Review: Baahubali

Release date : July 10, 2015

Director : S.S.Rajamouli

Producer : Shobu Yarlagadda, Prasad Devineni

Music Director : M. M. Keeravani

Starring : Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Tamannaah, Anushka

Baahubali is undoubtedly the most prestigious project that has come out of Tollywood in the recent times. Directed by the genius Rajamouli, this film has Prabhas, Tamannah, Rana and Anushka in lead roles. Touted as the biggest motion picture in India, Baahubali has hit thescreens today. Let’s see whether it lives up to its hype or not.

Story:-

Shivudu(Prabhas) is brought up by some native villagers. He grows up with special skills which turn out to be a mystery for every one. One fine day, he spots Avantika(Tamanna) and falls in love with her.

As time passes by, he comes to know that she and her group are trying hard to rescue the royal princes Devasena(Anushka) from the evil clutches of Bhalaladeva(Rana). Shivudu decides to help Avanitka and enters the Mahishmati Kingdom.

As soon as he lands there, he comes to know that he has a past associated with both Mahishmati and Bhalaladeva. What is that past ? What does Shivudu have to do with Mahishmati ? Who is Shivudu in real life. To know answers to these questions, you need to watch the film on the big screen.

Plus Points:-

As you start watching Baahubali, one thing that hits you instantly is the scale of this magnum opus. The extravagant sets, spectacular visuals and the sheer magnitude has not been showcased in any Indian film before. One cannot shy away to laud Rajamouli for thinking something this huge and also executing it on such a mammoth scale. The war sequences and the way they have been executed are in true Hollywood style.

Prabhas is terrific in a dual role and is the apt choice as Baahubali. No one except him could have done justice to the role which is larger than life and has many heroic moments. His sheer screen presence and emotional performance will be immensely loved by his fans. As expected, Rana is menacing as the baddie Bhalaladeva. This is a dream role for him and he gives a top notch performance as the bad guy.

It is quite surprising to see the amount of detailing that has gone into every aspect of this film. What catches your attention right away are the terrific visual effects. There are certain scenes in the film which will just leave you spell bound. Tamanna is gorgeous as Avantika and plays her part well.

Ramya Krishna is elegant as Shivagami and brings a lot of depth to the film. Nasser and Satyaraj play their roles perfectly. Second half of the film has a lot of emotions which elevate the film to another level.

Minus Points:-

The story line of Baahubali is quite routine and predictable. The actual film kick starts only during the second half and ends abruptly which might leave you a bit unhappy. Anushka has nothing much to do in the film as her character will be revealed only during the second part.

Certain war sequences have been dragged out and could have been trimmed to decrease the run time. There is so much hype surrounding the film that certain unwanted songs side tracks the film. The romance between Prabhas and Tamanna also looks exaggerated at times.

Technical Aspects:-

Where do I start from in this section. Baahubali is by far the most technically brilliant film that has come out from Indian cinema. Each and every frame in the film is sheer magic. The sets, VFX work and graphics are just out of this world. One should be really proud to see such grand visuals especially in a Telugu film. Music is decent but the background score could have been better.

Next in line is the art direction. Sabu Cyril has done a marvelous job with the sets. Be it the palace sets, the kingdom surroundings or the warfare equipment, everything looks impressive. Senthil Kumar’s camera work is mind blowing. His awesome visuals are nicely complimented by the stunning VFX. The water fall scenes and some shots during the fight sequence with Kaalakeya have been executed brilliantly.

The way Rajamouli has conceptualized the visuals will be a learning lesson for a generation of aspiring film makers. Even though Rajamouli’s screenplay dips a bit here and there, his larger than life approach is what makes this film such a visual treat.

Verdict:-

On the whole, Baahubali is one film which every Indian movie lover can be extremely proud off. Right from the word go, this visual extravaganza treats you to some never before seen elements in Indian films. Prabhas’s stunning avatar as Baahubali, brilliant art work to some eye topping visuals effects, this film has it all. Genius director Rajamouli, should be lauded and supported for his dedication in taking Telugu cinema to the next level. Finally, if you ignore the predictable story line and keep your expectations in check, Baahubali is bound to entertain you big time.

Is cinema or Baahubali a madness for politician?

In India, from politician to cricketer, rich brat to sanitary worker, there is no boundary when it comes to watching movies. Their wholesome entertainment is watching movies and getting a kick out of them. When a film like 'Baahubali' is arriving, the competition between all sections of the society to grab tickets is quite high.

