Leader (Telugu: లీడర్) is a 2010 Telugu film written and directed by Sekhar Kammula marking the acting debut of Rana Daggubati in the lead role, whilst Richa Gangopadhyay and Priya Anand in the female lead roles. This film was produced by AVM Productions.
This movie starts off with the assassination of Sanjeevayya (Suman), the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh and the subsequent turmoil in the organization of the state government. The last wish of Sanjeevayya is for his son, Arjun Prasad (Rana Daggubati), to become the next Chief Minister. However, Arjun's cousin Dhanunjay (Subbaraju) has his own dreams of becoming the Chief Minister. Arjun is approached by Ali who has given 10 Crores to Sanjeevayya to resolve a land dispute in Ali's favour. Ali pleads Arjun to remind his father about the cash, once he is out of coma, as he has given his entire savings to resolve the issue. Ali also requests Arjun not to disclose it to anyone as he doesn't trust anyone. Arjun speaks to Dhanunjay about Ali but Arjun is somehow convinced that Ali's money would be returned. After Sanjeevayya's death a number of people approach Arjun, saying that his father has given them a huge sum of money and it's their duty to return it to Arjun. Arjun doesn't seem to be too interested until he talks to his mother, Rajeshwari (Suhasini Maniratnam). Arjun's mother tells him that the people who approached him are all corrupted ones, who have looted public's money and also reveals that his father is one among them. Arjun is shocked upon hearing this but his mother tells him that his father wanted to build a corrupt free state and also abolish the caste system but his Peddaina (Sanjeevayya's elder brother) (Kota Srinivasa Rao) doesn't approve of his plans and his only aim was to rule the state along with the family members. Arjun reads his father's dairy and finds out how his Pedainna set their whole village on fire due to a small clash with the dalits. His father has also mentioned that only Arjun can make a difference. Arjun realizes that it's not in the best interest of the state for Dhanunjay to become the CM. Arjun's mother also tells him that she will speak to Pedainna if Arjun is willing to become the next CM. The next day Arjun finds Ali's bag and calls him to return it to him. Ali is totally impressed with Arjun and thanks him. Arjun reveals to Ali that he is planning to become the next CM and that Ali is his secretary. In the meantime Arjun and his mother meet Pedainna to make him the next CM. Pedainna is shocked at first but later he gives his word to them. To become the CM, he uses the black money his father earned as the CM in buying the MLAs and ends up being the CM. Dhanunjay is agitated by the sudden turn of events and plans to put an end to Arjun. Pedainna requests Arjun to make Dhanunjay the new home minister in his cabinet. Arjun and his mother hesitate initially but later they agree. Arjun's security is under threat and he is shot by some people but fortunately he recovers from the attack and orders Dhanunjay to resign, as it is a home minister's duty to protect him. Arjun also knows that Dhanunjay is the mastermind behind the attack. Arjun states that his ultimate aim is to build a corrupt free state and mentions that around 100,000 crore Rupees of black money is present, which could be used for developing the state. Arjun proposes a new initiative to collect black money from people and then use it for the development of the state. The members of his party protest as this might cause trouble to them but later he amends the bill and says that all political people will be exempted. Finally his members approve the bill. A huge amount of money is collected from this drive but very soon his party members protest as most of their relatives and friends have lost their black money. Dhanunjay uses this opportunity to get rid off Arjun. Arjun loses all his hopes. That night he receives a call from Archana (Richa Gangopadhyay) who runs a news channel. Archana seeks Arjun's help as a police constable goes on hunger strike to seek justice to a girl from the lower caste, who was raped by an MLA's son. Arjun is not too keen to solve this issue so he asks Archana to contact some other official. The next morning Arjun sees the news paper and finds out that Archana is the daughter of Munnuswamy, who is the party leader with whom they have formed an alliance. Arjun contacts Ali to get all the details about Archana. Arjun's plan is to woo Archana, so that he gets Munnuswamy's support to remain as the CM. Arjun is hesitant initially but as he has no other option Ali and his close associated force him, so he decides to go ahead with this plan. Arjun visits the police constable and promises to punish the MLA's son who raped and killed the girl. Archana is does not seem to be impressed at first but slowly falls for Arjun. Arjun starts dating Archana and she finally falls in love with him. Arjun changes his mind as he doesn't want to use Archana for his political drama and so he plans on visiting Peddainna and request him to convince the party MLAs. Arjun takes Archana along with him to Peddainna's village. Arjun visits the village which was destroyed by his Peddainna. The people start abusing Arjun as their village was destroyed by his family. Peddainna who is a casteist is not happy that Arjun visited the dalits. Arjun leaves Peddainna's house immediately stating that untouchability is a sin. He finally decides to propose Archana as that is the only option left to him. That night he proposes Archana and they decide to get married. He then asks Archana to talk to her father about their relationship. Munnuswamy is elated on hearing this and offers to support Arjun and his only condition is to release the MLA's son who raped and killed a girl as the MLA belongs to Munnuswamy's party. Arjun does not agree to it but later as Ali and the chief secretary force him he agrees to this reluctantly. Dhanunjay's plans are broken again as Munnuswamy starts supporting Arjun. Dhanunjay somehow gets to know about Arjun's plan and calls up