed by Vishnu Mudda and Soma Kancherla of Crown DVD distribution company in San Jose,

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, Phoenix at Arizona and also in centers like Lowell at Massachusetts, MA, Tulsa at Oklahoma,

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

, Springfield, Boulder at Colorado and Corpus Christi at South Texas. Because of the demand, another print was imported from India for screening. The film's first screening in USA happened at Cine Plaza 13 at

North Bergen North Bergen is a township in the northern part of Hudson County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the township had a total population of 63,361. The township was founded in 1843. It was much diminished in territory by ...

on the night of 11 August 2005. At

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

, a special screening was conducted on 19 August 2005. Initially one show was planned but because of the demand another show was screened. There at the theater, a turn out of 442 people was observed which included standing audience for 434 seats and about 60 could not be accommodated. Apart from USA, the film released in selected screens in United Kingdom,

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, Germany and Australia. ''

Bommarillu ''Bommarillu'' () () is a 2006 Indian Telugu-language romantic comedy film directed and co-written by Bhaskar in his directorial debut, and produced by Dil Raju. The film stars Siddharth, Genelia, Prakash Raj and Jayasudha. The film primarily ...

'' was released worldwide with 72 prints. Owing to its success, the number of reels grew to about hundred. It collected a distributors share of 5 crore in its opening week in India. Released in six major metros in the United States, the film collected $73,200 (then approximately 0.3 crore) within the first four days of screening. A 2006 survey conducted by a popular entertainment portal in the United States revealed that the film was watched by an Indian

expatriate An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...

population of 65,000, which generated a revenue of 3 crore at that time. A cumulative gross revenue for the film was reported to be as 25 crore including 3.5 crore from overseas, the largest for any Telugu film at that time. Owing to this path breaking trade, the film was remade into

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia **Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, nativ ...

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

, Oriya and Urdu/

. 2006

action film Action film is a film genre in which the protagonist is thrust into a series of events that typically involve violence and physical feats. The genre tends to feature a mostly resourceful hero struggling against incredible odds, which include life ...

, ''

Pokiri ''Pokiri'' () is a 2006 Indian Telugu-language action thriller film written and directed by Puri Jagannadh. The film was produced by Jagannadh and Manjula Ghattamaneni by their respective production companies Vaishno Academy and Indira Prod ...

'' has been remade in Hindi, Tamil and Kannada in the following two years owing to the film's commercial success. It was screened at the IIFA film festival held in Dubai in 2006.

Walt Disney Pictures Walt Disney Pictures is an American film production company and subsidiary of Walt Disney Studios, which is owned by The Walt Disney Company. The studio is the flagship producer of live-action feature films within the Walt Disney Studios uni ...

co-produced ''

Anaganaga O Dheerudu ''Once Upon a time there was a warrior'' () is a 2011 Indian Telugu-language fantasy adventure film written and directed by Prakash Kovelamudi in his first mainstream film. It is produced by Walt Disney Pictures with veteran director K. Raghaven ...

'', making it the first South Indian production by Disney. ''

Dookudu ''Dookudu'' () is a 2011 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film directed by Srinu Vaitla and written by Vaitla, Kona Venkat, and Gopimohan. It is produced by Ram Achanta, Gopi Achanta, and Anil Sunkara under the banner 14 Reels Entertainme ...

'' was released among seventy nine screens in the United States, the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

'' quoted it as ''The biggest hit you've never heard of.'' In the rest of north, east and west India, it opened up in 21 cities. The film set a box office record by collecting a gross of more than 1 billion at the time. On 1 June 2022, '' RRR'' was screened in over 100 theatres across the United States for a one night event called "''#encoRRRe''". Speaking to ''

Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, with ...

'', Dylan Marchetti of

Variance Films Variance Films is a privately held film distribution company founded in 2008 that uses an innovative model of self-distribution combined with select elements of traditional theatrical distribution to allow filmmakers to achieve quality theatrical ...

said that "With more than 250 films coming out of India annually, ''RRR'' could be a gateway drug". ''

Nashville Scene ''Nashville Scene'' is an alternative newsweekly in Nashville, Tennessee. It was founded in 1989, became a part of Village Voice Media in 1999, and later joined the ranks of sixteen other publications after a merger of Village Voice Media with ...

