Anando Brahma

Last updated

Anando Brahma
Anando Brahma.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed byMahi V. Raghav
Written byMahi V. Raghav
Produced byVijay Chilla
Shashi Devireddy
Starring Taapsee Pannu
Srinivas Reddy
Vennela Kishore
Shakalaka Shankar
Rajiv Kanakala
CinematographyAnish Tharun Kumar
Edited byShravan Katikaneni
Music by K
Production
company
Release date
  • 18 August 2017 (2017-08-18)
Running time
123 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu
Budget₹3 crore [1]
Box officeest.₹15 crore or ₹6 crore (distributor share) [1]

Anando Brahma is a 2017 Indian Telugu-language comedy horror film written and directed by Mahi V. Raghav, starring Tapasee Pannu, Srinivas Reddy, Shakalaka Shankar, and Vennela Kishore. [2] [3] Produced by Vijay Chilla and Shashi Devireddy, the film has music composed by K.

Contents

The film released on August 18, 2017, to positive reviews. [4] The film was remade in Tamil as Petromax (2019), Bengali as Bhootchakra Pvt. Ltd. (2019) and Kannada as Mane Maratakkide (2019). [5] It went on to be an inspiration for another Kannada film Damayanthi (2019) and also for the Pakistani film Lafangey (2022). [6]

Plot

Ramu, an NRI living in Malaysia, arrives in India after hearing the news of the Uttarakhand floods. He discovers his parents in the hospital mortuary and becomes sad. Deepa, Taapsee, Vijayachander, and Raghu are ghosts staying in their ancestral house. They are waiting eagerly for Vijayachander's wife to come home. They don't know how or when they died. A family visits their house for tenancy, but they scare the family away. The broker, who deals with the house, is also scared as he spots Taapsee's ghost and informs the house owner, Ramu, and his cop friend, Vamshi, of their presence. Vamshi is apprehensive, while Ramu dismisses it as a concoction. Vamshi conspires with Yadagiri to force Ramu to sell his house cheaply by fabricating and peddling the ghost story. They plan to demolish the house and build a hotel for high profits.

Sidhu overhears their conversation and makes a deal with Ramu that he will send his three friends to stay one night at the house, and if they survive, Ramu will pay 20% of the sale price to Sidhu as a commission. But his three friends encounter the ghosts that night. One is locked in the bathroom, his friend (Jeeva) is knocked unconscious, and another is scared away. Ramu believes ghosts exist in the house and is about to sell it at Yadagiri's demanded price. But Ramu, after Sidhu urges him, gives him one last chance to prove it's not haunted. Sidhu and his friend Tulasi meet Babu and Raju coincidentally at the hospital, and they all desperately need money. Sidhu has to care for his amnesiac mother and needs 25 lakhs for cardiac surgery to treat the hole in his heart. Babu, who is so infatuated with movies that he starts enacting the roles he watches, is duped by Bharani, who poses himself as an agent of famous cinema producers in Tollywood. Tulasi, a drunkard who drinks after the clock ticks nine at night, bets on a cricket match in an inebriated state and loses the money he saved for his son's surgery. Raju is deaf and night-blind and often uses his flute when frightened. He is embroiled in a robbery case after robbers looted the ATM he was guarding, and a CCTV camera caught him napping. The security agency that hired him tells him to repay the money lost to prevent getting banned from the agency.

As they start staying in the house, all the ghosts decide to scare them away. However, all four friends remain calm due to their peculiar habits, like Babu, who starts acting out scenes like Vikram from Anniyan . Instead, they begin intimidating the spirits. After the first day, Ramu inquires Sidhu about the presence of ghosts and decides to give him two more days to sell the house. Vamshi does not like Sidhu and his group staying inside the house and sends fake ghosts to scare them away. However, the real ghosts frighten the counterfeit ghosts. On the second night, Sidhu and his group remain calm and scare the ghosts. However, on the third night, the ghosts frighten the group and are about to kill them when Sidhu's mother comes to the house looking for him. She is none other than Vijayachander's wife.

