Billa (2009 film)

Last updated

Billa
Billa Telugu Film Poster.jpg
Theatrical release poster
Directed by Meher Ramesh
Screenplay byMeher Ramesh
Story by Salim–Javed
Based on Don (Hindi)
Produced byD. Narendra
Prabodh
Starring
Cinematography Soundarrajan
Edited by Marthand K. Venkatesh
Music by Mani Sharma
Production
company
Gopi Krishna Movies
Distributed by Creative Commercials
Release date
  • 3 April 2009 (2009-04-03)
Running time
154 minutes
CountryIndia
LanguageTelugu
Box officeest.₹19.3 crore [1]

Billa is a 2009 Indian Telugu-language action thriller film directed by Meher Ramesh and produced by Gopikrishna Movies. The film stars Prabhas in a dual role alongside Krishnam Raju, Anushka Shetty, Namitha, Rahman, and Kelly Dorjee. The soundtrack was composed by Mani Sharma. It is a remake of 1978 Hindi film Don [2] [3] and carried the same title as Tamil movie, Ajith Kumar starrer Billa. The film follows the titular criminal's lookalike, a thief from Andhra Pradesh who replaces the don in Malaysia after he died in a high-speed chase. Tasked with infiltrating the mafia, he embarks on a covert mission to gather intelligence on a major weapons deal.

Contents

The film began its production in October 2008 and was released and distributed worldwide by Creative Commercials. [4]

Plot

The story begins with an underworld don Billa hiding and operating out of Malaysia, hiding from Interpol's international criminal list. Krishnamoorthy, an ACP working for the Interpol, has spent the last few years looking for Billa, leaving behind a life in India. During a chase with the police, Billa is severely wounded after an accident, and dies in front of the ACP. The ACP then secretly holds a funeral for Billa. Interpol Officer Dharmendra is assigned to work with the ACP to capture the elusive Billa as no-one knows of Billa's death. The ACP keeps the death of Billa as a secret even from his fellow officers, and tracks down a look-alike called Katikaranga (Ranga), a petty thief based in Visakhapatnam. He asks Ranga to infiltrate Billa's gang by pretending to be Billa. In return, he will make sure that the children Ranga adopted, Lakshmi and Sreenu, get a proper education in Hyderabad.

The ACP trains Ranga and sends him back to Billa's gang as a person who has lost his memory. Slowly Ranga starts to learn about Billa's gang and even speaks to Devil, Billa's boss, on the phone. He also gets attracted to one of the girl members of the gang, Maya (Anushka Shetty) who had been secretly plotting to kill Billa as he killed her brother Vikram and his fiancée Priya. Ranga then provides a pen drive with the secret information of the crime network to the ACP, but he is about to be killed by Maya who thinks he is Billa. At this juncture, the ACP arrives and tells her that he is Ranga and not Billa. Since then, she begins to assist Ranga and the ACP in their mission and soon falls in love with Ranga. Later before a party, Ranga secretly provides information to the ACP about a meeting of Billa's network, and Lisa, Billa's girlfriend, overhears his conversation. She challenges Ranga, but in the fight, he accidentally kills her. A shootout occurs at the party, and the ACP is secretly killed by someone, leaving his gun behind. Ranga finds the ACP's body and the gun, but is taken into the custody of the police team, now headed by Interpol Officer Dharmendra. He argues during interrogation that he is Ranga and not Billa to Dharmendra. Ranga mentions a piece of evidence – the pen drive, which may prove his innocence, but the pen drive is nowhere to be found.