Rather getting the things done related to people's welfare our politicians are using clout to get tickets of 'Baahubali'. From IMAX theatre in Hyderabad to Sai Balaji and Ambica theatres in Eluru, from all A centres to small towns, almost all the theatres in the two Telugu states are now ringing with request letters and phone calls of Politicians. Especially many MLAs and MPs are said to be sending their men to grab a row of tickets for their family and friends to watch the epic flick.

Couple of ministers and high profile bureaucrats are also exerting huge pressure on theatre managements to give them first day tickets. Quite sad that these white-collared gentlemen never showed such interest in solving any crisis of society though they are busy sending request letters for tickets. Cinema is a madness but for politicians people are supposed to be one.

Noted critics Taran Adarsh comments on Baahubali: M-A-S-T-E-R-P-I-E-C-E

Finally the Press Show in Mumbai just got over. So, how is 'Baahubali' according to them?

Almost all the critics, RJs and review writers who watched the show are searching for words to describe the brilliancy of Baahubali, ability and vision of Rajamouli and above all the way visual effects and water-tight screenplay have taken the movie to next level.

Noted critics Taran Adarsh has showered a heap of praises on the film. 'No storyteller comes close to what SS Rajamouli envisions and executes on screen. #Baahubali is truly a M-A-S-T-E-R-P-I-E-C-E. Every frame, every sequence of #Baahubali is a marvel', said Taran, giving the first ever opinion on this movie.

He adds, 'Can easily be compared to the best of Hollywood. Has the stamp of a genius. The grandiose sets, VFX, sound, edit, cinematography... most importantly, the watertight screenplay of #Baahubali is beyond fantastic'. Talking about the casting and others, he said, 'Baahubali casting is just perfect. Every actor shines in their respective parts. Prabhas and Rana, special mention for you both. Outstanding! A film like #Baahubali makes you proud. An Indian filmmaker dared to dream and the results are for all to see'.

Final words: We take a giant leap. #Baahubali is NOT TO BE MISSED. Today, you may call it a BOX-OFFICE BLOCKBUSTER. Tomorrow, it will be remembered as a CLASSIC. 

Biggest surprise in Baahubali

It's all official. Eccentric filmmaker SS Rajamouli has finally fine tuned his acting prowess in his latest magnum opus visual extravaganza Baahubali. After Sye, Rajamouli was again seen in a brief cameo role in Baahubali where he was seen having conversation with actor Prabhas before a song sequence. In fact, Rajamouli also has few dialogues. And audiences were stunned to see none other than Rajamouli, the man who mostly worked behind the camera, on larger screen. 

Although when reports of Rajamouli's cameo in Baahubali surfaced sometime back, when the film was under production, the director, producers quashed it as baseless rumour. Now that the film has been released, it's proved that Rajamouli is very much there within the film, of course, he has a very less screen presence. However, this is not first-time Rajamouli seen on screen. Earlier, he was seen in a blink-and-miss appearance in Sye alongside Venu Madhav.

Touted to be India's biggest motion picture, the film is made with a whopping budget. Featuring Prabhas, Anushka, Tamanna and Rana in the lead roles, the period drama is being released across the globe in 4000-odd theatres. 

Baahubali record in "cinema hub" of Hyderabad

The RTC X Roads in Hyderabad is considered a haven for the celebrations of all big stars’ films as it is termed as the cinema hub of Hyderabad, where all the films get a ‘main theater’ in the X Roads for the Nizam area. Whenever a star’s film releases in any of the X Roads’ theaters, the opening day looks nothing short of a grand festival, with fans’ hungama and even stars’ presence at the theaters.

There are close to 15 old and reputed cinemas in the X Roads like Sudarsan, Sandhya and Devi etc. Now, for the first time ever, Baahubali will be releasing in almost all the theaters in the RTC X Roads in Hyderabad. This is a never seen before feat even for a top star’s film and this shows the craze for the film.

Baahubali team are not ready to take any order from media barons

Whenever a media boss asks a favour from a filmmaker that could not be seen as a request but an order. Because if these filmmakers fail to honour their requests, they know how that these media barons try to do more harm through their mighty weapon in hand.

The other day one of such media baron has sent a word to Team Baahubali to arrange a special screening for him. It is heard that this biggie in general asks every movie producer to arrange a screening for him much before the actual movie release date. No, it's not to judge the flick or encourage it, but to give his family a sheer pleasure of watching the flick in advance before any commoner gets to see. Even big heroes have obliged to his request, but the case is not same with Baahubali makers.

