Ram Charan is one of those few actors who in a very short span of time has seen massive success at box office a number of times. He scored an Industry Hit with his very second movie, Magadheera. Similarly, Sukumar also gave super hit Arya with his very first endeavour. Rangasthalam is a by-product of what happens when an actor with tremendous mass appeal and a director with a unique vision come together.
Backdrop
After Dhruva, which was a decent success, Charan was looking for something big. Similarly, Sukumar also had just tasted success with Nannaku Prematho. Sukumar’s last two films Nannaku Prematho and 1 Nenokkadine were both shot on foreign backdrop and he felt it was time for a change. Probably in an attempt to attract mass audience to the movie did Sukumar conceive the idea of a film with a village backdrop. While this was a safe option, the idea of the protagonist being a deaf person along with the movie being set in the 1980s were considered as risk factors. However, Ram Charan’s career-best performance and Sukumar’s brilliant screenplay paved way for an Industry hit.
Once the movie went on floor, the released stills, songs, and visuals of the sets all created great buzz for the film. Charan’s de-glam look and rugged appeal of the film created great expectations for this first collaboration between Sukumar and Charan.
Release & Reception
Rangasthalam released worldwide on 30th March amidst great hype and it was able to create positive noise right from the premieres and initial shows. The word of mouth was positive all over. Every review had the same thing to say- Sukumar and Charan have given a mass blockbuster with a great portrayal of the 80s. The audience were immensely curious to see how Ram Charan would pan out as an actor were thoroughly impressed. His Chittibabu act was on another level altogether and Ram Charan as a hearing-impaired village mechanic gave his career-best here.
The movie indeed transported the audience back in time and the family audience connected big time with this village action drama. Rangasthalam had something for everyone; exciting action episodes, light-hearted scenes in the first half, and peppy music by Devi Sri Prasad. And of course who could forget that climax twist that elevated the cinematic experience further.
Box Office
Rangasthalam opened to great numbers and shook the box office from day one. It shattered a number of existing box office records both domestic and overseas. The film recovered its pre- release business by collecting Rs 80 crore share within the first week creating Non-Bahubali records. By the end of second week, the film stood as a Non Bahubali IH in Tollywood and closed at Rs 120 crores + share. Rangasthalam stood as the second Industry Hit for Charan and first for Sukumar. Charan once again proved his box office stamina after a line of dull movies. Sukumar established himself as one of top most directors and proved that content filled movies can also shatter box office records.
Performances
To start with performances, a special mention must go to production design and art direction teams which transported all to the 80s quite effortlessly. Ramakrishna and Mounika who earlier worked on Jyo Achyutananda were selected to repeat their performance in art direction here. Interestingly, in Jyo Achytananda as well the duo took us a few years in the past with the simple house set up. This impressed Sukumar a lot and he chose them for creating the world of Rangasthalam. The cinematography by R Rathnavelu added brilliant raw colours to the movie and enhanced the cinematic experience. Devi Sri Prasad was another pillar in the movie’s success and provided time-appropriate tunes and folk music to suit the village backdrop.
Coming to the cast of the film, Aadhi Pinissetty was a total revelation in the movie and gave a performance to remember. His portrayal of Kumar Babu, Chitti Babu’s elder brother who aims to bring revolution in the village was brilliant and won him great accolades. Jagapathy Babu as always impressed with his negative act and totally convinced the viewers with his Phanindra Bhupathi, a village landlord, and President. Samantha, who was playing such a de-glam role for the first time fit the bill perfectly and provided an ideal companion for Chittibabu. Ramalakshmi definitely would be a role that she can be proud of.
Anasuya was another surprising act in the movie and gave her career-best portrayal as Rangamattha. Prakash Raj’s layered character gave him enough scope for performance and as always he didn’t disappoint. Mahesh was also seen in the meatiest role of his career and played a perfect sidekick to Chittibabu. Similarly, Naresh, Ajay Ghosh, Rohini among others played their role quite convincingly and contributed hugely to the film’s success. The perfect casting and impeccable vision of Sukumar made Rangasthalam into what it is today.
Rangasthalam, today, has occupied a place in the hearts of all the movie lovers. It has turned out to be a milestone in Telugu cinema BO-wise and Content-wise.
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