A festive boost to Tollywood

Dasara aka Vijayadasami has given a fresh boost to the Telugu film industry, which had been substantially impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. The festival has brought much enthusiasm among filmmakers, who have been eagerly waiting for the reopening of cinemas across the Telugu States. In what could be seen as a breather for the industry circles, as many as five projects have officially been rolled out today. 

Reunion

Naga Chaitanya's fans have been waiting for his new film announcement for a long time. While there has been much dilly-dallying over the release of his upcoming film Love Story, Chay has, meanwhile, reunited with his Manam director Vikram K Kumar for Thank You. According to reports, the film shows him in three different looks. Produced by Dil Raju, the female lead of the film is yet to be finalised.

Busy bee 

Aadaalloo Meeku Johaarlu is a project that director Kishore Tirumala has been waiting patiently for. While he planned to get Venkatesh on board as the protagonist, fate had other plans as the film has now gone to Sharwanand, who is straddling the sets of Sreekaram and an untitled Telugu-Tamil bilingual. Bankrolled by Sudhakar Cherukuri, Aadaalloo Meeku Johaarlu is a family drama that has Bheeshma girl Rashmika Mandanna as the female lead. The film is expected to go on floors early next year, soon after Sharwa wraps up Maha Samudram.

Two to tango

Sri Simha, who made a successful debut with Mathu Vadalara, has signed his next. The film marks the debut of Manikanth Gelli as the director. Produced by Sai Korrapati and Ravindra Benerjee, the film features Misha Narang and Chithra Shukla as the female leads. What's more exciting is that Simha's paternal uncle and director SS Rajamouli too attended the opening ceremony and sounded the clapboard, while his father and music composer MM Keeravani handed over the script to the makers. The film is touted to be a romcom and has music by Kaala Bhairava.

Return of Renu

Renu Desai is staging a comeback with Aadhya, a woman-centric web series that takes a hard look at crimes against women. Directed by M R Krishna Mamidala, the series also has Nandini Rai, Sai Dhansika, and Vaibhav Tatwawaadi in pivotal roles. The project showcases Renu in a never-seen-before role. Husharu-fame Teja Kurapati and Geethika Ratan will be seen as the lead pair in this web series produced by DS Rao and S Rajinikanth.

The cop is back

Pawan Kalyan has been on a signing spree and the actor has committed to yet another new film. With his penchant for remakes, Kalyan has agreed to star in the Telugu version of the acclaimed Malayalam film, Ayyappanum Koshiyum. He will be playing the role of a police officer, originally portrayed by Biju Menon. Produced under Sithara Entertainments, the film is being directed by Appatlo Okadundevadu-fame Saagar K Chandra and has music by SS Thaman. The project boasts technicians like art director AS Prakash, editor Naveen Nooli, and cinematographer Prasad Murella. The untitled remake will go on floors in the first quarter of 2021.