We hear that the team has declined to arrange a preview as the movie's first talk will get leaked by any chance. Despite the request coming from a big media house's owner, they have ignored it. As his order felt unattended, the media baron is said to be miffed with the epic film. 

Sandeep Kishan don't play with emotions of Baahubali fans

For all celebrities who are busy flaunting their tickets of Baahubali, an experience felt by hero Sandeep Kishan on his micro blogging site will teach many things. At the moment, Baahubali ticket-grabbing became more sensitive issue than any other communal issue in the country.

After purchasing around 100 tickets of Baahubali from Prasad Multiplex theatres, hero Sandeep has shared his selfie with the tickets bunch on his twitter page. Probably the happiness of grabbing 'Tiger' tickets would have been quite low for him, but he's super happy for buying Baahubali tickets. 'Hero ayeka naa biggest achievement anukunta..100 tickets for #Baahubali on day1 12pm show ;) & already given away :D (sic)', he posted. In no time he uploaded his picture, audiences started attacking him. One guy asked, 'if celebs are walking away with 100s of tickets, what about common people?' Some have abused him, some ridiculed him and few asked Sandeep to share couple of tickets with them.

The unrest has settled only after he deleted that tweet, and shared another one. 'Vammoo aa response enti..they were my friends tickets for his family & company bulk booking..urikine joke ga pettenu anthe..andulo 2 navi', he said, indicating that only two tickets belong to him among the 100 bunch. What is the moral of the story? Don't flaunt your Baahubali tickets and face wrath. 

Why NTR is not wishing " Baahubali " team?, Is He jealous?

Not just the trailer of 'Baahubali' but the whole film is arriving now but Young Tiger Jr NTR hasn't said or tweeted about the movie. Most cinema lovers are getting enthralled by the comments made by star heroes like Rajinikanth, Amitabh, Mahesh Babu and Allu Arjun as they hailed this magnum opus as pride of Telugu cinema. But where is Junior voicing his opinion?

Perhaps Jr NTR career has got catapulted to new heights only because of two films initially. They are none other than Student No.1 and Simhadri, which are some awesome commercial creations from Rajamouli. In a way this talented director shaped the career of Tarak and now that our young hero isn't talking about the film hurting Rajamouli fans.

Some rumors say that NTR is feeling jealous of Prabhas and Rana and others who are part of this prestigious project. Right from the start of his career, this Nandamuri hero is always interested in epic films and warrior roles, but never had he got to play one other than that cute Yamudu role in 'Yama Donga'. As senior NTR is a synonym for epic and mythological films, Junior wanted to prove his mettle. But whatever little he has tried in films like Shakti and in a song in Dammu have misfired.

With Baahubali being 250 crore budgetd mega project, NTR would have been more than happy when given a crucial or any iconic guest role in this flick. But Rajamouli who chooses the actors for his film based on the characters he gave life to, but not the stardom, did not pick NTR for any role. All these are hypothetical claims for sure, as truth lies between Rajamouli and NTR only, provided with the kind of bonding they have.

Whatever maybe the reason, if Tarak sends his wishes for 'Baahubali' that will make many film lovers feel happy. Because legends like Chiru and Amitabh and modern day stars like Mahesh and Bunny, who haven't acted in any of Rajamouli's films have praised the director for this epic which could rewrite history.

Hope NTR will get time to see the film in London, UK and then send his wishes. Otherwise people start believing these jealousy rumors seriously. 

Kona : My love and respect has grown ten times for Pawan Kalyan

"Tell me how many politicians has this clarity,vision and concern towards their country. My love and respect has grown ten times for Pawan Kalyan", says Kona Venkat, who is bowled by Pawan Kalyan's speech at the Janasena press meet the other day. Sharing his thoughts, Kona revealed he has noticed a big different between others and Pawan. What's that he saw?

"I saw the difference between politicians and leaders. Politicians belong to parties but leaders belong to people. Pawan Kalyan is a true leader" he says. Many agree with Kona's opinion because they say that Pawan has this unique gift of appreciating someone's good deeds while he hits on their head for their wrongs with same bat. During Janasena launch, he praised Chandrababu for his good works and later he criticized him during land pooling issue. The other day he praised KCR for appointing an Andhra guy as architect for Yadadri but nailed him for addressing politicians as Andhrollu as the word doesn't belong to one. 