Archana. Arjun and Archana break up their relationship in spite of Arjun telling her that he really loves her and it's not a drama (though it is true that Arjun really loves Archana). Arjun confronts his mother and reveals that he could not give justice to a girl who was raped and killed. His mother is deeply saddened on hearing this and tells that this was exactly how everything started and that he should never compromise. Arjun's mother finally says that she always wanted him to be a leader and not a politician. Arjun's mother dies the next day. Everything falls apart for Arjun, so it becomes quite evident that he might step down as a CM anytime. So he decides to take matters in his hands for one last time. He orders the chief secretary to send out orders to raid all the politicians, their kith and kin and get an account of all their black money. This way he can achieve his main target which is to get rid off black money and use the funds to develop the state. He also reveals that he is going to resign his job the next day and requests for one final favour to the security officer once Arjun resigns - that is to kill the MLA's son. The chief secretary and Ali request him not to resign as he is only person who can bring a good change. But Arjun quits saying that a CM who denied justice to a girl no longer deserves to be the CM. The next day a major income tax raid is carried out throughout the state. By the end of the day around 100,000 crore Rupees is collected for the people's fund, which was Arjun's ultimate goal. Arjun then meets the governor and submits his resignation. The party members become furious and join Dhanunjay to elect him as the new CM but Munnuswamy withdraws his support in the last moment, which leads them to face a new election. Arjun visits Peddainna who is now seated all alone in his party meeting hall. Arjun meets Peddaina and says that he no longer wants to be a part of this group as he wants to be a true leader. Arjun travels across the state and promises to give a corrupt free rule and develop the state. Then Archana comes and pardon Arjun and the two reconcile. Arjun brings hope to the people and the entire state follows him. He wins the election while the other parties are left white washed. In the final scene we see Arjun and Archana as a married couple and Arjun sworn in as the new Chief Minister of the state.
Happy Days (Telugu: హ్యాపీ డే) is a 2007 film directed by Sekhar Kammula. The film was very popular in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala. The target audience for this movie was primarily the engineering college students in these states. The Kannada remake was called Jolly days and in Tamil as Inidhu Inidhu by noted Indian actor Prakash Raj. The film won 6 Filmfare Awards South, and 3 Nandi Awards.
Happy Days is the quintessential college story that explores the lives of eight friends through the four years of their engineering course. Each one joins with their own set of idiosyncrasies and eccentricities. What starts off as a journey of individuals, slowly becomes a collective one as they bond. They bond as they go through bullying seniors, tyrant professors, intense examinations, celebrations, Love, Betrayal, Sacrifice and every possible experience that an individual goes through in a college. And finally they realize their potential. The film is a true representation of the wonderful & formative years in college. It depicts the stories of concerned parents and inspiring professors. It captures the raw energy in college going students. Full of dance, romance, music and masti… It has all the class rooms tiffs, mandatory fights, hot looking professors, love at first sights, crushes, break ups, first kisses, hostel humor, bikes, friendships and betrayals, birthday parties, prom nights, achievements, failures, exams, summers, picnics and parties, careers and true loves…. The film brings back the nostalgia of college days which are the most memorable days of everyone’s lives.
Godavari (Telugu: గోదావరి) is a 2006 Telugu musical, romantic film that was written and directed by Sekhar Kammula. G.V.G. Raju produced the film. Sumanth and Kamalinee Mukherjee played the lead roles. The film was a success at box office in addition to receiving several Nandi and Filmfare awards. Music of the film was composed by K.M. Radha Krishnan.
STORY
Godavari is a film about Ram, Sita and the river cruise that brings them together. Its a semi-urban love story set against the scenic backdrop of the Godavari river aboard a houseboat also called the “Godavari”. Its a story about Ram and Sita who decide to take a break from their disappointing lives in the city. They leave behind their personal and professional problems and decide to take a cruise on the river, Godavari, from Rajamundry to Badrachalam. They meet aboard the cruise liner and from there starts a story involving friendship, adventure, and eventually love. The story also reflects the characteristic culture of the Godavari region. There are also several sub stories involving the other characters on the house boat. Ram (Sumanth) is an almost impractically idealistic man. He wishes to make a career in politics even though he’s actually a software engineer with a degree from the USA. He lives with his grandmother in a middle class colony. He's in love with his cousin, Raji, whom he hopes to marry someday. However Raji declines Ram's proposal as she's insecure about his professional and financial future. A heartbroken but realistic Ram is forced to join her and his family on the river journey to Badrachalam, where Raji is due to get married to another man. Sita (Kamalinee) runs an unsuccessful clothing boutique. Her parents want her to forget about her business and tell her to get married instead. Sita is not enthusiastic about the idea, however circumstances force her to reluctantly agree with her parents. Unfortunately, the marriage alliance doesn’t work out for her and she subsequently choses to take a break from everything by going on the same Godavari river journey. How Ram and Sita fall in love forms the rest of the story.
