T'WOOD'S BLOCKBUSTER YEAR :TOI

T'WOOD'S BLOCKBUSTER YEAR

Despite a whole lot of controversies, a hugely successful 2012 gave Telugu audiences much cause for celebration

Suresh Kavirayani

   The year 2012 was a big one for Tollywood. Or to use the most filmi phrase — keka! If blockbusters like Eega had the cash registers ringing and the nation talking, the BO was appeased with a whole lot of small budget films that managed to impress. Of the 126 Telugu films released this year, around 15 films were declared hits. Actors like Pawan Kalyan, Allu Arjun, Siddharth, Nithiin and Vishnu, who didn't get to taste success for a long time, managed to come back with a bang. It's no surprise then that the industry is in a celebratory mode. Hyderabad Times brings you a lowdown.

WHATTE COMEBACK!

The year started with the Sankranthi blockbuster Businessman, which was the second consecutive success for Mahesh Babu after a lean patch. February saw three big comebacks. Love Failure came as a big break for Siddharth, who has not had a single hit since
   Bommarillu in 2006. The actor even turned producer
   with the movie. Meanwhile,
   Nithiin tasted success with
   Ishq after eight years.
   Comedian Sunil delivered a
   super hit, Poola
   Rangadu, proving that he can also compete with the stars.
A 'MEGA' YEAR
The Chiranjeevi clan were the topl entertainers of 2012. First it was Ram Charan, who delivered the blockbuster Racha after a gap of two years. Then the biggest hit of the year came from Pawan Kalyan. His film Gabbar Singh, a remake of the Salman Khan-starrer Dabangg, turned out to be a box office sensation. Directed by Harish Shankar, the movie came as a blessing for Pawan Kalyan, who was desperate for a blockbuster for almost 10 years. Pawan also created quite a buzz with Cameraman Gangatho Rambabu, his second release that year. It was a good year for Bunny too. Under the direction of Trivikiram Srinivas, Allu Arjun managed to impress with Julayi. The film is counted among the top five films of the year and is Allu's hit after five long years.

RAJAMOULI MAKES A BUZZ

The year 2012 was an extra special one for director SS Rajamouli. Eega, which starred a
   fly as the hero, was declared a
   unanimous blockbuster. For an industry that is afraid to experiment, the movie became a trendsetter and was celebrated for everything from its unique plot and cutting edge computer graphics to its innovative cinematic technique. Rajamouli became the undisputed No. 1 director, proving that you don't need to have superstars to make a movie a super hit. In fact, the movie created such a buzz that it was dubbed in Hindi as Makkhi.

ALL ABOUT THE LAUGHS

Funny movies rocked the box office this year. Allari Naresh once again proved that his style of comedy still remains a hit with the audiences. Sudigadu, a spoof of all Tollywood movies, was a big success and elevated Allari Naresh's status. Vishnu Manchu too enjoyed the limelight when his comic film Denikaina Ready
   gave him a hit after almost five years.

SMALL MOVIES MADE A BIG BUZZ



SMALL IS BIG

Small budget films proved to be the biggest hits of the year. Young director Maruthi who delivered a hit with Ee Rojullo, which starred relatively new names, also released Bus Stop in the same year. Though both the films were low budget ones, they were a hit at the marque. Another surprise hit was Oka Romantic Crime Katha by Sunil Kumar Reddy. The film with a contemporary story struck a chord with the young audiences. Director Ravi Babu's thriller Avunu, which was based on a real life incident, earned much critical acclaim too.

DIRECTOR'S CUT

While the stars enjoyed great success this year, it was the directors who stole all the limelight. While Rajamouli was celebrated across the country for Eega, Gabbar Singh earned director Harish Shankar a place in the list of Tollywood's most wanted directors. Trivikiram worked his magic once again with Julayi. Director Samapath Nandi , a relatively unknown name earlier, shot to fame with Racha. Filmmaker Vikram Kumar impressed with his work in Ishq. And with stars queueing up to work with such names, these directors in demand have changed the game in Tollywood this year.

CONTROVERSIES GALORE    

Even as the industry was rejoicing over a successful year, Tollywood was busy making news for all the wrong reasons as well. Director Puri Jagannadh suffered setbacks all through the year. While some Hindu groups filed a case against him for using foul language in one of his songs in Businessman, his Devudu Chesina Manushulu came under the scanner for allegedly depicting the characters of Lord Vishnu and Lakshmi in a comic way by
Brahmanandam and Kovai Sarala.
   Later in the year, pro-Telangana activists disrupted the release of his Pawan Kalyan-starrer, Cameraman Gangatho Rambabu and even vandalised Puri's office, claiming that the movie was hurting Telangana sentiments. The films' collections were adversely affected by these protests. What's more, director Puri Jagannadh lodged a complaint to the AP Producers Council against the producers of the movie, alleging that they haven't paid him his remuneration. Later the issue was resolved, with both the parties comes to an agreement.
   And who can forget the most longdrawn controversy of the year — the tussle between Vishnu Manchu's Denikaina Ready and the city's Brahmins, who claimed the movie mocked their community. The protests in fact, took a violent turn and the state government was forced to intervene and appoint a joint action committee to look into the issue. Later, producer Mohan Babu approached the High Court for a stay order. The case still remains unresolved and the filmmakers never got a chance to celebrate the film's success.
   The protest season didn't end there. While certain sects of the audience took offense to the vulgar language in Bus Stop, the medical community protested over the poster of Rebel that showed Prabhas smoking a cigarette. A small film called Sorry Teacher also ran into trouble for allegedly depicting teachers in poor light.
   The producers of Rebel too complained against director Raghava Lawrence for overshooting the budget, delaying the release. They blamed him for the movie's dismal BO performance. The Producers Council in fact, asked director Lawrence to pay 2.5 crore to the producers.

ALL FOR EXPERIMENTATION

While all other stars stuck to the formula, Nagarjuna was one actor who dared to be different this year. As he shed his stylish image and sported a wizened, bearded look for his role in the devotional film, Shiridi Sai, he was quick to get back in shape for his period film, Dhamarukam, which turned out to be one of the highest grossers of Nagarjuna's career.

Still from Racha

Still from Julayi

Pawan Kalyan in Gabbar Singh

Mahesh Babu in Businessman

A still from Denikaina Ready

A still from
Ishq