''Okariki Okaru'' () is a 2003 Indian

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India *Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language ** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode S ...

-language

romantic drama film Romance films or movies involve romantic love stories recorded in visual media for broadcast in theatres or on television that focus on passion (emotion), passion, emotion, and the affectionate romantic involvement of the main characters. Typica ...

directed by cinematographer

Rasool Ellore Rasool Ellore Reddy (born 8 October 1964), also known as Rasool, is an Indian cinematographer, screenwriter, and director known for his works in Telugu, and Hindi films. He is the brother-in-law and cousin of noted cinematographers, S. Gopal Re ...

in his directorial debut. It stars

Sriram Rama (; ), Ram, Raman or Ramar, also known as Ramachandra (; , ), is a major deity in Hinduism. He is the seventh and one of the most popular ''avatars'' of Vishnu. In Rama-centric traditions of Hinduism, he is considered the Supreme Being ...

and Aarthi Chhabria. The film was praised for the non-vulgarity and classiness carried throughout. It turned out to be a hit even though it was released without any hype or expectation. The audio, which proved a huge hit, helped the film's gross well. The film gained cult status in music and cinematography, which were soothing and blended with the story.

Plot

Swapna is a non-resident Indian (NRI) who has come to India for a visit along with her grandfather. Kameshwar Rao is on a pilgrimage to Kaasi on the request of his grandmother as he had completed graduation successfully. Kamesh sees Swapna at a railway station and falls in love with her at first sight. when introducing themselves they lie their names to be as Rahul and Subba Lakshmi. Swapna, along with her grandfather, leaves for their relatives' place in a hurry without giving Swapna a chance to inform Rahul, but somehow Swapna places a note in Rahul's wallet before leaving. When Swapna goes to her relatives' house she learns that it was her engagement which is being arranged and is upset. Her father comes in between for the engagement and stops it as the relatives had actually cheated them on business due to which Swapna's uncle (father's brother) succumbs to

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. It is a medical emergency that, without immediate medical intervention, will result in sudden cardiac death within minutes. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) and possib ...

. After a year Kamesh is on the hunt for his love, so he decides to go to the USA. For this purpose he gets into a software company as an engineer so that he can somehow get to the US on a work permit. The story unfolds in such a way that he goes to the US and is working under Deepak, who is Swapna's cousin. Deepak wants to marry Swapna and she almost compromises in marrying Deepak. The climax sees Kamesh meeting his love and winning it, and so the film ends with a happy note.

Cast

as Kameswara Rao 'Kamesh/Kamudu'/Rahul *

Aarti Chabria Aarti Chabria (born 21 November 1982) is an Indian actress and a former model who appears in Hindi, Telugu, Punjabi and Kannada films. Career Actress Aarti Chabria started her career as a model in advertisements at the age of three years. He ...

as Swapna/ Subba Lakshmi *

Tanikella Bharani Tanikella Bharani (born 14 July 1954) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, poet, playwright and director who works predominantly in Telugu cinema. He has worked as an actor in more than 750 films, including some in Tamil and Hindi; while he was ...

as Kameswara Rao's father *

Hema Hema may refer to: * Hemā (mythology), a figure from Polynesian mythology * HEMA (store), a Dutch chain of stores * Hema (supermarket) (盒马), a supermarket chain in China * Hema maps, an Australian map publisher * Hema people, an ethnic group ...

as Kameswara Rao's mother *

Radha Kumari Radha Kumari was an Indian veteran film actress who appeared in Telugu-language films. She acted in over 600 films in over four decades. She is well known for her humor and played mother or grandmother roles in most of her films. Film career R ...

as Kameswara Rao's grandmother *

Vijay Sai Vijay Sai, also known as Potti Vijay, was an Indian comedian who works in Telugu-language films. Career Vijay Sai made his film debut with '' Ammayilu Abbayilu'' (2003) before starring in ''Backpocket'' that same year. He played the lead role i ...

as Puchu alias Samaparanjaneyulu *

Mannava Balayya Mannava Balayya (9 April 1930 – 9 April 2022) was an Indian actor, writer, director and producer in Telugu cinema. He acted in 300 films. Early life and career Mannava Balayya, was born at Chavupadu, Amaravathi mandalam, Guntur district ...

as Swapna Rao's grandfather * Devan as Swapna Rao's father *

Dharmavarapu Subramanyam Dharmavarapu Subrahmanyam (20 September 1954 – 7 December 2013) was a popular Indian actor, comedian and film director who worked in Telugu cinema. He was established as one of the highly paid and top most leading comedians in Telugu film in ...