Unable to prove his innocence, he escapes from a police van. He phones Dharmendra and asks him to meet at the Aero bridge. Here it is revealed that Dharmendra is none other than the Underworld Crime Don Devil, and he is the one who killed ACP Krishnamoorthy. While escaping from Devil's gang, he meets Officer Adithya, who apparently had the pen drive all along, and strikes a deal with Ranga to get hold of Devil. Meanwhile, Maya has been kidnapped by Devil after she tried to defend Ranga from Devil. Maya is tied up and kept in a car with her mouth taped shut. Ranga decides to pose as Billa to Devil, and provides Russian explosives to an arms dealer Rashid, who insisted on dealing with Billa. Enraged at being slighted by Rashid, following the completion of the deal, Devil and his henchman Ranjith fight with Ranga. Soon the police arrived and Devil, posing as Dharmendra, asks the police to arrest Ranga as Billa but gets shot by the squad of police and dies as the police have wired the entire conversation between Devil and Ranga, thus proving Ranga's innocence.

It ends with Ranga returning to Visakhapatnam with Maya, and deciding to start a school and college there with the government reward given to him and four suitcases of cash he stole from Billa's estate in Malaysia.

Cast

Cameo appearances

Production

Development and casting

During the making of Kantri (2008), actor N. T. Rama Rao Jr. expressed his intention of making Billa (2007) in Telugu following his grandfather N. T. Rama Rao's Yugandhar (1979). Meher Ramesh, however, felt that Rama Rao Jr. would not fit into the role at that stage of his career. Ramesh also explored the idea of making the film with Ravi Teja, but dropped the idea due to budget constraints. [5] Ramesh later approached Prabhas who was excited to work for the project. Prabhas' uncle, Krishnam Raju, was also on board for a pivotal role, marking their first on-screen collaboration. Ramesh cast Anushka Shetty as the female lead. Shetty worked for over two months to slim down for the role. Hansika Motwani readily agreed to act in the film when suggested by Ramesh. Namitha, like Shetty, lost weight before signing the film. [5] Meher wanted either Sameer Reddy or Chota K. Naidu for the cinematography, but due to non-availability of dates from the both of them, Soundararajan was chosen instead, marking his debut in Telugu cinema. [5]

Filming

Filming was also at the Langkawi sky bridge. Langkawi sky bridge.jpg
Filming was also at the Langkawi sky bridge.

The film was launched at Gopikrishna Pictures office on October 9, 2008. [6] The film was shot extensively in Malaysia for three months. Filming was completed in 104 working days. [5]

Music

The film's score and soundtrack was composed by Mani Sharma. The audio launch of Billa was held at Shilpakala Vedika on 18 March 2009 with Dasari Narayana Rao, S. S. Rajamouli, V. V. Vinayak, Gopichand and Allu Arjun as guests. Dasari Narayana Rao launched the music. The audio rights was bagged by Lahari Music. [7] The song "My Name is Billa" was later re-used by Sharma for the Tamil film Sura (2010) as "Naan Nadanthaal Adhiradi" and "Bommali " as "Thanjavoor Jillakkaari". [8]

Track listing
No.TitleLyricsArtist(s)Length
1."Hariloranga Hari" Ramajogayya Sastry Mano, Ranjith, Kannan4:07
2."Ellora Shilpanni"Ramajogayya Sastry Rita 4:06
3."Billa Theme Song" Meher Ramesh Ranjith, Rahul Nambiar 4:30
4."Bommali"Ramajogayya Sastry Hemachandra, Karunya, Sravana Bhargavi, Malavika 5:15
5."Ne Pataasu" Bhaskarabhatla Rita, Rahul Nambiar 3:59
6."My Name is Billa"Ramajogayya Sastry Ranjith, Naveen Madhav3:57
Total length:25:54

Release and reception

The film was released on 3 April 2009.