''s Jason Shawhan wrote about the event that "the nationwide encore of ''RRR'' is American audiences reaching with outstretched arms to something so exciting and rock-solid entertaining that its success already happened without insular traditional media even mentioning it. This isn't America dipping a toe in Indian cinema — it's a victory lap". Filmmaker

has been signed by American talent agency Creative Artists Agency, owing to RRR being the only non-English-language film to trend globally on Netflix Platform for 10 consecutive weeks.

Cast and crew

V. Nagayya was one of the most influential method actors of Indian cinema during crown rule.

Vemuri Gaggaiah Vemuri Gaggayya (1895–1955) was an Indian actor, singer, and thespian known for his works in Telugu cinema, and Telugu theatre. In 1933, East India Film Company produced its first Indian film, '' Savitri'' in Telugu. Shot in Calcutta on a bu ...

Kalyanam Raghuramaiah Kalyanam Raghuramayya (1901–1975), popularly known as Eelapata Raghuramayya, was an Indian actor, and thespian known for his works in Telugu cinema, and Telugu theatre. A recipient of the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, and the Padmashri, He was k ...

, R. Nageswara Rao, C.S.R. Anjaneyulu,

Yadavalli Suryanarayana Yadavalli Suryanarayana () (1888–1939) was an Indian actor and thespian known for his works in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He made his transition from theater to cinema in 1932. He contributed to the Telugu theatre for over three decades ...

C. H. Narayana Rao C. H. Narayana Rao was an Indian actor and producer known for his works in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He starred in more than fifty films in a variety of roles. His notable works include classics such as ''Chenchu Lakshmi'' (1943), ''Mugg ...

Mudigonda Lingamurthy Mudigonda Lingamurthy, shortly Lingamurthy ( Telugu: ముదిగొండ లింగమూర్తి) (10 October 1908 – 24 January 1980), was an Indian film character actor known for his works in Telugu cinema and theater. Life ...

etc., are some of the finest method actors during the golden era. S. V. Ranga Rao won Best Actor Award for his portrayal of

Kichaka In the Hindu epic ''Mahabharata'', Kichaka or Keechaka is the commander-in-chief of Matsya kingdom, the country ruled by King Virata. He was the 1st Younger Brother of Sudeshna, the queen of Virata. Kichaka was a very powerful man and had immen ...

at the third

held in Jakarta. Adurthi Subba Rao, garnered seven

National Film Awards The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directorat ...

, for his pioneering work on

drama film In film and television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humorous in tone. Drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional terms that specify its particular super-g ...

and Pattabhirama Reddy have garnered international recognition for their works in neo-realistic cinema. A. Kutumba Rao is known for directing childrens films such as ''

Bhadram Koduko Bhadram Koduko (Telugu: భద్రం కొడుకో) was a 1992 Telugu film. It is directed by Akkineni Kutumba Rao. Santhosh Reddy played the leadrole. Laya was starring in the cast. The story is based on the various problems faced by t ...

'', ''Thodu'', and ''Paatha Nagaramlo Pasivadu'' the latter winning

Cairo International Film Festival The Cairo International Film Festival ( ar, مهرجان القاهرة السينمائي الدولي) is an annual internationally accredited film festival held in Cairo Opera House. It was established in 1976 and has taken place every year si ...

's, Merit Certificate for best feature.

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

Trivikram Srinivas Trivikram Srinivas (born Akella Naga Srinivasa Sarma; 7 November 1971), often credited as Trivikram, is an Indian film director and screenwriter who works in Telugu cinema. In 2021, he became one of the highest-paid directors in South Indian ci ...

are known for

screwball comedy Screwball comedy is a subgenre of the romantic comedy genre that became popular during the Great Depression, beginning in the early 1930s and thriving until the early 1940s, that satirizes the traditional love story. It has secondary characteristi ...

, and

action comedy Action comedy is a genre that combines aspects of action and comedy. The genre is most prevalent in film with action comedy films, though several TV series fit this genre. Film The action comedy film is a film genre that combines aspects of acti ...

. A. Sreekar Prasad garnered pan-India recognition for film editing across multiple languages.

