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Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari
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Wikipedia article
'Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari' is a 1990 Indian Telugu-language fantasy film directed by K. Raghavendra Rao who co-wrote the script with Jandhyala and Yandamuri Veerendranath. The film stars Chiranjeevi and Sridevi while Amrish Puri, Kannada Prabhakar, Allu Ramalingaiah and Rami Reddy play supporting roles. The film is produced by C. Aswani Dutt on Vyjayanthi Movies banner. The plot revolves around a man who finds a ring that gives the bearer great power, but the goddess who lost the ring seeks it back to return to her world.
'Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari' was theatrically released on May 9, 1990. The film upon release was a massive success, grossing 15 crore at the box office and becoming the highest grossing Telugu film in history at the time. It is regarded as a cult classic of Telugu cinema. The film won five state Nandi Awards.
Plot
Raju, a courageous and spirited young man, is a caregiver to four young orphans. He is a tourist guide in a picturesque hill station. One of the children is accidentally injured. An ayurvedic guru suggests the only cure for the child's injury - herbs found only on the banks of Lake Manasarovar. Raju goes to the Himalayas to retrieve these powerful herbs. During the same time, a celestial being, Indraja, the daughter of Lord Indra, happens to visit Manasarovar. She accidentally drops her ring there. This ring is her passport to Heaven. Raju finds the ring and starts wearing it, oblivious to its divine power. Indraja is unable to enter Heaven as she lost her ring. Brihaspathi, the Deva-guru, instructs her to go back to Earth to retrieve it before the next Kartik Poornima.
In search of the ring, Indraja finds her way to Raju's hometown. Due to her strange language and lack of emotional and social awareness, she is initially considered insane. Her umpteen confessions about her divinity are subject to laughter. Raju and the children take pity on her and provide her shelter in their home. She becomes close to the children and often ends up in trouble trying to take the ring from Raju.
In the meanwhile, Raju is caught up in a moral squabble with KP, an arrogant millionaire. KP's goons launch a series of attacks on Raju and Indraja. Raju overcomes them, unaware that the ring is helping him. KP gets suspicious about Raju's supernatural power. KP approaches Mahadrashta, a sorcerer who sacrifices women to attain his powers. Mahadrashta discovers that Indraja is a celestial being and wants to sacrifice her to become immortal.
The kids take Indraja on a car ride one day, and the car loses control. Raju averts a major accident and blames and abandons Indraja. The youngest of the orphans is critically injured when Mahadrashta's men bomb the school. When everyone's asleep, Indraja puts on the divine ring and saves the child. Raju realises Indraja's true self and repents for his folly. The two realize that they have fallen in love.
Raju uses the ring's power to scare K. P. and his goons. During this time, Mahadrashta tries to acquire it from one of the kids by hypnotizing her. A monkey grabs the ring and carries it far away, dropping it in the bowl of Kumkuma at the feet of a statue of Hanuman. Raju and the kids search for the ring in vain.
Mahadrashta and his men plant false evidence in Raju's home to fabricate the lie that Indraja is a sorceress. Raju and Indraja are pelted with stones, and Indraja is carried away by Mahadrashta. The kids discover the ring, and Raju sets out to save Indraja. A hypnotized Indraja does not recognize or respond to their calls. Upon coming in contact with the ring, she comes to her senses and destroys K. P. and his men. Raju kills Mahadrashta, refusing to use the ring, as he believes human power is enough to defeat evil.
The very same evening is Kartik Poornima, the final call for Indraja to return to heaven. Her thoughts are flooded with the loving memories of her time with Raju and the kids. She is caught between her love for Raju and her obligation to return to heaven to remain divine and immortal. Indraja throws away her ring and chooses to go back to Raju to lead a mortal life.
Cast
* Chiranjeevi as Raju, a hill station tour guide
* Sridevi as Indraja, the daughter of Lord Indra who hails from the celestial realm of Indraloka
* Amrish Puri as Mahadrashtha, a sorcerer who practices black magic
* Kannada Prabhakar as KP
* Allu Ramalingaiah as Ganga Jalam
* Rami Reddy as Abbulu
* Tanikella Bharani as Dasu
* Brahmanandam as Vichitra Kumar
* Prasad Babu as Narada
* Janagaraj as the police inspector
* Sangeeta as Teacher
* Master Richard as Orphan
* Baby Shalini as Orphan
* Baby Shamili as Orphan
* P. J. Sharma as Sage
* R. S. Shivaji as Malokam
* Crazy Mohan
Production
Writer Srinivas Chakravati shared the idea of a story with Rao, where the daughter of Indra who comes to the Earth loses her ring without which she cannot return. Rao, upon liking the story, developed it with other seasoned writers.
The film marked the first collaboration between frequent collaborators, Dutt and Chiranjeevi. A massive set was raised at Vijaya Vauhini Studios for the film, which producer Dutt claimed "perhaps the biggest set ever for a Telugu film, after 'Prema Nagar'."
This is the third time Chiranjeevi and Sridevi paired in a film and the first to be as a mainstream onscreen pair.
Reception
The film had 100-day runs in a number of theaters and a 200-day run in one centre,[http://www.cinegoer.com/chiru175.htm CineGoer.com Box-Office Records and Collections Chiranjeevi's 175-Day Centres List] it collected over more than 11 crore at the box office and broke it all the records which were set up by past movies and became a blockbuster. This film's box office performance was undeterred by the floods raging then united Andhra Pradesh.
The film was subsequently dubbed in Tamil as 'Kaadhal Devathai', in Hindi as 'Aadmi Aur Apsara' and in Malayalam as 'Hai Sundhari'.
Soundtrack
The soundtrack was composed by Ilaiyaraaja and all songs are written by Veturi. "Yamaho" was a remake from Ilaiyaraaja's own "Madurai Marikozhundhu" from the Tamil movie 'Enga Ooru Pattukaran' (1987). The song "Abbanee Teeyani" went on to be reused in Hindi as "Dhak Dhak Karne Laga" in the film 'Beta' (1992). The Music Rights of the film were acquired by Aditya Music. The film's songs composed by Ilaiyaraaja were instant chartbusters.
; Telugu (original) tracklist
; Hindi (dubbed) ('Aadmi Aur Apsara') tracklist
Awards
;Filmfare Awards South
* Filmfare Award for Best Director Telugu K. Raghavendra Rao (1990)
;Nandi Awards(in Telugu)
* Best Music Director Ilaiyaraaja
* Best Audiographer - A. R. Swaminadhan
* Best Costume Designer - M. Krishna
* Best Art Director - B. Chalam
* Best Choreographer - Sundaram Master
Sequel
In May 2020, producer Dutt stated that a sequel is already on the cards, which would be about the offspring of Indraja and Raju. Over speculations that Ram Charan and Janhvi Kapoor (son and daughter of Chiranjeevi and Sridevi respectively) are being considered, Dutt responded by saying, "it'll be wonderful if it can happen."
References
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