Showing posts with label Dasara. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dasara. Show all posts
Raghav Juyal on heading south with Nani's The Paradise: "It’s a treat to work with the natural star"
10:43 AM
Actor and dancer Raghav Juyal on making his Telugu debut with ‘The Paradise’, starring south star Nani
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; October 5, 2025)
With back-to-back terrific performances — both on the big screen and OTT — Raghav Juyal has established himself as a dependable actor in Hindi cinema. So, it seems to be the right time for the actor to look towards south. Juyal will be next seen in south star Nani-led The Paradise, which releases in March 2026.
Making his Telugu debut with the action drama, Juyal says he is blown away by director Srikanth Odela’s vision. “Whoever has watched his previous film, Dasara [2023], would know that his vision is impeccable. What he is doing with this film is also so thrilling to experience. The announcement of the film itself was crazy, now wait for my look. You will love it!” he says, adding that he considers himself fortunate to be stepping into a new industry with its top star.
“It’s a treat to work with the natural star! He is amazing. And this is not just in Telugu, but it’s a pan-world film. It’s being made in Spanish and English as well,” says the actor, who plays the antagonist.
Juyal began filming some time ago. He then took a short break to finish the promotions of his latest work, The Ba**ds Of Bollywood, currently streaming on Netflix. He will resume the shoot for The Paradise next week in Hyderabad, where he will be joined by Nani.
Prabhas never had any hang ups about someone else lending a voice to his Salaar character-Sharad Kelkar
8:17 AM
Lending his voice to Prabhas in Salaar’s Hindi adaptation, Sharad Kelkar says the audience deserves quality
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; December 24, 2023)
To Prabhas’ Hindi audience, Sharad Kelkar has grown to be his cinematic voice. The actor first dubbed for Prabhas in Baahubali (2015). Since then, he has lent voice to Hindi versions of several Prabhas-led films, including the recent, Salaar. Thrilled with the response to Prashanth Neel’s directed venture, Kelkar says he enjoys dubbing for Prabhas because of his gracious nature.
“Despite being such a big star, he never had any hangups about someone else lending a voice to his character. Prabhas always looks at the bigger picture; he wants the final product to look and sound good. That’s such an admirable quality,” says the actor, who was also the voice of Telugu star Nani in Dasara’s Hindi version.
This was the first time that Kelkar was working on a project with the KGF franchise director. Crediting the precision of the director, he says, “Prashanth is hardworking. He observes every detail of the film and has clarity in his work. He communicates exactly what he wants from his actors, [even if they think otherwise]. I love that about him. I have seen the same thing in S S Rajamouli sir.”
Having much experience in lending voice to south actors, Kelkar says that several makers undermine the importance of good dubbing. “The dubbed version should sound authentic; it can’t exist for the sake of it. People watching dubbed versions deserve a quality experience,” expresses the actor, who had initially rejected the offer to dub for Nani as he believed his voice wouldn’t suit the actor.
“I agreed because the makers told me that his character would be drunk throughout the film, and usually when you are inebriated, you sound huskier than usual. I always maintain that kind of discretion,” he explains.
Race begins to select India’s official Oscar entry; The Kerala Story, Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, Dasara in the list
8:15 AM
Sugandha Rawal (HINDUSTAN TIMES; September 21, 2023)
The pursuit to determine India’s official entry for Oscars 2024 has kicked off, with a slew of films vying for the coveted spot. Notable contenders include Balagam (Telugu), The Kerala Story (Hindi), Zwigato (Hindi) and Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (Hindi).
“The Oscar committee has embarked on its meticulous selection process, involving multiple screenings, which commenced yesterday in Chennai, and the eagerly anticipated final announcement is to be unveiled next week,” says a source close to the selection process.
The decision regarding the official entry will rest in the hands of a 17-member jury, presided over by filmmaker Girish Kasaravalli.
Reports indicate that the committee has received an array of submissions, tallying over 22 entries. Among the noteworthy names forwarded to “the Film Federation of India for Oscar consideration are The Storyteller (Hindi), Music School (Hindi), Mrs Chatterjee Vs Norway (Hindi), 12th Fail (Hindi), Viduthalai Part 1 (Tamil), Ghoomer (Hindi) and Dasara (Telugu)”, adds the source.
India triumphed at Oscars 2023, clinching two Academy Awards thanks to S S Rajamouli’s RRR and Guneet Monga’s The Elephant Whisperers, and Pan Nalin’s Gujarati masterpiece Chhello Show was chosen as India’s official entry for the Best International Feature Film category.