Krishna Ghattamaneni Ghattamaneni Siva Rama Krishna Murthy (31 May 1943 – 15 November 2022), known mononymously as Krishna, was an Indian actor, director and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. In a film career spanning five decades, he ...

is credited with producing many technological firsts such as the first cinemascope film Alluri Seetarama Raju, first

70mm film 70 mm film (or 65 mm film) is a wide high-resolution film gauge for motion picture photography, with a negative area nearly 3.5 times as large as the standard 35 mm motion picture film format. As used in cameras, the film is wid ...

'' Simhasanam'', first DTS film ''Telugu Veera Levara'' (1988) and introducing

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

and

bond movie James Bond is a fictional character created by British novelist Ian Fleming in 1953. A British secret agent working for MI6 under the codename 007, Bond has been portrayed on film in twenty-seven productions by actors Sean Connery, David Niv ...

styles to the Telugu screen. Sharada, Archana,

Vijayashanti Vijayashanti (born 24 June 1966) is an Indian actress, producer and politician. In a film career spanning 40 years, she has acted in 187 feature films in a variety of roles in various languages predominantly in Telugu, Tamil, in addition to Hi ...

, Rohini,

Keerthy Suresh Keerthy Suresh (born 17 October 1992) is an Indian actress who appears predominantly in Tamil and Telugu films, in addition to a few Malayalam films. She was recognised as Forbes 30 under 30 in 2021.She won the National Film Award for Best Act ...

P. L. Narayana P. Lakshmi Narayana (10 September 1935 – 3 November 1998) was an Indian actor, dialogue writer, and playwright, known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema and a few Tamil films. He has received one National Film Award and five state N ...

, and

Nagarjuna Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...

received the

National Film Award The National Film Awards is the most prominent film award ceremony in India. Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India and the Indian Panorama, by the Indian government's Directora ...

for acting.

, was listed among "The men who changed the face of the

Indian Cinema The Cinema of India consists of motion pictures produced in India, which had a large effect on world cinema since the late 20th century. Major centers of film production across the country include Mumbai, Chennai, Hyderabad, Visakhapatnam, ...

" by IBN-live India.

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 ...

, holds a

for acting in the most films in the same language.

Vijayachander Vijayachander, (born Vijayachander Telidevara), is an Indian actor, director and producer, known for his works in Telugu cinema, theatre, and television. Regarded as one of the finest character actor's of Telugu cinema, Vijayachander has appear ...

acted and produced hagiographical films, he esaayed "

Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

" in ''

Karunamayudu ''Karunamayudu'' () is a 1978 Indian Telugu-language biographical film written and directed by A. Bhimsingh. It stars Vijayachander as Jesus of Nazareth. The film won two Nandi Awards, was notable for two song sequences narrating the Birth of ...

'' (1978), "

Sai Baba of Shirdi Sai Baba of Shirdi (c. 1838? - died 15 October 1918), also known as Shirdi Sai Baba, was an Indian spiritual master and fakir, considered to be a saint, revered by both Hindu and Muslim devotees during and after his lifetime. According to a ...

" in '' Sri Shirdi Saibaba Mahathyam'' (1986), "

Vemana Vemana, popularly known as Yogi Vemana, was an Indian philosopher and poet in the Telugu language. His poems are known for their use of simple language and native idioms. They discuss the subjects of yoga, wisdom and morality. Early life and ...

" in ''Vemana Charithra'' (1986), and "

Saint Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

" in ''Dayamayudu'' (1987).

Mohan Babu Manchu Bhakthavatsalam, credited and also known as Mohan Babu, is an Indian actor and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. An alumnus of the Madras Film Institute, Mohan Babu has acted in more than 500 films in lead, sup ...

is starred in more than 500 feature films in a variety of

antagonist An antagonist is a character in a story who is presented as the chief foe of the protagonist. Etymology The English word antagonist comes from the Greek ἀνταγωνιστής – ''antagonistēs'', "opponent, competitor, villain, enemy, riv ...

roles.

Cinematography and visual effects

V. N. Reddy, K. S. Prasad, Jaya Gummadi, Sudhakar Yakkanti, and C. Rajendra Prasad garnered pan India recognition for their cinematographic works. Enhanced technology among live action animation, digital compositing, and special effects paved the way for upgrading from established cinematic norms.

