Shiva, the iconic 1989 action-drama starring Nagarjuna that marked the directorial debut for Ram Gopal Varma, will have a grand theatrical re-release on November 14. Earlier, in August, the makers had released a special re-release trailer to announce the same. On Thursday, the makers shared a video byte featuring Sekhar Kammula as he spoke about the film and its impact.

Talking about Shiva, Sekhar Kammula recalled the ‘sweet and strange’ memories he had of the film, recalling how the film was shot at many locations near his house and his friend’s house, including Keyes High School in Secunderabad. Sekhar added, further recalling the experience of watching the shoot, “When Nagarjuna would arrive, we would think it’s a big film. But none of us knew anything about this new director, Ram Gopal Varma.”

The Kuberaa filmmaker also recalled how he watched the film at Crossroads. He added, “There were so many feelings of both shock and being wowed. Nagarjuna redefined not just himself, but also hero’s role in a film.” Sekhar went on to describe Shiva as a ‘never before film,’ adding, “Telugu cinema can be divided into two era — before Shiva and after Shiva. It’s a true classic masterpiece, and I am eagerly looking forward to the masterpiece.”

Originally released in 1989, Shiva was a massive boxoffice hit and instantly earned an iconic status for its pathbreaking cinematic language. The film was later remade in Hindi, and released in 1990 and gained Nagarjuna a new fanbase in Hindi belt.  Post Shiva, Nagarjuna and Ram Gopal Varma worked together in Antham (later also remade as Drohi), Govindha Govindha, and Officer. 

For Shiva’s release, the film’s production banner Annapurna Studios earlier announced that they have completely done the sound mixing of Shiva — from the original mono mix to Dolby Atmos for the first time ever using highly advanced AI engineering. They also shared that the film will have 4K remastered visuals and unprecedented Dolby Atmos experience.