Past: A flashback reveals that Ramu is their son. Ramu gets an offer for a job in Malaysia and leaves. The couple adopted Taapsee and Deepa. Ramu returns to India and incurs a loss. So Ramu wishes to sell the house to compensate for his business debts. Vijayachander refuses to sell the house after he insults Taapsee and Deepa, calling them orphans. Ramu gets infuriated and kills the entire family by hitting and burning them, excluding his mother. She witnessed Ramu murdering them.

Present: Vamshi discovers that Ramu killed his family, but Yadagiri kills him. The ghosts realise the reasons for their deaths and enact their revenge by killing Ramu, Yadagiri and Yadagiri's goons. When Sidhu and his friends leave the house, they find a bag filled with cash in Ramu's car. They converted the house into a retirement home. They live happily with Taapsee's mother, who recovered from amnesia, and other old pensioners, abandoned by their children.

Cast

Soundtrack

Anando Brahma
Soundtrack album by
K
Released10 August 2017
Recorded2017
Genre Soundtrack
Length12:20
Label Saregama South
Producer K
K chronology
The Ghazi Attack
(2017)
Anando Brahma
(2017)
London Babulu
(2017)
External audio
Nuvola apps arts.svg Official Audio Jukebox on YouTube

Music is composed by K. [7]

Track list
No.TitleLyricsSinger(s)Length
1."Merise"Krishna KanthS.V. Jananie3:20
2."Aham Brahmasmi (Naa Madhi Ninnu)" (Original Lyricist : C. Narayana Reddy)Mahi V. Raghav Malgudi Subha 2:19
3."The Family - Theme Music" (Instrumental)  1:49
4."Ramu, The Son - Theme Music" (Instrumental)  1:39
5."Skeleton Guy and Ghost Girl - Theme Music" (Instrumental)  1:01
6."The Mission - Theme Music" (Instrumental)  1:52
Total length:12:20

Release

Anando Brahma released on 18 August 2017. [8]

Reception

Box office

Anando Brahma collected 15 crore (US$1.8 million) worldwide gross. [9]

Critical reception

Sangeetha Devi Dundoo of The Hindu wrote "Laugh-aloud moments apart, Anando Brahma is a simple story of a family and crime. Taapsee is a significant player in the drama and does her part effectively, but she’s not a show stealer. And that’s a good thing. A film needn’t always ride on star value". [10] The Times of India gave 3 out of 5 stars stating "Four men find themselves in a house believed to be haunted and it's a delightful riot of comedy juxtaposed with horror". [11] Firstpost gave 3.25 out of 5 stars stating "Anando Brahma has no frills attached to it and it’s pretty clear about what it wants to say, while avoiding several cliches associated with the genre. It reminded me of all those simple bed-time stories which we once heard from our grandparents, and Mahi V Raghav has brought that essence into the story-telling. It’s a simple film with a good dose of humour. Maybe the next time I go watch a horror film, I’ll end up smiling throughout its runtime or carry a flute along with me. Thank God, at least now, there’s one film which doesn’t suffer from horror-comedy fatigue". [12]

Business Standard gave 3.5 out of 5 stars stating "Anando Brahma has its flaws, especially when we are not explained some actions of Rajeev Kanakala, but you can easily oversee it, thanks to the rib-tickling fun second half". [13] The Indian Express gave 2 out of 5 stars stating "We have seen most of the paranormal activities of Anando Brahma in many other films in the past. The horror scenes hardly catch us by surprise, while comedy comes as a saving grace". [14] Idlebrain.com gave 3 out of 5 stars stating "Anando Brahma partly works due to a few comedy episodes, but on other aspects it leaves a lot to be desired". [15]

