Actor Satya Dev, who has been waiting for a commercial breakthrough for nearly a decade, is finally enjoying the success of Rao Bahadur. Directed by Venkatesh Maha, the psychological drama has opened to positive word of mouth, with audiences and critics praising the film, particularly Satya Dev's performance as Ramappa in both his younger and older avatars.
"Whatever I said about Rao Bahadur during the promotions came straight from my heart, and now the audience is saying the same thing. I genuinely believed that after Baahubali and RRR, Rao Bahadur would represent Telugu cinema, and today I feel that belief has been justified by the audience's response," said Satya Dev at the film's success meet.
The event also coincided with the actor's birthday celebrations on Saturday. "I have put in the same amount of hard work for every film in my career, but most of them ended in disappointment. Disappointment is not a new word for me because I have lived with it for so many years. But now, hearing the word 'success' is something completely new to me," he said.
Satya Dev also revealed an interesting detail about the film's journey. "I actually tried to convince director Venkatesh Maha to approach other actors because I felt the film would reach a wider audience if someone else played the lead. I even acted as a mediator. But eventually the film came back to me, and today the audience has embraced it wholeheartedly," he said.
The actor added that the film's success meant much more than personal recognition. "More than hearing that Rao Bahadur has given me success, I always believed audiences would miss something special if they didn't watch this film. I wanted a film like this to succeed," he said.
On the occasion, Satya Dev thanked producers Anurag Reddy, Sarath Chandra and Chinta Gopalakrishna Reddy for believing in the project.
"Anurag and Sarath took the film to the next level with their promotional efforts. Even people in the United States are talking about Rao Bahadur. I sincerely thank the audience for giving us such wonderful success," he said.
Rao Bahadur has received widespread appreciation for its performances, with Satya Dev earning praise for portraying the complex character of Ramappa. Deepa Thomas plays the female lead, while Vikas Muppala has also been appreciated for his performance as Dr Achari, a character that runs parallel to Satya Dev's throughout the film.