Anand (Telugu: ఆనంద్ ) is a 2004 Telugu film that was directed, produced and written by Sekhar Kammula. According to Kammula, the film means ..contentment, happiness.The lead roles are played by Raja and Kamalinee Mukherjee. The film was well received by critics and owing to its success at the box office, it was remade in Tamil as NinaithaleThe film's basic story was also chosen as the subject for Sekhar Kammula's thesis screenplay which was as a part of a requirement for his successful completion of his Masters in Fine Arts at Howard University. The film begins with the death of the family of a young girl as a result of a character's drunken driving. The film sketches the path of the young girl growing up into a woman who lives her life independently and with self-esteem. The protagonist enters the woman's life and how they fall in love with each other forms the rest of the story. The film went on to win the Nandi Awards among several other prominent awards. If the award-winningDollar Dreams (2000) set the tone, then Anand introduced the legacy of successful films made with simple stories. A noteworthy mention is of the film's soundtrack which was well appreciated for its soft melodies.
STORY
The film is essentially the story of a girl Roopa (Kamalini Mukherjee). She begins her day with classical music lessons for kids in her neighborhood followed by her day job in an ad-agency. Roopa is no ordinary girl, with an ordinary life. She has had to grow up the hard way. She loses her parents in a tragic accident and from then on has had to fend for things herself. She is a true woman of today. A survivor. The story begins where most end. Roopa is about to get married to her colleague in the ad-agency, Rahul, a rich marwari. Her close friend Anitha (Satya Krishna) worries that Roopa will have to compromise on her freedom after her marriage into the orthodox north Indian family. Her worries come true on the day of marriage itself when Roopa’s to be mother-in-law makes a big deal about a trivial issue and Rahul doesn’t show enough courage to support Roopa. Roopa then realizes she will have to lose her individuality if she marries Rahul and takes a painful decision to call off the marriage. Into her life moves Anand. Anand is the son of an industrialist and its his father who is responsible for the accident that kills Roopa’s parents. His father, consumed by guilt, becomes mentally handicapped. Anand brings his father to Roopa’s wedding without her knowledge and witnesses the events that lead to the marriage being called off. When he see’s Roopa, he sees in his mind the idea of a perfect woman. He’s done the rounds of seeing women that his mom wants him to marry, and is pretty disillusioned about the whole idea. He decides that Roopa is the woman for him. Anand leaves his studies in the US and decides to move into a room next to Roopa’s house. Their relationship thereon. Their first communication. Their first fight. Their first re-conciliation. Their eventual friendship. The attempt of the film was to juxtapose the very simple things in life one yearns for, like a beautiful early morning, a cool evening breeze, a chilly moon lit night or a beautiful rainy day, while sitting at your porch and relishing a hot cup of good coffee. Anand is a film which is littered with such warm, cosy moments. Moments that we tend to miss out on in this rush hour age.
Dollar Dreams is a bilingual (English and Telugu) film directed and produced by Sekhar Kammula starring Anish Kuruvilla, Priyanka Veer, Santosh Kumar, Anil Prashanth and Dashveer Singh.
STORY
Dollar Dreams was ironically set in 1999. Just at the epicenter of the IT craze. Hyderabad was the hub of all IT related job immigration. The film focused on the lives of 7 young characters. Each of them with a dilemma of their own. About careers in IT and US study/job choices that they feel pressured to make. What happens to them during the course of the story and what decisions they finally make, are a true testament to the very confused frame of mind of several Hyderabadi youngsters in the Pre-Y2K era. Balu fun loving and laid back. Tries to take the shortest, most smart alec route possible to the States. Ravi, brought up with the idea that going to the US was the safest option. He makes all the right choices, but were they for the right reason. Srinu, under pressure from his father to do something with his life. He must make his mind up, as time is running out for him, while also trying to deal with his emotions about a neighborhood girl. Phani, already settled with a tidy job. The lure of the IT craze is making him think of moving to the states. Is it too late for him to try? Singh: Like all Singhs. Is very content being where he is. Archana: Phani’s fun loving, sugar cane craving Telugu ammai wife. Priyanka: She is Srinu’s conscience, goading him to make the right choices for the right reason, while also tackling a journalism job, that takes her on a curious adventure. Follow these characters and their dreams in Dollar Dreams. Dare to Dream. Care to Return.