Sify gave 3.5 out of 5 stars stating "Anando Brahma largely works due to its hilarious moments in the second half. First half is regular stuff but it ends up as decent horror comedy as four comedians show their best in a 30 minutes episode in the post-interval sequences". [16] IndiaGlitz gave 2.75 out of 5 stars stating "Anando Brahma comes into its own in the portions where the counter-intuitive element of humans scaring away ghosts comes to the fore. Good performances, too, make it a decent entertainer. The first half could have been much better on the comedy front". [17] Great Andhra gave 3 out of 5 stars stating "One can watch it for its comedy and second half. Among the recent horror comedies, this one is a bit different and has more laugh-out loud moments. It will appeal to audiences who are seeking some decent comedy". [18]

Accolades

South Indian International Movie Awards [19]

Related Research Articles

Vijayachander,, is an Indian actor, director and producer, known for his works in Telugu cinema, theatre, and television. Regarded as one of the finest character actor's of Telugu cinema, Vijayachander has appeared in more than forty feature films in a variety of roles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taapsee Pannu</span> Indian actress (born 1987)

Tapasee Pannu, known as Taapsee Pannu, is an Indian actress who works primarily in Hindi, Telugu, and Tamil films. She has received two Filmfare Awards. After a brief modelling career, Pannu made her acting debut with the 2010 Telugu film Jhummandi Naadam and went on to act in the 2011 Tamil film Aadukalam. She made her Hindi film debut with David Dhawan's comedy Chashme Baddoor (2013). After playing the leading lady in several Telugu and Tamil films, Pannu gained notice for her performances in the Hindi spy thriller Baby (2015) and the courtroom drama Pink (2016), both of which were critical and commercial successes.

<i>Gundello Godari</i> 2013 Indian film

Gundello Godari is a 2013 Indian Telugu-language adventure drama film directed by Kumar Nagendra and produced by Lakshmi Manchu. The film stars Aadhi Pinisetty, Taapsee Pannu, Lakshmi Manchu, and Sundeep Kishan. The film was released on 8 March 2013. Manchu won critical accolades for her Performance winning Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress – Telugu and SIIMA Award for Best Supporting Actress in Telugu. The film got positive response at the box office, and was showcased at the Daring Independent Film Festival, Toronto. The film was also nominated for Best film at the International Indian Film Festival in South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">K (composer)</span> Indian music composer (born 1987)

Krishna Kumar, better known by his stage name K, is an Indian music composer.

<i>Kanchana 2</i> 2015 film directed by Raghava Lawrence

Kanchana 2 is a 2015 Indian Tamil-language horror comedy film written, produced and directed by Raghava Lawrence, who enactes in dual role and reprises his role. Alongside him, the film stars Taapsee Pannu, Nithya Menen, Renuka, Jayaprakash, Rajendran, Suhasini Maniratnam, Sriman, Mayilsamy, with Kovai Sarala also reprising her role. It is the third instalment in the Muni film series, and is the sequel to Kanchana (2011). The film was remade in Kannada as Kalpana 2 (2016) starring Upendra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mahi V Raghav</span> Indian film director

Mahi V. Raghav is an Indian film maker, screenwriter and producer known for his works in Telugu cinema. He is notable for directing Anando Brahma, a comedy horror and Yatra, a biopic of YS Raja Sekhar Reddy, late CM of Andhra Pradesh.

<i>Kalpana 2</i> 2016 Indian film

Kalpana 2 is a 2016 Indian Kannada-language horror comedy film directed by R. Anantha Raju and produced by Dr. Rajendra, Shilpa Srinivas and Swamee. It is the second installment after Kalpana and is a remake of the Tamil film Kanchana 2. The film features Upendra, Priyamani and Avantika Shetty in the lead roles. The film's musical score is by Arjun Janya.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Taapsee Pannu filmography</span>

Taapsee Pannu is an Indian actress who works in Hindi, Telugu and Tamil language films. Pannu is best known for her performance in the spy film Baby (2015) and the courtroom drama Pink (2016), the social drama Mulk (2018), the romantic drama Manmarziyaan (2018), the thriller Badla (2019), the space drama Mission Mangal (2019), the biopic Saand Ki Aankh (2019), the drama Thappad (2020) and the comedy drama Dunki (2023) which has emerged as her highest grosser.

