imported>Kugan1997 at 13:26, 31 August 2021

2021-08-31T13:26:52Z

>Kailash29792: /* Soundtrack */clean up

2021-06-25T06:36:47Z

Soundtrack: clean up

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{{About||the 1969 film|Kathanayakudu (1969 film)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2015}}
{{Infobox film
| name = Kathanayakudu
| image = Kathanayakudu rajinikanth.jpg
| caption = Movie Poster
| director = [[P. Vasu]]
| producer = [[Ashwini Dutt|C.Ashwini Dutt]] <br> G.P. Vjaykumar
| writer = [[Marudhuri Raja]] {{small|(dialogues)}}
| story = [[Sreenivasan (actor)|Sreenivasan]]
| screenplay = P. Vasu
| starring = [[Jagapati Babu]]<br />[[Meena (actress)|Meena]]
| music = [[G. V. Prakash Kumar]]
| cinematography = [[Arvind Krishna (cinematographer)|Arvind Krishna]]
| editing = Saravana
| studio = [[Vyjayanthi Movies]]
| distributor = [[Ayngaran International|Ayngaran]] (Worldwide)<br />[[Pyramid Saimira]] ([[United States|U.S.]])
| released = {{Film date|2008|8|1|df=y}}
| runtime = 146 minutes
| country = India
| language = Telugu
}}
'''''Kathanayakudu''''' ({{trans|Hero}}) is a 2008 Indian Telugu-language [[drama (film and television)|drama film]] produced by [[Aswani Dutt]] and G. P. Vijayakumar. It is directed by [[P. Vasu]]. The film is a remake of the [[Malayalam]] film ''[[Kadha Parayumbol]]'' (2007) and stars [[Jagapati Babu]] and [[Meena (actress)|Meena]] , with [[Rajinikanth]] in a cameo. [[Sunil (actor)|Sunil]] and [[Dharmavarapu Subramanyam|Dharmavarapu]] play pivotal roles. The film was a commercial success and received positive reviews. It was simultaneously made in [[Tamil language|Tamil]] as ''[[Kuselan]]'', which released to mixed reviews and was a below average grosser. Most of Rajinikanth's portions were dubbed from the Tamil version, except the climax scene with Babu.

The film explores the pressures of friendship, and revolves around a villager who had shared a strong friendship with a popular [[Film|cinema]] actor while they were in their youth. However, due to their different career routes, they are eventually forced to part ways; one becoming a national figure, the other becoming a village barber. Decades later, the actor returns to the village to participate in his film's shooting. Whilst the entire village becomes excited about the prospect of seeing the actor, the barber fears that his old friend would have forgotten him and eventually neglected him.

==Plot==
The plot tells the story of two childhood friends: Balakrishna ([[Jagapathi Babu]]) and Ashok Kumar ([[Rajinikanth]]). Balu stops at nothing to make his friend happy. As time passes by, they take different paths, and Balu becomes a barber in a small village called [[Sircilla|Siricilla]]. He marries Devi ([[Meena (actress)|Meena]]) and has three children and leads a happy life. However, his finances are poor and he is often led to the door of Dharmaraju ([[Dharmavarapu Subramanyam|Dharmavarapu]]), the financier. He has tough competition from the smarter and more clever Shanmugam ([[Sunil (actor)|Sunil]]), who has a salon opposite his shop. Balu is a man with self-respect and honesty. His life continues the same, until one day there is news that a film shooting is going to happen in a place near their village and the hero of the film is superstar Ashok Kumar''.'' The news spreads rapidly, but Balu hesitates to reveal himself to be a friend of Ashok Kumar. However, people around Balu learn about their friendship, and suddenly those who have been ridiculing him start doing favors for him—only with the intention of meeting Ashok Kumar, or at least watching him from outside. Balu is hesitant to do what they want, and soon people start shunning him. Balu faces poor treatment even from his own children. At last, Ashok Kumar publicly acknowledges Balu as his childhood friend who made him a superstar, and he meets Balu.