But Pawan Kalyan's fans are quite worried with the yesterday press meet. Looking at the way their heartthrob is addressing issues, it looks like he will venture into full-time politics soon. That's a heartbreak for fans. Also he haven't shaved and chopped his beard though he has to join Gabbar Singh 2 shooting.

Kajal said "No" to Lawrence

Sing the crore of two crores remuneration, then Kajal Agarwal will sign your movie. That is what Telugu producers who approached this hot lady are saying these days. Whatever project she may sign in Kollywood or Hindi tinsel town at any price she likes, this wide-eyed siren set a bench mark of that figure for Telugu producers.

As she is doing back to back Tamil films these days, it looked like getting her onboard for a Tamil movie isn't a big deal. Kajal's latest Tamil movie 'Maari' where she paired up with Danush is getting ready for release, and our hottie is currently working on Vishal's 'Paayum Puli'. Looking at her progression, choreographer cum director Lawrence master offered this dazzling beauty a project. He approached Kajal to work as leading lady of his next project where he will be introducing his brother Elvin as a hero.

Despite Lawrence willing to shed 2 crores pay check for the Chandamama siren, she said a big no. Because Kajal has felt that working with a new comer will damages her image as she is working with big stars like Danush and Vishal now. Being from a businessmen family, no doubt Kajal has much business tactics in hand that any other heroine of her stature.

Venky is immensely bowled out by this unique storyline

If an old man falls in love with a teenager, it is "Nishabdh". If a newly married man goes head over heels due to circumstances with lady of same age, then it is "Intlo Illalu Vantitlo Priyuralu". If a guy who is having a teenage son falls in love with a teen, then it's "Dikkulu Choodaku Ramayya". Still, hero Venkatesh feels that the love story of a middle-aged person having kids is not properly dealt on Telugu cinema screen. 

Buzz has that Venkatesh has loved a story narrated by director Chandrasekhar Yeleti, which revolves around a married middle-aged person falling in love with a teenager. Whether this married hero's wife will be alive or not is something we have to see on screen, but Venky is immensely bowled out by this unique storyline and is getting ready to kick start the project, if we have to believe sources. 

After scoring decent with "Gopala Gopala", Venkatesh is not rushing to sign any film because he wants to rock the circuits with meaningful films rather sizzling in same commercial patterned movies. Though he has held many discussions with other directors and considered remakes even, this senior hero hasn't concluded anything solid.

First Father,then Son praising Baahubali

Praises and applause have been pouring in nonstop on the soon to be released Tollywood's pride, Baahubali. Already, several stars and celebs from all the spectrum of the society have said many good things about the film, which is made with Hollywood filmmaking standards.

Yesterday morning, senior producer Allu Arvind took part in the Baahubali piracy press meet and requested all the film lovers not to resort to piracy and enjoy this pride of Telugu cinema on the big screen. Arvind further said that Baahubali is the film which every Telugu person across the globe has been eagerly waiting to watch. And now, it's time for his son, Stylish Star Allu Arjun, to wish the team.

Yesterday evening, Bunny posted on his Facebook page saying, "I wish the entire team of BAAHUBALI a great success. Proud to see the size of Telugu Cinema this Big. It's not just a movie it's pride of telugu cinema. I heart fully wish darling Prabhas, dearest friend Rana Daggubati to greater heights in their career & i thank SS Rajamouli for scaling up our Industry".

It is heartening to see our Tollywood stars chipping in to wish the Baahubali team, who will be facing the biggest test to their 3 years of hardwork this 10th. Close to 150 crores and years of hardwork and passions have gone into making this film and Baahubali needs all the best wishes to change the face of Indian cinema.

Is Anushka set to lock her lips?

As per a source in the known, Tollywood's most loved actress Anushka Shetty is all set to lock her lips with her onscreen hero for the first time in her career. Buzz has it that Anushka will soon shoot for a steamy smooching scene with her favorite co-star, Arya, in her upcoming film Size Zero.

Size Zero is being directed by veteran director Raghavendra Rao's son Prakash Kovelamudi. The film is about an obese lady, played by Anushka, who joins a gym to slim down. Soon, love blossoms between her gym instructor, played by Arya, and that is when this crucial kissing scene will appear on the screen.

What's even more interesting is that both Arya and Anushka were rumoured to be in a passionate relationship during the spring of their socio-fantasy drama, Varna. Both the states denied the rumors and maintained that they were just good friends. Let's wait and see if the lip-lock scene will indeed make it to the film.