<i>Yatra</i> (2019 film) 2019 Indian Telugu-language biographical film

Yatra (transl. Journey), also marketed as YSR: Yatra, is a 2019 Indian Telugu-language biographical film starring Mammootty as Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy. Directed by Mahi V Raghav, the film is based on padayatra of Reddy who served as Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh from May 2004 to June 2009 representing Indian National Congress. The film is produced by Vijay Chilla, Shashi Devi Reddy under 70mm Entertainments and music composed by K. Principal photography commenced on 20 June 2018 in Hyderabad.

70mm Entertainments is an Indian film production company established in 2015, which predominantly works in Telugu Cinema.

<i>Game Over</i> (2019 film) 2019 Indian Psychological horror film

Game Over is a 2019 Indian psychological thriller film directed by Ashwin Saravanan. Produced by YNOT Studios and Reliance Entertainment, the film stars Taapsee Pannu as a woman with PTSD who is defending her home from a mysterious intruder. The film was shot simultaneously in Tamil and Telugu. The film was also dubbed in Hindi and was presented by Anurag Kashyap. The dialogues were written by Ashwin Saravanan and Kaavya Ramkumar in Tamil and Venkat Kacharla in Telugu. The music is composed by Ron Ethan Yohann.

<i>Bhootchakra Pvt. Ltd.</i> 2019 Bengali film

Bhootchakra Pvt. Ltd. is a 2019 Bengali adventure horror film directed by Haranath Chakraborty and produced by Nispal Singh. The film starring Soham Chakraborty, Bonny Sengupta, Gaurav Chakrabarty, Srabanti Chatterjee, Rittika Sen, Kaushik Sen, Paran Bandopadhyay and Shantilal Mukherjee, is an adventure film and follows three boys and their search for ghosts. The film is a remake of 2017 Telugu movie Anando Brahma was released on 5 July 2019, under the banner of Surinder Films.

<i>Petromax</i> (2019 film) 2019 film by Rohin Venkatesan

Petromax is a 2019 Indian Tamil-language comedy horror film directed by Rohin Venkatesan and produced by Passion Studios. The film starring Tamannaah Bhatia, Prem, Yogi Babu, Ramdoss, Kaali Venkat, Sathyan and TSK. This film is a remake of the Telugu film Anando Brahma and it opened to mixed reviews.

<i>Damayanthi</i> (film) 2019 horror-comedy Indian film in Kannada language by Navarasan

Damayanthi is a 2019 Kannada mythological comedy horror film written and directed by Navarasan. The film is also being dubbed into Tamil and Malayalam with the same title and in Telugu language as Samharini. The film is produced by Sri Lakshmi Vrushadhri Productions and is touted to be a mythological horror-comedy. The horror-comedy thriller set in the 80s, has Radhika, who features in three shades. The film has G. K. Reddy, in a pivotal role, along with Saurav Lokesh, Anusha Ravi, Raj Bahadhur, Sadhu Kokila, and Tabla Nani as part of the cast. The movie was reported to be inspired by the 2017 Telugu movie Anando Brahma and released two weeks after the release of the official kannada remake of the Telugu movie "Anando Brahma" which is Mane Maratakkide.

<i>Mane Maratakkide</i> 2019 Indian film

Mane Maratakkide is a 2019 Indian Kannada-language comedy horror film written and directed by Manju Swaraj. The film was produced by S. V. Babu under his banner SV Productions. It features Sadhu Kokila, Kuri Pratap, Chikkanna, Ravishankar Gowda and Sruthi Hariharan in the lead role. The music is handled by Abhimann Roy and the cinematography is by B. Suresh Babu. The film was released on 15 November 2019. The film is the official remake of 2017 Telugu film Anando Brahma. This movie released two weeks before Damayanthi, which was reported to be inspired by the same Telugu movie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shakalaka Shankar</span> Indian actor

Seshu Shankar, better known by his stage name Shakalaka Shankar, is an Indian actor who works in Telugu-language films. Known for his comic roles, Shankar is one of the highest paid Telugu film comedians in 2017.