Jeevi of Idlebrain stated "First half of the film is alright" but found the second half "a little disappointing" and "prolonged", while also stating "Prabhas’s makeover and styling as Billa and good production values" as positive points but "on the flip side, the second half should have been effectively handled." [9] Critic of Indiaglitz called it "stylish, visually rich" but "Not much in content and depth though". [10] Times of India wrote "If director Meher Ramesh believes that pretty damsels, exotic locales, swanky cars and stylised shots are the ingredients for a blockbuster, then he is grossly mistaken. Billa, the Telugu remake of Don, has more style than substance, and though Prabhas gives an impressive performance as a suave ruthless don". [11] A critic from Bangalore Mirror wrote that "Ramesh’s Billa is an extremely ‘stylish’ movie by Telugu standards. Most parts have been shot at scenic locales in Malaysia. Prabhas has toned his body well and is a treat to watch". [12]

A re-mastered 4K version was re-released in theatres on 2 October 2022, on the occasion of Prabhas's 43rd birthday. The film is releasing in over 70 locations across the United states. This is the most extensive list of theatres and record-level theatres among re-released Telugu movies. The movie collected ₹ ₹1.05 crore (US$ 129,000) . [13]

Box-office

Billa collected ₹19.3 Crore Distributors’ Share.

Related Research Articles

<i>Don</i> (1978 film) 1978 Indian film directed by Chandra Barot

Don is a 1978 Indian Hindi-language action thriller film directed by Chandra Barot from a story written by Salim–Javed and produced by Nariman Irani. The film stars Amitabh Bachchan in dual role, alongside Zeenat Aman, Pran, Iftekhar, Om Shivpuri and Satyen Kappu in supporting roles. The music was composed by Kalyanji–Anandji with lyrics written by Anjaan and Indeevar.

<i>Varsham</i> (2004 film) 2004 Indian film

Varsham (transl. Rain) is a 2004 Indian Telugu-language romantic action film directed by Sobhan and produced by M.S. Raju under Sumanth Art Productions banner. The film stars Prabhas and Trisha in the lead roles, while Gopichand,Prakash Raj, Paruchuri Venkateswara Rao and Chandra Mohan appear in pivotial supporting roles. The music was composed by Devi Sri Prasad, while the cinematography and editing were handled by S. Gopal Reddy and K. V. Krishna Reddy.

<i>Bobby</i> (2002 film) 2002 Indian film

Bobby is a 2002 Indian Telugu-language romance film written and directed by Sobhan and produced by K. Krishna Mohan Rao. The movie stars Mahesh Babu, Aarthi Agarwal, Raghuvaran, and Prakash Raj while Brahmanandam, Sunil, Pragathi, Ravi Babu, and Meher Ramesh play supporting roles. The soundtrack of the movie was scored by Mani Sharma, the cinematography was done by Venkat R. Prasad, and editing was handled by S. Sudhakar Reddy. The film released on 31 October 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anushka Shetty</span> Indian actress (born 1981)

Sweety Shetty, known by her stage name Anushka Shetty, is an Indian actress known for her work majorly in Telugu and Tamil cinema. She is the recipient of three Filmfare Awards South, two Nandi Awards, two SIIMA Awards and one Tamil Nadu State Film Award. Having appeared over 50 films in a variety of roles, she is one of the highest-paid South Indian actresses. She was honoured with Kalaimamani in 2010 by the Government of Tamil Nadu.

The Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress Award – Telugu is given by the Filmfare magazine as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Telugu films. The award was introduced and first given at the 50th Filmfare Awards South in 2002.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Krishnam Raju</span> Indian actor and politician (1940–2022)

Uppalapati Venkata Krishnam Raju was an Indian actor and politician. He was known for his works in Telugu cinema and was widely known as "Rebel Star" for his rebellious acting style. He was also the winner of the inaugural Nandi Award for Best Actor. Krishnam Raju starred in more than 183 feature films in his career. He made his film debut with the 1966 film Chilaka Gorinka produced and directed by K. Pratyagatma. Krishnam Raju had won five Filmfare Awards South and three state Nandi Awards. Krishnam Raju was also an active politician.

<i>Yugandhar</i> 1979 film by K. S. R. Das

Yugandhar is a 1979 Indian Telugu-language action film directed by K. S. R. Das. The film stars N. T. Rama Rao and Jayasudha, with music composed by Ilaiyaraaja. It is a remake of the Hindi film Don (1978). The film was commercially successful.