==Cast==
;Main cast
* [[Jagapati Babu]] as Balakrishna. Balakrishna, more commonly referred to as Balu, is a village barber. He lives care-free with his wife and three children, despite his financial struggles. His salon fails to earn profits due to his reluctance to accept assistance from others. ''Balu'' has a dilemma when his old friend Ashok Kumar returns to the village.
* [[Meena (actress)|Meena]] as Sreedevi. Sreedevi is the wife of Balu, who is commonly known for being rather boisterous and open-hearted despite her poor state of living. She shares great affection for her husband despite the villagers' hate towards him.
* [[Sunil (actor)|Sunil]] as Shanmugam. Shanmugam is a rival barber in the village, whose business is more profitable than Balu's.
* [[Dharmavarapu Subramanyam|Dharmavarapu]] as Dharmaraju. Dharmaraju is the financier who helps Balu manage the latter's money.

;Supporting cast
{{colbegin}}
* [[Nayanthara Chakravarthy]] as Balakrishna's daughter
* [[Ali (actor)|Ali]]
* [[M. S. Narayana]] as Dharmaraju's assistant
* [[Duvvasi Mohan]] as Dharmaraju's assistant
* [[Narsing Yadav]] as Dharmaraju's assistant
* [[Venu Madhav (actor)|Venu Madhav]]
* [[Tanikella Bharani]] as School teacher
* [[R. Sundarrajan (director)|R. Sundarrajan]] as Srinivasan
* [[Manobala]] as Constable
* [[Chinni Jayanth]] as Pasimani
* [[Kondavalasa Lakshmana Rao|Kondavalasa]]
* [[Rallapalli (actor)|Rallapalli]]
* Vijayaranga Raju
* Rajababu
* [[Shafna|Baby Shafna]] as Balakrishna's elder daughter
* [[Chitti Babu Punyamurthula|Chitti Babu]]
* [[Gundu Hanumantha Rao]]
* [[Gautam Raju]]
* [[Ananth Babu|Ananth]]
* [[Mohan Raman]] as Ashok Kumar's PA
* [[Thalapathi Dinesh]]
* Aajam
* Potti Rambabu
* Garimalla Visweswara Rao
* [[Geetha (actress)|Geetha]] as Headmistress
* [[Rajitha]] as Sister
* [[Fathima Babu]] as Sister Maria
* [[Sona Heiden|Sona]] as Sona
* Saira Banu
* Bhavana
* Shilpa
* Master Amal
* Baby Revathi
{{colend}}

;Guest appearances
{{colbegin}}
* [[Rajinikanth]] as Ashok Kumar.
* [[Nayantara]] as Nayantara. Nayantara is the co-star to Ashok Kumar in the film under production in the village.
* [[Brahmanandam]] as Koya Dora
* [[Prabhu (actor)|Prabhu]] as Inspector
* [[Nizhalgal Ravi]] as himself
* [[Vijayakumar (Tamil actor)|Vijayakumar]] as himself
* [[Mamta Mohandas]] as Assistant director
;Special appearances in the song "Cinema Cinema"
(in order of appearance)
* [[Suriya (actor)|Suriya]]
* [[Khushbu Sundar]]
* [[Sneha (actress)|Sneha]]
* [[G. V. Prakash Kumar]]
* [[Soundarya Rajinikanth]]
* [[P. Vasu]]
{{colend}}

==Soundtrack==

{{Infobox album
| name = Kathanayakudu
| type = film
| artist = [[G. V. Prakash Kumar]]
| cover =
| alt =
| released = 30 June 2008
| recorded = 2008
| venue =
| studio =
| genre = Soundtrack
| length = 29:43
| language = [[Telugu language|Telugu]]
| label = Big Music
| producer = [[G. V. Prakash Kumar]]
| prev_title = [[Ullasamga Utsahamga]]
| prev_year = 2008
| next_title = [[Ananda Thandavam (film)|Ananda Thandavam]]
| next_year = 2008
}}

