''Vetagadu'' () is a 1979 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
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 ...
, produced by M. Arjuna Raju and K. Sivarama Raju under the Roja Movies banner and directed by
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 ...
. It stars
N. T. Rama Rao
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (28 May 1923 – 18 January 1996), often referred to by his initials NTR, was an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who served as List of Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh fo ...
and
Sridevi, with music composed by
Chakravarthy. The film was remade in
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 ...
as ''
Nishana'' (1980). Both movies were made under the same banner and by the same director.
Plot
The film begins in a forest ''Abhayaranyam'' where Ananda Bhupathi belongs to a royal family and constructs a palace. Bhupathi dynasty possesses a heritage antique charm ''Rajkamal Necklace'' which his wife Gayatri Devi always wears. It allures their malice Diwanji Sivanandam who purports as trustworthy. So, he abducts Gayatri Devi in that chaos Kalyana Gajapathi a friend of Bhupathi seeks to save her but is brutally killed. In between Gayatri Devi hands over the necklace to a tribal, asks him to decorate it for their goddess, and maintains secrecy until her return. Now Diwanji misplaces Gayatri Devi and incriminates Gajapathi as he previously requested the necklace, thereby, rivalry arises. Bhupathi attributes the misfortune to the new building, orders to ruin it, and shifts to the city. Years roll by, and Raja a valiant, son of Gajapathi is fascinated by hunting and moves to the forest. On the way, he is acquainted with charming Roja the daughter of Bhupathi, which initiates a squabble that turns into a crush. Besides, at ''Abhayaranyam'' Diwanji conducts several crimes with his son Hari undercover in the screwed palace which is rumored as a demonic house. Every night Raja listens to a sad song from the palace which is supposed to be Gayatri Devi’s voice. So, twice he enters the house and encounters the evil deeds of the blackguards. Meanwhile, Raja & Roja back to the city and meets Bhupathi. Whereat, Diwanji arrives and reveals Raja’s identity when enraged Bhupathi knocks out him. Being cognizant of the past Raja pledges to prove his father guiltless. Hence, he rebounds to the forest when he rescues a tribal girl when her father honors him. At that point, Raja identifies the ''Rajkamal Necklace'' on their deity's neck and solicits for reality then he divulges the entire story. Hera, Raja gamely breaks out the mystery that Gayatri Devi is still alive and has been seized in the palace. At last, Raja ceases Diwanji, proves his father’s innocence when Bhupathi pleads pardon, and fairly submits the necklace to the goddess. Finally, the movie ends on a happy note with the marriage of Raja & Roja.
Cast
*
N. T. Rama Rao
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (28 May 1923 – 18 January 1996), often referred to by his initials NTR, was an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who served as List of Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh fo ...
as Raja
*
Sridevi as Roja
*
Rao Gopal Rao
Raavu Gopala Rao (14 January 1937 – 13 August 1994) was an Indian actor and producer known for his works in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. In a film career spanning more than twenty five years, Rao starred in over four hundred feature film ...
as Sivanandam
*
Satyanarayana as Hari
*
Allu Ramalingaiah
Allu Ramalingaiah (1 October 1922 – 31 July 2004) was an Indian character actor, comedian, and producer known for his works in Telugu cinema. In 1990, He was honoured with the Padma Shri for his contribution to Indian cinema. In 1998, he r ...
as Kanda
*
Jaggayya
Kongara Jaggayya (31 December 1928 – 5 March 2004) was an Indian actor, littérateur, journalist, lyricist, dubbing artist and politician known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He was known as ''Kanchu Kantham J ...
as Ananda Bhupati
*
Kanta Rao
Tadepalli Lakshmi Kantha Rao (16 November 1923 – 22 March 2009) was an Indian actor and producer known for his works predominantly in Telugu cinema. Regarded as one of the finest method actors, Rao starred in more than four hundred feature ...
as Kalyana Gajapati
*
Nagesh
Nagesh (born Cheyur Krishnarao Nageshwaran; (27 September 1933 – 31 January 2009) was an Indian actor, mostly remembered for his roles as a comedian in Tamil films during the 1960s. Nagesh was born in Dharapuram. He acted in over 1,000 fil ...
as Ponnu Swamy
*
Chalapathi Rao as Tribal leader
*Chidatala Appa Rao as Godugu
*
Pandari Bai
Pandari Bai (1930 – 29 January 2003) was an Indian actress who worked in South Indian cinema, mostly in Kannada cinema during the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s. She is considered Kannada cinema's first successful heroine. She has acted as both heroi ...
as Ayah
*Pushpalata as Gayatri Devi
*Mamata as Dhillu
*
Jayamalini
Jayamalini (or Jaya Malini) is an Indian actress who has acted in more than 500 Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi movies.
Career
She was introduced to Tollywood in 1975 by Vittalacharya in the movie he produced, ''Aadadani Adrustam ...
in
item number
In Indian cinema, an item number or item song is a musical number inserted into a film that may or may not have any relevance to the plot. The term is commonly used within Indian films (Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Punjabi, and ...
Production
The producers were not convinced with
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 ...
's choice of the female lead being Sridevi because she was "very young". After Rao convinced
N. T. Rama Rao
Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao (28 May 1923 – 18 January 1996), often referred to by his initials NTR, was an Indian actor, filmmaker and politician who served as List of Chief Ministers of Andhra Pradesh, Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh fo ...
, Sridevi was cast.
Soundtrack
The music was composed by
Chakravarthy. Lyrics were written by
Veturi
Veturi Sundararama Murthy (29 January 1936 – 22 May 2010), known mononymously by his surname Veturi, was an Indian poet, lyricist and journalist who is popular for writing Telugu songs. His career in the Telugu cinema spanned more than four de ...
.
References
External links
*
{{Jandhyala Subramanya Sastry
Indian action films
1979 action films
1979 films
1970s Telugu-language films
1970s masala films
Telugu films remade in other languages
Films directed by K. Raghavendra Rao
Films scored by K. Chakravarthy
Films set in forests