The source also said, “The list might have additions such as Vaalvi (Marathi), Gadar 2 (Hindi), Ab Toh Sab Bhagwan Bharose (Hindi), and Baap Lyok (Marathi). We have received their application, but are waiting for the fees.”
Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan is the only clean hit in 2023's first quarter
8:17 AM
With Bollywood wrapping up its first quarter, Shah Rukh’s Pathaan remains sole bright spot, Tu Jhoothi doesn’t break even; trade says business down by 30 per cent
Hiren Kotwani (MID-DAY; April 4, 2023)
Can you imagine a better way to start the year than with a blockbuster? In late January, Shah Rukh Khan arrived in cinemas with Pathaan, ready to decimate the box office. The spy thriller, which saw the superstar returning to the big screen after a four-year hiatus, went on to reportedly collect over Rs 500 crores, becoming the biggest hit of Hindi cinema. With it, the film industry and trade circuit felt that the debacle of 2022 was behind them. Three months into the year, however, it’s a different story.
Veteran trade analyst Amod Mehra notes that the Khan-starrer is the only bright spot in the first quarter. “Its success was encouraging, and made everyone feel like things would change. But subsequent films crashed. So, it is back to square one,” says Mehra.
February saw two big Hindi releases, Kartik Aaryan’s Shehzada, and Akshay Kumar-Emraan Hashmi’s Selfiee. The former came with high expectations — it was Aaryan’s first theatrical release since last year’s surprise hit Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. Additionally, it was the remake of Allu Arjun’s Telugu movie, Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo (2020).
Producer and film business expert Girish Johar attributes the failure of Shehzada and Selfiee to sub-par content. “Shehzada was a copy-paste remake with no new elements. Selfiee was completely dated, despite having big names and being backed by a big banner [Dharma Productions]. People rejected it from the word go. The Q1 business was down by 30 per cent compared to the pre-pandemic times,” says Johar. While Shehzada’s lifetime domestic collections read Rs 30 crores, Selfiee reportedly ended its run at Rs 14 crores.
Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor’s March release, Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, had better luck at the cinemas. Despite having made approximately Rs 120 crore, Luv Ranjan’s rom-com isn’t considered a hit due to its high cost. Johar, instead, dubs Rani Mukerji’s Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway “a winner” as the small-budget film is heading towards collections of Rs 25 crores.
Ajay Devgn, who delivered a blockbuster in Drishyam 2 (2022), rounded off this year’s first quarter with Bholaa, which collected Rs 44.28 crore (nett) over its four-day weekend. However, Telugu star Nani’s Dasara, which released across India on the same day, has accumulated a cool Rs 55 crore across all languages.
Johar says the two can’t be compared. “Dasara is a reasonably budgeted film, while Bholaa, which released in 2D, 3D, and IMAX has a much higher landing cost. Plus, Bholaa, being an adaptation of Tamil film Kaithi (2019), hasn’t got the audience in south India flocking to the theatres.”
Looking ahead
In the coming months, Manoj Desai, executive director of Maratha Mandir and G7 cineplex, will be banking on Salman Khan’s Eid offering Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, Ajay Devgn’s Maidaan, and Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan that arrives in June. He says, “The public wants entertainment. They don’t want to go to theatres and get bored. A good film will always work.”
Pitting south Indian films and Bollywood against each other will always keep happening-Nani
8:27 AM
Basking in the success of Dasara, Telugu star Nani shares why he finds the South vs Bollywood debate passé and insists on focusing on content
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; April 2, 2023)
SS Rajamouli is a force to be reckoned with in Indian cinema today. Not only is he credited as the biggest director in the country, but the Oscar win for RRR has catapulted him to become India’s cultural ambassador globally. However, for actor Nani, who collaborated with him on the hit fantasy actioner Eega (2012), much before Rajamouli broke out as a pan-India director, the filmmaker was as big as he is today for the rest of the country.
“Rajamouli sir had already become big by the time we worked with him in Eega. Our respect and adulation for him have always been there. The only change is that his list of achievements has grown,” says Nani.
Rajamouli is also credited with awakening India to the rich talent of South cinema with his action epic Baahubali franchise. Ever since, South films have begun to find takers in the Hindi film audience, with successes like RRR, Kantara, and KGF - Chapter 2 registering mammoth success at the box office. Bollywood’s less than average performance and failures at the box office—before Pathaan’s release—were put against the successes from the south, with chatter on social media declaring that Bollywood was over and south cinema was the only future for Indian entertainment. Nani, whose latest release, Dasara, has become his career’s best opening yet, says people should not indulge in negativity but celebrate the fact that audiences have more diverse films to choose from now.