Rajamouli following Bollywood trend

In general, Tollywood appreciates any talented filmmaker or an youngster's story telling abilities and heaps lots of praises on them. If it is a director like Rajamouli who is delivering mind blowing movies all these days, no doubt everyone will unfurl a gigantic red carpet. Problem is that, they are not learning what this filmmaker is teaching. 

Forget about the story inside the movie or the casting. For any movie to make it big at box office, there should be hype that pulls crowds to theatres. In the recent times, if you have watched Bollywood movies like Tanu Weds Manu Returns and ABCD 2, both doesn't sound classics, except some impressive performance from the lead girls. These films have managed to cross 150 cr and 100 crores gross respectively, thanks to the promotions team. In around 14 odd cities of North India, both the films' lead pairs have toured and took the movie release date into minds of audiences. Say it due to the presence of Karan Johar on board or his own vision, Rajamouli is also treading on similar path. 

A week before, it's Prabhas-Rana-Tamanna mania in Bollywood as they wandered from one media house to other. They have promoted Hindi version of Baahubali in radio stations, TV interviews and web interactions. When everyone started wondering if Tollywood will also see similar promotions from the team, Prabhas and Co shocked media houses by giving as many interviews as possible. Tamanna is known as aggressive promotion specialist but for Prabhas this is the first time he's interacting with many media houses. All this is happening in the name of "Baahubali: The Beginning". 

The lesson to be learnt from Rajamouli is that, for a movie to collect terrific numbers from box office, as they predict that 18-20 crore share on day one, the hype needs to be like this. Imagine if all other superstars promote their films in the same way, running from channel to channel, giving interviews to all newspapers and interacting with people on web. Tollywood will collect effortlessly 55+ crores with its each biggie. 

Baahubali new trailer is Awesome

No words this time. As Rajamouli is giving a piece of new food from the big burger each time, it's really spicy and tough to chew for audiences. The magnanimity of "Baahubali" is so large that the trailer released is nothing when compared to what is inside.

As part of the promotional campaign, Team Baahubali has released a new 'Release Week Preview' of the film, where many new visuals are shown. Especially the waterfalls watched from a dynamic new angle, the interiors of Mahismathi Kingdom, the way Baahubali drove chariot, Ballaladeva's usage of weapons, and the avalanche scene in the snow- no words literally to mention the feeling one would get after watching those visuals. My god Baahubali!! You're not as simple as you look.

Whenever Rajamouli is revealing that the budget of this flick has shot up to 250 crores, people might have thought its bit exaggerated but this new visual preview proved how honest the director is. Each and every visual looks new, extra ordinary and stumping the mind. Get ready for the kill in just 4 more days. #BaahubaliJuly10th 

NTR unleashed Sukumar?

Junior NTR looks ultra stylish in his upcoming movie directed by Sukumar. A section of media constantly speculated that NTR would shelve this project because of Sukumar's inability to handle superstars. Few said that NTR demanded Sukumar to change his style and work on a commercial script that suits his image.

Everything turned out to be mere speculation with NTR looking outrageously trendy in the new look. Sukumar hasn't changed his style in experimenting with the way he presents his protagonists. This is highly risky for someone like NTR who is a huge mass hero to go for a complete makeover. This clearly indicates that NTR has given license to Sukumar in terms of everything right from experimenting with his look.

This is said to be an action drama based on father-son relationship. Tentatively titled Maa Nannaku Prematho, this film has Rajendra Prasad donning NTR's father role and Jagapathi Babu playing the villain. NTR fans are expecting a memorable and path breaking super hit with this film. Can Sukumar deliver is the question to be answered.

One more rock song for Mahesh

While all the songs in the summer blockbuster S/O Sayamurthy were chartbusters, one particular song stood out from the rest and that is the title song, Chal Chale Chalo. Bunny's poignant yet stylish persona was richly in contrast with the ballistic voice of one of India's famous folk-fusion artist, Raghu Dixit. The singer literally breathed thumping energy into the song.

Now, it's time for Superstar Mahesh Babu to shake a leg to the Raghu Dixit's energetic voice as he teamed up with DSP once again from Srimanthudu. What's more exciting for the fans is that the song is a rock number and we all witnessed the kind of mayhem DSP created with the phenomenal rock song 'Who Are You?' in 1 Nenokkadine.

Interestingly, the rock song has been recorded today in Chennai, with the audio launch just ten days away. While it is still not clear if the song will be a montage song, just like Chal Chale Chalo or it will be shot featuring Mahesh Babu. The shooting part of Srimanthudu has been wrapped up and the audio launch will take place on the 18th this month.

