Koose Munusamy Veerappan was an Indian poacher, smuggler, domestic terrorist and bandit who was active for 36 years, and kidnapped major politicians for ransom. He was charged with sandalwood smuggling and poaching of elephants in the scrub lands and forests in the states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. He was wanted for killing approximately 184 people, about half of whom were police officers and forest officials. He was also responsible for poaching approximately 500 of the 2000 elephants killed in the peninsular region where he was active and for smuggling ivory worth US$2.6 million and about 65 tons of sandalwood worth approximately US$22 million.
Nakkheeran Gopal is a veteran writer and journalist from Tamil Nadu, India. He is the editor and publisher of the Tamil political investigative journal Nakkheeran. He came to national fame in the 1990s when he interviewed sandalwood and ivory smuggler Veerappan, who was surviving in the forests and committing crimes on the Tamil Nadu–Karnataka border, eluding the police of the two states. Footage from his encounters with Veerappan have been used to create Koose Munisamy Veerappan.
Rohini Molleti, known professionally as Rohini, is an Indian actress, screenwriter, dubbing artist and lyricist. She has mainly acted in Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu films along with few Kannada films. Having started her acting career at five, she has about films to her credit. She received National Film Award – Special Mention and Andhra Pradesh state Nandi Special Jury Award for Best Performance as Rangi in the 1995 film Stri.
Attahasa (transl. Defiance) is a 2013 Indian Kannada-language biographical film directed by A. M. R. Ramesh, based on the notorious forest brigand Veerappan. Kishore plays the role of Veerappan in the film, whilst featuring Arjun Sarja and Suresh Oberoi. After much delay in the theatrical release the film was opened to screens on 14 February 2013 all across the southern states of India to positive reviews. The film was partially reshot in Tamil as Vana Yuddham. The film was dubbed into Telugu as Veerappan.
Operation Cocoon was an operation launched by the Special Task Force of Tamil Nadu Police to capture the forest brigand Veerappan and his associates, who were dominant in Sathyamangalam Forest in the South Indian states of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. The operation was headed by K. Vijay Kumar, and N. K. Senthamarai Kannan.
Killing Veerappan is a 2016 Indian Kannada-language biographical crime film directed by Ram Gopal Varma, who co-wrote the film with K. Balaji. The film is based on the events leading to Operation Cocoon to capture or kill Indian bandit Veerappan. Featuring Shiva Rajkumar in the central role touted to be based on N. K. Senthamarai Kannan, the then Superintendent of police, with the Indian Special Task Force, and the spy who masterminded Operation Cocoon.
Veerappan is a 2016 Indian Hindi-language biographical action crime film written and directed by Ram Gopal Varma. The film is based on the real-life Indian bandit Veerappan and the events leading to Operation Cocoon, a mission to capture and kill him. The film is a remake of the Kannada film Killing Veerappan (2016) starring Shiva Rajkumar. The film stars Sandeep Bharadwaj, Sachiin J Joshi, Lisa Ray and Usha Jadhav.
Vani Bhojan is an Indian actress, who predominantly appears in Tamil and Telugu films. She made her Telugu film debut with Meeku Maathrame Cheptha in 2019 and her Tamil film debut with Oh My Kadavule in 2020.
Aha is an Indian over-the-top streaming service which offers Telugu and Tamil-language content. It is owned by Arha Media & Broadcasting Private Limited, a joint venture between Geetha Arts and My Home Group. The service was soft launched on 25 January 2020 and launched officially on 25 March 2020, coinciding with Ugadi, the Telugu New Year.
Gaalivaana (transl. Storm) is a 2022 Indian Telugu-language mystery crime-thriller web series directed by Sharan Koppisetty with the story adapted and written by Chandra Pemmaraju. Produced by BBC Studios in association with Northstar Entertainment, the series has an ensemble cast of Radhika Sarathkumar, Sai Kumar, Chandini Chowdary, Nandini Rai, Chaitanya Krishna, Thagubothu Ramesh, Sharanya Pradeep and Ashritha Vemuganti.
Maa Neella Tank is a 2022 Indian Telugu-language comedy-drama streaming television series directed by Lakshmi Sowjanya and produced by Praveen Kolla. It stars Sushanth, Priya Anand, and Sudharshan. Maa Neella Tank premiered on ZEE5 on 15 July 2022.
Aha Naa Pellanta is a 2022 Indian Telugu-language streaming television series directed by Sanjeev Reddy and produced by Surya Rahul Tamada under the Tamada Media banner. It stars Raj Tarun and Shivani Rajashekhar in lead roles, while Aamani, Harsha Vardhan, and Getup Srinu in supporting roles. Set in the backdrop of Rajamundry, the series is a comical narrative of a groom, isolated by the bride on their wedding day. The series was released on ZEE5 on 17 November 2022.
Oru Kodai Murder Mystery is a thrilling whodunit directed by Vishal Venkat, known for his work on Sila Nerangalil Sila Manidhargal. Produced by Fazila Allana-Kamna Menezes under Sol Production, the series stars an ensemble cast including Abhirami, Akash, Aishwarya,Nikhil Nair,Raghav, John, Namrita, Abitha, Frankin, and Sylvan in pivotal roles. The series premiered on ZEE5 on 21 April 2023.
The Hunt for Veerappan is a 2023 Indian English-language True Crime docuseries by Netflix. Directed by Selvamani Selvaraj and produced by Apoorva Bakshi and Monisha Thyagarajan, the four-part series will explore the untold and unheard stories behind the dreaded Indian bandit turned domestic terrorist Veerappan.
Dhahanam is a 2022 Telugu language streaming television series written by Kalyan Raghav, produced by Ram Gopal Varma and directed by Agasthya Manju. It stars Abhishek Duhan, Ashwat Kanth, Abhilash Chaudhary, Isha Koppikar, Kancharapalem Kishore, Naina Ganguly, Parvathy Arun, Pradeep Rawat and others.
Thalaimai Seyalagam is 2024 Indian Tamil-language political thriller streaming television series written and directed by Vasanthabalan for ZEE5. The show revolves around an immersive experience into the cutthroat world of Tamil Nadu politics. The show is produced by Radhika Sarathkumar and R. Sarathkumar under the banner of Radaan Mediaworks.
Paruvu (transl. Honour) is an Indian Telugu-language crime thriller streaming television series written by Siddharth Naidu who have co-directed with Rajashekar Vadlapati. Produced by L. S. Vishnu Prasad and Susmitha Konidela through Gold Box Entertainment, Pavan Sadineni worked as additional dialogue writer and, additional screenwriter along with Hussai Sha Kiran Satyavolu and Bharan Kumar Dandamudi, for the latter.