Ravi Prakash Ravi Prakash is an Indian actor who primarily appears in Telugu and Tamil films. Career Ravi was born in Vijayawada and grew up in Visakhapatnam, India. After completing his secondary education, he chose to pursue a career in medicine and stu ...

Ahuti Prasad Ahuti Prasad (born Adusumilli Janardhan Vara Prasad; 2 January 1958 – 4 January 2015) was an Indian actor who worked in Telugu film industry. He was renowned for the wide variety of roles he played, including father-figure, comedian, and anta ...

Gautam Raju Gautam Raju is an Indian actor from Andhra Pradesh predominantly acted in Telugu films. He acted in more than 200 films. He got two Nandi Awards as a Best Male Comedian. He also received Rajababu award. Early and personal life Gautam Raju was ...

Duvvasi Mohan Duvvasi Mohan is an Indian actor who is know for acting in comic roles, primarily in Telugu films.. He is from Jagityal. He entered Tollywood as a producer and financier, but later turned to acting with comedy roles in over 350 films. Partial f ...

Vennira Aadai Nirmala Vennira Aadai Nirmala (born as A. B. Shanthi in Kumbakonam) is an Indian actress who has appeared in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu films. She was a prominent lead actress from 1960s and 70s. She is credited as Ushakumari in Malayalam film indust ...

* Jahnavi as herself * Jr. Relangi *

Manav Vij Manav Vij is an Indian actor working in Hindi and Punjabi language films. He debuted with ''Shaheed-E-Azam'' (2002) as Sukhdev and also featured in the television series ''Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi''. He went on to appear in ''Udta Punja ...

Production

Tamil actor Srikanth used his birth name, Sriram, as his stage name for the film to avoid confusion with established Telugu actor Srikanth. He was first credited as Sriram for ''Roja Poolu'', the Telugu dub of ''

Roja Koottam Roja may refer to: * ''Roja'' (film), a 1992 Tamil-language film by director Mani Ratnam * ''Roja'' (soundtrack), a soundtrack album from the film * Roja Selvamani, an Indian actress-turned politician * ''Roja'' (Tamil TV series), a 2018 soap o ...

''. Sriram sported a clean-shaven look for the first time in his career.

made her Telugu debut with this film.

Soundtrack

The music and background score was composed by M. M. Keeravani. S.S. Rajamouli, Jr. NTR and Allu Arjun attended the audio release event as chief guests. The song "Nadiradinna" was reused by Keeravani in ''

Paheli ''Paheli'' () is a 2005 Indian Hindi-language fantasy film. It is a remake of the 1973 Hindi movie '' Duvidha'' by Mani Kaul based on the short story written by Vijayadan Detha in Rajasthani. It was also reported to have been partially inspire ...

'' (2005) as "Dheere Jalna".

Release

The film was subsequently dubbed in Tamil as with the comedy track by

Ramesh Khanna Ramesh Khanna (also spelt as Ramesh Kanna) is an Indian actor and film director who has worked in Tamil cinema. He has acted in a number of supporting and comedian roles. Early life Khanna was born on 12 June 1954 in Chennai and third child to ...

added for Tamil version.

Reception

Jeevi of '' Idlebrain.com'' praised several aspects of the film including music, screenplay, dialogues, direction and cinematography. Preetam Akkineni of ''Full Hyderabad'' called the film "clean good fun" and praised Keeravani's music for having meaningful lyrics "while still being poetic".

Awards

;

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 ...

(in

) *

Nandi Award for Best Debut Director The Nandi Award for Best Debut Director winners since 1981:(in Telugu language, Telugu) References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nandi Award For Best Debut Director Nandi Awards, Debut Director Directorial debut film awards ...

–

References

External links

*{{IMDb title, 1643238 2003 films 2000s Telugu-language films Films scored by M. M. Keeravani Indian romance films 2000s romance films