Antahpuram

Antahpuram
Poster
Directed by	Krishna Vamsi
Produced by	P. Kiran
Written by	Akkella (dialogues)
Screenplay by	Krishna Vamsi
Story by	Krishna Vamsi
Starring	Jagapati Babu Soundarya Prakash Raj Sai Kumar
Music by	Ilaiyaraaja
Cinematography	S. K. A. Bhupathi
Edited by	Shankar
Production company	Anandi Art Creations
Release date	30 November 1998
Running time	2:17:08
Country	India
Language	Telugu

Antahpuram (English: Palace) is a 1998 Telugu action drama film produced by P. Kiran under the Anandi Art Creations banner, directed by Krishna Vamsi. The film stars Jagapati Babu, Soundarya, Prakash Raj and Sai Kumar in prominent roles, with music composed by Ilaiyaraaja.^[1] Prakash Raj won the National Film Award – Special Jury Award / Special Mention (Feature Film) for his performance in the film. The film won three Filmfare Awards South for Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress.^[2] The film also went on to win the Nandi Award for Best Supporting Actor for Jagapati Babu and the Nandi Award for Best Female Playback Singer for S. Janaki and the Nandi Award for Best Female Dubbing Artist for Saritha. This film is famous for being the first film in Telugu to have the Rayalaseema faction as its main plot. The film was later remade in 1999 in Tamil with the same name with Parthiban replacing Jagapathi Babu and it was remade in Hindi as Shakti: The Power (2003).

Plot

Bhanu (Soundarya) is a carefree young woman who lives happily with her guardian (Babu Mohan) in Mauritius. She is introduced to Prakash (Sai Kumar) and they get married quite spontaneously, and are expecting a child soon. One day, Prakash comes to know that his family is in trouble, back in India. Bhanu is confused as she believed that he was an orphan, but Prakash explains to her that his family belongs to an extremely feudal society, and unable to bear the factions and violence in the community, he migrated to Mauritius. They decide to travel to India in order to assess the situation.

The couple arrive in Prakash's home town, where his father Narasimha (Prakash Raj) is an influential man with rustic habits, who doesn’t find Bhanu to be traditional enough for his son. Bhanu is uncomfortable with the casual approach to violence that she and her child see in the household. Narasimha’s wife Sharada is a kind-hearted person who takes care of Prakash, Bhanu and their son. She requests them to remain in India for a few more days in order to celebrate Prakash's birthday, and during this time Prakash is killed by Narasimha’s rivals. Bhanu is distraught and tries to take her son away from this madness and violence, but Narasimha stops her from doing so. He says Prakash’s son must be raised in a traditional way in order to avenge his father’s death, and if needed Bhanu can leave the town by leaving her son behind. Bhanu refuses to allow this and, with the help of Narasimha’s family members, she escapes from the house with her son. Sarai Veerraju (Jagapathi Babu), a petty thief, helps Bhanu evade Narasimha's man in order to board a train to Hyderabad. Sarai is killed in the midst of violence whilst trying to protect Bhanu and her son. Narasimha continues to pursue Bhanu, but ultimately allows her and the child to leave, after emotionally interacting with his grandson.

Cast

Soundtrack

The film's music was composed by Ilaiyaraaja to lyrics written by Sirivennela Sitaramasastri, and was released by Melody Makers Audio Company.
The film's music was largely applauded and the song Asalem Gurthukuradhu became an all-time hit, it is an evergreen song yet now and this song is one of Chithra's best songs. S. Janaki received the Nandi Award for her great rendition of Sooreedu Puvva in this film.

Tamil remake (1999)

Upon successful reception of the Telugu film, director Krishna Vamsi made a Tamil version of the movie in 1999, also titled Anthapuram. The film, which also retains some scenes canned in the original, stars Prakash Raj, Soundarya and Parthiban in prominent roles.^[3]

References

External links

• Antahpuram on IMDb