“Pitting south Indian films and Bollywood against each other will always keep happening as long as there is social media and media. As kids, we used to watch a lot of Hindi films. In fact, south [audience] have contributed big collections to Bollywood. [I believe] we are all equal. Now, it will be about who makes the best film,” insists Nani, adding that given that lines are blurring, someday he would like to work with “my favourite director, Rajkumar Hirani”.
“I am a big fan, and I would love to do a film [with him]. There were times when a few things came my way, but they didn’t excite me much.”
Fenil's Bollywood Talk # 771
10:17 AM
WILL BHOLAA BE AJAY DEVGN’S NEXT BIG HIT AFTER DRISHYAM 2?
Ajay Devgn’s first major release of 2022 was Runway 34. It was also directed by him and despite having a promising storyline, it failed to work at the box office. However, 2022 ended on a rocking note for him as Drishyam 2 emerged as a huge blockbuster, collecting Rs. 233.52 crores. It did more than Brahmastra and that’s an achievement for a film that is not a typical big-scale film.
And now, Ajay Devgn is all set to present Bholaa to the audience. Like Runway 34, it is also directed by him and stars him and Tabu in the leading roles. Deepak Dobiryal, Sanjay Mishra, Gajraj Rao and Vineet Kumar feature in the film in supporting roles while Amala Paul has a cameo appearance. It is the remake of the Tamil hit Kaithi.
Bholaa’s campaigning began way back in November, with the unveiling of a sneak peek teaser. Another teaser was released in January followed by the trailer launch in March. The teaser got a very good response and heightened the buzz for the film. But the trailer failed to get the desired response. Moreover, the film looks like a mass entertainer, fit for single screens. The multiplex audience hasn't warmed up to the film yet. On top of it, it’s releasing in the holy month of Ramzan, when a section of the audience stays away. All these factors can prove detrimental.
Drishyam 2 opened at Rs. 14.92 crores. Bholaa is a bigger film but its opening will be around Rs. 10-11 crores. It releases tomorrow, on Thursday, to take advantage of the Ram Navami holiday. It’ll have a four-day weekend and if reports are positive, it can have a weekend of Rs. 40-50 crores. It also has negligible competition for the next 3 weeks. However, if reports are and also if it takes opening in single digits, it’ll struggle to even cross the Rs. 50 crores mark.
The other release of the week is Dasara, a Telugu film which is being dubbed in Hindi. It stars Nani and the Telugu original version will have a huge opening. But the Hindi version will face a tough time. Two weeks back, the South dubbed film Kabzaa had released on a huge scale but opened at just Rs. 50 lakhs. Dasara might open in a similar range or even lesser.
Lastly, on Disney+ Hotstar, viewers will get a chance to see Gaslight, from Friday, March 31. It stars Sara Ali Khan, Vikrant Massey and Chitrangda Singh and is directed by Pavan Kirpalani. The trailer is strictly okay. But due to the star cast, it’ll get viewership.
Ajay Devgn’s first major release of 2022 was Runway 34. It was also directed by him and despite having a promising storyline, it failed to work at the box office. However, 2022 ended on a rocking note for him as Drishyam 2 emerged as a huge blockbuster, collecting Rs. 233.52 crores. It did more than Brahmastra and that’s an achievement for a film that is not a typical big-scale film.
And now, Ajay Devgn is all set to present Bholaa to the audience. Like Runway 34, it is also directed by him and stars him and Tabu in the leading roles. Deepak Dobiryal, Sanjay Mishra, Gajraj Rao and Vineet Kumar feature in the film in supporting roles while Amala Paul has a cameo appearance. It is the remake of the Tamil hit Kaithi.
Bholaa’s campaigning began way back in November, with the unveiling of a sneak peek teaser. Another teaser was released in January followed by the trailer launch in March. The teaser got a very good response and heightened the buzz for the film. But the trailer failed to get the desired response. Moreover, the film looks like a mass entertainer, fit for single screens. The multiplex audience hasn't warmed up to the film yet. On top of it, it’s releasing in the holy month of Ramzan, when a section of the audience stays away. All these factors can prove detrimental.
Drishyam 2 opened at Rs. 14.92 crores. Bholaa is a bigger film but its opening will be around Rs. 10-11 crores. It releases tomorrow, on Thursday, to take advantage of the Ram Navami holiday. It’ll have a four-day weekend and if reports are positive, it can have a weekend of Rs. 40-50 crores. It also has negligible competition for the next 3 weeks. However, if reports are and also if it takes opening in single digits, it’ll struggle to even cross the Rs. 50 crores mark.