Visual effects Visual effects (sometimes abbreviated VFX) is the process by which imagery is created or manipulated outside the context of a live-action shot in filmmaking and video production. The integration of live-action footage and other live-action foota ...

based

high 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, Pl ...

works have tasted success. Pete Draper, P. C. Sanath,

Chakri Toleti Chakri Toleti is an Indian American business executive who is the founder and chief executive officer (CEO) of care.ai, a health technology company. Before this, Toleti was the Founder and President of HealthGrid, an enterprise patient engag ...

and V. Srinivas Mohan supervise visual effects.

Film critics and jury members

Vasiraju Prakasam Vasiraju Prakasam is an Indian film critic, journalist and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema, and has produced Tele-serials in Doordarshan. He has produced films such as Kalam Marindi, Balaraju Katha, and ''Bapujee ...

and

are one of the noted Indian

film critics Film criticism is the analysis and evaluation of films and the film medium. In general, film criticism can be divided into two categories: journalistic criticism that appears regularly in newspapers, magazines and other popular mass-media outlets ...

from the state. B. S. Narayana was a member of the Indian delegation to the ''Tashkent Film Festival'' in 1974, and the ''Moscow International Film Festival'' in 1975. Gummadi, served as official member of the Indian delegation from South India to the ''Tashkent Film Festival'' in 1978 and 1982. He served as the Jury Member thrice for the 28th, 33rd, and

39th National Film Awards The 39th National Film Awards, presented by Directorate of Film Festivals, the organisation set up by Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, India to felicitate the best of Indian Cinema released in the year 1991. Ceremony took place in 19 ...

Chandra Siddhartha Chandra Siddhartha is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer known for his works in Telugu cinema. He is known for his directorial works such as ''The Inscrutable Americans'' (2001) which premiered at Milan, New York, Atlanta, London ...

served in South Jury at the 57th, 61st and

65th National Film Awards The 65th National Film Awards ceremony was an event during which the Directorate of Film Festivals presented its annual National Film Awards to honour the best films of 2017 in Indian cinema. The awards were announced on 13 April 2018. The awa ...

, as well as the 49th IFFI.

Film Score

Singer Sripathi Panditaradhyula Balasubramanyam

Sri Sri was one of the influential film lyricists of his time, who garnered national honors such as

Sahitya Akademi Award The Sahitya Akademi Award is a literary honour in India, which the Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of the most outstanding books of literary merit published in any of the 22 languages of the ...

, Best Lyricist and Soviet Land Nehru Award for his pioneering work. Susarla Dakshinamurthi, Parupalli Ramakrishnaiah Pantulu,

Ogirala Ramachandra Rao Ogirala Ramachandra Rao ( te, ఓగిరాల రామచంద్రరావు) (1905–1957) was an Indian actor, music director and multi instrumentalist, predominant in Telugu cinema. Early life and career Ogirala was born on 10 Sept ...

, Pithapuram Nageswara Rao,

Tanguturi Suryakumari Tanguturi Suryakumari (13 November 1925 – 25 April 2005), also known by her married name Suryakumari Elvin, was an Indian singer, actress and dancer in Telugu cinema. She sang " Maa Telugu Thalliki", the official song of the State of Andhra P ...

, and

Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna Mangalampalli Balamuralikrishna (6 July 1930 – 22 November 2016) was an Indian Carnatic vocalist, musician, multi-instrumentalist, playback singer, composer, and character actor. He was awarded the Madras Music Academy's Sangeetha Kalanidhi in ...

are some of the influential music composers of Southern Indian cinema. Music composers such as

Pendyala Nageswara Rao Pendyala Nageswara Rao (6 March 1917 – 31 August 1984), known mononymously by his surname Pendyala, was an Indian composer, multi-instrumentalist, conductor, music producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema along with Tami ...

, R. Sudarshanam and R. Goverdhanam made contributions to folklore and mythological films.

Madhavapeddi Satyam Madhavapeddi Satyam (11 March 1922 – 18 December 2000) was an Indian playback singer and actor who predominantly worked in Telugu cinema. He entered films as a singer-actor in Y. V. Rao's Tamil-Hindi bilingual movie ''Ramadas'' in the year 194 ...