SIIMA Award for Best Debut Director – Telugu is presented by Vibri media group as part of its annual South Indian International Movie Awards, for best film direction done by an debut director in Telugu films. The award was first given in 2012 for films released in 2011.

<i>Looop Lapeta</i> 2022 film by Aakash Bhatia

Looop Lapeta is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language comedy-thriller film directed by Aakash Bhatia and jointly produced by Sony Pictures Films India, Ellipsis Entertainment and Aayush Maheshwari. An official adaptation of the award-winning German film Run Lola Run by Tom Tykwer, the film stars Taapsee Pannu and Tahir Raj Bhasin in the lead roles. The film premiered on 4 February 2022 on Netflix.

<i>Blurr</i> 2022 Indian horror thriller film by Ajay Bahl

Blurr is a 2022 Indian Hindi-language horror thriller film. It has been directed by Ajay Bahl and jointly produced by Zee Studios, Outsiders Films and Echelon Productions. The film features Taapsee Pannu and Gulshan Devaiah in the leading roles. This is Taapsee Pannu's first project as a producer.

<i>Annabelle Sethupathi</i> 2021 film by Deepak Sundarrajan

Annabelle Sethupathi is a 2021 Indian Tamil-language horror comedy film directed by Deepak Sundarrajan and produced by Sudhan Sundaram and G Jayaram under the banner of Passion Studios. The film stars Vijay Sethupathi in a dual role as identical twin brothers alongside Taapsee Pannu, Jagapathi Babu and Yogi Babu. The film was released worldwide on Disney+ Hotstar on 17 September 2021 to unfavorable reviews from critics.

References

  1. 1 2 "'Anando Brahma' Box Office collections Day 24: Taapsee Pannu starrer becomes the biggest hit of small budget films released in 2017?". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 19 December 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  2. "Taapsee Pannu all set for a Tollywood comeback with 'Anando Brahma'". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 4 December 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  3. "Anando Brahma first look: Taapsee Pannu returns to Telugu cinema with a horror-comedy". The Indian Express. 27 May 2017. Archived from the original on 5 August 2017. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
  4. "Rearing to go: Mahi V Raghav". Deccan Chronicle. 23 August 2019. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  5. "'Mane Marattakide' review: This horror-comedy is one laughter ride". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 11 December 2020. Retrieved 4 September 2020.
  6. "Damayanthi is inspired by Anando Brahma". Bangalore Mirror. 30 November 2019. Archived from the original on 30 November 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  7. "Anando Brahma Music Review". indiaglitz. Archived from the original on 20 October 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  8. "Anando Brahma". bookmyshow. Archived from the original on 25 August 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  9. "Anando Brahma Final Total WW Collections". andhraboxoffice. Archived from the original on 25 October 2019. Retrieved 20 October 2019.
  10. "Anando Brahma: Plenty of laughs". The Hindu. 17 August 2017. Archived from the original on 9 February 2021. Retrieved 16 December 2019.
  11. "Anando Brahma Review". The Times of India. 17 August 2017. Archived from the original on 20 August 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  12. "Anando Brahma movie review: Mahi V Raghav's film is delightful twist on the horror-comedy genre". Firstpost. 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg
  13. "'Anando Brahma': Refreshing horror-comedy (Telugu movie review)". Business Standard. 20 August 2017. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg
  14. "Anando Brahma movie review: This Tapsee Pannu film is a run-off-the-mill horror-comedy". The Indian Express. 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  15. "Anando Brahma jeevi review". Idlebrain.com. 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 25 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  16. "Anando Brahma review: Comedy at its best". Sify . 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 19 August 2017. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svg
  17. "Anando Brahma Review". IndiaGlitz. 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 20 October 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar half.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  18. "'Anando Brahma' Review: Enjoyable Horror Comedy". Great Andhra. 18 August 2017. Archived from the original on 16 December 2019. Retrieved 16 December 2019.Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svgStar empty.svg
  19. "SIIMA Awards 2018 – List of nominations". Tollywood.net. 5 August 2018. Archived from the original on 7 April 2022. Retrieved 26 November 2019.