Rana do not want to act with Mahesh?

Yesterday, Rana participated in the #AskRana Twitter chat and interacted with his fans. When one of the fans asked Rana which role among a brother, friend or a villain will he choose if he gets to act with Superstar Mahesh Babu, the Daggubati hunk replied with a stern 'Nothing!!' This, rather a straightforward reply from Rana, has become a point of discussion and it also seemed to have upset a section of Mahesh Babu's fans and they all kept on shooting further questions to know the reason.

While Rana remained silent about his reply and to the questions bombarded at him, it is still unclear as to what made him to spill out such a reply. Whether he wouldn't want to be cast in the brother, friend or in the villain role opposite Mahesh Babu or he is just not in a mood to act in a multistarrer at the moment, is something fans would be curious to know.

Interestingly, Mahesh made way to Baahubali's grand release by postponing Srimanthudu's release and Baahubali's producer and director thanked the Superstar for his gesture. Also, Rana's uncle, Venkatesh, said in an interview that he is good friends with Mahesh. Going by this, Rana's tweet surely wouldn't have any ulterior motives and it could have been just his personal choice. 

Rajamouli: I am not that great filmmaker

This is bold statement. The tallest ever any director has said. Probably in the era where star-actors are ruling the roost, directors will feel little shy and scared to deliver certain statements. But ace director Rajamouli emphasises the need for story in any films and makes a daring claim.

"The USP of stars is bringing crowds to audiences. But what makes the audiences sit in theatres and watch the film? It's the content. Both actors and visual effects are the same kind of stars for Baahubali, but what will stun movie lovers in theatres is the content", says Rajamouli, citing his movie as an example to explain the need for 'content' and 'stars' at the same time. "Stars can bring people, but can't run show. My way of storytelling is clicking with audiences, as I dramatize a lot. But I agree,'m not that great filmmaker", he adds.

As Rajamouli says this, he points out once again that the story of a movie should be based on human emotions and that will have universal connect. Well, rather taking these comments with egos, maybe fans should understand the real meaning Rajamouli is trying to say. 

He is ready to direct NTR

Legendary auteur K Viswanath said that he is ready to direct Young Tiger NTR in a Sagara Sangamam like film, if the proposal came from the horse’s mouth. In the past, several enthusiastic producers wanted the director to helm a project with NTR. The veteran director made these comments during his felicitation ceremony.

Speaking further, the master director said that he wouldn’t want to remake any of his yesteryear hits as he feels that those classics would not live up to the expectations of today’s audiences. K Viswanath also laughed off with a big ‘no’, when the reporters asked him whether he would write an autobiography someday.

Leaked: Mahesh's "Srimanthudu" audio track

Mahesh Babu's upcoming attraction Srimanthudu is into final leg of post production. The film is slated for August 7th and the audio will be launched on the 18th of this month. Sources say that Devi Sri Prasad has given thumping music for this film. His previous film 1-Nenokkadine was a musical hit, sadly the film didn't do as well as the audio.

DSP tried different kind of music for 1 Nenokkadine to suit the theme of the movie. Srimanthdudu is going to be an out and out commercial album in typical Devi style. There are five full songs and a bit song in this album and DSP has given one of his career best music for Srimanthudu, said sources.

Here is the leaked track list of Srimanthudu that is making rounds in the social media.

1. Introduction song

2. Rama Rama

3. Sundari

4. Jaago Re

5. Dimma Tirigipoddi

6. Bit Song 

Rajnikanth: They want to see me in larger than life roles

Just as Kamal Haasan's Papanasam got superhit talk yesterday, an interesting trivia regarding the film has been doing the rounds in the media. According to the latest buzz, the film's director Jeethu Joseph initially approached Rajinikanth for this Drishyam remake and the Superstar reportedly said no to the film for two reasons.

Apparently, Rajinikanth immensely liked the film's story when Jeethu narrated it. However, he was skeptical of his fans' reception for the family interrogation and the climax scenes. Rajini politely refused the film after an intense brainstorming and even Jeethu was convinced of Rajinikanth's apprehensions and told him that he will come back to him with a new script.

The scenes which worried Rajinikanth involve brutal torture of the hero's family by a bad police constable and also the hero revealing about the killing of the boy in the climax. Rajini is a demigod for his hysteric fans across the globe and they always want to see him in larger than life roles and can't accept him in submissive roles. Well, no doubt that Rajini made a wise decision keeping his fans in mind. 