<i>Kantri</i> 2008 Indian film

Kantri is a 2008 Indian Telugu-language action film written and directed by Meher Ramesh, a protégé of director Puri Jagannadh and who had earlier worked on Kannada films. Jr. NTR, Hansika Motwani, and Tanishaa star in the lead roles, while Prakash Raj, Ashish Vidyarthi, Mukesh Rishi, Sayaji Shinde, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Venu Madhav, Sunil, Brahmanandam, Subbaraju, and Ali play supporting roles. The film has been produced by Vyjayanthi Movies and C. Ashwini Dutt. The film was initially scheduled to release on 28 April 2008. However, it was released 12 days later. The film released on 9 May 2008. Upon release, Kantri received mixed to negative reviews and was a hit at box office

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Raghu Babu</span> Indian actor and comedian

Yerra Raghu, known professionally as Raghu Babu, is a Telugu comedian. He has worked in many successful films in Telugu industry. He is the eldest son of famous comedian and character actor Giri Babu. His native place is Ravinuthala.

<i>Souryam</i> 2008 Indian film

Souryam (transl. Bravery) is a 2008 Indian Telugu-language action film produced by V. Anand Prasad under the Bhavya Creations banner and directed by cinematographer Siva, who made his directorial debut. It stars Gopichand, Anushka Shetty, Poonam Kaur and Manoj K. Jayan along with Ajay, Ali, Dharmavarapu Subramanyam, Sudha, Tanikella Bharani and M. S. Narayana in the pivotal roles, the music was composed by Mani Sharma. The film was released theatrically on 25 September 2008.

<i>Kick</i> (2009 film) 2009 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film

Kickis a 2009 Indian Telugu-language action comedy film directed by Surender Reddy from a story by Vakkantham Vamsi. The film stars Ravi Teja, Ileana, and Shaam while Brahmanandam plays a supporting role. The film has music composed by S. Thaman. Released on 8 May 2009, the film was a commercial success.

<i>Kedi</i> (2010 film) 2010 film directed by Kiran Kumar

Kedi (transl. Conman) is a 2010 Indian Telugu-language action film written and directed by Kiran Kumar. It was produced by D. Sivaprasad Reddy, under Kamakshi Movies. It starred Nagarjuna Akkineni and Mamta Mohandas, with Ankur Vikal in the role of the antagonist. The music score was composed by Sandeep Chowtha, his fourth collaboration with Nagarjuna after Ninne Pelladutha (1996), Chandralekha (1998), and Super (2005).

Meher Ramesh, is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his works in Telugu and Kannada cinema. Some of his works include Shakti, Shadow, and Bhola Shankar.

<i>Rebel</i> (2012 film) Film by Raghava Lawrence

Rebel is a 2012 Indian Telugu-language action drama film written and directed by Raghava Lawrence. The film stars an ensemble cast featuring Prabhas, Tamannaah Bhatia, Krishnam Raju, Deeksha Seth, Mukesh Rishi, K. C. Shankar, Pradeep Rawat, Ali and Brahmanandam. It was produced by J. Bhaghawan and J. Pulla Rao under the Sri Balaji Cine Media banner. Lawrence also handled the dance choreography and soundtrack, while the background score was handled by S. Chinna.

<i>Shadow</i> (2013 film) 2013 Indian film

Shadow is a 2013 Indian Telugu language action thriller film directed by Meher Ramesh and produced by Paruchuri Kireeti on United Movies banner. The film stars Venkatesh, Srikanth, Taapsee Pannu, and Nyra Banerjee. The music was composed by S. Thaman with cinematography by Prasad Murella and editing by Marthand K. Venkatesh.