The soundtrack of ''Kathanayakudu'' was released on 30 June 2008. The soundtrack consists of five songs. The song ''Cinema Cinema'' commemorates the 75th anniversary of [[Telugu cinema]]. Footage of [[Suriya]], [[Khushbu]], and [[Sneha (actress)|Sneha]] and archival footage of famous superstar actors [[N. T. Rama Rao]] (popularly "NTR"), [[Akkineni Nageswara Rao]] ("ANR"), [[M. G. Ramachandran]] ("MGR"), and [[Rajkumar (actor)|Rajkumar]] are shown with each chorus of this song. The verse alternates between clips shot of an actual movie crew filming on location, intercut with real-life superstar actor [[Rajinikanth]] — who plays a fictional superstar actor in this film — spoofing blockbuster movies such as ''[[Zorro]]'', ''[[Lawrence of Arabia]]'', ''[[House of Flying Daggers]]'', and the [[James Bond]] series.<ref>http://www.nonstopmp3.com/music/Telugu+-+Movies/albums/Kathanayakudu+(2008)</ref>

{| class="wikitable"
|- style="background:#cccccf; text-align:center;"
! No. !! Song !! Singers !! Length (m:ss)
|-
| 1|| "Cinema Cinema" || ''[[Shankar Mahadevan]]''|| 6:08
|-
| 2|| "Challe Challe" || [[Hariharan (singer)|''Hariharan'']], ''[[Sujatha Mohan]]'', ''Baby Rajini, Baby Pooja'' || 6:13
|-
| 3|| "Om Zaarare" ||''[[K. S. Chithra]]'', ''[[Daler Mehndi]]'' || 7:12
|-
| 4|| "Vatche Vatche" || ''[[Shreya Ghoshal]]''|| 4:34
|-
| 5|| "Ra Ra Ra Ramayanna" || ''[[Kailash Kher]]'', ''V Prasanna'' || 5:36
|}

==Development==
Following [[P. Vasu]] and [[Rajinikanth]]'s film ''[[Chandramukhi]]'' in 2005, Vasu had been keen to cast Rajinikanth in another role. Before signing ''Kathanayakudu'', he had narrated a story titled ''Vettaiyan'', which would have been a sequel of a character featured in ''[[Chandramukhi]]''.<ref name="vasua">{{cite web|author=Shankar, Settu|year=2007|title=P Vasu's version of Vettaiyan |publisher=OneIndia.com |access-date=2007-08-27 |url=http://entertainment.oneindia.in/tamil/exclusive/p-vasu-vettaiyan-170807.html}}</ref> Early in 2008, Rajinikanth signed up for S. Shankar's ''[[Enthiran|Robo]]'', while Kathanayakudu was launched at the Taj Coromandel in Chennai on 14 January 2008, coinciding with Pongal. P. Vasu signed up Rajinikanth and Jagapathi Babu to portray the lead roles, while [[Aswani Dutt]] agreed to produce the film in [[Telugu language|Telugu.]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.oniondosa.net/news/2008/1/Aswani-Dutt-producing-Rajinis-Kuselan-in-Telugu.htm |title=Aswani Dutt producing Rajinis Kuselan in Telugu |publisher=Oniondosa.net |access-date=2012-08-05}}</ref> The film is a remake of the Malayalam movie ''[[Kadha Parayumbol]]'', which was written by Sreenivasan, who also played the lead role in the movie. The shooting lasted 82 days, with the versions being shot simultaneously. Most of the movie was shot inside the Ramoji Rao film city, with other destinations including Kerala and Pollachi. The promotional event took place on 19 July 2008 at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium.<ref name="Event">{{cite web| title=Kuselan’s promotional event''| work=[http://www.behindwoods.com/ Behindwoods]|url=http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movie-news-1/july-08-02/kuselan-10-07-08.html |access-date=16 July 2008}}</ref>