Lived king size life in USA, treated cheaply here?

It takes guts to throw satires on self. Big stars like Pawan and Mahesh have that unique ability to accept their flop as flop and they keep saying that it's a flop in their following interviews. Drawing inspiration from them, comedian Vennela Kishore has thrown few satires on both himself and film industry in the latest movie "Superstar Kidnap".

Kishore actually played the role of himself in this movie, as the movie's protagonists kidnap him accidentally as they mistook to Mahesh Babu. In some scenes, when people ridicule Kishore as just comedian, he says, I'm a comedian and director too. He is then nailed for directing two back to back disasters. For starters, his directorial ventures Vennela 1.5 and Jaffa are crap movies that didn't run even for a couple of days at box office. Kishore has thrown punches on himself as a bad director couple of times while others scorn him many times.

At the same time, Kishore mentioned in a scene that he used to live life king-size in USA as a software engineer with beer in hand and work in other hand, but now after becoming a movie star he's being treated cheaply by film producers. This sounded like as if he is revealing his real-life plight. Apart from thoriwng satires on himself, he did sling a few at his producers too. 

Rajamouli and Mahesh signed a film?

SS Rajamouli is undoubtedly the most discussed filmmaker in the country at the moment. His magnum opus, Baahubali, is all set to release in a few days and the craze and the hype surrounding the film have been mind-boggling. Amidst Baahubali madness, one latest revelation by Rajamouli has been creating a storm.

In a latest promotional interview, Rajamouli said that he is always ready to work with the Tollywood's Superstar Mahesh Babu. Rajamouli said that both him and Mahesh signed the film film long back itself and even revealed that senior producer KL Narayana will produce it. Jakkanna also said that the project is getting delayed only because of his current assignments, which will take close to 1 year to be completed.

This news indeed gives a huge high for all Mahesh's fans, who are upset with Srimanthudu making way for Baahubali's release. This statement by Rajamouli only shows that our Tollywood stars always have been in cordial relationships. With this revelation, there is no doubt that even Mahesh's fans will now extend their support to Baahubali.

Gabbar singh as sold out for a "fancy number"?

Always some hyper reports come out about this most awaited sequel, though the Powerful hero is yet to jump into the shooting bandwagon. Gabbar Singh 2 is the film we are talking about has reports have now surfaced that the film is owned by popular Eros Entertainment for an exorbitant sum.

Ever since Pawan Kalyan announced going on floors for the sequel of super hit Gabbar Singh, many big production companies are trying to lay hand on this project. Pawan will be producing this flick himself, though his long time associate Sarath Marar would be handling everything. News was broken long back that Eros signed deal with GS2 but much details were not known then. Update is that they now own theatrical rights, satellite right and other distribution rights of the movie. We hear that Eros shelled out nearly 72 crores to close the deal. A good one, perhaps.

Unfortunately Eros lost its huge chunk of investment earlier when they owned 1-Nenokkadine and Lingaa similarly by investing more than 75 crores on each film. As both those films turned out to be disasters at box office, their recovery options thinned. Hope Pawan Kalyan will give them huge respite with his golden touch.

Production cost: Europe = India?

If Vinayak picked Iceland for Nayak, Gopichand Malineni explored most of Portugal in Balupu and Pandaga Chesko back to back. Team Nagarjuna is heading to Bulgaria and other small European countries, while NTR will be shooting in London and Italy. Of course, Trivikram and Bunny popularised Spain like anything. Is there any other fascination behind picking Europe as a shooting destination for its exotic locales? 

There are interesting things we heard when quizzed the same with few producers and managers. Some stated that the best part of shooting in Europe is that there will be no disturbance. "Crowds are not going to flood the shoot, mob the hero-heroine and disrupt the proceedings. Peacefully we could focus on the work and get it done. If we shoot in Golconda or any other outdoor location in India, you know the mobs here", says a producer. Managers have however another version to share. 

At the same budget of shooting in India, we are now able to shoot in these foreign locations, a manager reveals. "Cities like Dubai and Abhudbahi provide 50% refund of shooting expenditure when we provide all the bills. That makes the production cost equal to what we have to spend in India for an outdoor song. So, its better to shoot abroad rather India for visual feast", he says. 

Countries like UK and Switzerland are not providing such perks to filmmakers, but starting with Japan to Canada, Dubai to Portugal, they are providing decent offers to producers in case if we shoot there. It's a win-win situation folks!! 