The other release of the week is Dasara, a Telugu film which is being dubbed in Hindi. It stars Nani and the Telugu original version will have a huge opening. But the Hindi version will face a tough time. Two weeks back, the South dubbed film Kabzaa had released on a huge scale but opened at just Rs. 50 lakhs. Dasara might open in a similar range or even lesser.
Lastly, on Disney+ Hotstar, viewers will get a chance to see Gaslight, from Friday, March 31. It stars Sara Ali Khan, Vikrant Massey and Chitrangda Singh and is directed by Pavan Kirpalani. The trailer is strictly okay. But due to the star cast, it’ll get viewership.
Writing on the poster that a film is available in five different languages doesn’t make a film pan India-Nani
8:26 AM
Telugu star Nani discusses what constitutes a pan-India film and how his upcoming movie, Dasara will fit the bill
Priyanka Sharma (MID-DAY; March 26, 2023)
Days before Dasara hits the screens, Telugu star Nani feels like a student awaiting his test results. Though he is confident about excellent reports, the Telugu star has set his eyes on the top score—Dasara, transitioning from being a multilingual film to a pan-India experience. While industries across languages have been obsessed with the ‘pan-India’ tag lately, Nani exercises caution as he shares what the term means for him. It cannot be engineered; it has to be earned, believes the actor.
“If the entire country watches a film and falls in love with it, it becomes pan India. Writing on the poster that a film is available in five different languages [doesn’t make a film pan India]; by that logic, every film is already pan India. Dasara is a multilingual film, but if everyone watches it and it becomes a blockbuster and the talk of the nation, then I will proudly call it a pan-Indian film. March 30th will be my test,” says Nani of the period action adventure film written and directed by debutant Srikanth Odela.
Nani believes that the only Indian artiste, at the moment, who can claim the blinding faith of the diverse Indian audience is his Eega director S S Rajamouli. “While making a movie itself, Rajamouli sir can say that [his project] is a pan-Indian film because he knows the whole country is waiting to watch his movies. But me? I don’t know,” says the actor, while adding that he is sure of how Dasara has shaped up.
Nani claims that after the first narration by Odela, he was certain that Dasara had the potential to become one of his career-best moves. After filming, the Telugu star proudly claims that the film has exceeded his expectations. “I knew if we mounted it right, this could become much bigger than our anticipation. Something about my director convinced me that he was going to be the next big thing. I could sense a certain honesty in him.”
Since the trailer launch, there has been talk that Nani’s Dasara shares similarities with Allu Arjun’s Pushpa. While some believe that the similarity stems from Odela’s previous association with Pushpa director Sukumar, Nani is quick to cast off the idea.
“Srikanth didn’t work on Pushpa, but I am sure he learnt technical expertise [from him]. The world of Dasara is inspired by his own life. His father worked as a truck driver for 40 years in the coal mines. These comparisons with Pushpa are happening because, like Allu Arjun, I am also sporting a messy hair look. But in any rural village, every guy looks like that,” he says, hoping the comparisons will end once the film releases.
This is a golden period for Indian cinema-Nani
8:25 AM
Deep Saxena (HINDUSTAN TIMES; March 16, 2023)
The Oscar-winning track Naatu Naatu has the world dancing to its beats. Actor Nani feels Indian cinema is in its “golden phase” now, and the laurels for the RRR (2022) track and the documentary The Elephant Whisperers have helped command all the more respect.
“This is a golden period for Indian cinema. Music and dance have been our strength. Now, the world has recognized it,” says the actor, best known for his Telugu film Jersey (2019). He goes on to laud the Oscar-winning team, saying: “I’m sure global players will want to collaborate with Indian makers like S S Rajamouli sir.”
The Hindi versus southern language films debate was a rage on social media. But, Nani feels it was blown out of proportion. “Today, anything can be twisted for debates. My film Dasara, for instance, is made in Telugu and dubbed in four other languages. It is a pan-India release. But, if someone misinterprets that, it’s not my fault. Hindi cinema was always loved. Now, people are watching Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada films, too. Whoever makes good cinema will get brownie points,” he reasons.
“It’s our fault that we saw language as a barrier and didn’t go all out. But, the audience made us realize that only great scripts work [be it in any language]. Now the lines are getting blurred and cinema is becoming one,” adds Nani, who is keen on exploring Bollywood.
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