, P. Adinarayana Rao,

Gali Penchala Narasimha Rao Gali Penchala Narasimha Rao ( te, గాలి పెంచల నరసింహారావు) (1903–1964), also known as Gali Penchalayya, was an Indian film music composer. He was a representative of the first generation of music directors ...

Chellapilla Satyam Chellapilla Satyanarayana Sastry (1933 - 12 January 1989), known mononymously as Satyam, was an Indian music composer. He was popular in the Telugu and Kannada film industries in the 1960s to 1980s. Sathyam is best remembered as "Andhra R. D. Bu ...

, P. B. Sreenivas,

S. P. Kodandapani Sripathi Panditharadhyula Kodandapani ( 5 April 1974) was an Indian music composer and playback singer in Telugu cinema. He composed music for more than 100 films. He made his debut as an playback singer in the 1955 film ''Santhanam''. Later, ...

G. K. Venkatesh Gurusala Krishnadas Venkatesh (21 September 1927 – 17 November 1993) was an Indian film score composer who primarily worked in Kannada cinema during the 1960s, 1970s and until the late-1980s. He also composed music for Telugu, Malayalam and Ta ...

, S. Hanumantha Rao, have contributed their work extensively for films containing themes of social relevance. S.P. Balasubrahmanyam is a multilingual

playback singer A playback singer, also known as a ghost singer, is a singer whose singing is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras; the actual singer does not app ...

from Telugu cinema to win

across four languages. He holds the record of having recorded more songs than any other male playback singer and has received 25 state

Nandi Awards The Nandi Awards are the awards that recognise the excellence in Telugu cinema, Telugu theatre and Telugu television, and Lifetime achievements in Indian cinema. Presented annually by the Government of Andhra Pradesh, the award is named after ...

. S. Rajeswara Rao pioneered the use of light music in

cinema; Rao's most rewarding assignments came from

Gemini Studios Gemini Studios was an Indian film studio based in Madras, Tamil Nadu. It was launched when S. S. Vasan, a businessman of many ventures (including the ownership of Ananda Vikatan) bought Motion Picture Producers' Combines from Krishnaswamy Subr ...

, which he joined in 1940 and with which he remained for a decade. Ghantasala, performed in the

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. According to ''The Hindu'', and ''The Indian Express'' he was "Such a divine talent and with his songs he could move the hearts of the people. Ghantasala's blending of classical improvisations to the art of light music combined with his virtuosity and sensitivity puts him a class apart, above all others in the field of playback singing".

P. Susheela Pulapaka Susheela (born 13 November 1935), popularly known as P. Susheela, is an Indian playback singer associated with the South Indian cinema primarily from Andhra Pradesh for over six decades. She is one of the greatest and best-known playba ...

, has been recognized by both the ''

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

'' and the ''Asia Book of Records'' for singing most songs in Indian languages. She is also the recipient of five

National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer The National Film Award for Best Female Playback Singer is an honour presented annually at the National Film Awards of India since 1968 to a female playback singer for the best renditions of songs from soundtracks within the Indian film industr ...

and numerous state awards. Works by

S. Janaki Sistla Janaki (born 23 April 1938) is an Indian playback singer and occasional music composer from Andhra Pradesh. She is referred to respectfully as "Janaki Amma" and Nightingale of South India. She is one of the best-known playback singers in ...

, M. M. Keeravani, and

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 ...

have received national recognition.

K. S. Chitra Krishnan Nair Shantakumari Chithra (born 27 July 1963), always credited as K. S. Chithra or Chithra, is an Indian playback singer and Carnatic musician. In a career spanning over four decades, she has recorded over 25,000 songs in various I ...

has received highest Nandi awards for best female playback singer. Multi-instrumentalists duo

Raj–Koti Thotakura Somaraju and Saluri Koteswara Rao, popularly known as Raj–Koti were Indian film music composers, singer-songwriters, record producers, musicians and multi-instrumentalists duo in Telugu cinema, In a notable career spanning a decade ...

holds a notable career spanning a decade, the duo has garnered particular acclaim for redefining contemporary music. R. P. Patnaik is the current president of the Telugu Cine Music Association.