Vasu made it clear that Rajinikanth would not perform an honorary role in the film, which [[Mammooty]] had portrayed in the original, but would play a full role, stating that, "the whole story revolves around him [Rajnikanth]". The film's launch was on 7 March 2008 at the [[AVM Productions|AVM]] Studios in [[Chennai]] with the leading artists present.<ref name="poojadfd">{{cite web|year=2008|title=Kuselan pooja held|publisher=Sify|access-date=2008-03-07 |url=http://sify.com/movies/tamil/fullstory.php?id=14618571|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080310111530/http://sify.com/movies/tamil/fullstory.php?id=14618571|url-status=dead|archive-date=2008-03-10}}</ref> P. Vasu said that the shooting lasted 82 days, with the versions being shot simultaneously and that most of the movie was shot inside the [[Ramoji Rao]] film city, with other destinations including [[Kerala]] and [[Pollachi]].<ref name="pvasuint">{{cite web|year=2008|title=P Vasu Interview
|publisher=Behindwoods|access-date=2008-06-19|url=http://www.behindwoods.com/tamil-movie-news-1/jun-08-03/kuselan-19-06-08.html}}</ref>

===Casting===
In the Telugu version, comedy actors [[Sunil (actor)|Sunil]], [[Brahmanandam]], [[Tanikella Bharani]] and [[Venu Madhav (actor)|Venu Madhav]] all signed up to play the roles of [[Jagapati Babu]]'s fellow villagers.<ref name="teluguo">{{cite web|year=2008|title=Aswani Dutt producing Rajinis Kuselan in Telugu|publisher=Oniondosa.net|access-date=2008-01-24|url=http://www.oniondosa.net/news/2008/1/Aswani-Dutt-producing-Rajinis-Kuselan-in-Telugu.htm}}</ref> [[Ileana D'Cruz]] turned down an offer to act in the film, citing scheduling conflicts.<ref name="ileanafuss">{{cite web|year=2008|title=Ileana refuses Rajini's Kuselan
|publisher=Chennai365.com|access-date=2008-01-28|url=http://chennai365.com/news/ileana-refuses-rajinis-kuselan/}}</ref> Like the Tamil version, it was said that several prominent [[Telugu people|Telugu]] actors had been approached to be a part of a song in the project, but none were selected.<ref name="specialcasttwo">{{cite web|author=Shankar, Settu|year=2008|title=Kamal, Ajith and Vijay dance with Rajini!!|publisher=OneIndia.com|access-date=2008-02-04|url=http://entertainment.oneindia.in/tamil/exclusive/2008/kamal-rajini-kuselan-ajith-vijay-040208.html}}</ref><ref name="specialcastthree">{{cite web|year=2008|title=Big star cast in Kuselan?|publisher=BharatStudent.com|access-date=2008-02-04|url=http://www.bharatstudent.com/cafebharat/view_news-Tamil-News%20and%20Gossips-3,18098.php}}</ref>

Technicians were common in both versions in the two films. with [[G. V. Prakash Kumar]] operating as the music composer and [[Arvind Krishna (cinematographer)|Arvind Krishna]] as the cinematographer.<ref name="detail">{{cite web|year=2008|title=Jegapathy Babu in 'Kuselan' |publisher=Cinesouth.com|access-date=2008-01-23|url=http://www.cinesouth.com/masala/hotnews/new/23012008-4.shtml}}</ref>

== Release ==
''Rediff'' gave the film two and a half stars (2.5 Star) and wrote: "P Vasu conceives everything in a larger than life canvas keeping in sync with the image of the superstar he is directing. And while he seems to have gone overboard by moving away from the original, Kathanayakudu is worth a watch for the touching last moments."<ref>https://www.rediff.com/movies/2008/aug/01ssk2.htm</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==

{{P. Vasu}}

[[Category:2008 films]]
[[Category:Indian films]]
[[Category:Telugu-language films]]
[[Category:Indian multilingual films]]
[[Category:Films directed by P. Vasu]]
[[Category:Films scored by G. V. Prakash Kumar]]
[[Category:Telugu remakes of Malayalam films]]
[[Category:Films shot in Alappuzha]]
[[Category:Films shot in Hyderabad, India]]
[[Category:Films shot at Ramoji Film City]]
[[Category:2000s multilingual films]]

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Kathanayakudu (2008 film) - Revision history

imported>Kugan1997 at 13:26, 31 August 2021

>Kailash29792: /* Soundtrack */clean up