<i>Mahanandi</i> (film) 2005 Indian film

Mahanandi is a 2005 Indian Telugu-language action drama film, directed by V. Samudra, starring Sumanth, Anushka Shetty and Srihari in the Lead. The movie was released on 3 December 2005. It was a moderate success at the box office. It was dubbed into Hindi as Ek aur Mahayudh, in Tamil as Thirupachi Aruva and into Malayalam under the title Ullasam.

<i>Astram</i> (film) 2006 Indian film

Astram (transl. Weapon) is a 2006 Indian Telugu-language action crime film, directed by Suresh Krishna. The film stars Vishnu Manchu, Anushka Shetty, Jackie Shroff and Rahul Dev. It is a remake of the Hindi film Sarfarosh. The film was dubbed into Hindi as Astra - The Weapon.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Don (character)</span> Fictional character used in Don Franchise movies

Don is a fictional character in the Don film franchise. He was first introduced in the 1978 film Don. He later appears in a reboot Don and its sequel Don 2. Created by the writer duo Salim–Javed, he was portrayed by Amitabh Bachchan. In the reboot series, Don was played by Shah Rukh Khan. Ranveer Singh was cast as Don in another sequel Don 3: A New Era Begins which will serve as a reboot to the current films.

<i>Bhaagamathie</i> 2018 Indian thriller film by G. Ashok

Bhaagamathie is a 2018 Indian horror thriller film written and directed by G. Ashok. The film stars Anushka Shetty in the title role with Unni Mukundan, Jayaram, Murali Sharma, and Asha Sarath play other pivotal roles. Shot simultaneously in Telugu and Tamil, the film revolves around a former district collector imprisoned in a haunted house. At the same time, she is interrogated by law enforcers investigating a politician they suspect of corruption.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roma (character)</span> Character from Bollywood Don films

Roma is a fictional character in the Don franchise. The character was created by the screenwriters duo Salim–Javed. Roma first appeared in the 1978 film Don with Zeenat Aman portraying her and is portrayed by Priyanka Chopra in its 2006 remake and its 2011 sequel Don 2. Kiara Advani was cast as Roma in another sequel Don 3: A New Era Begins which will serve as a reboot to the current films.

References

  1. ↑ "#Birthdayspecial: Before the grand success of Baahubali, Prabhas delivered these hits". Times Now . 23 October 2017. Archived from the original on 5 June 2020. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  2. ↑ "'Billa', fourth remake of Hindi original 'Don', creates history". Zee News . 16 April 2009. Archived from the original on 21 January 2022. Retrieved 21 January 2022.
  3. ↑ "Billa". The Hindu . 4 April 2009. Archived from the original on 26 January 2022. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  4. ↑ "On Prabhas' 43rd Birthday, Billa and Varsham to Hit Theatres Again". News18. 10 September 2022. Retrieved 2 August 2024.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Chitchat with Meher Ramesh". Idlebrain.com . 2 April 2009. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  6. ↑ "Billa movie launch". Idlebrain. 10 October 2008. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  7. ↑ "Billa music launch". Idlebrain.com . 18 March 2009. Archived from the original on 20 November 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
  8. ↑ "Review: Sura's music is for Vijay fans". Rediff.com . 1 April 2010. Archived from the original on 31 July 2017. Retrieved 31 July 2017.
  9. ↑ Jeevi (3 April 2009). "Billa review - Telugu cinema review - Prabhas, Anuska, Namitha". Idlebrain. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  10. ↑ "Billa review. Billa telugu movie review". Indiaglitz. 3 April 2009. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  11. ↑ "Billa Movie review {2/5}: Critic review of Billa". Times of India. 3 April 2009. Retrieved 6 January 2023.
  12. ↑ "Billa: Same old, same old". Bangalore Mirror . 4 April 2009. Retrieved 20 October 2024.
  13. ↑ "Pan India Rebel Star Prabhas' "Billa 4K" takes a massive release in the US". The Times of India. 22 October 2022. ISSN   0971-8257 . Retrieved 2 August 2024.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.