Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Based in Film Nagar, Hyderabad, Telugu cinema is the largest film industry in India by box-office revenue as of 2021. Telugu films sold 23.3 crore tickets in 2022, the highest among all Indian film industries. As of 2023, Andhra Pradesh has the highest number of movie screens in India.
V. V. Vinayak is an Indian film director and screenwriter known for his works in Telugu films. He is known for directing action comedy and masala films.
Chandra Sekhar Yeleti is an Indian film director known for his works in Telugu cinema. He made his directorial debut with the Neo-noir crime film, Aithe, which received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu, and the Nandi Award for Best Story for that year. Another neo-noir film Anukokunda Oka Roju garnered two State Nandi Awards, including Best Screenplay for Yeleti.
Paruchuri Venkateswara Rao (born 21 June 1944) and Paruchuri Gopala Krishna, collectively referred to as the Paruchuri Brothers, are a screenwriting duo whose work is predominant as story writers, dialogue writers, actors, directors, poets, playwrights, and novelists in the Indian Telugu film industry.
The Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor – 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 South Filmfare Awards in 2002, with Prakash Raj being the first recipient.
Gadde Rajendra Prasad is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Telugu films. He is a recipient of four Andhra Pradesh state Nandi Awards, three SIIMA Awards, and three Santosham Film Awards.
Sharwanand Myneni, known mononymously as Sharwanand, is an Indian actor and producer who primarily works in Telugu films alongside a few Tamil films. He made his acting debut in 2004 with the film Aidho Tareekhu.He is the grandson of Myneni Hariprasada Rao.
Kota Srinivasa Rao is an Indian character actor known for his work primarily in Telugu cinema and Telugu theatre. He has also starred in a few films in Tamil, Hindi, Kannada and Malayalam. As a former politician, Rao has served as the MLA from Vijayawada East in Andhra Pradesh, India from 1999 to 2004. He made his debut with the Telugu film Pranam Khareedu in 1978. He starred in over 750 feature films. He has received nine state Nandi Awards in various categories of villain, character actor, and supporting actor. In 2012, he has garnered the SIIMA Award for his work in Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum. In 2015, he received India's fourth highest civilian honour Padma Shri for his contribution to Indian cinema.
Chandamama is a 2007 Indian Telugu film. It was directed by Krishna Vamsi, and it was produced by C. Kalyan and S. Vijayanand. The film stars Navdeep, Kajal Aggarwal, Siva Balaji, and Sindhu Menon, while Nagababu, Satyam Rajesh, and Ahuti Prasad play supporting roles. The musical score is provided by K. M. Radha Krishnan and the base story by Akula Venkat. The film was released on 6 September 2007 to highly positive reviews and also garnered five Nandi Awards. The film was remade in Tamil as A Aa E Ee (2009) and in Kannada as Chellidaru Sampigeya (2009).
Aa Naluguru is a 2004 Indian Telugu-language drama film directed by Chandra Siddhartha. The film stars Rajendra Prasad and Aamani with music composed by R. P. Patnaik. It is produced by Sarita Patra and presented by P. Prem Kumar. The film won three Nandi Awards. The film was later remade in Kannada in 2006 as Sirivantha.
Adurthi Subba Rao was an Indian film director, screenwriter, producer, and editor, primarily recognized for his contributions to Telugu cinema, with a few works in Hindi and Tamil cinema. In an era dominated by mythological and fantasy genres, Subba Rao was a trailblazer in introducing social dramas and contemporary narratives to Telugu cinema. Over his career, he won seven National Film Awards and three Nandi Awards.
Pratighatana (transl. Resistance) is a 1985 Indian Telugu-language action drama film written and directed by T. Krishna. The film is produced by Ramoji Rao under Ushakiran Movies. The plot follows a woman's fight against corruption and criminalization of politics in India. The film stars Vijayshanti alongside Chandra Mohan, Kota Srinivasa Rao, Sai Kumar, P. L. Narayana, Charan Raj, Suthi Velu, Rajasekhar, Narra Venkateswara Rao, and Y. Vijaya who appear in supporting roles. Music is composed by K. Chakravarthy.
Aithe... is a 2003 Indian Telugu-language thriller film written and directed by Chandra Sekhar Yeleti, and produced by Gangaraju Gunnam under his studio Just Yellow. It stars several debutants including Mohit Chadda, Shashank, Abhishek, Janardhan, and Sindhu Tolani, while Pavan Malhotra plays a pivotal role. The film deals with underworld criminal nexus and hijacking. The film was shot simultaneously in Hindi as 50 Lakh (2007).
Balabhadrapatruni Ramani is an Indian litterateur, novelist, playwright, screenwriter, dialogue writer, and film critic, known for her works in Telugu theatre, Telugu cinema, Television, and Radio. She has served as a Jury Member for Southern Region II at the 66th National Film Awards.
Amanchi Venkata Subrahmanyam, better known and credited by his initials AVS, was an Indian actor, comedian, producer, director, and journalist known for his works in Telugu cinema. A.V.S. was known particularly for his comic dialogue delivery, and expressions. He starred in over five hundred feature films and has garnered four state Nandi Awards, including Best Comedian, and Best character actor.
Show is a 2002 Indian Telugu-language experimental film written and directed by Neelakanta, starring Manjula Ghattamaneni and Surya. The film won National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu and was premiered in the Indian Panorama section at the International Film Festival of India. Neelakanta received National Film Award for Best Screenplay for the film. The film also won three Nandi Awards.
Andari Bandhuvaya is a 2010 Telugu-language film. It received Akkineni Award for best home-viewing feature film for the year 2010. It was directed by Chandra Siddartha. The story and dialogues was written by popular Telugu novelist Balabhadrapatruni Ramani. It is a low budget movie which did well overseas. At box office it couldn't get good collections initially but it met slow success. It was dubbed into Tamil as Gokulam (2012). It was dubbed into Hindi as "Danveer 2".
Kolluru Chidambara Rao, known professionally as Kallu Chidambaram, was an Indian actor known for his works in Telugu cinema. Chidambaram is one of the finest comedians of Telugu cinema. Chidambaram started his career as a theatre artist while working as an Assistant Engineer in Visakhapatnam Port Trust. He made his film debut in 1988 with Kallu from which acquired his stage name. He had garnered the state Nandi Special Jury Award for the film.
Relangi Narasimha Rao is an Indian film director and screenwriter who predominantly works in Telugu cinema. He is well known for his comedy films, especially his collaborations with actors Chandra Mohan and Rajendra Prasad. His notable films include Gundammagari Krishnulu (1987), Dabbevariki Chedu (1987), Samsaram (1988), Chinnodu Peddodu (1988), Mama Alludu (1990), Police Bharya (1990), Iddaru Pellala Muddula Police (1991), Edurinti Mogudu Pakkinti Pellam (1991).
Nirantharam – The Incessant is a 1995 Telugu drama film, written and directed by C. Rajendra Prasad.