Bumper offer to producers from Balayya girl

What makes producers and directors run after a heroine? Either she is extremely popular or she is quite hot. And if there is a choice, her remuneration is flexible and comparatively lower than others of same cadre. Looks like bikini girl Sonal Chauhan is hitting exactly on these golden points.

Till date, she has done two noticeable stints in the recent times, one in Balayya's Legend and the other being Ram's 'Pandaga Chesko'. Flaunting her terrific curves in skimpy costumes, Sonal made sure that her spell binding glamour will bind youths to seats. All of a sudden this hot lady has three happening movies in hand including Kalyan Ram's Sher, Anushka-Arya's Size Zero and Balayya's Dictator. If those bikini look stints are the only ones that are attracting filmmakers towards her, its tough believe. Because there are so many glamorous heroines out there to reprise something like a Sonal Chauhan.

According to grapevine, Sonal is both hot and her pricing is quite affordable. She is charging something between 10-15 lakhs and doesn't bother to stay in a simple 3-star hotel too. Also she's not like some starlets who spend their leisure time after the shoot with party-animals. Either Sonal is on set or in hotel room. Probably this wonderful 'package' is the mantra making everyone slowly drift towards her.

A super-starlet like Kareena Kapoor turned 'super' only after sizzling in a dozen of movies. If our Legend girl is also treading on same path, it's time for appreciation. 

After Samantha it's Vishal

When it comes to showing generosity towards their shooting crew and personal staff, certain stars are cut above the other stars and make headlines with their touching gestures. Recently, Samantha presented the entire unit of VIP 2 with Rs. 5000 each.

It is now the turn of Telugu and Tamil star Vishal to surprise the crew of his upcoming film, Paayum Puli. Vishal presented the team with 300 gold coins on the last day of the film's shoot. Vishal is currently in a heated contest with senior actor and Nadigar Sangam's President, Sarath Kumar, over the association's elections.

Vishal has been fighting relentlessly for the construction of a new building for Nadigar Sangam and even vowed to get married only after the new building is constructed. Paayum Puli is being directed by Suseenthran of Karthi's Naa Peru Siva. Kajal Aggarwal is the heroine.

Trivikram with Akkineni Hero?

Director Trivikram is giving jitters to cinema lovers from a long time because he hasn't finalised his next project. At a time when he is expected to sign bigger likes of Pawan or Mahesh for his next, those heroes have got busy with their respective projects. And other super stars like Charan, Bunny and NTR also got fully busy with their forthcoming projects. So, who's our director's probable hero?

All these days it is widely believed that either Nitin or Naga Chaitanya will be working with Trivikram very soon. As Nitin got his project with Puri Jagan cancelled and both Nitin-Trivikram very close to Pawan Kalyan, everyone thought Nitin will be lucky guy to work with him. As our director who delivered back to back blockbusters that amassed more than 50+ crores share, who wont want to work with him? Anyway, reports are arriving finally that Trivikram will direct Akkineni hero in his next.

It is being heard that Trivikram's next will be produced by S/o Satyamurthy producer on Haarika & Haasini creations banner, and will have Naga Chaitanya in the lead. Our director is said to be giving final touches to the script before this Akkineni lad wraps up his next under Gautham Menon's direction. In a week or so, official announcement is likely to be made. 

Will Kriti balance both Khan's ?

After all she has done two Telugu films by the time her Bollywood entry has happened and our audiences feel her close to heart before calling her as a Telugu heroine. She is none other than Delhi beauty Kriti Sanon who is right now shaking her legs with a handsome hero in Bulgaria.

Kriti admits that she doesn't want to leave Telugu films even if she bags a chunk of Bollywood projects. True to that, she has done Dochay with Chaitu even after her Heropanti with Tiger Shroff turned successful and she signed 'Dilwale' opposite Varun Dhawan, the film that also consists of Shahrukh Khan and Kajol. Shooting of this film is going on in Bulgaria, where the songs are being canned. Apart from this film, this hot lady is in a tough situation now where she has to fight on behalf of two Khans on same day, in case if opportunity blesses her.

Our hot and tall 1-Nenokkadine girl is the primary choice of Salman Khan's 'Sultan' that is set for Eid 2016 release. After seeing the spark in her work on Dilwale, even Shahrukh is said to be showing massive interest to cast her in 'Raees'. Surprisingly this SRK starrer is also set for release on the same day 'Sultan' hits cinemas.

If Kriti Sanon gets casted in these two movies living upto the buzz, then she will have to balance for both the Khans. Wish her luck folks!!