Nandi Awards

The

is the most prominent government funded award ceremony for excellence in the production of Telugu film, theatre and television. It is presented annually at Lalitha Kala Thoranam in

previously, by the Film, Television and Theatre Development Corporation of Andhra Pradesh. "Nandi" means "bull", the awards being named after the big granite bull at Lepakshi — a cultural and historical symbol of the Telugu culture.

Guinness records

* Guinness Record had been awarded to Ramoji Film City, Hyderabad as the largest film studio complex in the world, it opened in 1996 and measures 674 hectares (1,666 acres). With 47 sound stages, it has permanent sets ranging from railway stations to temples. * D.Rama Naidu holds the

as the most prolific producer with 130 films. *

holds the

as the most films directed with 151 films. *

holds the

for acting in the most films in a single language, 1000+ films. * S. P. Balasubrahmanyam holds the

for having sung the most songs for any male playback singer in the world, with the majority of his songs sung in Telugu. * In 2002, the Guinness Book of Records named Vijaya Nirmala as the female director with the most films, having made 47 films. In a career spanning approximately two decades, she has acted in over 200 films with 25 each in Malayalam and Tamil and produced 15 films. * In 2016,

entered the Guinness Book of World Records for recording the highest number of songs in musical history.

Dubbed films

The 1949 film ''Keelu Gurram'' was the first Telugu film to be dubbed into the Tamil language, being subsequently released under the name ''Maya Kudhirai''. According to the Andhra Pradesh Film Chamber of Commerce, "as per the Judgement of Supreme Court in Ashirwad Films in W.P.(Civil) No.709 there will be no difference in taxation of films between the dubbed films coming in from other states and the films produced in the Telugu States". ''Aarya'' movie was later dubbed to Malayalam.

Distribution

The Telugu-speaking areas are broadly divided into three areas for the purposes of Film Distribution, namely, Nizam, Ceded and Andhra. Nizam alone contributes to nearly 45% of the revenue.

Telugu film distribution territories

Apart from the above, there is also an emerging Overseas territory, especially

which accounts for a significant amount of revenue.

Awards

National Film Award for Best Feature Film Recipients Dadasaheb Phalke awardees State awards *

* Raghupathi Venkaiah Award * NTR National Award * B. N. Reddy National Award * Nandi Award for Best Character Actor, S. V. Ranga Rao Award for Best Character Actor * Nandi Award for Akkineni Award for Best Home-viewing Feature Film, Akkineni Award for Best Home-viewing Feature Film * Nagi Reddy Chakrapani National Award Other major film awards * Filmfare Awards South * IIFA Utsavam * South Indian International Movie Awards Regional awards * Sangam Academy Award * Chittoor Nagayya Puraskaram * CineMAA Awards * Allu Rama Lingaiah Award * Gollapudi Srinivas Award * B. Nagi Reddy Wholesome Entertainment Film * Tollywood GAAMA Awards * Gemini Ugadi Puraskaralu * Hyderabad Times Film Awards * Vamsee Berkely Awards * Akruti Film Awards * FNCC Awards * Andhra Pradesh Film Journalist's Association Awards * Santosham Film Awards * T. Subbarami Reddy Award * ANR National Award * Sakshi Excellence Awards

Studios

Major Filmmaking studios * Ramanaidu Studios * Saradhi Studios * Ramakrishna Studios * Padmalaya Studios *

* Ramoji Film City Visual effects and animation studios * Prasad Studios, Prasad EFX – Magic in motion * Pixelloid Studios * Fire Fly Creative Studios * Makuta VFX

Notes

References

External links

{{World cinema Telugu cinema Telugu film families Economy of Andhra Pradesh Economy of Telangana Culture of Andhra Pradesh Culture of Telangana Telugu language Film production districts

History

Early development

Rise of the "talkie"

Cinema during the Crown Rule

Classical cinema and Golden Age

Rise of Tollywood

Neo Tollywood

Sub-Genres and off beat films

Spread to World markets

Cast and crew

Cinematography and visual effects

Film critics and jury members

Film Score

Nandi Awards

Guinness records

Dubbed films

Distribution

Telugu film distribution territories

Awards

Studios

See also

Notes

References

Further reading

External links