Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava

Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava
Theatrical release poster
Directed by	Trivikram Srinivas
Written by	Trivikram Srinivas
Produced by	S. Radha Krishna
Starring	N. T. Rama Rao Jr. Pooja Hegde Eesha Rebba Jagapathi Babu
Cinematography	P. S. Vinod
Edited by	Naveen Nooli
Music by	S. Thaman[1]
Production company	Haarika & Hassine Creations
Release date	11 October 2018 (2018-10-11)[2]
Running time	162 minutes[3]
Country	India
Language	Telugu
Box office	est. ₹165 crore[4]

Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (transl. Veera Raghava along with Aravinda) is a 2018 Indian Telugu-language action drama film^[3][5] written and directed by Trivikram Srinivas, and produced by S. Radha Krishna on Haarika & Hassine Creations banner. The film stars N. T. Rama Rao Jr., Pooja Hegde, Eesha Rebba, and Jagapathi Babu while Sunil, Naveen Chandra, and Supriya Pathak playing supporting roles. The film features score and soundtrack composed by S. Thaman.

The film revolves around a young man whose life changes after engaging in a violent fight with henchmen from the rival village. He escapes to Hyderabad and decides to stay away from violence in order to bring peace between the two villages whose people have been constantly affected by the feud for 30 years.

The film was released theatrically on 11 October 2018. Following the positive critical reception, it became a commercial success.^[6]

Plot[]

A 30-year-long war between two rival organised crime groups from two villages—Kommaddi led by Narappa Reddy, and Nallagudi led by Basi Reddy—has been affecting the lives of people from both gangs. Narappa Reddy's son Veera Raghava Reddy, who was in London for 12 years, returns to the village. On his way home, he ends up losing his father in an attack by the opposition, following which he undergoes a violent transformation. He participates in the fight, murders Basi Reddy's gangsters, and stabs the latter himself, and everyone believes he has been murdered. Upon realizing that violence might not be the ultimate solution, he decides to leave for Hyderabad, hoping that the fights will reduce as the opposition will not have anyone to fight with. He goes to Hyderabad, befriends Neelambari, and circumstances force him into living with two women, Aravinda and Sunanda's family. Aravinda influences his beliefs and thoughts, and falls in love with Veera Raghava. Meanwhile, Basi Reddy is found alive, and orders his gang, headed by his son, Bala Reddy, to chase Veera Raghava.

Meanwhile, Veera Raghava helps Aravinda and Sunanda's younger brother, a schoolboy, in writing a story about violence, which is inspired by his own life. The story eventually gets published and seen by Basi Reddy, who realizes it to be similar to the life of Veera Raghava. Basi Reddy orders his henchmen to kidnap Aravinda and Sunanda's brother from his school. The henchmen attempt to kidnap Aravinda and Sunanda's brother but are stopped by Veera Raghava, who fights them off while making sure no one gets killed. He eventually learns from one of the gangsters that Basi Reddy is alive. Soon, Aravinda is kidnapped by Bala Reddy but rescued by Veera Raghava who threatens him on the phone. Later, he explains his past to Aravinda and Sunanda then he leaves for his village. Aravinda is intrigued and accompanied by Neelambari to Veera Raghava's village. They film a documentary about people affected by the corruption caused by the organised crime groups, while Veera Raghava attends a meeting with Bala Reddy and some ministers. He tries to convince them to stop fighting, but eventually fights off the henchmen when Basi Reddy's son refuses to comply. Veera Raghava manages to emotionally convince him for the peace treaty, following which Basi Reddy murders Bala Reddy. Aravinda and Neelambari, who were staying at Basi Reddy's house since their car broke down, learn his truth and are held hostage.

Veera Raghava is contacted by Basi Reddy, who calls him to an open field. Basi Reddy slashes Aravinda's arm, stabs Neelambari, and attempts to fight Veera Raghava, who keeps dodging in an attempt to not start another fight. Basi Reddy tells him he killed Bala Reddy, and now no one would stand for peace but is shocked when his gangsters, who have had a change of heart listening to Veera Raghava's words, take Aravinda and Neelambari to the hospital despite being threatened. Enraged by the death of Bala Reddy, who was his only ray of hope, Veera Raghava murders Basi Reddy using a knife and sets him on fire so that no one can learn about his murder.

Veera Raghava confesses to Basi Reddy's wife that he has murdered Basi Reddy. The latter, who is heartbroken at her own son's death at her husband's hand, washes the weapon and takes Veera Raghava to the village. She files a complaint with the earlier corrupt police that her husband murdered her son and escaped, thereby ending the fight in the village. Veera Raghava nominates her as an MLA, which she wins unanimously.

Cast[]

Production[]

Development[]

The discussion for this film began with NTR, when Rao was shooting Nannaku Prematho in 2015 and finally materialised in 2018.^[7]

Cast and crew[]

Pooja Hegde was selected to collaborate with Rao. for the first time,^[8] Anirudh Ravichander, who was initially signed on composing the music was replaced by S. Thaman after the failure of Agnyaathavaasi.^[9]

Filming[]

The shooting for the film began on 6 April 2018 with an action sequence.^[10]

Themes[]

Aravinda Sametha is based on the factionalism present in the region of Rayalaseema, a theme which was dominant in Telugu cinema during late 1990s and early 2000s.^[11]

"In most of the films based on Rayalaseema factionalism, only the act of violence was glorified; however, none of those films focused on the aftermath of a war. Both Jr NTR and I became interested in starting our story with a bloody act of war to give the film a context and then explore how the protagonist shuns that path to bring peace. Later, when I came up with the idea of focusing on the lives of women and how families are torn apart due to such violence, it gave us a lot more depth to explore."

— Trivikram Srinivas, on why he chose such genre.^[11]

Soundtrack[]

The soundtrack album of Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava features four songs composed by S. Thaman, with one song being added in the extended soundtrack of the film.^[12] The audio rights were of the film were purchased by Zee Music Company. Lyrics for the songs were written by Sirivennela Seetharama Sastry, Ramajogayya Sastry, and Penchal Das. Initially, the makers planned to release the full audio album directly into the market, without hosting any audio launch event for the film.^[13]

The complete soundtrack album is scheduled to be unveiled on mid-September, without launching any singles from the film. However, the lyric video of the first single track titled "Anaganaganaga" was released on 15 September 2018, and the song was unveiled in all streaming platforms the same day.^[14] On 18 September 2018, the makers unveiled the second single track titled "Penivitti" sung by Kaala Bhairava, which was termed as an intense, raw, rustic number.^[15] The lyrical video of Yeda Poyinadu was released on 25 September 2018.

The tracklist was unveiled on 19 September 2018, and the complete soundtrack album was unveiled the following day, on 20 September 2018.^[16] The makers released the lyric videos and the promos of the songs before the film's release.

S. Thaman's work received praise from critics. Neetishta Nyayapati from The Times of India, stated it as "Despite featuring only four numbers, the jukebox of Aravindha Sametha sets itself apart with its authenticity. However, while the earthiness of the theme comes through the vocals and lyrics, it's missing in Thaman's music. Give this one a chance this weekend; you might just end up falling in love with the Seema dialect."^[17] 123Telugu reviewed it as, "There was a lot of expectation from Thaman as he was teaming up with Trivikram for the first time. But it looks like the ace composer has given importance to the emotions in the film rather than churning out commercial numbers. Peniviti and Anaganaganaga will be chartbusters and are our picks. Finally, the album of Aravinda Sametha is not your regular song and dance album and has been composed to gel with the narrative. It will grow on you slowly after watching the film on the big screen."^[18] Indiaglitz rated 3 out of 5 stars, and summarised it as "With just four songs, the album features two mood-based and two generic numbers."^[19] Cinejosh summarised it as "All in all, Aravinda Sametha weaves out a melodious album fitting in all the elements for an NTR and Trivikram combo film!"^[20]

Track listing[]

Extended soundtrack[]

Though the album features four songs, a bonus track titled "Reddamma Thalli" sung by Penchal Das, and written by Ramajogayya Sastry, was released on 16 October 2018. The extended soundtrack, which contains the bonus track and complete background score, was released on 18 October 2018.^[21] In the album, the bonus song, consists of two versions; one of them is the original version sung by Mohana Bhogaraju. The other one sung by Penchal Das is the cover version of the song.

Marketing[]

On 19 May 2018, the title of the film was revealed as Aravinda Sametha.^[22] Jr. NTR was featured in a chiseled avatar who worked out extensively with international trainer Lloyd Stevens for his new look for the film.^[23] Also S. Thaman's background music in the motion poster was appreciated by fans.^[24] The promotions of the film were commence on 10 September 2018.^[25]

A pre-release event was held on 2 October 2018, at H.I.C.C. Novotel hotel in Hyderabad, where the makers also launched the theatrical trailer of the film.^[26] The trailer received predominantly positive response from all corners.^[27]

Critical reception[]

The Times of India gave 3.5 out of 5 stars stating, "An emotional drama camouflaged in a commercial exterior, here's a film that's courageous to stand apart from slapstick madness. Trivikram's treatment of this plot scores over his indulgence as Jr NTR delivers another fine performance".^[28]

India Today gave 3 out of 5 stars stating, "Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava is a commercial actioner backed by Trivikram's engaging script and Jr NTR's excellent performance. After the debacle of Pawan Kalyan-starrer Agnyaathavaasi, director Trivikram Srinivas has bounced back with Jr NTR's Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava".^[29]

News18 gave 3 out of 5 stars stating "Jr NTR Elevates Tried, Tested Story of Factionalism".^[30]

Hindustan Times gave 3 out of 5 stars stating "Jr NTR is the torchbearer of peace in a film on factionalism".^[31]

Awards and nominations[]

References[]

External links[]

Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava at IMDb